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THE
United States Trade Representative (USTR) warned the
Philippines its export trade preferences into the United
States market may be withdrawn because of its policy of
“no union, no strike” in economic zones.
The
Philippines is now under “active scrutiny” following
reports of violations of international labor standards
and curtailment of the right to freedom of association
and the killing of several labor leaders pushing for
labor rights suspected to have its roots in the zone
labor problems.
The
Philippines is at the moment in the list of developing
countries given Generalized System of Preferences (GSP)
that allows it easy access to the American market.
The US
scrutiny arose from a complaint by the International
Labor Rights Forum (ILRF) in June 2007, seeking an
investigation of the Philippine government on whether it
provides all workers to enjoy the right to freedom of
association as guaranteed under international labor
laws.
ILRF
lawyer Brian Campbell said the US Trade Representative
will “convene another hearing this fall to assess
whether the [the Republic of the Philippines] has taken
any steps to remedy the problems raised in the
petition.”
“We
welcome the USTR’s decision to deny the Philippine
government’s request to end the inquiry and instead to
keep the review open,” said Campbell. “We hope that the
Philippine government will take the necessary steps to
end the impunity enjoyed by those who kill and harass
trade unionists.”
In its
complaint, the ILRF has noted the rise in extrajudicial
killings of trade union leaders from 2001 to 2007 and
the Philippine government efforts to deny its workers
the freedom of association by enforcing the “no union,
no strike” policy in the special economic zones. The
government has also been charged with violating
international labor laws by assuming jurisdiction in
many labor dispute cases.
The ILRF
has also asked the USTR inquiry board to remain open to
further reports on whether the Philippine government has
taken positive steps to implement the recommendations of
the United Nations special rapporteur on extrajudicial
killings, Phillip Alston.
Campbell
also asked the USTR to take note of the reports of the
Committee on the Freedom of Association of the
International Labor Organization (ILO), which repeatedly
raised concerns that Philippines’ assumption of
jurisdiction in labor disputes violates international
labor standards.
“We are
hoping that the Philippine government will take this
seriously and begin to implement reforms that the
international community has been calling for years, and
not needlessly place the nearly $1 billion in trade
benefits it receives at risk,” he said.
The US
generalized system of preference program is designed to
promote economic growth in developing countries by
providing preferential duty-free entry for more than
4,650 products from 131 designated beneficiary countries
and territories including the Philippines.
Under
the GSP program, the US government requires that a
country give its workers “internationally recognized
workers rights” that include the right to freedom of
association.
The US
is the top trading partner of the Philippines, with
bilateral trade volume close to $20 billion; it has the
most investments in the country. |
