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An Initial Statement on the Current Situation of Workers, the Labor Movement,
and Human Rights in Haiti - Tuesday, May 4th, 2004
From: The International Labor/Religious/Community Fact-Finding Delegation to Haiti (April 26-May 2nd) initiated by the San
Francisco Labor Council
A nine-member international labor/religious/community
fact-finding delegation has just returned from a week spent in Haiti.
Its objective was to assess and report on the current situation of Haitian
workers, the Haitian labor movement, and the state of human rights in
that country. Within this mandate, particular attention was given to understanding
the new realities following the coup d'etat that deposed President Jean-Bertrand
Aristide on 29 February 2004. The brief statement, which follows, is an
initial report on our findings.
The delegation's work focused on interviews with Haitian trade unionists
and workers, as well as political leaders and activists. Part of this
time was spent attending the National Congress of the CTH (the Confederation
of Haitian Workers), the largest labor federation in Haiti composed of
11 different union federations. Based on these interviews and discussions,
we can report that the labor movement is in significant crisis, brought
on in large part by the decade-long economic and political destabilization
campaign orchestrated in Washington. The crisis has become much worse
since 29 February, with the campaign of violence by the US-backed opposition
that preceded and followed the coup. Facing a massive problem of unemployment
(estimated at some 70% in the formal economy), the turmoil and economic
difficulties of recent years has only been worsened with the change of
government.
The coup regime was formed by a coalition of the unelected political opposition;
the governments of France and the United States; former Haitian military
and paramilitary death squads (including FRAPH); and the Haitian business
elite - particularly the "Group 184", led by Andre Apaid. Mr. Apaid, a
US citizen who is known by Haitian workers as the single most notorious
owner of Haitian sweatshop factories, has been a virulent opponent of
unions organizing in his factories. The delegation heard reports of extremely
dire working conditions in the Apaid-owned sweatshops, with little or
no access to safe drinking water, and wages at the legal minimum of 70
Haitian gourdes (approximately US$1.80) per day - or less. Those workers
courageous enough to attempt the organization of trade unions face dismissal.
Clearly, Mr. Apaid and his clique are no supporters of Haiti's workers
or their labor movement.
The coup also led to serious attacks on Haitiís trade unions. The delegation
heard reports from one union, the FTPH (Federation of Public Transport
Workers of Haiti), of criminal attacks on over 100 of the buses that they
had purchased for use in the bus cooperative operated by the union. These
attacks involved the torching and destruction of the union co-op's buses,
yet went unreported in the North American media, despite having taken
place in the days immediately following the 29 February coup d'etat (the
peak period of international media presence). Given their timing, and
the fact that the union bus cooperativeís success had been viewed as a
positive symbol of social advances under the Aristide government, such
attacks were seen by the union as acts of political reprisal by supporters
of the coup. No arrests have been made in association with these attacks.
The general living conditions of Haitian workers and the general population
have drastically worsened since the coup of 29 February. The delegation
heard that the price of rice has jumped dramatically, as much as doubling.
Other vital foodstuffs have seen even more serious price inflation. Several
witnesses testified that whereas before the coup, Haitians were able to
eat at least once per day, the cost of food has reduced this to as little
as 3 meals per week. Even those Haitians fortunate enough to have a job
are barely subsisting.
As for human rights, things are even more serious. The coup which deposed
President Aristide has led to a serious wave of attacks and persecutions
of supporters of President Aristide and his Fanmi Lavalas Party. The delegation
heard testimony from an elected member of Parliament for the Fanmi Lavalas
who is living in hiding, having been driven out of his town under gunfire.
Other political leaders and known activists have also been forced into
hiding, living underground, fearing the death threats and violence directed
at supporters of the ousted government. Despite its obvious popularity,
the Fanmi Lavalas movement is not currently able to have political demonstrations
or otherwise take open political action due to the threat of attack. The
coup regime, supported by an international military coalition led by the
US, France and Canada, has not provided security for those currently most
at risk. The names of Lavalas supporters - and even those suspected of
being Lavalas supporters - are being read off on right-wing radio stations
as an implicit threat. Neither the coup regime nor its international backers
have taken action to contain what many Haitians refer to as an anti-Lavalas
"witch hunt" that continues to this day.
Based on six days of interviews, meetings, recorded testimony, and on-site
examinations, the International Labor/Religious/Community Fact-Finding
Delegation has collected extensive material to compile and report. We
wanted to provide this brief summary as soon as possible for immediate
use. A more detailed written report will soon be published and circulated
which will contain a more detailed overview of our findings.
Participants
- Reverend Dr. Kwame O. Abayomi, is the Baltimore City Council 6th
District Representative and Senior Minister of Unity United Methodist
Church in Baltimore.
- Dave Welsh, a San Francisco Labor Council delegate, was for many
years Executive Vice President of Golden Gate Branch #214 of the Letter
Carriers Union. He has been active in Haiti support work since 1991,
and speaks French. He was part of a Pastors for Peace delegation to
Haiti in 1997.
- Johnnie Stevens is an activist with the International Action Center.
He represented Ramsey Clark on a recent delegation that met with Jean-Bertrand
Aristide in the Central African Republic, where the Haitian President
had been taken after his abduction. Their meeting paved the way for
press interviews with Aristide, and his return to the Caribbean region.
He also attended the World Conference against Racism in Durban, South
Africa, and is a co-founder of Labor for Reparations.
- Sharon Black Ceci, a Registered Nurse, is Labor Coordinator for
the Haiti Commission of Inquiry. She is a shop steward with United
Food and Commercial Workers Union, Local #27, and was a founding member
of the All Peoples Congress, a community organization in the Baltimore
area.
- Charlie Hinton is a member of the Printers Union (GCIU) and a member
of a worker-owned cooperative, the union printing company Inkworks
in the San Francisco Bay Area. He is a long-time solidarity movement
activist and member of the Haiti Action Committee.
- Sister Maureen Duignan is a Franciscan nun who runs the East Bay
Sanctuary Covenant, which has a long history (as does Sr. Maureen)
of solidarity and sanctuary work with Central American and other refugees,
from the 1980s to the present. Sister Maureen has been to Haiti a
number of times and speaks French.
- Michael Zinzun is director of the Los Angeles-based Coalition Against
Police Abuse (CAPA), which he co-founded in 1975. He was also a founding
member of Police Watch and Communities in Support of the Gang Truce,
and recently attended Haiti's Bicentennial celebrations in Port-au-Prince.
As a result of his activism around police issues, he suffered a police
beating which left him blind in one eye.
- Kevin Skerrett is Research Officer for the Canadian Union of Public
Employees (CUPE), Canadaís largest union. He has done significant
research on the international trade union movement, and speaks French.
- Dr. Adrianne Aron is a clinical psychologist who works with victims
of political repression. She has worked in the solidarity movement
for many years, and served as an election monitor in Haiti during
the 2000 elections there.
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