Open
World Conference of Workers
In Defense of Trade Union Independence & Democratic Rights
Urgent International Appeal: Free the Liaoyang 5!
July 10 Demonstration for Liaoyang 5 in Hong Kong
China Campaign Dossier:
Yao Fuxin Accused of Communicating with Hostile Elements
Yao Fuxin and Xiao Yunliang to be tried for subversion on January 15 !
Liayong Workers Charged with Subversion; could face execution
Three Chinese Workers: Jail, Betrayal and Fear Government Stifles Labor Movement By Philip P. Pan, Washington Post
New Worldwide Liayong Appeal for October 20th
Open Letter from Chinese Unionists to the Communist Party (CPC) and the Chinese Government
Report on July 10 Rally in San Francisco
Report on July 10 Delegation in San Francisco
AFL-CIO Statements for July 10th Actions in SF
Urgent Appeal: July 10 International Day of Action to Free the Liaoyang 5
Delegation press conference in Hong Kong after expulsion
Support Coupon for International Campaign
Organize Delegations to Chinese Consulates in Your Cities on July 10!
A Revealing Conversation with
Chinese Consulate in SF re: July 10 Labor Delegation
HKCTU
Declaration on
Blow to Freedom of Association in China
International Appeal
to Free the Liaoyang 5! Support the international delegation to China
Background on Appeal and Endorsers for the International Appeal
Updates from the China Labour Bulletin and the ILC] April 16, 2002
Update on the Labour Situation in Mainland China
Announcing Workers Remember Web Site
Urgent
International Appeal Issued by Manfred Birkahn, Daniel Gluckstein and
Nancy Wohlforth
Join us in demanding freedom for the Liaoyang 5!
Support the international labor delegation to China!
Dear supporters of international labor rights:
We are writing this urgent appeal to inform you that five unionists in the
city of Liaoyang, in the northeast region of China, have been charged
formally by the authorities with promoting "illegal demonstrations"
earlier this year. The five unionists - the Liaoyang 5 - are currently in
prison and awaiting their trial. They are:
* Yao Fuxin (arrested March 17)
* Pang Qingxiang (arrested March 20)
* Xiao Yunliang (arrested March 20)
* Wang Zhaoming (arrested March 20)
* A worker from Fibre Factory (arrested March 21)
As the three people mandated by the International Conference Against
Deregulation and For Labor Rights For All (held in Berlin, Germany, on Feb.
22-24) to coordinate the follow-up work of that conference, we are hereby
informing you that, upon request from the independent union activists in
China, an international labor delegation will travel to China at the end
of May to express the unswerving support of working people the world over
for the Laioyang 5.
These jailed unionists, and the tens of thousands of laid-off Chinese
workers who took to the streets in March to demand their unemployment
allowances, payment of their arrears, and an end to corruption, need to
see first-hand that labor solidarity knows no borders!
The international labor delegation will demand to meet with the jailed
unionists. They will also bring with them the thousands of signatures
gathered since mid-March by the International Liaison Committee for a
Workers International (ILC) and the China Labour Bulletin around an appeal
to free the detained worker-activists in Liaoyang. The appeal, which has
been supported in more than 20 countries, also affirms that the Chinese
workers must have the rights enshrined in ILO Conventions 87 and 98;
namely, the right to strike, the right to demonstrate and the right to
organize.
The International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) and the
International Metalworkers Federation have also issued statements
demanding the immediate release of the Liaoyang 5.
We appeal to all supporters of labor rights around the world to endorse
this delegation by sending statements or resolutions of support from your
union bodies and/or organizations. We also need your financial support,
which -- as always -- is pivotal to ensuring the fully independent
character of our undertaking.
Unionists and labor rights supporters living in the United States should
please send all statements or resolutions -- and all financial support --
to:
* International Liaison Committee:
Email: eit.ilc@wanadoo.fr
Mailing address:
Entente international des travailleurs et des peuples
c/o Parti des travailleurs
87, rue du Faubourg-Saint-Denis, 75010 Paris (France)
Fax: (00 33 1) 48 01 89 24
Make your checks payable to "Conférence mondiale ouverte"
* Open World Conference Continuations Committee:
Email: ilcinfo@earthlink.net
Mailing address:
c/o San Francisco Labor Council (AFL-CIO),
1188 Franklin St. #203, San Francisco, CA 94109
Fax: (415) 440-9297
Make your checks payable to OWC.
* Organizing Committee of the International Conference Against
Deregulation
Email: GotthardKrupp@t-online.de
or IKgD-@t-online.de
Mailing address:
Gotthard Krup, Knesebeckstr. 98, 10623, Berlin, Germany
Fax: (49) 30 313 16 62
We would like to conclude this appeal with the words of Han Dongfang,
editor of China Labour Bulletin in Hong Kong and co-organizer, along with
the ILC, of this international campaign. He writes:
"In China, where our brothers and sisters are denied the basic
workers' rights to organize and bargain independently, retrenched [laid-off]
workers in Liaoyang city in the northeastern province of Liaoning have
taken courageous actions to reclaim their rights and defend their
livelihood. The international labor movement has always been very
supportive of the workers' struggles in China, and at this stage, when an
alarming rate of unemployment is going to set in with China's accession to
the WTO, international solidarity is all the more important to the
struggling Chinese workers."
Join us in extending this solidarity with the Liaoyang 5 as widely as
possible the world over!
Thank you, in advance, for your assistance in this effort.
"An Injury to One, is An Injury to All!"
In solidarity,
Manfred Birkahn, Daniel Gluckstein and Nancy Wohlforth,
Coordinators,
International Committee Against Deregulation & For Labor Rights For
All
********************
Support Coupon (from U.S.) for International Labor Delegation to China
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International Campaign to Free the Liaoyang 5
[ ] I pledge $ _____ to help fund the independent
international labor delegation to China at the end of May 2002. I will
send this contribution to OWC, c/o S.F. Labor Council (AFL-CIO), 1188
Franklin St. #203, San Francisco, CA 94109, with my check payable to OWC.
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