Europe Solidaire Sans Frontières

South Korea: “Let us not pass precarious employment on to our children” - The Struggle of Hyundai and Kia Irregular Workers

PSSP — 2013-05-21T22:12:25Z

Suicide and Self-Immolation at Hyundai and Kia Plants On April 14 an in-house subcontracted and later contract worker at Hyundai Motor's Ulsan plant put a noose around his own neck and committed suicide. This man had first got a job at Hyundai Motor on the advice of his father, who had worked for automobile manufacturer until his retirement. He had wanted to be a Hyundai worker like his father. As an in-house subcontracted worker this 28-year-old youth moved between the jobs left (...) - Labor & co. / PSSP (Korea), Hyundai, Suicide (Eng), Car Industry, Kia

Dhaka (Bangladesh) factory tragedy: capitalism is guilty – “Strong unions are the key to preventing another Rana Plaza”

LEE Eric — 2013-05-21T17:04:12Z

On the afternoon of 24 April, Rana Plaza, an eight-storey building housing textile factories in Savar, a suburb of the Bangladeshi capital Dhaka, collapsed. When rescuers gave up searching for survivors on 29 April, the official death toll was 380. Local police ordered an evacuation of the building on Tuesday 23 April after workers reported cracks in the building's structure. The factory owners ignored these concerns and forced more than 2,000 workers to remain in the building. (...) - Labor / Internationalism (Eng), TNCs (Eng), Trade Union's Rights, Forms of struggle, Textile & Garment, Industrial Disasters, Savar

Bangladesh: workers oppose the Islamists

ALAM Badrul — 2013-05-21T16:15:40Z

Badrul Alam from the Communist Party of Bangladesh (Marxist-Leninist) spoke to Solidarity [UK]. What demands have the workers been making in the strikes and protests over this disaster? Badrul Alam – They are demanding the trial of the owner of the collapsed building and the arrest of the owners of the five factories in the building. They also want safety in all workplaces, proper treatment from the owners, compensation for the families of the people who were killed and help for (...) - Labor / Women, Labor and TUs, Sharia, Working conditions, Rights (women), Textile & Garment, Islamism (Eng), Political Islam, CPB (ML) (Bangladesh), Hefazat-e-Islam (Bangladesh), Savar

After the Rana Plaza Disaster in Bangladesh: What we can do for the living

BOYER Sandy — 2013-05-21T16:02:15Z

Sandy Boyer explains why corporate codes of conduct won't protect workers in low-wage manufacturing centers—and what they need to protect themselves. “Pray for the dead and fight like hell for the living!” Mother Jones NOW THAT the death toll among garment workers in the building collapse in Bangladesh has reached more than 1,100, it's time to begin protecting the living from future “accidents” and from the grinding poverty of starvation wages. (...) - Labor / TNCs (Eng), Forms of struggle, Savar

Bangladesh & the collapse of the Rana Plaza in Savar: Fighting to stop these tragedies

BHATTACHARYA Tithi — 2013-05-21T15:45:11Z

At least 500 workers died and more than 2,500 were injured in the collapse of a building at Rana Plaza in Dhaka, Bangladesh. The building housed five garment factories that employed mostly women and produced clothes for some of leading retailers of the Global North. This is by far the worst industrial disaster in a country that has seen many. On May Day, more than 1,000 workers marched through the streets of the capital demanding justice. An activist in Bangladesh's garment industry, (...) - Labor / Women, Working conditions, Textile & Garment, Industrial Disasters, Savar

Malaysia: Sarawak's indigenous rights owned and sold in secret deal

Suaram — 2013-05-21T06:37:50Z

SUARAM refers to Global Witness' video titled “Inside Malaysia's Shadow State” . SUARAM is gravely concerned on the impact of corruption to human rights, particularly on Sarawak's indigenous peoples and the accountability and transparency of the state government. Rights of the indigenous peoples were sold with the lack of “free, prior and informed consent” through the Regional Corridor Development Authority and Sarawak's Ministry of Resource (...) - Malaysia / Indigenous People, Sarawak

Malaysia: SUARAM and WAO denounce acts of violence against migrant workers

Suaram — 2013-05-21T06:30:35Z

On the day of the 13th general election, evidence emerged, including videos circulated on social media, depicting violent acts committed by some members of the public towards individuals thought to be migrants in an attempt to stop them from voting. While the efforts undertaken by the public to contribute towards clean and fair elections are commendable, SUARAM and WAO condemn all acts of intimidation and violence targeted at any community, including migrants. There was a high sense of (...) - Malaysia / Migrant (Eng), SUARAM (Malaysia), Electoral (Eng), WAO (Malaysia)

Malaysia: Same Old Government, Same Old ways

Suaram — 2013-05-21T06:25:12Z

The Broken Promise Three years ago, Prime Minister Najib claimed that he had marked the herald to a new era with his promise to grant greater freedoms to the people. With a delicate balance on national security and fundamental freedoms of the people, he repealed the Internal Security Act 1960, three Emergency proclamations, Restricted Residence Act 1933, Banishment Act 1959 and reviewed the University and University Colleges Act 1971 and the Printing Presses and Publications Act 1984. (...) - Malaysia / Democracy, SUARAM (Malaysia)

Malaysia: Urgent action needed for release of student activist Adam Adli

Suaram — 2013-05-20T23:29:53Z

RELEASE STUDENT ACTIVIST ADAM ADLI IMMEDIATELY AND UNCONDITIONALLY May 21, 2013 — Malaysia's human rights organisation Suara Rakyat Malaysia (SUARAM) requests your urgent intervention in the detention of Adam Adli (pictured above), student activist from Malaysia. SUARAM is dedicated to the protection of human rights defenders and aims to offer them concrete support in their time of need. Brief description of the situation: SUARAM condemns the arbitrary and unlawful detention (...) - Malaysia

Haryana (India): Stop the Police Brutality Against Maruti Suzuki Workers

Collective — 2013-05-20T18:43:24Z

The Haryana Government yet again in a brazen and outright cowardly manner has sought to protect the interest of capital and particularly the management of Maruti Suzuki India Ltd by refusing to allow the victimised workers and their families to undertake a peaceful demonstration planned for today which was expected to draw in ten thousand people from across the state. A short while ago, police lathicharged a peaceful demonstration of workers families outside the residence of State Industry (...) - Labor, wage earners, TUs / Haryana, Car Industry, NTUI (India), MSWU (India), Maruti Suzuki

South Korea: Workers Gather in the Tens of Thousands to Commemorate the 123rd International Workers Day

PSSP — 2013-05-19T23:30:52Z

On May 1, workers gathered in Seoul and 14 other locations around the country to commemorate the 123rd International Workers' Day. In Seoul, affiliates of the Korean Confederation of Trade Union (KCTU), including the Korean Federation of Public Services and Transportation Workers' Unions (KPTU), the Korean Metal Workers' Union (KMWU), the Korean Government Employees' Union (KGEU) and the Korean Health and Medical Workers' Union (KHMU) held rallies earlier in (...) - Labor & co. / KCTU (Korea)