TUC condemns Iraqi government’s withdrawal of recognition rights

The TUC has called on Iraqi prime minister Al-Maliki to repeal the sudden withdrawal of union recognition rights from the General Federation of Iraqi Workers (GFIW) — the Iraqi equivalent of the TUC.

An Iraqi government decree issued last month withdrew its recognition of the Iraqi trade union confederation and replaced it with a new unelected body, mostly made up of officials from the Sadrist party, who are now overseeing new union elections. The TUC says that the move has “effectively ended free and independent unions in Iraq, and is a dangerous recipe for breaking apart the GFIW”.

The GFIW is one of the few institutions left which unites people across tribal, ethnic and religious boundaries. The federation is also committed to women’s rights and to the creation of a peaceful and prosperous Iraq.

TUC general secretary Brendan Barber said Iraqi unions are “an urgently needed antidote to rising authoritarianism” and the risk of sectarianism, but that recent developments put this at risk. He added that the government’s actions had “effectively handed the unions over to a religious faction”.