AFL-CIO Calls on U.S. to End Bahrain FTA due to Labor Violations
The AFL-CIO1 has submitted a public document to the Department of Labor's Office of Trade and Labor Affairs calling on the U.S. to withdraw from the U.S.-Bahrain Free Trade Agreement due to the failure of the government of Bahrain to comply with its labor commitments under the FTA.
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AFL-CIO Says U.S. Should Serve Notice of Its Withdrawal from the FTA
In light of the ongoing repression of peaceful protest carried out by the police and armed forces of Bahrain and the Gulf Cooperation Council, the AFL-CIO calls on the U.S. to serve notice of its withdrawal from the FTA with Bahrain, pursuant to Article 21.5.2 of the FTA which states that either party may terminate the FTA on 180-days written notice to the other Party. The AFL-CIO states that the U.S. should not provide preferential trade treatment to a country that has and continues to engage in widespread violations of human and labor rights of its citizens and residents.
U.S. Should Enter Consultations with Bahrain in Interim
The AFL-CIO states that in the interim, the U.S. government should immediately enter into consultations with the government of Bahrain under Article 15.6, on labor consultations, and insist that it end its ongoing campaign to punish trade union activity and to cease all forms of discrimination against trade unions and union activists. If these consultations (and any other engagement) result in a satisfactory resolution of the human and labor rights issues described within the AFL-CIO's document, within the six month notice period, the AFL-CIO asks that the U.S. withdraw its request for withdrawal from the FTA.
Bahrain Allegedly Violated FTA by Firing Union Workers, Repressing Protest, Etc.
According to the AFL-CIO, the Government of Bahrain has violated Article 15.1.1 of the FTA, through its brutal repression of peaceful protest and persecution of trade union activity. To date, several trade union leaders have been arbitrarily detained and investigated, and hundreds of rank and file union members and workers have been fired for participating in strikes and pro-democracy demonstrations.
The document additionally sets forth several examples of where the government Bahrain has failed to "respect, promote, and realize" core workers' rights, as outlined in the International Labor Organization (ILO) Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work.
(The U.S.-Bahrain FTA entered into force in August 2006. See ITT's Online Archives or 07/31/06 and 11/27/06 news, 06073105 and 06112710, for BP summary.)
1American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations