Democratic Trade Unions Seek Protection from State Arbitrariness :: Charter'97 :: News

In connection with the requirement of the Trade Union Federation of Belarus to sign new agreements, raising the rent by 10 times, the leaders of Belarusian Congress of the democratic trade unions, the Free trade union of Belarus, the Free trade union of metal workers, the Democratic trade union of transport and the Belarusian independent trade union circulated their address to the trade union organizations and members of the trade unions, which are included into the Belarusian Congress of democratic trade unions. “They are trying hard to move us out of our premises, thus stripping us of our legal addresses. Coordinating our activities with the executive, the FTU leadership makes no mystery from the fact that the Congress and its constituent trade unions will never get an opportunity to receive a new legal address on the territory of Belarus. As a result, as masterminded by the presidential political technologists, the independent trade union movement of Belarus will face a real danger of liquidation,” – reads the statement.

ADDRESS
To the trade union organizations, members of trade unions, which are part of the Belarusian Congress of democratic trade unions.
Dear colleagues and friends!
We address you at the critical moment of our short though glorious history. Having no opportunity to pressurize us by traditional tools, nomenclature intrigues and administrative pressure, fearing to enter an open dialogue with us and angrily hating our independent status, the government in the person of the FTU leader Kozik, determined to cleanse the Belarusian political and trade union landscape – simply by expelling the Congress, the Free trade union of Belarus, the Free trade union of metal workers and the Democratic trade union of transport from their premises. This plan is being carried out through an arbitrary 10 times increase in the amount of the rent on the occupied space. They are trying hard to move us out of our premises, thus stripping us of our legal addresses. Coordinating our activities with the executive, the FTU leadership makes no mystery from the fact that the Congress and its constituent trade unions will never get an opportunity to receive a new legal address on the territory of Belarus. As a result, as masterminded by the presidential political technologists, the independent trade union movement of Belarus will face a real danger of liquidation. The plan of Mr.Kozik and those, who stand behind him is clear as daylight: they expect, as it had happened often in the past, that we will fail to resist the insolent power, which does not scruple to use any means to threaten us, even trespassing all moral, ethic and legal norms. You, as the ranking trade union members and workers of the country’s best companies, whom one could by right call the national elite and who deserve every respect from the choice you make, should now choose to be free citizens. We wait, hope and count that together with you we will defend this last remaining island of freedom in the country for ourselves, our children and grandchildren, for our beloved Belarus and its future.
Presidents of trade unions Yaroshuk, Bykov, Troschiy, Makarchuk, Zimin”.
P.S. The president of the Belarusian Congress of democratic trade unions Yaroshuk forwarded to the country’s prosecutor general Sheiman a letter of protest against Leonid Kozik’s arbitrary activities.