"... Colombia remains the deadliest place for trade unionists..."

Excerpted from World Politics Review's column "Rights & Wrongs", authored by Juliette Terzieff. October 6, 2007 installment. Link: http://www.worldpoliticsreview.com/article.aspx?id=1217

"WORKERS' RIGHTS A DANGEROUS BUSINESS -- Across the globe those who publicly advocate for workers' rights last year faced increasing abuses, including torture, arrest and even murder, according to a new report from the International Trade Union Confederation.

The ITUC's 2007 Survey of Violations of Trade Union Rights tracked conditions in 138 countries and found more than 800 trade unionists were beaten or tortured in 2006 for defending workers' rights. More than 5,000 were arrested, more than 8,000 dismissed from their jobs and 144 murdered -- up from 115 the previous year.

Colombia remains the deadliest place for trade unionists, but the survey found violent incidents rising sharply in both Asia and Africa. Authoritarian regimes in countries such as Belarus, Burma, China and North Korea maintained their repression of workers, and some actions in developed countries, including Australia, Switzerland and the United States, were seen to roll back the free exercise of some rights.

Among the rights trade unionists advocate are fair pay, safe working conditions and the right to form unions -- all rights guaranteed by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights."