Read this article in:
24 November, 2007
The International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers’ Unions (ICEM) concluded its 4th World Congress today, 24 November, in Bangkok, Thailand, with sharply worded motions calling for economic sanctions against the military regime in Burma, and on establishment of trade union rights in Iraq. The Iraq resolution also called for the earliest possible withdrawal of occupational military forces from the Middle Eastern country.
A total of 840 trade union leaders from 176 global ICEM affiliates, representing 75 countries, attended the three-day Congress.
The final day was marked by impassioned speeches from the General Secretary of the exiled Federation of Trade Unions of Burma (FTUB) and from central leaders of the Iraqi Federation of Oil Unions (IFOU), a collection of ten oil workers’ union in southern Iraq, and from the Kurdistan General Workers’ Syndicate of Unions (KGWSU).
FTUB General Secretary Maung Maung at the ICEM Congress
Opening the last day’s session was Maung Maung, General Secretary of the FTUB. He said the recent street protests in Burma are not over and Burmese people will carry their struggle for liberation and national democracy to the end. “Economic sanctions and international pressure do hurt this regime,” Maung said, urging as much international pressure as possible because “the regime is cracking.”
The ICEM’s motion calls on all global unions to “exert their influence” and “to approach their governments so that the international community can jointly pressurize the military regime to restore democracy.”
Two key speakers from the oil and gas sector rose to support the motion. Gary Beevers, a Vice President and Oil Bargaining Chairman for the United Steelworkers in the United States, said his union has taken action against US-based Chevron for its gas dealings with the regime.
And Marc Blanc, of the French trade union FCE-CFDT, announced that his union federation – together with four other French trade unions – will host the FTUB in Paris on December 20. The meeting will center on Total’s activities in Burma, and will occur in conjunction with the Executive Committee of Total’s European Works Council.
On the Iraq motion, Hassan Juma’a Awad al Assadi of the IFTU told delegates the US administration of George Bush came to Iraq with a Hydrocarbons Law that “would steal our oil reserves.”
“The Iraqi people are the only ones who should decide and control their oil wealth,” he said. He also called upon the current Iraqi government and the International Labour Organisation (ILO) to expedite legislation inside Iraq called the Labour and Social Security Law, which would secure legitimate labour rights for all Iraqi workers.
Siddeeq Ramadhan of the KGWSU told delegates that Kurdistan is a “devoted part of Iraq” with a desire to live in peace with Iraq’s neighbours.
The ICEM’s final session also passed a motion on installing more safety measures in the mining secure, and called for governments to pass ILO Convention 176 on Safety and Health in Mines. The ICEM also passed a motion support the International Trade Union Confederation’s (ITUC) Decent Work Initiative.