Brussels, 4 April 2007 (ITUC Online): The ITUC fully supports the International Chemical, Energy and Mine Workers’ Federation (ICEM) in its resounding condemnation of the murder of a leader of the General Federation of Iraqi Workers (GFIW).
Najim Abd-Jasem, who had been General Secretary of the Mechanics, Printers and Metalworkers Union in Baghdad since 2003 and was a founder of the Federation of Iraqi Workers, was abducted on 27 March in Baghdad. His body, showing clear signs of torture, was found three days later. A very principled trade union leader, Najim Abd-Jasem was fired from his job during Saddam Hussein’s regime for having opposed the government’s official union.
For the ICEM, this “appalling murder” is yet “another sign of a clearly systematic campaign underway in Iraq to eliminate the leadership of the newly formed independent and democratic unions that strongly oppose sectarianism” and is fighting to ensure full respect for workers’ rights.
“No one is being spared in Iraq,” lamented ITUC General Secretary Guy Ryder, on hearing the announcement of Najim Abd-Jasem’s death. “And yet is essential that this county, ravaged by violence on a day to day basis, be equipped with a strong and independent trade union,” he added.
Founded on 1 November 2006, the ITUC represents 168 million workers in 153 countries and territories and has 304 national affiliates.
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