ISTANBUL - International Confederation of Free Trade Unions-Asian and Pacific Regional Organization (ICFTU-APRO) Thirteenth Regional Executive Committee Meeting has started in Istanbul on Wednesday.
Making opening remarks of the meeting, Turkish Confederation of Labor Unions (Turk-Is) Chairman Salih Kilic said that the meeting took place while several inhumane and shameful incidents had been happening in the Middle East.
Noting that as the Turk-Is and Turkish workers, they condemned ''terrorism and violence that invader forces has been imposing on prisoners in Iraq'', Kilic said, ''besides, I also condemn Sharon's government due to its violent and oppressive policies toward Palestinian people and I want those implementations to stop immediately.''
''I am calling on all workers in the world to be sensitive to terrorism and violence imposed in Iraq and Palestine,'' he said.
Noting that all countries in east and southeast of the Asian continent and the broad geography including all Pacific countries, particularly Australia and New Zealand provided thirty percent of total global gross product in the beginning of the 21st century, Kilic said, ''East and Southeast Asian economies in this geography are growing three times faster than the economies of the industrialized nations. With this respect, they are a candidate to be one of the most important centers of power in the world in terms of economy.''
Meanwhile, ICFTU-APRO Secretary General Noriyuki Suzuki of Japan said that the organization represented 30 million workers in 28 countries.
Suzuki said that integration of international labor unions with each other, organization and financial structure of ICFTU-APRO would be discussed in the meeting.
Noting that rate of getting organized in countries in Asia and Pacific regions remained very low, Suzuki added that regional policies would be developed to increase the rate.
Representatives from India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Taiwan and Jordan are attending the meeting.
ICFTU-APRO was born in May 1951 in Karachi, Pakistan. Known initially as the Asian Regional Organization, it was re-named ICFTU-APRO in 1984.
Its main purpose is to promote cooperation between all trade unions so that the workers they represent will have greater bargaining power and be able to use their resources to greater advantage.
(MS-AÖ) 26.05.2004