>From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] >Subject: Open World Conference, San Francisco, Febr 11 - 13 > >Subject: > cj#1070> David Lewit reports: Open World Conference, San >Francisco > Date: > Wed, 8 Mar 2000 09:03:28 +0000 > From: > "Richard K. Moore" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Reply-To: > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > To: > [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > > > >Dear cj, > >Many thanks to David for writing up his impressions of the recent OWC >conference. OWC was scheduled long before the events in Seattle, but >when labor & environmental activists found common cause in the Seattle >protests, the upcoming OWC was seen as an opportunity to build on that >budding solidarity. Environmentlists and others signed up for OWC and >it became a wider conference than originally envisioned. > >in unity there is strength, >rkm > >============================================================================ > >Date: Tue, 7 Mar 2000 22:27:09 -0500 (EST) >X-Sender: [EMAIL PROTECTED] >Mime-Version: 1.0 >To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] >From: David Lewit <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >Subject: Open World Conference, San Francisco >Cc: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > >INDEPENDENT LABOR FIGHTS BACK >"Open World Conference" of Workers >in Defense of Trade Union Independence and Democratic Rights, >San Francisco, Feb 11-13, 2000 > >The average American who listens to "the news" is aware that >there are sweatshops "out there" in Asia making our shoes >and shirts, that there is an AIDS epidemic sweeping Africa >and now maybe India, that tens of thousands of Indians came >down out of the Ecuadoran hills to make a revolution >peacefully and were repelled, and that 50,000 abetted the >collapse of World Trade Organization negotiations in >Seattle. These events are like fires burning somewhere in >another neighborhood--worrisome, but not really our problem. > >The Open World Conference brought hundreds of catastrophes >like these into our own front yard. Organized by the San >Francisco Labor Council (AFL-CIO), the International Liaison >Committee (ILC) for a Workers' International, and the >Continuations Committee of the November 1997 Western >Hemisphere Workers' Conference (WHC) against NAFTA and >Privatizations, two days of non-stop seven-minute >testimonies from around the world wove a solid fabric of the >depredations of the World Trade Organization (WTO), their >policies, and their allies. > >"This worldwide onslaught is meant to be officially codified >at the upcoming Summit of heads of state in New York in >September 2000. The main item on this Summit's agenda is to >officialize the reform of the United Nations (UN) and the >International Labor Organization (ILO), henceforth >transforming these two organizations into simple >sub-divisions of the WTO. > >"The danger is real. By integrating the ILO into the WTO, >trade unions around the world would be forced to become >appendices of international trade agreements. Workers' >rights, collective bargaining agreements and Labor Codes >would no longer be rights guaranteed by states, but would be >reduced to hypothetical clauses in "free trade" agreements. >Such rights might or might not be granted, depending on the >whims of the multinationals within the framework of these >trade agreements." Thus says the draft Final Declaration of >the San Francisco conference, to be modified and ratified by >participants by e-mail. > >Five hundred people of all colors and languages from 56 >nations filled the ballroom of the Cathedral Hill Hotel. >Against the wall near the front were several glass booths >housing five translators, and all participants were issued >tiny radio receivers with earphones, to tune in on a >simultaneous translation of the speaker in English, French, >Spanish, Portugese, or German. Other languages hummed in >huddles behind us in the large hall. The keynote speech >came in French from an independent trade union >representative from Togo in West Africa, trussed and bled by >the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank, the >principal international institutions twinned with the WTO. > >The report from Sweden was shocking. Only twenty years ago >Sweden was a model of social democracy. The country is >being "given back to capitalism" without large protests from >trade unions. Stockholm transportation is now under French >control. Many trains have given way to slower and more >dangerous buses, and high speed train drivers have lost 5 >years' pension and have extended work weeks. Electric and >water services have been sold to private owners to pay local >debts. Postal and telephone services are also privatized. >Private schools, nursing homes, and hospitals get economic >favors while public facilities wither. The legal system is >jeopardized; the mafia grows. Though the Labor Party is in >government, strike bans have been proposed and trade unions >seek compromises, thus becoming tools of a Third Way >capitalist system. Such government and corporate cooptation >was a major theme of reporters from many countries. > >A siren-song of increased export trade with more jobs and >cheap imports is played incessantly, but the results >world-wide, as we heard one country at a time, are >unemployment, decline in health and education, displacement, >loss of labor rights, attacks on independent unionists, and >loss of democratic rights. There is much despair--a million >African women with infants roam that continent looking for >work and community. But there is also anger and courage in >demonstrating, striking, and continuing to organize and >build labor coalitions with other independent unions and >with democratic community groups. > >In Guinea, West Africa, a bank economist explained how he >helped to found a bank workers' union. In that country they >fought back against French domination, defeating DeGaulle's >referendum for them to remain part of France. The labor >federation analyzed "structural adjustment," the IMF's >device to force privatization and export conversion in >exchange for loans. They negotiated and forced IMF to give >good jobs to youth and benefits to pregnant employees. They >seem to have a viable strike potential. Like many African >and