Unions Under Siege in Guatemala
Published on Saturday, August 24, 2013 by In These Times
Unions Under Siege in Guatemala
by Michelle Chen
[font size=1]
Banana workers from the Guatemalan union SITRABI.
Leaders of SITRABI have historically received frequent
death threats and have been targets of violence on many
occasions. (Photo: Labor Notes)
[/font]
Guatemala is beginning to emerge from a grim history of military dictatorship and civil strife, but its workers remain mired in the nation's bloody legacy. Even today, as the country hobbles toward democracy and seeks justice for past atrocities, trade unionists are still a target of violence, with many killings hidden under a cloud of government impunity.
In 2011 and 2012, there were a string of murders of members of the banana workers union, SITRABI. Overall, 64 trade unionists have been murdered in Guatemala since 2007 and hundreds have been systematically terrorized. And the vast majority of such crimes are never prosecuted, let alone punished. Activists believe that unionists are targeted because they represent workers' interests, which puts them this puts them at odds with powerful corporate and state institutions.
Following negotiations with the International Labour Organization and International Trade Union Confederation, the Guatemalan government reached an agreement earlier this year to cooperate with ILO monitors to address anti-union violence and strengthen labor protections. But the bloodshed has not let up.
In a new report, Public Services International, a global labor federation representing public-sector workers, recounts vicious attacks on fellow unionists:
In March 2013, three members of PSI affiliate unions were murdered just days after an ILO mission visited Guatemala to assess the situation of freedom of association. On March 8, 2013, Carlos Hernandez, executive member of the Sindicato Nacional de Trabajadores de Salud de Guatemala (SNTSG) and leader in several peasant organizations, was shot dead by two men carrying 9mm firearms on motorcycles. Santa Alvarado, also a member of the SNTSG, was kidnapped on March 21 after finishing work in the kitchens at the national hospital in Totonicapán. She was later found strangled. Kira Zulueta Enriquez Mena, General Secretary of the Sindicato de Trabajadores Municipales de Nueva Concepción in the department of Escuintla, was assassinated on March 22 at the library where she worked.
More:
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2013/08/24-2