STATEMENT BY THE GENERAL CONFEDERATION OF TRADE UNIONS IN CONNECTION WITH THE SITUATION AROUND THE FEDERATION OF TRADE UNIONS OF UKRAINE
The General Confederation of Trade Unions (GCTU) affiliating 10 national trade union centres and 29 industry Trade Union Internationals expresses its deep concern over the recent numerous cases of interference by state authorities in the activity of the Federation of Trade Unions of Ukraine (FPU).
This interference is based on undocumented allegations being made by leading officials of the Prosecutor-General’s Office of Ukraine describing trade union assets as state property. By abusing all possible executive powers at their disposal and by enlisting support of the press and the television, prosecutor’s offices have been insistently disseminating information that the way FPU possesses and disposes of trade union property in allegedly illegitimate. In so doing, they are trying to discredit the unions by groundlessly accusing them of having misappropriated state assets. The Federation of Trade Unions of Ukraine has repeatedly proven, authentically, convincingly and also judicially, its legitimate right of ownership to the health, recreation and tourist facilities that fulfill a most important social function and are used exceptionally to improve the health of trade union members and the broader working masses.
The unjustified flagrant intrusion of tax police into the headquarters of the Federation of Trade Unions of Ukraine in Kyiv 26 August 2011 presents an outrageous example of trade union rights violation. The law enforcement bodies searched the premises through and seized documents, thus blocking completely the activities of the Federation, its personnel, and several FPU member organisations whose offices are located in the House of Trade Unions.
Although court rulings always identify clearly the list of documents to be seized during searches, the law enforcement bodies withdraw financial and accounting documents irrelevant to the subject of investigation, and, without any grounds, detain trade union officers and economic managers for humiliating interrogations.
All kinds of unlawful acts against trade union bodies and their economic units have been committed in a whole number of Ukraine’s regions.
An unprecedented smear campaign has been purposefully launched on a broad scale to accuse FPU of alleged misuse and alienation of trade union assets. The apparent main aim of the state and the oligarchic groups is to reduce the protection of trade union members, discredit the trade union movement, and do away with FPU.
With this purpose in view, large-scale direct interference in statutory trade union activity is being committed. It should be noted that, in accordance with the Law of Ukraine on Trade Unions, Their Rights and Guarantees of Their Activity, financial activities of trade unions are not liable to control by state authorities.
Such actions by some leading functionaries of the state law enforcement agencies against trade unions run counter to the universally accepted principles of international law and the basic conventions of the International Labour Organisation, and impair the status of Ukraine as a democratic and law-governed social state.
Speaking for its affiliates organising 50 million workers, the General Confederation of Trade Unions:
- voices its strong protest against the interference in the statutory activity of the Federation of Trade Unions of Ukraine;
- considers such unlawful pressure on Ukraine’s trade unions to be conflicting with the principles of freedom of association and workers’ right to carry out their activities independently; and
- insists that the country’s top leaders should give thorough consideration to the current situation and take the appropriate measures to put a stop to the unlawful actions.
Members of GCTU Executive Committee:
Mikhail Shmakov
President of the GCTU
President of the Federation of Independent
Trade Unions of Russia
Viktor Karnyushin
Vice President of the GCTU
President of the Timber and Related Industries
Workers’ Unions of the CIS
Vladimir Scherbakov
General Secretary of the GCTU
Natalia Podshibyakina
Deputy General Secretary of the GCTU
Albert Potapov
Deputy General Secretary of the GCTU
Valery Yuriev
Deputy General Secretary of the GCTU
Eduard Tumasian
President of the Confederation of
Trade Unions of Armenia
Leonid Kozik
President of the Federation of Trade
Unions of Belarus
Siyazbek Mukashev
President of the Federation of Trade Unions
of the Republic of Kazakhstan
Kanatbek Osmonov
President of the Federation of Trade
Unions of Kyrgyzstan
Oleg Budza
President of the National Confederation of
Trade Unions of Moldova
Bakhtier Abdullayev
Vice President of the Federation of Independent
Trade Unions of Tajikistan
Vasyl Khara
President of the Federation of Trade
Unions of Ukraine
Igor Fomichev
President of the International Confederation of
Atomic Energy Workers’ Unions
President of the Russian Trade Union of
Atomic Energy Workers
Georgy Stolyarenko
President of the International Confederation
of Water Transport Workers’ Unions
Nikolay Shatokhin
President of the International Organisation of
Metalworkers’ Unions
President of the Engineering Workers’
Trade Union of the Russian Federation
Melik Mirzoyev
General Secretary of the International Confederation
of Trade Unions of Workers in
the Oil and Gas Industries, and Construction
Workers in the Oil and Gas Complex
Andrey Chekmenev
President of the International Community of
Defence Industry Workers’ Unions
President of the All-Russia Trade Union of
Workers in the Defence Industry
Vladimir Kruglov
President of the International Association of
Fishing Industry Workers’ Unions
President of the Russian Fishing Workers’
Trade Union
Anatoly Nazeykin
President of the International Organisation of
Communications Workers’ Unions
President of the All-Russia Trade Union of
Communication Workers
Guennady Arzhanov
President of the International Confederation of
Construction and Building Materials Industry
Workers’ Unions
Valentina Mitrofanova
President of the International Public Organisation
“Confederation of Trade Unions of Workers in
Commerce, Restaurants, Consumers’ Cooperatives
and Various Forms of Business”
Vassily Bondarev
President of the International Trade Union
Association “Elektroprofsoyuz” (“Electrounion”)
Kyiv
27 October 2011