other Third World and even European unions, they plead >for acts of solidarity from the US and Europe, and support >the fight for a new trial for Mumia Abu-Jamal. > >China is "no longer Communist," but "very much Capitalist." >Foreign trade has increased 20-fold in 20 years, with sharp >increases in displacement from the land, poverty, and >unemployment--"a plague." "So many state enterprises are >bankrupt--30 to 40 million unemployed." Fires in textile >factories have killed hundreds. There is no social >protection--only ten per cent of the unemployed get >benefits. Pay, especially for women, may be six months >late. Women turn to prostitution to feed their children. >The government-approved unions are instruments of >repression. The Chinese government admits to 200,000 strikes >and demonstrations. "The government can't arrest >everybody," but several people are serving 8-10 years for >trying to organize independent unions. "All unions >everywhere are endangered by harassment of Chinese >organizers." > >Here is a sampling of other situations: > * Southern states have "guest worker" programs involving 3 > million Mexican and Central American workers, "undocumented > and vulnerable, but encouraged." (USA) > > * Trade union "unicity" or "jointism" encouraged "to > implement plans decided by the Capitalists." (Italy) > > * War of the taxes--"state pitted against state" to lure > factories, "de-linking labor rights." (Brazil) > > * Dock workers shut down ports for one week. Big march > against WTO/IMF March 9th. (India) > > * Court and other public-sector employees laid off. Prisons > controlled by mafias. (Portugal) > > > * International trade union federations easily coopted by > transnational corporations. Some are in bed with NGOs which > take money from any source. (Chad) > > * Throughout Africa there is resistance to the US MAI-clone > "Africa Growth and Opportunity Act" (Mauritius) > > * Workers get 6 cents an hour for 70 hours a week assembling > McDonald's toys. "Please visit to see human rights > violations." (Vietnam) > > * 20 million unemployed; others make $1 a day. There is an > underground movement. (Indonesia) > > * 100,000 strike against privatization at "autonomous > national university;" police repress. "Please visit Mexican > consulate and demand freeing student prisoners." (Mexico) > > > * Citizens vote "no" to European Union, but government tries > to divide unions to impose similar policies. (Switzerland) > > * Workers join with students, farmers, environmentalists, > and consumers in possible general strike. (Korea) > > * Government and IMF with trade union complicity trying to > "disorganize" society. (Turkey) > > * [With 4 million blacks in prison, detention, probation, or > parole,] US prisons are the new worker "gulag." (Serbia) > > * The "most corrupt country in the world," a dictatorship > which created dozens of political parties to derail real > party effectiveness. (Cameroon) > > > * 84,000 base unions in federation, independent of > government. (Cuba) > > * Community action including sexual orientation constituency > has cut Coors from 42% to 14% of state beer market. > (California) > > * EU and IMF dictate privatization and layoffs in electric, > water, rail, etc., without positive effects. Former state > leaders are now businessmen running the country today. > (Romania) > > * "Social security covers only a few percent, and is turned > into a mafia-type investment company." "Patients who can't > pay their fees are detained in hospital." (Iran) > > * "All emergency rooms in the county will be closed by > 2001." (Los Angeles County) > > * With NGO help; Filipina sweatshop worker gets US Justice > Dept to sue employer to improve conditions. (Saipan--a US > territory) > >The Conference emphasized the need to protect and ratify ILO >core labor standards, which are under attack. The US has >ratified hardly any ILO conventions. The core standards are >Conventions #87, 98, 29, 105, 100, 111, and 138 which codify >the right to associate and to organize independent unions, >to bargain collectively, prohibiting forced labor, requiring >equal wages for equal work, banning discrimination in >employment, and abolishing child labor. The Conference also >emphasized #103 protecting pregnancy and maternity rights >for workers and #143 requiring amnesty for undocumented >workers--rural workers deprived of rights in the USA. > >The conference was attended by Alliance members Ruth Caplan >(Washington DC), Roger Dreyfus (Boulder CO), Dave Lewit >(Boston MA), Nancy Price (Davis CA), and Arlene and Jim >Prigoff (Sacramento CA). Concerned as we are with WTO >expansion, we would like to have seen emphasis on upcoming >negotiations on the General Agreement on Trade in Services >(GATS) which would privatize health, education and water >services among others, and introduce investor rights similar >to the derailed Multilateral Agreement on Investment (MAI). >There might also have been discussion of enforcement >mechanisms for ILO conventions where national law >enforcement is ineffective. Further information about >conference concerns may be found at on the web at ><www.geocities.com/owc_2000/> or by e-mail <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>. > >--David Lewit, Alliance for Democracy > >============================================================================ > >Richard K Moore >Wexford, Irleand >Citizens for a Democratic Renaissance >email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] >CDR website: http://cyberjournal.org >cyberjournal archive: http://members.xoom.com/centrexnews/ >book in progress: http://cyberjournal.org/cdr/gri/gri.html > > A community will evolve only when > the people control their means of communication. > -- Frantz Fanon > >Permission for non-commercial republishing hereby granted - BUT >include and observe all restrictions, copyrights, credits, >and notices - including this one. >============================================================================ > >. > >--------------------------------------------------------------------- >To unsubscribe, e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] >For additional commands, e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > > > __________________________________ KOMINFORM P.O. 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