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Mine safety in South Africa was enhanced on 21 November when the country&rsquo;s Parliament passed amendments to the Mine Health and Safety law. The legislation must now go to President Kgalema Motlanthe for his signature before becoming effective. 
 
But South Africa&rsquo;s government is still withholding a presidential audit on health and safety in the mining industry. And ICEM&rsquo;s largest affiliate in Africa wants the report brought into the open. 
<img height="94" alt="" src="" width="140" />
South Africa President, Kgalema Motlanthe
At its National Executive Meeting (NEC) in Vereeniging, the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) called for the immediate release of the national audit. &ldquo;The way the report has been held up gives suspicion that it may contain controversial safety details. We believe that the audit will reveal the true status of safety standards in the various mining companies,&rdquo; said NUM General Secretary Frans Baleni. 
 
After months-long lobbying to derail the safety reform bill by the Chamber of Mines, Parliament passed the measure ten days ago. A memorandum attached to the final version of the bill called it &ldquo;premised on the principle that the responsibility for health and safety lies with the employers.&rdquo; 
 
The reform measure includes insistence that mine safety investigations be carried out within ten days of occurrence, and that the reports are issued within 30 days. The reform also contains a criminal liability clause in which company executives can face a five-fold increase in fines and penalties if convicted of responsibility in health and safety accidents or deaths. 
 
Although NUM applauded passage of the stricter safety enforcement, it insists that the Mbeki safety audit must be forthcoming immediately. The audit was commissioned by former president Thabo Mbeki in October 2007, after 3,200 workers were trapped underground at Harmony Gold's Elandsrand mine. Miraculously, they were all rescued. The Mbeki national safety report, despite at least two pronouncements that it would be issued, has still has not been made public. 

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NUM Gen. Sec. Frans Beleni
&quot;The NEC noted with serious concern the escalating number of workers who perish in the line of duty,&rdquo; said the NUM&rsquo;s Baleni. &ldquo;Over 180 mineworkers have died (this year) and thousands others have been injured, while thousands more suffer from respiratory diseases,&quot; he added. He called on the government to &quot;beef up inspectors&rdquo; to ensure that companies operating mines and building sites adhere to proper safety measures.&quot; 
 
Following the Elandsrand accident 14 months ago, the NUM called for an independent safety audit of mines and facilities. The national audit instead was carried out by the inspectorate of the Mines and Energy Department. 
 
More recently, the NUM presented an impact assessment report to a discussion forum on health risks to miners. The NUM proved that the blasting process produces large amounts of dust in both air and water. According to the NUM, this dust causes most miners to suffer for respiratory diseases, such as pulmonary tuberculosis and silicosis, as well as asbestos-related, skin and eye diseases, acute diarrhoea or noise-induced hearing loss. 
 
Meanwhile, the death toll continues to mount in the country&rsquo;s mines. Deaths in recent weeks have included: two miners killed at AngloGold Ashanti&rsquo;s TauTona mine near Carltonville, on 27 and 31 September; a miner killed at Harmony&rsquo;s Elandsrand operation in a cave-in; a miner killed at Gold Fields&rsquo; Driefontain mine following an earth tremor on 16 October; a fatality caused by electrocution from underground machinery at AngloCoal&rsquo;s Greenside Colliery, 19 October; a Northam Platinum employee who died in an underground industrial accident near Thabazimbi on 11 November; and a miner employed by DeBeers at its Finsch mine in the Northern Cape died on 17 November.

South African Parliament Passes Mine Safety Reform; Year-long Safety Audit Still Held-up

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A recently released study by the Human Science Research Council of South Africa&rsquo;s Witwatersrand University reveals that the country&rsquo;s mining industry is becoming more and more reliant on short-term contract workers and casual labour. The survey found, for instance, that over 60% of the platinum mines in the Rustenburg area use non-regular workers in order to avoid accountability and reduce their costs.
Overall nationally in South Africa, 36% of all platinum mines use subcontract labour, with researchers finding that many of the workers come from other southern African countries. That gives employers less direct responsibility in the event of injury or economic liability. 
 
The Witwatersrand study said the number of subcontractors in South Africa&rsquo;s mining sector increased from 90,231 in 2003 to 122,589 in 2005. 

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The study, commissioned by the government&rsquo;s Labour Department, reveals that the trend is growing alarmingly. A spokesperson for the study, Professor Edward Webster, said a lesson can be drawn that the informal economy of three decades ago, which drew workers from the urban poor into unregistered enterprises, has now been replaced by formal enterprises utilizing more and more casual and subcontract workers. 
 
The research also found that most employers surveyed do not adhere to stipulated wage minimums, resulting in exploitation and disempowerment of workers, and threats of dismissals are common if casual workers attempt to align with trade unions. 
 
Labor Department Acting Director-General Les Kettledas told a news agency that the state has adequate laws and policies to prevent exploitation of short-term contract workers, but strategies to implement those policies and laws fall short. He said the aim of commissioning the university&rsquo;s Sociology of Work Programme for the study was to assure corrective measures are implemented. 
 
Kettledas admitted the findings are a reflection of the reality that now exists in the formal sectors.

South African Study Shows Contract Labour ‘Growing Alarmingly’ in Mining

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Today is the 20th anniversary of World AIDS Day. To mark the day, the ICEM has issued a leaflet that can be found here. Since 1988, trade union and civil society efforts have engineered a strong response to the epidemic, and recorded results prove the engineering has solid footing, thanks to labour unions and NGOs. 
 
But more work remains. &ldquo;The fight to eliminate the scourge of the pandemic is far from finished, and more must be done,&rdquo; said ICEM General Secretary Manfred Warda. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re proud to recognise the 20th Anniversary of December 1, but even prouder to mark this day with a commitment to wage this fight until the disease is gone.&rdquo; 

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The role of trade unions is critical in the struggle against AIDS. Trade unions demonstrate leadership on the issue by pushing early testing and prevention methods in the workplace, and then in homes and communities. The issue is a priority in most governing bodies, in women&rsquo;s caucuses, on health and safety committees, and most importantly, in negotiations with companies. This impact is positive to the community, to family life, and to national level policies based on workable and achievable grass-roots principles aimed at combating the disease. 
 
Together with social partners, the World AIDS Campaign set this year&rsquo;s theme for World AIDS Day as &ldquo;Lead &ndash; Empower &ndash; Deliver,&rdquo; building on last year&rsquo;s theme to take the lead. Designating leadership as the overall theme for 2007-08 provides an opportunity to highlight the political leadership needed to fulfill commitments, particularly the promise of universal access to HIV prevention, treatment, care, and support by 2010. 
 
Any union member, shop steward, union official, committee member, or gender representative who takes action today on HIV/AIDS is a leader in the fight against the deadly disease. 
 
The World AIDS Campaign has developed material that can be accessed at <a href="http://www.worldaidscampaign.org">www.worldaidscampaign.org</a>.

Today, 1 December, is World AIDS Day

Tomorrow, December 1, is the 20th anniversary of World AIDS Day. To mark the day, the International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine, and General Workers&rsquo; Unions (ICEM) has issued a leaflet that can be found here. Since 1988, trade union and civil society efforts have engineered a strong response to the epidemic, and recorded results prove the engineering has solid footing, thanks to labour unions and NGOs. 
 
But more work remains. &ldquo;The fight to eliminate the scourge of the pandemic is far from finished, and more must be done,&rdquo; said ICEM General Secretary Manfred Warda. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re proud to recognise the 20th Anniversary of December 1, but even prouder to mark this day with commitment to wage this fight until the disease is gone.&rdquo; 

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The role of trade unions is critical in the struggle against AIDS. Trade unions demonstrate leadership on the issue by pushing early testing and prevention methods in the workplace, and then in homes and communities. The issue is a priority in most governing bodies, in women&rsquo;s caucuses, on health and safety committees, and most importantly; in negotiations with companies. This impact is positive to the community, to family life, and to national level policies based on workable and achievable grass-roots principles aimed at combatting the disease. 
 
Together with social partners, the World AIDS Campaign set this year&rsquo;s theme for World AIDS Day as &ldquo;Lead &ndash; Empower &ndash; Deliver,&rdquo; building on last year&rsquo;s theme to take the lead. Designating leadership as the overall theme for 2007-08 provides an opportunity to highlight the political leadership needed to fulfill commitments, particularly the promise of universal access to HIV prevention, treatment, care, and support by 2010. 
 
Any union member, shop steward, union official, committee member, or gender representative who takes action today on HIV/AIDS is a leader in the fight against the deadly disease. 
 
The World AIDS Campaign has developed material that can be accessed at <a href="http://www.worldaidscampaign.org">www.worldaidscampaign.org</a>. 
 
