February 8 ITUC Global Action Day for Democracy in Egypt: RENGO Demands Democratic Trade Union Movement and Guarantee of Workers’ Rights in Egypt to Egyptian Ambassador in Tokyo
09 February 2011
International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) to which RENGO (Japanese Trade Union Confederation) is affiliated set February 8, 2010 as a “Day of Action for Democracy in Egypt” at its 8th General Council Meeting held 2-4 February, 2011, in Brussels (Belgium) and requested all affiliates to organize demonstrations outside Egyptian embassies to demand a democratic transition in Egypt and press their governments to exert maximum international pressure for the democratic transition in Egypt.
RENGO responded to the call and its representatives visited the Egyptian Embassy in Tokyo on February 8 and met Ambassador Dr. Walid Mahmoud Abdelnasser in his office. In the meeting, RENGO representatives expressed condolences to the victims of violent repression of the legitimate protest actions and handed over a letter of request in which RENGO strongly demanded that the Egyptian government listen to the voices of the people seriously and to guarantee workers’ rights and independent trade union movement. RENGO also insisted that those people responsible for ordering physical attacks must be brought to trial and cannot remain unpunished.
According to the ITUC News dated February 8, many trade union organizations of the world mobilized demonstrations in response to the call of the ITUC. In Brussels , ITUC General Secretary Sharon Burrow led an international trade union delegation composed of GUFs representatives and the three Belgian trade union organizations affiliated to the ITUC (CGSLB, CSC, FGTB) and went to the Egyptian Embassy in Brussels.
The same News also said that ITUC-Africa, led by its general secretary and its president, also led an international trade union delegation to the Egyptian Embassy in Dakar (Senegal) during the World Social Forum in Dakar.
The ITUC confirmed that reports of many other trade union gatherings to mark the day were sent to the ITUC, notably from Australia, Korea, Bahrain, Jordan, Lebanon, France, Tunisia, Canada, Sweden, Italy, Mauritania, Japan,among others.