Trade Union Palestinian Solidarity Conference (morning session)

I attended this conference in Liverpool yesterday, organised by Merseyside Trade Union Council and Liverpool Friends of Palestine, as a delegate from Sefton Trade Union Council. See http://www.labournet.net/ukunion/0904/palconfrep1.html for a full transcript of the morning session.

There were between 50-60 delegates from across the North West, with a creche provided by the organisers and middle eastern food provided for lunch by the local muslim community.

The morning session was opened and chaired by Steve Farley, chair of the North West TUC and was then addressed through an interpreter by Manawell Abdel-Al, from the executive of the Palestinian General Federation of Trade Unions (PGFTU).

He noted that the PGFTU has to operate within three different employment legislation - Israeli, Jordanian in the West Bank, and the Palestinian government. This created practical and political difficulties, for instance in illegally occupied East Jerusalem where Palestinians do not recognise Israeli law.

A further organising difficulty was created by the destruction of the Palestinian economy, with unemployment at 30% in the West Bank and 50% in Gaza.

Then there was the racist, apartheid wall, which separated many people's workplace from their communities and family homes, meaning either long and impossible daily journeys when checkpoints are closed, or having to choose between work and home.

He unequivocally condenmed the attack on Gaza and brought a simple request to the conference - to boycott Israeli products and oppose policies that affect all Palestinians. Such actions, like those taken recently by South African Dockers who refused to handle Israeil goods, had 'lifted all their spirits'.

Here in the North west specifically he is aware of Veilloa bidding for waste contracts. This is the same company involved in projects connecting illegal settlements in the west bank to Israel proper. They lie that this involves helping palestinian villages - he lives in one of these villages himself and can confirm they receive no help from them at all.

Questions were asked about Palestinian workers in Israel (so called 'Israeli Arab's) - Manawell confirmed they suffered from discriminatory laws and practices); should we boycott the Histadrut ? - he had no hesistation supporting this. The PGFTU had an agreement with them to get their money back, but the Histadrut supported the attack on Gaza and one of its former leaders led the war on Lebannon.

Questions were also asked about the internal political situation, and he noted that Hamas is not represented on the PGFTU's executive. It has its own 'Islamic Trade Union' and before they talk about mergers he felt even this name was a problem - trade unions surely had to be for all workers, regardless of their religion. Hamas had taken control of the PGFTU offices in Gaza and then the Israeli's destroyed them. But the PGFTU has its own offices elsewehere in Gaza now and continues to organise.

A photo journalist from Gaza then presented an eyewitness report and was followed by Brian Campsfield, the Deputy General Secretary of NIPSA, Northern Ireland's biggest union.

Brian talked about how they had built support for the Palestinian's within the union and within a divided society, where the issue was often 'sectarianised'. He was involved with the Trades Councils who organised the protests for Gaza in Belfast and Derry. In answer to a question asking if there was comparisons between the Irish and Palestinian liberation struggles he said that the trade unions had not taken this position during the 'troubles' in Ireland, but they had been able to focus on civil rights and stand up for these.

Eamon McMahon from the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) then spoke about the work of the Trade Union Friends of Palestine. ICTU November 2007 Palestine delegation report can be found here www.ictu.ie/download/pdf/palestine_final.pdf

Next up was a phone link from Bongani Masuka, the International Secretary of COSATU. He described what was happening in the middle east as the biggest display of Imperialist Aggression in the world. Israel was playing the same role there as the Colombian government in South America. He felt the Boycott, Divestment & Sanctions Campaign (BDS) was essential.