Walid Hamdan, International Labour Organisation
Thank you very much for having invited me to this conference in solidarity with the workers of Iraq.
Many people in the Arab region still believe that we must rely on governments to bring about change. It is now apparent that the most important changes can only be bought about by ourselves: the people. In strong, independent, democratic trade unions, lies the essential force to effect change in Iraq, in the Arab region and in the world.
The Iraqi trade union movement, with the support of the international trade union movement, has an opportunity to use the clear international consensus to promote the active participation of Iraqi workers in shaping a free and united Iraq. An Iraq where no one is marginalised on the basis of race, religion or political views. An Iraq that can avoid the ugly risks of internal religious or ethnic conflicts that are so profoundly damaging to the dreams of ordinary Iraqi people.
Of course, your active participation in the economic and social debate will largely depend on your political will for real changes, and the strategies and structures you put in place to deal with them. But without a democratic and independent trade union movement, the Iraq we all envision will be unattainable.
However, in Iraq, we should keep in mind that we are dealing with a situation that has been described as ‘tough and lethal’. We are dealing with a society that is fighting against both old and new tyrannies; against brutal and inhuman practices that actively aim to kill the hope of all those who dare to believe in a better future for Iraq. It is still fighting against poverty, unemployment, exclusion, reduced social protection and diminished sovereignty and respect for human rights.
And let’s not forget that many Iraqis still fight what they consider to be the continued occupation of their country, and the concomitant impediment to security, prosperity and progress. One recent UNDP Report on Human Development states that development, 'is the process of expanding choices…nothing hinders development more than subjecting a people to foreign occupation.'
Workers in Iraq are in a weak position; levels of union membership remain low; styles of management need to be revisited; union impact on public policies remain undetectable; and if independence is to be promoted and fortified, the nature of political alliances and allegiances need to be thoroughly reassessed.
Trade unions are essential to democratic stability; they are vehicles not only for expressing, but also structuring workers’ concerns. Labour weakness in the initial stages of democratisation may have profound political implications. Some sociologists conjecture that without unions, workers’ anger can be particularly open to mobilisation by extremist agendas.
We must endeavour to build the capacity of unions in Iraq so workers are not left on the sidelines, watching passively as new elites restructure the national economy in line with fashionable neo-liberal trends, which threaten regulation, participation and equality. We must support them to counter attempts to make them ineffective and marginalised.
We at the ILO are committed to providing every assistance to the workers of Iraq. We are ready to join forces with the TUC, the ICFTU, the Solidarity Center, and the free international union movement in a consolidated effort to help the Iraqi workers build independent and democratic unions that are capable of taking up their role as a democratic force. We are ready to provide assistance in:
* developing and promoting mechanisms essential for the efficiency for social dialogue and industrial relations;
* organising weak spots: agriculture, the informal sector, women; and
* improving workers’ education and skills capacities to enhance participation in economic and social debate.
Iraq is changing; let’s help our Iraqi brothers and sisters take a lead in building the new democratic Iraq - where security concerns are not limited to policing and armies, but extended to the security from deprivation, from poverty, from marginalisation; for the rule of law and the upholding of human rights. Without these securities, we increase the risk of something that has been especially clear since September 11, a form of extremism and fundamentalist clashes that knows no borders.
Posted at August 5, 2005 10:13 AM