US to probe Bahrain labour rights under trade deal
\n(Reuters)<\/p>\n
17 June 2011
\nWASHINGTON – The Obama administration said on Thursday it would investigate charges brought by the largest US labour organization that Bahrain has failed to meet its obligations to protect workers\u2019 rights under a free trade pact with the United States.<\/p>\n
Richard Trumka, president of the 12.2 million-member AFL-CIO labour federation, hailed the decision published in the US Federal Register, the official publication used by the US government to make public regulatory actions.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe egregious attacks on workers must end, and the Bahraini government\u2019s systematic discrimination against and dismantling of unions must be reversed. These actions directly violate the letter and the spirit of the trade agreement,\u201d Trumka said in a statement.<\/p>\n
The AFL-CIO has urged the US government to notify Bahrain it could withdraw from the five-year-old free trade agreement over human rights abuses in the kingdom\u2019s crackdown on anti-government protests.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe trade union movement in Bahrain is critical to democratic and peaceful coexistence in a pluralistic society and should be part of a national dialogue to solve Bahrain\u2019s crisis,\u201d Trumka said.<\/p>\n
\u201cYet instead of working toward dialogue with labor and civil society, the Bahraini government\u2019s actions deal a dramatic setback to civil liberties and freedom of association,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Earlier this month, President Barack Obama urged Bahrain\u2019s rulers to hold accountable those responsible for human rights abuses in the crackdown and pressed for a compromise between the government and the opposition.<\/p>\n
The trade agreement, which went into effect in 2006, eliminated tariffs on consumer and industrial trade between the two countries and made other reforms that opened the kingdom to more US farm and services exports.<\/p>\n
When the agreement was completed in 2005, the US Trade Representative\u2019s office said the pact\u2019s labor provisions \u201cfully support and complement the democratic reforms by the Kingdom of Bahrain in the political and labor areas.\u201d<\/p>\n
It requires Bahrain to enforce domestic laws that provide internationally recognized labour rights. …more<\/a><\/p>\n