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In Iraq, oil workers in Basra at the Southern Oil Co. brought the company to a 24-hour standstill on 17 July with a strike. Some 15,000 workers took part in the strike that was intended to force the company and Iraq&rsquo;s Oil Ministry to take a portion of Southern Oil&rsquo;s vast profits and use it to build Basra&rsquo;s local economy. Backed by the General Union of Oil Employees (GUOE) and the Federation of Workers&rsquo; Councils and Unions in Iraq, last week&rsquo;s work stoppage could be a precursor to a general strike in Iraq&rsquo;s south if allocations from the country&rsquo;s largest crude oil producer are not used for basic infrastructure needs such as sewage systems, electrical grids and medical services. GUOE is also seeking a wage increase for workers, land allowances, and risk payments, something that Southern Oil&rsquo;s managers already receive.

Oil Workers in Southern Iraq Strike

A mass rally and march will occur next month in Botswana over the government&rsquo;s failure to intervene in the dismissal of 461 workers last year at diamond-mining enterprise Debswana. The Botswana Federation of Trade Unions is conducting the strike, and it is also a protest by the country&rsquo;s unions against Debswana&rsquo;s refusal to recognise new leadership of ICEM affiliate Botswana Mining Workers&rsquo; Union. Trade unions are seeking a re-work of employer-favoured labour legislation passed in May 2004, legislation which Debswana&mdash;a joint venture between DeBeers and the government&mdash;used to sack the 461 for striking illegally.

Mass Rally in Botswana over Debswana&#039;s Intransigence

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Another Colombian trade unionist was murdered, continuing a trend that labels the South American country as one of the worst in the world with respect to trade union rights and human rights. 
 
Jes&uacute;s Marino Mosquera, an activist in the rural workers&rsquo; agricultural union of SINTRAINAGRO, was murdered last month while returning home from the farm that he worked at in Carepa, Urab&aacute; state. He served as a union representative for SINTRAINAGRO on a joint labour-management committee for the past 12 years. 
 
Following the mid-October assassination, two members of the union&rsquo;s national executive received death threats. On 26 October, masked gunmen broke into the home of one of those members, Medardo Cuesta, who was not there, and left a death note for him.
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SINTRAINAGRO, an affiliate of the International Union of Food Workers&rsquo; (IUF), and of the Colombian national labour centre CUT have denounced the murder and death threats, and have called on the government to provide all necessary protective measures for SINTRAINAGRO officers and members. 
 
Far more trade unionists are murdered in Colombia each year than in any other country in the world. Last year, the count was listed at 70, although it is believed another 25 trade union leaders were victims of death squads. 
 
The IUF provides further information on this latest instance of trade union killings in Colombia, as well as a link to send a message of protest to the government on its website. To get there, click&nbsp;<a href="http://www.iufdocuments.org/cgi-bin/dbman/db.cgi?db=default&amp;uid=default&amp;ID=3823&amp;view_records=1&amp;ww=1&amp;en=1">here</a>.

Agricultural Trade Unionist Slain in Colombia

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The former battery workers at two Gold Peak Industrial Holding plants in China who had been diagnosed with excessive levels of cadmium had their case heard in a Chinese court on 3 November. Some 146 workers &ndash; mostly young women &ndash; are being victimised by the Hong Kong-based company.
In 2004, some 400 workers at two of Gold Peak&rsquo;s battery plants in China engaged in strike action to overcome the company&rsquo;s refusal to carry out health tests. Now, Gold Peak is arguing that the 146 workers have no legal basis for claims to compensation, claims for lost working time, or re-employment. 
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The 146 employees, 95% of whom are women between ages 20 and 30, worked at the Gold Peak battery plants of Huizhou Xianjin and Huizhou Chaoba in Guangdong province. In documents, the workers said they were terminated from employment and given little compensation when high levels of cadmium were found in their bodies. The Huizhou city government had certified that a total of 177 Gold Peak workers had been tested and that excessive levels of cadmium had been found in their blood systems. 
 
The Chinese court, after hearing the case on 3 November, adjourned without issuing a verdict. 
 
Investor-based Gold Peak operates several battery-producing factories in China, and sells the batteries under different brand names worldwide.

