ICFTU MESSAGE TO NAMTU MINERS

[darnott@xxxxxxxxxxx]

INTERNATIONAL CONFEDERATION OF FREE TRADE UNIONS (ICFTU)
 
Burma: ICFTU sends radio message to striking workers at Namtu
silver  mine 
 
Brussels, February 11, 1998 (ICFTU OnLine): The ICFTU today
addressed  a message of solidarity by radio to 3,000 workers
on strike at the  Namtu Silver Mine, in the northern Shan
State of Burma. The workers,  supported by up to 5,000
relatives, went on strike on 2 February to  demand rice at
subsidised prices, wage rises for underground workers, 
medical care, a six-day working week and the repair of their
dilapidated dormitories. The army quickly stepped in when the
work  stoppage erupted. A meeting between 21 workers'
representatives and  the local administration was chaired by
the Commander of Light  Infantry Battalion (LIB) 324. 
 
Up to sixty similar army units were identified last November
by the ICFTU during special hearings on forced labour in Burma
held at the Geneva-based International Labour Organisation
(ILO), a specialised UN agency. Several LIB commanding
officers were listed by name and rank and identified by the
ICFTU as responsible for grave human rights' violations, such
as arbitrary detention, torture, rape, extrajudicial
executions, looting and village destruction, all committed
within the context of forced labour on infrastructure and
commercial projects controlled by the Tadmadaw, the country's
armed forces. The report of the ILO Commission of Inquiry,
which is currently investigating the issue in the region
itself, is expected to be published next June. 
 
The ICFTU's solidarity message to the Namtu miners was put on
the air  today by the Democratic Voice of Burma 
(DVB)(http://www.communique.no/dvb/ ), which broadcast from
Oslo and is received in Burma. The DVB, on the air in Burmese
and ethnic  languages one half hour per day, has been in
operation since 1992 and  is mainly supported by the
Norwegian, Danish and Swedish Governments. 
 
In its message, the ICFTU assured the striking miners and
their  families of its fullest support for their legitimate
demands. The ICFTU, which represents 125 million unionised
workers world-wide, stated it was holding the military fully
responsible for the physical and psychological integrity of
the striking workers and their families and, in particular, of
the 21-strong Workers' Committee negotiating with management
and the authorities. 
 
Together with the Federation of Trade Unions - Burma (FTUB),
operating underground inside Burma as well as from
neighbouring countries, the ICFTU has monitored trade union
and other human rights in Burma since 1991.
 
Contact: ICFTU-Press at: ++32-2 224.02.12 (Brussels). For more
information, visit our website at: (http://www.icftu.org).