Brussels
28 July 2015 (ITUC OnLine): The ITUC has written to the Confederation of Trade
Unions of Myanmar to congratulate them on their official registration by the
government.
In the
letter to CTUM President Maung Maung, ITUC General Secretary Sharan Burrow
said: “The ITUC and the international trade union movement are proud to have
walked through the darkest period in the history of Burma’s independent labour
movement with you and many other brilliant leaders and organisers. At this
historic moment of celebration, I want to pay tribute to the workers, activists
and their families who had been arrested, or lost their freedom and lives in
Burma and in exile since 1988. History will remember them, and it is their
bravery that has sustained the struggle.
“The
ITUC and the global union federations (GUFs) had the fortune of working with
you and activists in exile and witnessed the establishment of FTUB, the ITUC
office in Yangoon, and now the CTUM which has more than 650 affiliated unions
across different sectors. We believed and shared with you in one thing that
there is no magic formula in building a strong independent trade union movement
except through workers’ education, persistent organising and the construction
of democratic trade union structures. We will continue to support the CTUM and
the independent trade unions in Myanmar on these fundamentals.
“Myanmar
is a beautiful country endowed with rich natural resources and a young labour
force yearning for knowledge, development and protection of their rights. The
latecomer integrated into the global economy is becoming a new refuge to
investors seeking low wages in the Asian region. We believe that the working
people and trade unions of Myanmar have the right and opportunity to choose a
model of economic and social development that is fair, just and environmentally
sustainable rather than the race to the bottom. The growing influx of foreign
direct investment must be accompanied by the protection of fundamental labour
standards, fair living wages and effective collective bargaining with
independent trade unions.
“The
official registration of CTUM and the legislation on statutory minimum wages
are the first steps. There are tough challenges ahead. The ITUC and the
international trade union movement will continue to support the CTUM and the
independent trade unions in Myanmar for better legislation, decent jobs,
sustainable living wages, and democracy at the workplace.”
The ITUC represents 176 million workers in 162 countries
and territories and has 328 national affiliates.
For more information, please
contact the ITUC Press Department on: +32 2 224 02 10