Gold Peak Battery Workers Have Their Day in Court in China

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ICEM French affiliate FCE-CFDT is demanding that Bayer Pharmaceutical tend to all its social obligations in the German company&rsquo;s recent announcement of location changes inside France. After last summer&rsquo;s purchase by Bayer of Schering Pharma, the company announced last week it was moving the offices of the pharmaceutical division from Puteaux near Paris to the northern French town of Lys-lez-Lannoy, just inside the Belgian border.
<img height="67" src="" width="100" alt="" />
The pharmaceutical branch of FCE-CFDT warns that 500 jobs could be threatened by the move. &ldquo;Important social consequences&rdquo; will arise, FCE-CFDT said in a statement, &ldquo;because not all Puteaux workers will go north. In addition, there might be collateral consequences for staff of other divisions of the company, including Bayer SAS and Bayer Jardin.&rdquo; 
 
The union is calling on Bayer to commit itself to propose &ldquo;an acceptable solution to every worker impacted by the decision,&rdquo; and FCE-CFDT demands that an extraordinary meeting occur to address the social and economic future of the site at Puteaux.

FCE-CFDT in France Warns Bayer on Social Consequences of Move

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The National Federation of Mining, Metallurgy, and Steel Workers UNION (FNTMMSP) of Peru will hold a national session of all its affiliates in Lima on 22-23 November in order to formulate plans for a national strike. 
 
The ICEM affiliate said its discontent is aimed not at mining companies, but rather at the government. A bill now before Peru&rsquo;s Congress aims to change the way profit-sharing plans are regulated. The union also seeks to get the government to regulate and enforce the manner in which contract workers are employed.
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&ldquo;Our problem is a political problem,&rdquo; said FNTMMSP General Secretary Carlos Luis Castillo in a published Reuters report. &ldquo;On November 22 and 23, we will have a national session with delegates from all the country&rsquo;s unions, and we&rsquo;ll define the start date for the strike. 
 
Castillo added that in an era of high demand and high prices for base metals, &ldquo;we show that we aren&rsquo;t passive about things that are happening either because of government inaction or because of laws before Congress.&rdquo; 
 
Mining companies operating in Peru have seen huge profits coming from high global pricing of metals. FNTMMSP has consistently backed the needs of people living in mining areas by seeking more social investment and environmental safeguards for these areas. 
 
Peru&rsquo;s is the world&rsquo;s third largest producer of copper and zinc, and ranks fifth in global output of gold.

ICEM’s Peruvian Mining Affiliate Braces for National Strike

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ICEM affiliate National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) of South Africa is outraged by the further retrenchment of 400 miners in the diamond-mining region of Kimberley, Northern Cape. DeBeers said that it would sack the workers, employed near the Koffiefontein diamond mine&rsquo;s New Treatment Plant, by the end of the year. 
 
The company has not, as of yet, conducted the proper consultation process with the NUM. The union also is angered at DeBeers for not providing advance notice of the closure so that &ldquo;avenues or alternatives to retrenchments&rdquo; could be explored.
<img height="95" alt="" src="" width="100" />
&ldquo;In our view, this constitutes bad faith on the side of the employer, who know the magnitude of problems that come (for people) with this kind of mass retrenchment,&rdquo; said the NUM. 
 
The New Treatment Plant was only opened in the year 2000, and was expected then to extend the life of diamond-mining operations in Koffiefontein by 15 to 25 years. But DeBeers closed the Koffiefontein mine last year, costing 600 miners their jobs. In all, over 2,500 miners have been left jobless in the Kimberley area.

South Africa’s NUM Disputes DeBeers’ Further Retrenchments at Koffiefontein

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Over the past two years, ICEM affiliate Botswana Mine Workers Union (BMWU) has faced obstacles that would have crushed any normal union. The National Executive of the union has witnessed two mining companies, Debswana and BCL, now an enterprise of global mining house LionOre, subvert the union&rsquo;s national leadership, instigate a wildcat strike (BCL) in order to sack workers, withhold union fees from BMWU, and now start a rival, yellow union. 
 
But the BMWU hasn&rsquo;t flinched, and has met every onslaught with a legal and dignified response to the overt divide-and-conquer tactics of the two companies. On 3 November, the BMWU General Council met in session and reaffirmed the union&rsquo;s role as the Mineworkers&rsquo; Union of Botswana.
It also set in motion resolutions passed from the 2004 Congress, national union initiatives that had been stalled by the companies&rsquo; conduct, and followed through on a restructuring plan that gives BMWU four regions. 
 
However, interference from both Debswana, a joint diamond-mining company between DeBeers and the government of Botswana, and BCL continues. Debswana is actively pushing members into a rival union, and strong evidence exists that management is funding such a union. 
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&ldquo;The Human Resources Department works around the clock to divert our members,&rdquo; said BMWU General Secretary Jack Tlhagale. He said Debswana took a full year, until September 2006, to recognise the legitimate branch committee from Orapa, a major mining area of Debswana, and has withheld union fees due the BMWU. 
 
