ICFTU Letter to the Chinese government on the release of the Stella factory workers.
Mr. Hu Jintao
President of the People’s Republic of China
C/o Ministry of Justice
Chaoyang District
Beijing
People’s Republic of China
By fax: + 86 10 647 298 63
By e-mail: minister@legalinfo.gov.cn
TUR-IHLO/JK-DM 21 January 2005
Dear Mr. President,
Continuing denial of fundamental labour rights
I am writing with regard to the welcome news of the release of seven imprisoned workers from two Stella factories in Dongguan, Guangdong province who were involved in mass protests by some 5,000 workers in April 2004 and the suspension of sentences for all ten sentenced workers.
As you will be aware, the ICFTU has previously sent two letters to your office denouncing the detention and sentencing of the ten Stella workers, including three young workers who had all received suspended sentences. The ten workers were convicted on criminal charges of “intentional destruction of property” following short and closed trials. The charges were brought against them after their participation in two spontaneous protests at the Xing Ang and Xing Xiong Shoe Factories when some 5,000 workers staged protests over wage issues, poor meals provided by the factory, and for working hours that exceeded limits set in China’s Labour Law.
According to our information the seven detained workers originally sentenced to three or three and a half years have recently had their sentences reduced to nine months suspended while the three juvenile workers have been released with their two year suspended sentences remaining. However, while we are pleased that the appeal court in Dongguan has not only reduced but also suspended all the original sentences of all the defendants, we are deeply concerned that the criminal convictions of the ten workers have not also been removed and believe that the sentences are the result of blatant scapegoating of these ten workers.
Court proceedings have failed to make any clear link between the defendants and specific acts of damage to property or other criminal acts nor has it been proved that they were the instigators of the protests as was alleged – instead it appears the ten workers were chosen as scapegoats and sentenced to prison terms as a warning to other workers not to protest against the all too common harsh conditions in private enterprises.
We are dismayed by the harshness of the remaining criminal convictions and by the reported sacking of scores of other workers. It is the ICFTU’s firm belief that that the inappropriate but spontaneous protests were primarily a result of long standing ill treatment at the factory and the continued denial of basic labour rights to the workers – including their right to organise. Furthermore, the right to strike, fully recognised by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) is neither respected nor upheld in China.
As a member state of the ILO, China is bound to uphold its basic principles, including the freedom of association. I therefore strongly urge you, Mr. President, to intervene with the competent authorities in order to ensure that all convictions against the workers be quashed, unless concrete evidence is produced which establishes violent and criminal behaviour. Even then we ask that the authorities urgently address the causes of the protest - namely the allegations of ill treatment and illegal working conditions as well as address and rectify the current absence of genuine independent trade unions within China.
We also ask that in addition to the removal of criminal convictions, you call an independent inquiry into all aspects of the Stella worker protests including illegal working conditions and take immediate steps towards granting freedom of association to all workers in China.
Yours sincerely,
General Secretary
Cc: Mr. Wang Zhaoguo, Chairman, ACFTU, Beijing (by fax: 86-10-68 59 33 19)
CC: Guangdong Provincial Governor, Guangdong Provincial Government, 305,Dongfeng Rd. M., Guangzhou, Guangdong Sheng. Tel: (00 86) 83138114
