Workers on Dole Flower Plantations Win Historic Victories in ...

More Trade Unionists Killed in Colombia in
First 8 Months of 2008 Than All of 2007
Assassins murdered Alexander
Blanco Rodriguez in front of his coworkers
during a shift change on August
26th, 2008. Mr. Blanco, a leader
in the oil workers’ union, USO, was the
41st Colombian trade union member to
be murdered this year.
In 2007, 39 union members were
murdered, a significant decline from
2006. Unfortunately this trend has
been reversed, with this number already
surpassed in 2008 with four months remaining
in the year.
According to the Escuela Nacional
Sindical (the leading Colombian
NGO on anti-union violence) there has
been an increase in murders of union
leaders over union members, with 15
leaders killed so far this year compared
to 10 last year. In addition, 125 death
threats were registered before the end
of August.
Recent Assassinations
Raw numbers too often hide the
human dimensions. Recent assassinations
include:
• José Omar Galeano Martínez
was killed by assassins on August 23rd.
He was the president of the Colombian
Lottery <strong>Workers</strong>’ Federation, FE-
COLOC. The CUT reports that Mr. Galeano
Martínez was leading a struggle
to defend the rights of lottery workers
against the privatization of national lotteries
when he was killed.
• Manuel Erminson Gamboa
Meléndez was murdered on August
13th. He was 32 years old and the father
of three children. Mr. Gamboa
Meléndez was the vice-president of
the Campesina Asociation for the Defense
of Putamayo and a member of the
National Executive Committee of Fensuagro.
• Luis Mayusa Prada, 46 years old,
was murdered on August 8th in Arauca.
He had taken one of his four children
to a doctor’s appointment and, upon returning
to his house at 8 a.m., was shot
8
by assassins. Mr. Mayusa Prada had
been a member of the leadership of the
CUT in his department.
No Justice
A recent USLEAP analysis of impunity
for these murders shows that
there has been almost no progress, in
spite of the continued functioning of a
special judicial unit to deal with antiunion
violence cases. Looking at murders
of union members since 1991, the
impunity rate continues at 96.5%.
This statistic does not include other
forms of anti-union violence including
harassment, death threats, attempted
murder, and kidnapping. For these
cases, impunity is nearly 100%, with
convictions being achieved in only a
handful of cases.
In July, the Senate completed its
2009 foreign aid bill, including a rough
breakdown of aid to Colombia. While
it will not be voted on in the near fu-
U.S. LABOR EDUCATION IN THE AMERICAS PROJECT
ture, the bill appears to maintain aid
proportions similar to the 2008 bill,
when Congress approved an important
decrease in police and military aid and
an increase in social and economic aid.
Colombia’s Defense Budget
Up, U.S. Military Aid Down
Meanwhile, the Center for International
Policy reports that the Colombian
government has increased its
military budget, making the U.S. contribution
a much smaller percentage of
the total. In 2002, U.S. aid made up
about one eleventh of the total military
budget. Between the declining value of
the dollar, recent decreases in U.S. military
aid, and the increased budget of the
military, U.S. aid now accounts for only
one twenty-eighth of the total. The current
Colombian defense budget is about
$12.3 billion annually, almost three
times the 2002 level, when President
Uribe began his first term in office.
Trade: Where the Candidates Stand
With presidential elections just around the corner, here is a quick
snapshot of the two major candidates’ positions on trade.
NAFTA
U.S.-Peru FTA
U.S.-Colombia
FTA
CAFTA-DR
Trade Rules
Enforcement
John McCain:
“Free Trade is the best thing
that can happen to our nation.”
Says the US has benefited
from the agreement and
opposes any changes.
Came out in support of the
deal, but never showed up
to vote.
Strongly supportive of agreement
and Uribe government.
Barack Obama:
“The net costs of many of
these trade agreements if
not properly structured can
be devastating.”
Wants to work with leaders
in Canada and Mexico
to amend labor and
environmental provisions.
Voted in favor. Voted against.
Says he will hold “every
nation we trade with to the
commitments they have made
under the agreements we
have signed.”
Supported the deal, but didn’t
vote. Just like McCain.
Will not support agreement
until Colombian government
does more to address murders
of trade unionists.
Says the U.S. should be more
aggressive in filing complaints
against other countries that
violate global trade rules to
keep out U.S. goods.
Fall 2008