Tlhagale also said the world&rsquo;s largest diamond-mining enterprise has unilaterally taken union dues money and used it for fees owed in an appellate court case the BMWU lost in April 2004. Separately, the BMWU is still seeking justice for 461 workers fired in August 2004 when they went on strike, but the case is consistently being delayed in an Industrial Court. BMWU is convinced that the court is unduly influenced by the government and DeBeers in the matter. 
BCL, a copper and nickel mining operation bought by LionOre only in 2005, has entered into an illegal collective agreement with dissidents inside the Selebi-Phikwe branch of BMWU, dissidents who have been jailed for failing to comply with multiple court orders to turn dues monies over to the national union. 
 
BCL has financially supported the jailed group of workers, and has refused to recognise a duly-elected Selebi-Phikwe branch committee that replaced the one consisting of some of the jailed workers. That recognition case is scheduled to be heard in Industrial Court on 20 November. 
 
Perhaps BCL&rsquo;s biggest offence is that management led machine workers and spannermen into a non-sanctioned strike in order to sack them. Some 181 workers were fired after BCL management told them they have no union to represent them. &ldquo;The general manager did this deliberately as a trap to eliminate them,&rdquo; said Tlhagale. &ldquo;He was fully aware that a legitimate union committee was in place, but he said they have no union because the union he recognises is in prison.&rdquo; 
 
The BMWU&rsquo;s National Executive Committee will continue to receive the support, guidance, and solidarity of ICEM and its affiliates as it continues it&rsquo;s legal and moral course for justice and a dignity for all Botswana&rsquo;s miners.

Botswana’s Miners’ Union Fights Repressive Companies, BCL LionOre and Debswana

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Nigerian oil workers&rsquo; unions PENGASSAN and NUPENG are demanding that the country&rsquo;s National Assembly investigate the sale of Eleme Petrochemicals Ltd. by the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) to Indorama of Thailand. The privatisation of an olefins refinery in Port Harcourt to a group of investors was called into question by the two unions over several fiduciary disparities. 
On another level, the two ICEM oil and gas union affiliates in Nigeria also continue to negotiate with management of Agip, a division of Italian energy company Eni, over security protections. The talks come during another peak in kidnappings and energy installation occupations along the Niger Delta, this time with Agip worksites as the main targets. 
<img height="105" alt="" src="" width="100" />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <img height="114" alt="" src="" width="110" />
Agip staff has threatened a strike to shut all of the company&rsquo;s production down unless it provides the same level of security that it provides to expatriate workers. Agip office workers at a regional headquarters in Port Harcourt did strike on 30 October, and barricaded the office in protest to the company&rsquo;s delays in providing extra security and pay. 
 
The security issue also threatens to renew a national oil and gas strike in Nigeria. On 11 October, PENGASSAN and NUPENG, after meeting jointly in Lagos, issued a statement that said a second phase of a national strike is close to being called because of &ldquo;failed implementation&rdquo; of the safety requirements that were agreed to after a two-day September strike. 
 
The Nigerian oil and gas workers&rsquo; unions protested the government&rsquo;s &ldquo;lukewarm attitude&rdquo; in convening a security forum. They also called the failure to date to set up a commission to investigate the kidnapping and murder of PENGASSAN member Nelson Ujeye &ldquo;unacceptable.&rdquo; 
 
The unions, furthermore, called on the government to drop any plans to privatise the Kaduna refinery and petrochemicals division. 
On the flawed BPE privatisation sale, the official communiqu&eacute; to the government from PENGASSAN and NUPENG provides staunch evidence that the investors not only defaulted on loan requirements and still got possession of the refinery, but that after gaining possession Indorama sold spare parts to generate funds for the sale. 
<img height="101" alt="" src="" width="100" />
Since 75% of Eleme Petrochemical had been owned by the state, PENGASSAN and NUPENG said it was seeking the investigation &ldquo;with a deep sense of patriotism.&rdquo; 
 
The joint statement reads: &ldquo;The Director General of the Bureau of Public Enterprises, Mrs. Irene Chigbue, was quoted as informing unsuspecting Nigerians that Indorama had paid the full price of US$225 million (N$30 billion) for the Eleme Petrochemical Co. Ltd. She was also quoted as describing the sale of EPCL as a star deal of the privatisation programme. 
 
