Unions condemn terrorist attacks against railway workers : Melbourne Indymedia

IFTU Executive Statement – 29 December 2004

“On 25 December 2004, a freight train travelling from Basra to An-Nasiriyyah was subjected to a terrorist attack, which led to the kidnapping of the two train drivers, their names are; Salah Mehdi Taher and Salih Chiyehchan Harbi. The other five workers on the train were severely beaten and left in a life-threatening condition, their names are, Abd’ al-Emir Abd’al-Malik, Mustapha Kamel Mehdi, Amer Shamaan Amer, Ali Abd’al-Radh and Basil Abd’ Ouwd.”

“These continuing terrorist attacks by extremists and criminal gangs indicate that workers are their prime targets. In October 2004 four railway workers were arbitrarily murdered (whilst working their train between Mosul and Baghdad), as previously several drivers of oil and gas tankers have been kidnapped and murdered across many provinces of Iraq and as many factories have been destroyed or had their production paralysed as a result of these terrorist acts.”

“Our working people are paying with their blood and lives for participating in the re-building of their country to end the foreign occupation.”

“The responsibility of protecting the public infrastructure (the transportation of goods and oil) falls on the state, but the state also has the responsibility to protect the lives of workers as they carry out their jobs.”

“The lives of our workers are not cheap and therefore we demand that the government and its responsible agencies do the following;
1. obtain the immediate release of the two kidnapped railway workers and ensure their safe return to their families and their jobs;
2. provide sufficient protection to working people to carry out their jobs (without threat to life);
3. implement permanent security measures on all land-based transportation (railways and road freight transport);
4. award proper compensation for all workers who are victims of cowardly terrorist attacks in the course of their working duties."

“The IFTU stands shoulder to shoulder with our working people and supports their demands and their legitimate rights (under the conventions of the International Labour Organisation to work in safety free from terror). Therefore, we are calling on all responsible agencies to implement forthwith proper procedures to prevent acts such as the above against Iraqi people who by working to rebuild their country are taking a stand against terrorism and the perpetrators of terrorism. We call on the Iraqi Interim Government and its agencies to bring to justice those criminals and terrorists who carry out attacks on working people."

“Glory to the martyrs of the working class!"

“Long live the Iraqi working class!”

Executive Committee of the IFTU, 29 December 2004