WTO anti-worker, says trade union congress

The Hindu, 29 March 2000

NEW DELHI, MARCH 28. The four-day, 14th World Trade Union Congress concluded here today with 421 delegates from 64 countries decrying liberalisation and the World Trade Organisation (WTO) for their adverse impact on the rights and interest of labour and the Indian delegation has called a country-wide strike for May 11 to protest these "anti-workers" policies and programmes.

Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka and other South Asian countries have also decided to organise demonstrations and marches that day to express their anger against the policies imposed by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank and the WTO. The Bangladesh delegation will inform the Pakistani counterparts who could not attend because of non-issue of visas.

Briefing mediapersons, Mr. Indrajit Gupta, president of the World Federation of the Trade Unions (WFTU), said the plenary session discussed the report and a plan of action and resolutions on several issues were processed.

Earlier, the conference called for implementation of the U.N. Declaration for a New International Economic Order which was adopted by the U.N. General Assembly in 1974, upholding international economic cooperation based on equality of rights of all countries, besides seeking an end to unequal trade and economic exchanges.

The WFTU said the current drive for neo-liberal globalisation undermined the national sovereignty and economic independence of the countries and reintroduced elements of neo-colonialism.

"The virtual monopoly control of the information media, particularly the electronic media, is used to transform the emerging information society into a virtual misinformation society," it said.