The IFTU met recently with the head of the United Nations Support Team to the Drafting Committee for the new draft Constitution of the Federal Republic of Iraq, Mr Justin Alexander.
The meeting took place on Thursday 11 August 2005 at 14.00 hours Baghdad time in the Palace of congress in Baghdad. Representing the IFTU at the meeting were; Abdullah Muhsin (IFTU International Representative), Adnan Rashid (IFTU Executive Committee member and editor of IFTU’s weekly newspaper, ‘Workers’ Unity’), Ghasib Hassan (IFTU Executive Committee member and former President of Railway and Airline Workers’ Union).
The IFTU had requested the meeting because of mounting concern among workers’ organisations in Iraq that the work of the Drafting Committee is not respecting key International Labour Organisation (ILO) Conventions that have been the cornerstone of the IFTU’s campaign for workers’ rights in a modern democratic and federal Iraq.
The IFTU drew the UN Support Team’s attention to four discrete areas within the draft Constitution, which has changed frequently in recent weeks and which according to the IFTU in its current draft fails to adequately address the justified concerns of its members. These are;
1. Rights of Children: IFTU wishes to insist on the rights of Children aged younger than 16 years of age, not to be allowed to work and to have a full education. IFTU expressed its concern that the draft Constitution made general references to the rights of children without defining at what age these rights apply. In IFTU’s estimation this is a serious weakness, which would have the effect of undermining future attempts to improve the terrible situation for Iraqi children.
2. Right to Strike: IFTU expressed its strong dismay that an explicit Constitutional right of workers to take strike action has been removed from the draft version of the Constitution, although such a right exists in the current Transitional Administrative Law. The draft Constitution refers only to the right of workers to representation, without defining the right of workers to join or form the trade union representation of their choice, or as mentioned the right to withdraw their labour.
3. Rights of Women: IFTU made clear the complete opposition of the trade union to any attempt to revive the notorious Decree 137, which sought to remove the fundamental human rights of women in the name of imposing sharia law. Womens’ rights to marriage, divorce, to own property, inherit and pass on property to their children and others, to access education at all levels, to work and to play a full part in all aspects of civil society and political life must be guaranteed in the Constitution of a modern democratic, federal Iraq.
4. Separation of Politics and Religion: IFTU insists on the complete separation of the powers and authority of ‘the mosque’ from the constitutional state law. Freedom to practice religion must be guaranteed by the Constitution. The Constitution should not take Islam as its sole source of legitimacy.
Following the meeting between IFTU and the UN Support Team, a further meeting was arranged between IFTU and the Head of the Drafting Committee, in order for the IFTU to formerly place on record its position on the draft Constitution. This meeting took place on Saturday 13 August, 2005.