 
 
For further information, contact Dick Blin or Tom Grinter, ICEM, &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;+41&nbsp;22&nbsp;304&nbsp;1840&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;; <a href="mailto:dick.blin@icem.org">dick.blin@icem.org</a> or <a href="mailto:tom.grinter@.icem.org">tom.grinter@.icem.org</a>.

ICEM Marks 20th World AIDS Day with Commitment to the Future

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ICEM &uuml;yesi Yeni Zelanda sendikası Ulusal Dağıtım Sendikası'na (NDU) &uuml;ye k&uuml;&ccedil;&uuml;k bir antrepo iş&ccedil;ileri grubu Auckland'da ilk toplu s&ouml;zleşmeyi bağıtlamak i&ccedil;in &ccedil;etin bir m&uuml;cadele veriyorlar. Auckland antrepo iş&ccedil;ileri y&ouml;redeki işyerlerinde &ccedil;alışan dağıtım iş&ccedil;ilerinden y&uuml;zde 30 kadar daha az &uuml;cret &ouml;alıyorlar ve y&ouml;neticilerin aşağılayıcı davranışlarıyla karşı karşıya kalıyorlar. Yeni Zelanda'daki antrepoda L&rsquo;Oreal 20 kadar taşeron iş&ccedil;isi istihdam ediyor. 
 
11 iş&ccedil;inin Ekim sonlarındaki iki kosa grevinin ardından iş&ccedil;ilerin taleplerine sahip &ccedil;ıkan Avrupa'daki kozmetik şirketinde &ccedil;alışan iş&ccedil;ileri temsil eden sendikalarla temasa ge&ccedil;ti ve onlardan Fransa'da kurulu şirket hakkında şik&acirc;yette bulunmalarını istedi. 
 
Yeni Zelanda'daki uyuşmazlık Fransız, Bel&ccedil;ika, Alman, İspanyol ve İtalyan sendikalarının, ICEM'in de katılımıyla, Br&uuml;ksel'de d&uuml;zenledikleri L&rsquo;Oreal'le ilgili bir toplantıda ele alındı. Toplantıda şirketin Avrupa'daki durumu ve koşulları &uuml;zerine ciddi bir değerlendirme ve g&ouml;r&uuml;ş alışverişi yapıldı. Katılımcı sendikalar şimdi Yeni Zelanda'daki uyuşmazlıkla ilgili gelişmeleri dikkatle izliyorlar. 
<img height="92" alt="" src="" width="200" />
NDU yeni antrepodaki iş&ccedil;ileri bu yılın başlarında &ouml;rg&uuml;tledi, ama L&rsquo;Oreal bir toplu s&ouml;zleşme bağıtlama fikrine baştan karşı &ccedil;ıktı. 5 Kasım'daki g&ouml;r&uuml;şmelerde şirket NDU'nun diğer dağıtım iş&ccedil;ileriyle eşitlik sağlamaya y&ouml;nelik &uuml;cret teklifini aldı, fakat y&ouml;neticilerin bir toplu s&ouml;zleşme isteyip istemediklerinden emin olmadığını s&ouml;yledi. 
 
Genel Sekreter Manfred Warda şirketin Fransa'daki genel merkezine g&ouml;nderdiği bir mektupta, şirketin NDU'ya y&ouml;nelik tutumunun ILO'nun 98 nolu &Ouml;rg&uuml;tlenme ve Toplu Pazarlık Hakkı S&ouml;zleşmesi'ni ihlal ettiğini, bu s&ouml;zleşmenin &ouml;ng&ouml;rd&uuml;ğ&uuml; kuralları hem Fransa hem Yeni Zelanda y&ouml;netimlerinin onayladığını ağır bir &uuml;slupla hatırlattı. 

