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ICFTU Annual Survey of Violations o



Subject: ICFTU Annual Survey of Violations of Trade Union Rights 1997 in Burma

ICFTU Annual Survey of Violations of Trade Union Rights 1997

BURMA (MYANMAR)

Repression by the ruling State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC)
in Burma's military dictatorship) worsened during 1996. There were signs
of growing discontent in the country. In May, the regime published a law
allowing it to prevent political organisations denouncing state policies
or proposing alternative constitutions. Crackdowns on the democratic
movement resulted in many arrests and the imposition of prison
sentences. 

There are no trade union rights in Burma. The Federation of Trade Unions
of Burma (FTUB), founded in 1991 by former trade union leaders, is
forced to operate from outside the country. It co-ordinates its
activities with the banned National League for Democracy (NLD), which
won an election in 1990 but was prevented from taking office. NLD leader
Aung San Suu Kyi has expressed her support for the FTUB and for
independent trade unionism in Burma. 

The FTUB continues to work with ethnic groups in border areas and to
maintain underground structures linked to workplaces inside the country.
Its activists are under surveillance by the police and military
intelligence, and live in permanent fear of arrest and torture. 

The Seafarers' Union of Burma, which forms part of the FTUB, works in
exile to assist Burmese seafarers. There have been many cases of the
regime's abuse and intimidation of seafarers who complained about
underpayment and poor working conditions on foreign ships. The regime
controls the employment of seafarers through the Seaman's Employment
Control Division. 

SLORC continued to control the National Convention, from which the NLD
withdrew, in its task of drafting a new constitution for the country.
Worker representatives to the Convention are selected and controlled by
the regime. 

Reports of unrest in September included news of a strike at the Myitngae
railway factory in Mandalay which ended when the authorities gave basic
foodstuffs to the workers. 

There were also reports of a spontaneous strike at a joint-venture
garment factory, partly owned by the SLORC's holding company, UMEH,
which took place because the workers had not received the same holiday
benefits as management. 

A few minutes after the strike started, a high-ranking military officer
arrived and told the workers that if they ever went on strike again,
they would be imprisoned.