Congress' Middle East Conference in Dublin Castle
Issued on April 23, 2010 at 11:13 AM
Strong Trade Union Solidarity with Palestine.
More than 150 trade union delegates and observers attended ICTU's Middle East Conference "The way forward for Trade Union Solidarity" in St Patrick's Hall, Dublin Castle on Friday the 16th of April.
The aim of the conference was twofold: to build support for Congress policy on the Middle East and to learn from other trade union actions around the world; to strengthen relationships with the labour movements in the Middle East and beyond and to assist discussion about how union solidarity can contribute to a peaceful solution that respects both UN resolutions and human and trade union rights.
The Conference was chaired by Congress President, Jack O Connor. Despite losing nine key speakers to the impact of the volcanic ashes a wide variety of international speakers spoke on how unions could best assist a peaceful resolution of the conflict. Most of them supporting Congress' Boycott Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaign against Israel.
ICTU president Jack O'Connor said he would be very concerned if Congress'stance was interpreted as being motivated by "hostility to the people of Israel". Instead, he argued, it was motivated by "a sense of obligation given our history and our experience . . . an obligation to try to do something when the prospects of justice seem so remote given the imbalance of forces" in the conflict.
The conference was opened by the Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheal Martin. In his speech Minister Martin critisised Israel and the current situation in East Jerusalem, saying "through the expansion of settlements and the reprehensible policy of demolition and forced eviction of Palestinian families from their homes, (Israel) has only succeeded in greatly complicating the search for peace." But the Minister also told the conference that the Government does not agree with or support any form of boycott of Israel.
"Boycott a moral obligation."
Important speakers from the region were Omar Barghouti, Palestinian National Committee for BDS and Raed Sadeq, Democracy and Workers' Rights Centre in Palestine (DWRC). Both of them emphasised the need of an international boycott against Israel as a way to find a peaceful solution. Omar Barghouti saw the boycott as a "moral obligation and political imperative". He noted that the campaign was gaining momentum internationally and he praised Congress' efforts; "by holding onto its position and spreading the BDS message, and starting now to think how to apply it practically, Congress is now applying a lot of pressure on the (Irish) Government and we hope that in time this will bring results." Omar Barghouti was also one of several speakers to call for Ireland to exercise its veto to block Israel from joining the OECD.
Unfortunately the representatives of the Palestinian General Federation of Trade Unions (PGFTU) and the Confederation of Souh African Trade Unions (COSATU) were stuck in European airports and could not present their views at the conference. Both unions are important members of the international BDS-campaign.
"Time for action"
A lively debate followed a speech by Avital Shapira-Shabirow, Director of International Department, Histadrut (the General Federation of Labour in Israel). She accused Congress of bias against Israel. She also claimed that the BDS campaign could damage the prospect of a negotiated solution to the conflict. Several speakers challenged Avital Shapira and claimed that Histadrut had not only failed to condemn the attack on Gaza in early 2009 in which 1400 people, including 300 children, were killed by Israeli forces but had actively defended it.
Concluding the sometimes heated discussion, Jack O'Connor said that it was not sufficient for trade unionists and progressive people to ignore the plight of the Palestinian people just as they should never have ignored the Holocaust in the mid 20th Century.
Several speakers called for an examination by Congress of more effective means to progress the BDS campaign. During one panel discussion at the conference, John Douglas, general secretary of the Mandate trade union, recalled the involvement of Irish retail workers in the boycott against apartheid-era South Africa and said his union would support a consumer-led boycott campaign against Israel followed by a worker-led effort. John Douglas emphasised that; "the time for silence is gone, action is required."
Background:
In November 2007, a Congress delegation visited the region and met with representatives of all sides, including Israeli and Palestinian trade unions, the Israeli government and civil society activists. Members of the delegation entered the Gaza strip to meet with representatives of the elected Hamas authority. The delegation subsequently published a report of their findings and made key recommendations. The full report is available - click here
In 2009, Congress adopted a motion at its Biennial Delegate Conference, which included support for calls from Palestinian civil society for the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaign against Israel. Read more about the BDS campaign - click here.
More about Congress' policy and the conference - click here