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ICEM Genel Sekreteri Manfred Warda 

Warda, mektupta ayrıca, Br&uuml;ksel'de yapılan toplantının ana konusunun &ldquo;L&rsquo;Oreal ile sendikalar arasında sosyal diyalogu karşılıklı tanıma ve saygı temelinde g&uuml;&ccedil;lendirmenin yollarını aramak olduğunu&rdquo; vurguladı ve ş&ouml;yle dedi: &ldquo;ICEM i&ccedil;in bu k&uuml;resel d&uuml;zeyde anlam taşımaktadır.&rdquo; 
 
&ldquo;Sizin Yeni Zelanda'daki y&ouml;netiminizin &ccedil;alışma ilişkilerine y&ouml;nelik tutumu buna t&uuml;m&uuml;yle aykırıdır. Auckland'daki sorun en kısa s&uuml;re i&ccedil;inde &ccedil;&ouml;z&uuml;me kavuşmayacak olursa, ICEM bu uyuşmazlığa d&uuml;nyadaki ICEM &uuml;yesi diğer L&rsquo;Oreal sendikalarını katmayı d&uuml;ş&uuml;n&uuml;yor.&rdquo;

ICEM Üyesi Avrupa Sendikalar Yeni Zelanda&#039;daki L&#039;Oreal İşçilerinin Mücadelesine Destek Verdi

The 24-hour strike planned for tomorrow by 4,000 Finnish paperworkers of UPM has the support of the International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers&rsquo; Unions (ICEM), the leading trade union federation in the global pulp, paper, and paper-converting industries. Workers in Finland will shut some six UPM pulp and paper mills from 06h00 Tuesday, 16 September, to 06h00 Wednesday, 17 September. 
 
Branch-level unions of the ICEM affiliate Paperiliitto have called the strike in protest to UPM&rsquo;s decision to close two mills, the newsprint and graphic papers mill in Kajanni, and the kraft and printing papers Tervasaari Mill in Valkeakoski, by the end of 2008.
&ldquo;Tomorrow&rsquo;s demonstration by UPM workers across Finland is necessary in order to send the company a strong message that it must do far more to protect jobs in this vital Finnish industry,&rdquo; said ICEM General Secretary Manfred Warda. &ldquo;We stand with our trade union affiliate Paperiliitto in demanding viable solutions, not continual job cuts, to fix the current economic crisis in the forestry sector.&rdquo; 
 
Some 1,600 community-sustaining jobs are at risk with the announced shutdowns of the Kajanni and Tervasaari Mills. 
 
The topic of job losses in the forestry sectors of European, Nordic, and North American nations will be a central focus at the ICEM&rsquo;s World Pulp and Paper Conference, scheduled for 8-10 December 2008 in Uruguay. 
 
The 20-million-member ICEM is a Global Union Federation consisting of 467 trade unions in 132 countries.

ICEM Supports Strike by UPM Paperworkers in Finland on 16 September

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Citing the common threat of decent work life being destroyed by rampant privatisation, six ICEM Turkish affiliates have joined with engineering associations and a&nbsp;consumer rights group in building an active coalition to block privatising. 
 
Called the Platform Against Privatisation, the coalition&rsquo;s declaration states that &ldquo;the Turkish Republic has been losing all values and accomplishments created with sweat and blood since (its) establishment.&rdquo; The mobilisation of public resources has been &ldquo;given as gifts to the capitalist class,&rdquo; the declaration says. 
 
The coalition issued a 10-point agenda, including a determination &ldquo;to continue a struggle for the rights and interests of labour and democracy, the fight to resist practices such as subcontracting, removing union coverage, low wages, (and) flexible employment,&rdquo; and to defend the &ldquo;public management of resources.&rdquo;
<img height="101" alt="" src="" width="220" />
The declaration specifically addresses the current privatising of Turkey&rsquo;s electric generating and distribution systems and calls energy a &ldquo;public right for human life.&rdquo; In July, auctions were held on Turkey&rsquo;s first two electric distribution networks, and the entire power grid in the Sakarya region is proposed for privatisation. 
 
Chambers of Engineers representing Chemicals, Electrical, Geology, Mechanical, Metals, and Mining are signatory to the declaration. Also, ICEM trade union affiliates including Tes-İş (Energy, Water, and Gas Workers Union), Petrol-İş (Oil, Chemical Workers', and Rubber Workers' Union), Genel Maden-İş (Coal Mine Workers' Union), the T&uuml;rkiye Maden-İş (Mine Workers), Dev Maden-Sen (Mine Workers' Union), and ESM (Energy,&nbsp;Industry, and Mining&nbsp;Public Employees) are part of Platform Against Privatisation.

