APHEDA - Australian Trade union Aid Organisation -- Solidarity news letter March 2015

Union Aid Abroad APHEDA SOLIDARITY eNewsletter

CONTENTS • Vanuatu Appeal • Support the 2015 Raffle • • Vietnam building the campaign to Ban Asbestos • Domestic Workers organising in Timor • Gazans are ‘exhausted, frustrated and angry’ • Burmese Labor Solidarity Organisation student goes to university • Burma: Garment factories workers at Shwepythar industrial zone strike over living wage • Ending Violence against Women and Children NEWS IN BRIEF Cuts to Australian Aid The Australian Council for International Development (ACFID)  has released its submission to the Federal Government ahead of the May budget, calling for promises on aid to be kept. READ THE SUBMISSION > CFMEU Fundraiser for Colombian Workers Show your support and book a table for the CFMEU Trivia Night and BBQ Fundraiser on Friday 17 April. All proceeds will be contributed to the Food and Production Workers Union of Colombia. BOOK NOW> Campaign for Australian Aid Highlights from the Campaign for Australian Aid launch and a short video on their Fair Share Food Truck that has touring Sydney and Melbourne. WATCH VIDEO > Vanuatu Appeal Support Union Aid Abroad-APHEDA in raising funds to assist medium term recovery in Vanuatu. #SolidarityWithVanuatu Donate today > Support the 2015 Raffle Stand with workers around the world striving for justice and safe and decent work. Buy your #Ticket2ABetterLife - the life that changes may not be yours! Buy online > Vietnam building the campaign to Ban Asbestos Mr Tran Van Ly, Vice President of the Vietnam General Confederation of Labour (VGCL) outlined recent developments in Vietnam in relation to VGCL's commitment to work on banning asbestos. Mr Ly was in Australia from February 25th to 28th to assist APHEDA in documenting its solidarity work in Vietnam. Read more >   Domestic Workers organising in Timor Thanks to an impressive organising push from the new organisers, the Working Womens Centre Timor Leste (WWCTL) has enjoyed a quick and exciting period of growth and activity. The only women-led workplace organising project in Timor, the WWCTL has built a network of domestic worker delegates covering every region of the capital city Dili. They have held three mass meetings of domestic workers in Dili, where members have been debating what form and aims the domestic workers movement should adopt over the coming months.   Gazans are ‘exhausted, frustrated and angry’ The situation in Gaza has only deteriorated since a ceasefire was declared seven months ago. Very little of the US$5.4b pledged at the Cairo donor conference in October 2014 has reached Gaza, with devastating consequence. Read more >   Burmese Labor Solidarity Organisation student goes to university Union Aid Abroad APHEDA and the Burma Labour Solidarity Organisation (BLSO) work together to educate Burmese Refugee workers and their children. Hin Ei Phyu is the first BLSO student to attend university level. Read more >   Burma: Garment factories workers at Shwepythar industrial zone strike over living wage Over a hundred workers at garment factories in Shwepyithar Industrial Zone in Burma have been protesting to demand better wages since February 2015. At the beginning of March the police arrested at least 20 striking workers and charged 14 of them with rioting. Union Aid Abroad-APHEDA's partner organisations, Action Labor Rights and Labour Rights Defenders and Promoters, is supporting the striking workers.  Ending Violence against Women and Children The United Nations has revealed that there are still alarmingly high levels of violence against women globally despite the gains women have made in education and health. Read more >

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