&ldquo;While Mrs. Chigbue is entitled to express her opinion and make personal assessments of her &lsquo;achievement&rsquo; in BPE, we in NUPENG and PENGASSAN have consistently maintained that the sale was another asset stripping and charade, ever done on the national assets of our great country.&rdquo; 
 
&ldquo;Our position is premised on the fact that the selling of the plant at US$225 million is less than the US$336 million, which the Federal Government will pay as outlandish liabilities before Indorama took possession of the plant,&rdquo; the communiqu&eacute; stated. 
 
Meanwhile, a rash of violent acts again hit Niger Delta oil and gas installations, proving the Nigerian government still has not found viable solutions to the safety and security of workers in the area. 
 
About 40 Agip workers, all Nigerians, are still being held by militant youths at Eni&rsquo;s Tebidaba flow-station in Bayelsa State. They, and eight other Nigerian workers, who managed to escape, were kidnapped there on 6 November by some 70 heavily-armed youth militia. The eight who had escaped told of a security guard being shot.

Nigerian Unions Close to Second National Strike

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1 December is World AIDS Day 
 
Since 1988, World AIDS Day has been commemorated around the world to raise awareness of the global AIDS pandemic caused by the spread of HIV infection. 
 
The global theme this year is accountability with the slogan: 
 
Stop AIDS: Keep the Promise
Workers and their organisations play an important role in making World AIDS Day a success, yet they are often not recognised for their efforts. Global leaders have promised to deliver Universal Access to HIV/AIDS services for prevention, care and support and treatment by 2010. For unions and workers, this promise needs to become a reality in every workplace. 
 
ICEM affiliates are encouraged to join the campaign against stigma, discrimination and victimisation, and for prevention, care and support and treatment. Go to our website at <a href="/72-HIV-AIDS">/72-HIV-AIDS</a> to find materials on HIV/AIDS. 
 
The World AIDS Campaign has been working with the international trade union movement to develop a poster with the slogan Universal Access to HIV and AIDS services in the workplace. See <a href="http://www.worldaidscampaign.org">www.worldaidscampaign.org</a> for more information. 
 
Please, report back to <a href="mailto:hiv.aids@icem.org">hiv.aids@icem.org</a> on any actions you have taken. 
<img height="28" alt="" src="" width="20" />
Trade Unionists Focus on Fight against HIV/AIDS 
 
A special meeting of the Global Union Programme on HIV/AIDS was held in Nairobi on 19 and 20 October. The meeting reviewed the lobbying activities of the international trade union movement at major conferences in 2006, such as UNGASS, the G8 Campaign and the International AIDS Conference &ndash; all aimed at emphasising the crucial role of trade unions in the fight against the pandemic. 
 
The useful exchange of information and experience will enable unionists to develop effective strategies to prevent the spread of the disease, care for those living with it and combat stigma and discrimination associated with it. The meeting also considered new partnerships. The argument was made for a union involvement in the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria and for union representation on Country Coordinating Mechanisms. 
 
The ICEM was represented by John Brimpong, Ghana Mineworkers&rsquo; Union, and Agnes Manowe, Botswana Mining Workers&rsquo; Union. 
 
(Source: TUC e-bulletin International Development Matters, Issue 52 &ndash; October 2006) 
<img height="28" alt="" src="" width="20" />
Global Fund Fails to Choose New Executive Director &ndash; Approves Some Round 6 Grants 
 
At its Board Meeting in Guatemala City, the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria had to abandon its efforts to choose a new Executive Director from among the short-list of five candidates. 
 
All important Board decisions require a double two-thirds majority, with votes in favour needed from at least seven of the ten board members from the donor group, and the same number from the recipient group. None of the candidates achieved that support. The Board decided to launch a new search and will try to make an appointment at a specially-convened Board Meeting by mid-February 2007. 
In the meantime Richard Feachem, who announced that he will be leaving already eight months ago, will continue to serve as Executive Director. 
 
The Board approved 85 Round 6 grants that will cost USD 846 million over the first two years and USD 2,519 million over the full five-year grant period. As a result of recent new pledges, the Global Fund now has sufficient money to pay for all grants that were recommended by the Technical Review Panel. In total 196 proposals were submitted, giving an approval rate of 43%. In all six rounds 1,184 proposals were submitted, of which 444, or 37.5%, were approved. 
 
The Board also decided that a Call for Proposals for Round 7 will be made by 1 March 2007, with proposals to be submitted by early July 2007. Round 8 will follow the same pattern one year later. The early announcement is intended to encourage applicants to start the planning and development of proposals much earlier. 
The board further approved the establishment of a &ldquo;rolling continuation channel&rdquo; that will, under certain circumstances, permit a Country Coordinating Mechanism (CCM) to apply for up to six years of further funding when a grant is coming to its end. However, only between a quarter and one-third of grants are expected to meet the eligibility criteria. The Fund&rsquo;s &ldquo;continuity of service&rdquo; policy only provides for two years&rsquo; worth of funding for treatment-based services for people who have already been placed on treatment. 
 