Trade Unions, Engineering and Consumers’ Groups Take Stand Against Turkey’s Privatisation

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In this issue of the ICEM HIV/AIDS newsletter, we report, among other items, on the VCT campaign in Tanzania sponsored by the IG BCE&rsquo;s Women Department, the efforts to include people living with HIV/AIDS in the health insurance scheme in India, and how the 2010 Soccer World Cup can score goals of another kind.
The ICEM Calls on its Affiliates to Contribute to this e-bulletin 
 
ICEM affiliates are already engaged in a wide range of HIV/AIDS activities. To spread the information on new agreements, awareness, and prevention campaigns, and educational activities, affiliates and project coordinators are invited to send news and information to <a href="mailto:hiv.aids@icem.org">hiv.aids@icem.org</a>. Any feedback on the format and contents of the e-bulletin is also welcome. 
 
Editor: Hans J Schwass, ICEM HIV/AIDS Consultant 

<img alt="" src="" width="40" height="40" />
IG BCE Women Support Project in Tanzania 
 
Since their Congress in October 2008, the Women&rsquo;s Department of the German ICEM affiliate IG BCE (mining, chemical and energy workers) has collected funds for an HIV/AIDS project in Tanzania, in cooperation with ICEM affiliates TUICO (industry) and TAMICO (mining). 
 
After extensive preparatory work, which included a workshop for the TAMICO and TUICO Women&rsquo;s Committees, and a refresher course for male and female peer educators and lay counsellors, activities culminated in a &lsquo;Know-your-Status&rsquo; Campaign in Dar es Salam on 13 June. 

<img alt="" src="" width="346" height="260" />
Workers and their families were mobilised through union structures and at the workplaces and by pre-campaign radio announcements. With the technical support from the African Medical and Research Foundation (AMREF), facilities for voluntary counselling and testing (VCT) were set up. 
 
From early morning on 13 June, the Mnazi Mmoja grounds were crowded with people wearing white T-shirts, emblazoned with the four logos of the IG BCE, ICEM, TAMICO, and TUICO, and the slogan of the campaign &ldquo;Know Your HIV Status &ndash; Get Tested&rdquo;, in Swahili. People living with HIV/AIDS gave their testimonies and urged participants to get tested. Condoms and femidoms, as well as leaflets and educational brochures were distributed. 
 
More than 600 people turned up at the grounds and well over half of them queued up in front of the African Medical and Research Foundation (AMREF), tents to be tested. 
 
In this outstanding example of international solidarity, EUR 14,000 has been collected so far by the women of IG BCE. This was the first VCT campaign organised by the trade union movement and as donations are still coming in from IG BCE regional and local structures, it is expected to continue the work in 2010. 
<img alt="" src="" width="40" height="40" />
India: Health Insurance for People with HIV/AIDS? 
 
The National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO) is set to make a case for a social security safety net for people living with HIV/AIDS (PLHA). It is exploring the options of getting the Union Labour Ministry's health insurance scheme (RSBY) extended to PLHAs. This health insurance related policy proposal, along with an anti-discrimination Bill protecting PLHAs, and another Bill seeking to protect consumers from being exploited when they procure blood for transfusion, are among the priorities of NACO. 
 
The RSBY scheme was introduced by the Labour Ministry for families below the poverty line in April last year. The Centre or State pays the premium, while the individual pays INR 30 (about USD 0.60) as a registration fee and receives INR 30,000 coverage for hospitalisation for a five-member family. NACO supports PLHAs for HIV-related illnesses, but they are also susceptible to other illnesses such as malaria, appendicitis and heart-attacks, illustrating the need for a social security net. 
 
The anti-discrimination HIV/AIDS Bill, seeking among other things to protect PLHAs at their workplace, has been with the Union Law Ministry for some time. 
 
(Source: Business Line, The Hindu, 3 June) 
<img alt="" src="" width="40" height="40" />
Soccer World Cup Campaign 
 
Authorities in South Africa have begun construction of one of the 20 planned Football for Hope centres in Africa -- part of a 2010 World Cup campaign called &quot;20 Centres for 2010&quot; aimed at reducing the prevalence of HIV/AIDS, poverty and crime in local communities. The centre, under construction in South Africa's Khayelitsha Township, will include a soccer field, community centre and after-school programs that will focus on sex education and HIV/AIDS education. 
 
