24136: Batay Ouvriyi: Free Trade Zone Update (Announcement) (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

>From : Batay Ouvriye batayouvriye@hotmail.com

Port-au-Prince, January 15th, 2004

Batay Ouvriye is pleased to announce to the press for the public in general
that in the multi facet conflict opposing the CODEVI management to the
workers of this free trade zone, two of the issues have found partial
resolutions.

First of all, the reinstatement of the over 300 workers illegally fired in
June 2004. After Mr. Capellan's letter dated August 9th, 2004, promising
this reinstatement, the negotiation process has finally begun.

Secondly, as some of the media has already announced it, a judgment was
pronounced in favor of the molested security agent, Mr. Orélus. Although the
company initially rejected this decision, it finally backed down and was
forced to pay a settlement out of court.

Batay Ouvriye is seizing this occasion to point out to the population in
general the accuracy of our initial positions (workers' rights violations
and characterized infractions, especially in the Orélus case), contrary to
the Association of Haitian Industrials (ADIH) who moved heaven and earth to
defend the company's untenable position. What followed shows we were
completely right.

We also should point out the role played by the Haitian Executive who,
despite flagrant evidence of offences and beyond the findings of their own
delegations' enquiries in the field, never took a firm decision with regard
to the culprits.

Remains the suspicious vaccinations case, for which no public statement has
still ever been put out, despite the Union of Haitian Doctors investigation
report and the various open letters sent to the government. Quite the
contrary, meeting with the union and Batay Ouvriye, the Minister of Public
Health even went so far as to say the Haitian State had no right to
intervene in the free trade zone. Who can, in that case? Who can guarantee
the physical and moral welfare of the workers? Will company managements,
apparently intent on generalizing such relationships throughout the country,
be allowed, in all impunity, to go so far as homicide, without anyone being
able to call them to account?

For Batay Ouvriye:


Yannick Etienne


B.P. 13326, DELMAS, HAITI (W.I.), TEL/FAX: (509) 222-6719,
Http://www.batayouvriye.org