(Source: Global Fund Observer Issue 66, 2 November, Issue 67, 4 November and Issue 68, 6 November &ndash; GFO is a free service of Aidspan <a href="http://www.aidspan.org">www.aidspan.org</a>) 
<img height="28" alt="" src="" width="20" />
UNITAID Becomes Operational 
 
The UNITAID International Drug Purchase Facility was officially established during the UN General Assembly in September. Its Board of Governors met for the first time on 9 October in Geneva. WHO will host the secretariat and administer the UNITAID fiduciary fund. 
 
UNITAID generates money through an airline ticket levy first introduced by France on 1 July 2006. Founding members of the initiative are Brazil, Chile, France, Great Britain and Norway, with the Clinton Foundation facilitating bulk purchase of drugs at lowest prices. UNITAID contributed USD 69.5 million to the Global Fund, the bulk of which will go towards the cost of those Round 6 grants that will increase the number of patients on antiretroviral treatment. 
 
(Source: Website of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs &ndash; <a href="http://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr">www.diplomatie.gouv.fr</a>) 
<img height="28" alt="" src="" width="20" />
NUMSA Gives Credit to Carmaker on HIV/AIDS Programme 
 
Automotive giants in the Eastern Cape have received the thumbs-up from the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA) for their effective HIV/AIDS wellness programmes. A workshop hosted by the South African Business Coalition against HIV/AIDS gave companies an opportunity to exchange ideas on how to improve their health and wellness programmes. 
 
Daimler Chrysler SA stated that 96% of its employees had at least one HIV test in the last five years. Close to 10% of tested employees are living with the virus. The company&rsquo;s health services manager said that retrenched workers are entitled to stay on the HIV/AIDS treatment programme. 
 
The workshop also revealed, however, that especially small and medium size companies did not have any HIV/AIDS programmes because they did not understand the long-term negative impact of ignoring the disease. 
 
(Source: The Herald, 23 October) 
<img height="28" alt="" src="" width="20" />
South Africa: New Directions for the Fight against HIV/AIDS? 
 
In a statement, COSATU General Secretary Zwelinzima Vavi welcomed the establishment of an inter-ministerial committee to oversee the implementation of the government&rsquo;s comprehensive plan against HIV/AIDS and the revitalisation the South African National AIDS Council (SANAC). SANAC will be chaired by the Deputy President, with the Deputy Chair coming from civil society. 
 
In a remarkable turn-around from earlier statements by the Minister of Health, the Deputy Minister of Health also clarified the government&rsquo;s position on the role of nutrition and stated: &ldquo;We need to do everything we can to remove all confusion. We cannot afford a single death more and it is very important that we get that message across to people who have been misinformed that eating specific kinds of food is a replacement for antiretroviral drugs.&rdquo; 
 
(Source: Star and Business Day, 1 November 2006) 
<img height="28" alt="" src="" width="20" />
Case Studies of Union Action 
 
&ldquo;Global Reach: How Trade Unions are Responding to AIDS&rdquo; has now been published in the UNAIDS best practice collection jointly with the ILO and the Global Union Programme on HIV/AIDS. 
 
The report shows how the power of working people and their organisations can be harnessed in responding to HIV/AIDS. Eleven case studies from different settings show how trade unions are mounting new responses to HIV in the workplace: challenging stigma and discrimination, addressing the factors that increase vulnerability and risk, educating their members on prevention, providing care and treatment and building worldwide coalitions that campaign for more to be done to tackle the disease. 
 
The publication can be accessed at <a href="http://www.unaids.org">www.unaids.org</a>.&nbsp;

ICEM HIV/AIDS e-bulletin - No. 14

Archive

Oil Workers in Southern Iraq Strike

Mass Rally in Botswana over Debswana's Intransigence

Agricultural Trade Unionist Slain in Colombia

Gold Peak Battery Workers Have Their Day in Court in China

FCE-CFDT in France Warns Bayer on Social Consequences of Move

ICEM’s Peruvian Mining Affiliate Braces for National Strike

South Africa’s NUM Disputes DeBeers’ Further Retrenchments at Koffiefontein

Botswana’s Miners’ Union Fights Repressive Companies, BCL LionOre and Debswana

Nigerian Unions Close to Second National Strike

ICEM HIV/AIDS e-bulletin - No. 14

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