The International Federation of Football Associations (FIFA) is providing the campaign with $10 million in funding. Ghana, Kenya, Mali, Namibia, Rwanda and other African countries will be home to the remaining 19 centres. According to FIFA President Joseph Blatter, the centres will &quot;provide a platform for communities to address social issues such as children's rights, education, health, HIV/AIDS prevention and will leave a legacy for Africa that will last long after the final whistle of the 2010 FIFA World Cup has been blown.&quot; 
 
(Source: Medical News Today, 28 May) 
<img alt="" src="" width="40" height="40" />
South Africa: President Addresses Increased Access to ARVs 
 
In his first state-of-the-nation address, South African President Jacob Zuma said he wants to have 80 percent of HIV-positive South Africans who need antiretrovirals (ARVs) on them by 2011. The government would strive to step up measures to improve health care in Africa's strongest economy. &quot;We have set ourselves the goals of reducing inequalities in health care ... and step up the fight against the scourge of HIV and AIDS, TB and other diseases,&quot; Zuma said. 
 
Over 630,000 people are on the government's ARV programme currently and provisions are in place to increase that number to 1.4 million by 2011. During his address Zuma also discussed the need for the government to collaborate with stakeholders on a comprehensive plan which aims to reduce the rate of new HIV infections by 50 per cent by the year 2011. 
 
According to the third national &lsquo;HIV prevalence, incidence and communication survey&rsquo;, conducted in 2008 by the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC), the percentage of people living with HIV in South Africa has barely changed in the last six years, but the survey revealed that between 2002 and 2008 there were many changes in HIV knowledge, risk behaviour and testing habits. 
 
The findings, based on interviews with about 21,000 individuals, 15,000 of whom agreed to anonymous HIV tests, give a fairly detailed picture of South Africa's mixed success in fighting the largest HIV epidemic in the world. Prevalence appears to have stabilized at about 11 per cent, and infection rates among children and teenagers have decreased, not least because of a significant increase in the use of condoms. 
 
HIV infection in the country's nine provinces still varies widely. KwaZulu-Natal, which has consistently carried the highest burden, now has a prevalence of 26 percent in the 15 to 49 age group, up from 22 percent in 2005; in Western Cape, levels increased slightly from 3 percent in 2005 to 5 percent in 2008, but are still the lowest in the country. 
 
(Source: Medical News Today, 9 June and IRIN PlusNews, 9 June) 

<img alt="" src="" width="40" height="40" />
Namibia: Court Case Highlights Workers&rsquo; Rights 
 
In a landmark case in Namibia, 22 hotel workers are taking their employer and a doctor to court for allegedly testing them for HIV without their informed consent. According to the allegations, the owner of the Oshakati Country Lodge hired a doctor to conduct HIV tests on all the lodge&rsquo;s employees. 
 
The Legal Assistance Centre (LAC) in the capital Windhoek, which is handling the case, said that the test results were displayed on notice boards in the lodge. The LAC is seeking monetary compensation on the basis that the lodge owner and the doctor violated the workers&rsquo; rights to privacy and dignity, as guaranteed by the country&rsquo;s constitution. The case will be heard by the High Court in Windhoek at the end of July. 
 
(Source: IRIN PlusNews, 3 July) 

<img alt="" src="" width="40" height="40" />
Joint Action for Results &ndash; UNAIDS Outcome Framework 2009-2011 
 
UNAIDS recently launched its outcome framework for 2009-2011 called Joint Action for Results. This Outcome Framework, which builds upon the UNAIDS Strategic Framework (2007&ndash;2011), will guide future investment and hold the Secretariat and the Cosponsors accountable for making the resources of the UN work for results in countries. 
 
Under the Outcome Framework for the period 2009&ndash;2011, UNAIDS will focus its efforts on achieving results in eight priority areas. These priority areas have been selected, based on a series of consultations with the cosponsors, communities, civil society, and a broad range of other stakeholders, their realization will accelerate the achievement of universal access. 
 
The eight priority areas include: the prevention of mothers from dying and babies from becoming infected with HIV; treatment of people living with HIV; the prevention of people living with HIV from dying of tuberculosis; the protection of drug users from becoming infected with HIV; the removal of punitive laws, policies, practices, stigma and discrimination that block effective responses to AIDS; stopping violence against women and girls; empower young people to protect themselves from HIV; and enhancing social protection for people affected by HIV. 
 
(Source: UNAIDS website <a href="http://www.unaids.org">www.unaids.org</a>) 
The full document can be downloaded&nbsp;<a href="http://data.unaids.org/pub/BaseDocument/2009/JC1713_Joint_Action_en.pdf ">here</a>. 

