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12 September, 2000The Belarus Automobile and Agricultural Machinery Workers' Union is not influenced by government attempts to sway Congress elections.
BELARUS: Minsk was the venue on September 6-7, 2000, for the all-important Third Congress of the Belarus Automobile and Agricultural Machinery Workers' Union (BAAMWU), an affiliate of the International Metalworkers' Federation.
Present from the first minute to the last of the two-day congress was the Belarus minister of industry as well as other government officials. It soon became clear that via speeches of the minister and management representatives of very big Belarus companies that authorities were attempting to influence the outcome of the congress election for the presidency of the BAAMWU and get their man, called Kartsev, who is the vice director of the Minsk Tractor Plant, elected. But delegates were not intimidated, and Aliaksandr Bukhvostau, the incumbent president, was reelected to lead the union. "We think it is another victory in the struggle of the trade union movement for the democratisation of Belarussian society and proof of the reinforcement of all metalworkers' unions," declared the BAAMWU.
In a message to the BAAMWU Congress, the IMF general secretary, Marcello Malentacchi, said: "the IMF strongly supports your struggle for a democratic union organisation and democracy in Belarus. For this reason, we protest against any government interference in internal affairs of the union and especially in the election of the union's leadership."
It is important to note that at the last meeting of the IMF Central Committee, in Birmingham in June, Bukhvostau was elected as an observer to represent East European affiliates on the IMF Executive Committee.
Among guests attending the Congress were representatives of the Belarussian Trade Union Federation, the IMF, the German metalworkers' union IG Metall, the Swedish Metalworkers' Union, the ILO, TIE, the social attaché of the German Embassy in Russia, representatives of the trade unions of Russia and Ukraine and International Unity of Trade Unions for CIS Countries.
Present from the first minute to the last of the two-day congress was the Belarus minister of industry as well as other government officials. It soon became clear that via speeches of the minister and management representatives of very big Belarus companies that authorities were attempting to influence the outcome of the congress election for the presidency of the BAAMWU and get their man, called Kartsev, who is the vice director of the Minsk Tractor Plant, elected. But delegates were not intimidated, and Aliaksandr Bukhvostau, the incumbent president, was reelected to lead the union. "We think it is another victory in the struggle of the trade union movement for the democratisation of Belarussian society and proof of the reinforcement of all metalworkers' unions," declared the BAAMWU.
In a message to the BAAMWU Congress, the IMF general secretary, Marcello Malentacchi, said: "the IMF strongly supports your struggle for a democratic union organisation and democracy in Belarus. For this reason, we protest against any government interference in internal affairs of the union and especially in the election of the union's leadership."
It is important to note that at the last meeting of the IMF Central Committee, in Birmingham in June, Bukhvostau was elected as an observer to represent East European affiliates on the IMF Executive Committee.
Among guests attending the Congress were representatives of the Belarussian Trade Union Federation, the IMF, the German metalworkers' union IG Metall, the Swedish Metalworkers' Union, the ILO, TIE, the social attaché of the German Embassy in Russia, representatives of the trade unions of Russia and Ukraine and International Unity of Trade Unions for CIS Countries.