ISLAMABAD, June 9: Repression, violence and hostility towards trade unions especially in export processing zones (EPZs) in South Asia are common responses to workers’ attempts to carry out peaceful trade union activities.

This was reported in the International Confederation of Free Trade Union (ICFTU) ‘Annual Survey of Trade Union Rights Violation in 2005’. It highlighted a vicious anti-union campaign in Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Philippines and Sri Lanka.

“Women are often the main victims of this hostility towards trade unions, as they form the majority of the workforce in the worst-affected industries, such as the EPZs, education and the public sector,” the report said.

At least 17 trade unionists were killed, 947 were beaten or tortured, and over 8,000 were arrested in the Asia Pacific region. This year’s survey draws attention particularly towards grave incidents in Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, India, South Korea and the Philippines.

According to the report, in Bangladesh, hundreds of striking workers were injured, some seriously, in three separate attacks by police. The gravest incident took place during a demonstration at the Sinha Textile Mills in November. Three trade unionists were killed following police intervention.

At least four trade unionists also lost their lives as a result of their trade union activities in the Philippines. The anti-union repression is as serious as ever in South Korea, where a worker of Korean Confederation of Trade Unions lost his life.

The survey also highlights India, where over 300 protesting trade unionists were seriously injured by police, and Cambodia, where workers holding a peaceful protest against unpaid wages were also disbanded with the help of police using batons, rifle butts and tear gas.

In Burma there were no trade union rights. Ten organisers from the independent national federation, FTUB, received jail sentences of up to 25 years. One of the organisers died in prison five months later. In China, a large number of independent trade unionists imprisoned. Workers’ protests were brutally repressed during 2005 and, according to unconfirmed reports, two demonstrators were killed.

There are still no trade union rights in North Korea, Laos and Maldives, while in Vietnam, the single trade union federation remains under the strict control of the Communist Party. In Nepal, King Gyanendra suspended trade union rights. Numerous trade union leaders were arrested and remanded in custody whilst others went into hiding.

The plight of migrant workers in the region saw no improvement. In South Korea, the government refused to recognise the newly created migrant workers’ union, and its president was arrested and beaten by police. In Thailand, migrant workers were threatened and blacklisted because of their trade union activities.

In the industrialised countries, such as Japan, the severe restrictions on trade union rights in the public sector were maintained, and, in December, the government unilaterally decided to make huge job cuts. In Australia, the government confirmed its reputation as one of the most fiercely anti-union in the industrialised world, with the introduction of new legislation placing heavy restrictions on trade union activities and the right to collective bargaining.

The survey reveals that 115 trade unionists were murdered for defending workers’ rights in 2005, while more than 1,600 were subjected to violent assaults and some 9,000 arrested, across the world. Nearly, 10,000 workers were sacked for their trade union activities, and almost 1,700 detained.

Latin America remained the most perilous region for trade union activity, with Colombia once again topping the list for killings, intimidation and death threats. Seventy Colombian unionists paid the ultimate price for standing up for fundamental rights at work. Other countries under the spotlight for violence and repression against unionists include Iraq, Iran, El Salvador, Djibouti, China, Cambodia, Guatemala, Zimbabwe and Burma.