<img alt="" src="" width="40" height="40" />
News from the Global Union Federations 
 
The fortnightly HIV/AIDS updates of the International Transport Workers&rsquo; Federation (ITF) report on, among other things, the UNAIDS Outcome Framework 2009-2011, the inclusion of the Guyana Clerical and Commercial Workers&rsquo; Union in the country&rsquo;s Global Fund Coordinating mechanism, and on increased efforts in Ghana to create HIV/AIDS workplace policies (<a href="http://www.itfglobal.org">www.itfglobal.org</a>). 
<img alt="" src="" width="40" height="40" />
This ICEM HIV-AIDS Newsletter &ndash; How to Subscribe or Translate? 
 
To subscribe to the e-bulletin, send an email to <a href="mailto:press@icem.org">press@icem.org</a>. Please put &ldquo;subscribe ICEM HIV/AIDS e-bulletin&rdquo; in the subject line. 
 
Unfortunately, the e-bulletin can only be published in English. 
 
For a free automated (non-ICEM) translation of this HIV-AIDS bulletin into other languages, you may want to try <a href="http://www.google.com/language_tools">http://www.google.com/language_tools</a> and insert the following URL into the window &ldquo;Translate a Web page&ldquo;: 
 
<a href="/index.php?id=72&amp;la=EN&amp;doc=3322">/index.php?id=72&amp;la=EN&amp;doc=3322</a> 
 
Or click directly on the links below: 
 
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ICEM HIV/AIDS e-bulletin No. 46 July 2009

pulp and paper/pâte et de papier/pulpa y papel

<img alt="" src="" width="100" height="39" />
The ICEM lodged strong protest a week ago, demanding Turkey President Abdullah G&uuml;l veto a bill giving &ldquo;Private Labour Offices&rdquo; broad rights to place temporary workers in enterprises. On 9 July, President G&uuml;l did veto the bill, and now the ICEM demands the Turkish Parliament not bring it back. 
 
The bill was submitted by Parliament to G&uuml;l in late June after it cleared the legislative body without hearings or direct input from the country&rsquo;s labour federations. The ICEM calls attention to this anti-social fact because global unions are targeting actions in Turkey and Thailand on Day of Decent Work, 7 October 2009, specifically over the precarious labour issue. 
 
The legislation, as written, would have given fees to labour brokers and it would have created a slave market composed of short-term contract workers. The proposal read that any person or entity could establish a private labour hire agency with a modest investment of TL 20,000, or &euro;9,250. 

<img alt="" src="" width="250" height="115" />
&ldquo;We applaud President G&uuml;l and his administration for doing the right thing to veto this,&rdquo; said ICEM General Secretary Manfred Warda. &ldquo;We now call on the global community to assist our Turkish comrades to make sure this bill does not surface again.&rdquo; 
 
The ICEM credits Turkey&rsquo;s three trade union federations for immediate and effective opposition to the legislation. The ICEM now calls on the Turkish Parliament to abandon this anti-people measure. 
 
Mustafa Kumlu, President of the Confederation of Turkish Trade Unions (T&uuml;rk-İş), said accurately it would render existing mechanisms between unions and government useless. Kumlu, an ICEM Executive Committee member, said &ldquo;social rights, social security, and other benefits&rdquo; would disappear under this legislation. 

<img alt="" src="" width="100" height="161" />
Mustafa Kumlu
In the 7 July letter to G&uuml;l, Warda said creating such a labour system in a society is equivalent to &ldquo;placing dynamite under the social structures.&rdquo; He called it a &ldquo;21st century employment relationship based on slavery.&rdquo; 
 
ICEM work leading up to 7 October and after will partly focus on Turkish failure &ndash; in the eyes of the ILO &ndash; to implement Labour Conventions that the country has already ratified. A focus will also ensure that transparency and fairness become full partners in all social discussions leading to possible Turkish ratification of ILO Convention 181, the Private Employment Agencies Convention. 
 
The ICEM said in the letter to the Turkish government that the proposed law is not in compliance with the EU Directive on Temporary Agency Work, a standard passed in October 2008 that the ICEM insists must be adhered to by Turkey. The ICEM also labels the legislation a misguided response to the economic crisis, and an inhumane practice to even pronounce it as a measure to reduce operating costs.

Turkey: Labour Hire Veto Applauded, More Work Demanded

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ICEM HIV/AIDS e-bulletin No. 46 July 2009

pulp and paper/pâte et de papier/pulpa y papel

Turkey: Labour Hire Veto Applauded, More Work Demanded

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