Yonca tries to intimidate strikers

TURKEY: In latest developments concerning the strike at the Yonca shipyard in Tuzla/Istanbul, it appears that the shipbuilding company and the Turkish state have joined forces in an attempt to break the strike through intimidation of the workers and their trade union, Limter-Is. The union informed the IMF that on May 16, the Turkish central security forces and gendarmerie raided their headquarters, arrested the Limter-Is president, Kazim Bakis, and searched his home. Later, on the same day, the union's deputy-president, Hakki Demiral, the general secretary, Haci Yapici, and five of the strikers were arrested in their homes. To condemn such pressure against the strike, the trade union confederation DISK and a number of its affiliates staged a protest demonstration on May 18, with the result that on the following day another trade union officer from Limter-Is, plus four more strikers were arrested. All those detained have now been released. Limter-Is had resolved to take strike action in late April following Yonca's refusal for more than two years to recognise the union's organising and bargaining rights at the shipyard, even though the courts have ruled in favour of the union. (See associated link for background information on the strike.) In another recent, dramatic incident at the shipyard, two workers lost their lives due to the failure on the part of the employer to ensure that all necessary safety measures had been taken.