Stop the Repression against Former Migrants’ Trade Union President Anwar Immediately!
Protest Letter from the Participants of the International Conference
on Defending and Promoting the Basic Rights of Migrant Workers in South Korea

21 August 2007

We are representatives of trade unions, national trade union centers and migrant support organizations and networks from many nations including the Philippines, Malaysia, Japan, Spain, Nepal and South Korea who are currently participating in a two-day international conference on promoting the rights of migrant workers. We wish here to state our strong objection to the Bangladeshi government’s unreasonable repression against Anwar Hussain, former president of the Migrants’ Trade Union in South Korea for legitimate union activities he conducted while in South Korea. As representatives of organizations working to uphold the basic labor rights of migrant workers throughout the world, we wish to point out that it is completely outside the authority of the Bangladeshi government to persecute Anwar for union activities he conducted while outside the country and strongly condemn the current investigation being carried out against him as anti-labor, immoral and unjust.

On July 27 former MTU President, Anwar Hussain, left South Korea voluntarily with the plan to return to his home in Bangladesh. However he was not even able to settle into his seat on the airplane before South Korean immigration officers confiscated his passport, which was not returned to him until he arrived in Bangladesh. After being detained for several hours in the Singapore airport where his plane stopped over, he was finally able to travel to his homeland. However, even before he could set foot outside the Dhaka International Airport he was arrested by the Bangladeshi police.
  
After being taken to the police station, Anwar was informed that he is suspected of anti- South Korean and anti-government crimes, and is currently being subjected to an investigation in relations to these charges. He was granted a temporary release but told not to stray from his house and to report to the police station about his daily activities at least twice a week.

The fact is, however, that former President Anwar has never carried out anti-South Korean government activities; his only ‘crime’ is that he actively worked to secure the rights of migrant workers in South Korean society. Anwar began his activism in South Korea as a member of the Equality Trade Union Migrants’ Branch in 2002. After serving as Seongsu Branch Leader for the ETUMB and a leader in union-related activities, he was elected as the Migrants’ Trade Union’s first president when it was established in 2005.

Hardly a criminal, former President Anwar was in fact a target of the South Korean government. Directly after he was elected MTU president, he was arrested in the middle of night by several Korean police officers who physically harassed him. He was then forced to live confined in a detention center for one year at the end of which time he was finally granted a temporary release due to deteriorating health. Immediately following his release Anwar actively returned to his position as union president.

President Anwar’s activism can hardly be considered anti-Korean or anti-government. The migrant workers’ struggle in South Korea has only been carried out to secure the rights of workers that have been victimized by a faulty system. It has not been carried out in order to harm the South Korean government or with any sort of anti-Korean objective. The South Korean Constitution guarantees the right of all workers to trade union activities to protect their labor rights. And, recently, a High Court ruling recognized the legality of the MTU and the right of undocumented migrant workers to organize and join a trade union. The claims made against former President Anwar are simply unwarranted and unjust.

The South Korean government has denied any hand in this incident other than to have checked that Anwar boarded the plane in South Korea. However it is hard not to suspect government intervention considering its past attempts to repress Anwar’s activities. We believe that the South Korean government should take full responsibility for any hand it has had in this incident and discontinue all persecution against Anwar.

As representatives of many organizations and participants to the International Conference on Defending and Promoting the Basic Rights of Migrant Workers in South Korea, we pledge to raise awareness about the Bangladeshi government’s unjust anti-union actions among our memberships. In addition, we make the following demands.

1. Recognizing it has no authority to persecute Anwar for activism carried out outside of the country, the Bangladesh government must immediately stop labeling his legitimate trade union activities as ‘anti-South Korean government’ and drop all charges against him, discontinue its investigation of him and allow him to return to normal life.
2. The South Korean government must take full responsibility for any involvement in this incident and cease all repression against Anwar.

We will continue to stand by Anwar and do everything in our power to galvanize international support for his struggle until all charges against him have been dropped and he is free to return to normal life in Bangladesh.

Signed

1.        R. Rajeswari, Assistant Secretary, Malaysian Trade Union Congress
2.        Yeon Bae Kang, Policy Director, Korean Health and Medical Workers Union
3.        Miran Lee, Chief Counselor, Association for Foreign Workers’ Human Rights (South Korea)
4.        Sunkyong Yiyu, Counselor, Association for Foreign Workers’ Human Rights
5.        Kimal Chhantyal, Member, Migrants’ Trade Union (South Korea)
6.        Chudamani B.K. ‘Jungali’, Regional Coordinator, GEFONT (Nepal)
7.        Kajiman Khapung, President, Migrant Workers’ Trade Union
8.        Jung-Kyu Choi, MigrantsKorea.net
9.        Khairul Anuar, Timber Employees Union Peninsular Malaysia
10.        Seung Hwan Kim, Policy Director, Korean Construction Workers Union
11.        Takaya Sachi, Deputy Secretary General, Solidarity Network with Migrants in Japan
12.        Torii Ippei, Secretary General, Zentoitsu Workers Union (Japan)
13.        Nakajima Hiroshi, Steering Committee Member, Zentoitsu Workers Union
14.        Yun Jeong Wang, Korean Construction Workers Union
15.        Seung Wook Han, Office Executive, Migrants’ Trade Union
16.        Jungpil, Byun, Reporter, People’s Press Chamsaesang (South Korea)
17.        Ellene A. Sena, Chairperson of the Executive Committee, Migrants Forum in Asia
18.        Mark Padlan, KASAMMAKO (Alliance of Filipino Migrants Associations in Korea)
19.        Joselito M. Navidad, Member of the National Council, KMU-Philippines (May First Workers’ Movement)
20.        Haonju Kim, Migrant Labor Center in Gyeongsan, Gyeongbuk Province, South Korea


Participants of the International Conference on Defending and Promoting the Basic Rights of Migrant Workers in South Korea