Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2003, published 92nd ILC session (2004)

Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87) - Myanmar (Ratification: 1955)

The Committee takes note of the information contained in the Government’s report, the oral information provided by the Government representative to the Conference Committee in 2003, as well as the discussion which took place therein and the resulting special paragraph in the Conference Committee’s report for continued failure to implement the Convention. The Committee also notes the observations received from the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) in 2002.

The Committee notes the indication in the Government’s latest report that Myanmar is in transition to democracy and is doing its utmost to promote the rights, interests and welfare of workers as well as to find ways to take appropriate interim steps before the drafting of the Constitution. The Government adds that no positive responses to the Committee’s comments on formation of first trade-level unions can take place before the emergence of a strong state Constitution.

The Committee nevertheless feels obliged to recall that it has been commenting upon the Government’s failure to apply this Convention, both in law and practice, essentially since its ratification 50 years ago. While the Government continues to refer to the ongoing drafting of the new state Constitution and the search for appropriate measures and means to build on existing mechanisms so the workers associations will be able to look after their rights, interests and welfare, the Committee must note with deep regret the total lack of progress in providing a legislative framework in which free and independent workers’ organizations can be established. The Committee takes due note of the renewed references in the Government’s latest report to workers’ welfare associations as the forerunners of trade unions safeguarding and promoting the interests of workers as best as they can at present, as well as of the regret expressed by the Government that the Committee holds a different opinion in respect of the role that may be played by the welfare associations. The Committee must reiterate in this respect that it has always considered that these associations have none of the attributes characteristic of free and independent workers’ organizations that are the objective of the Convention. Indeed, the Committee fears that the Government’s continued insistence on the role of the welfare associations in respect of the application of the Convention, without any other real progress in this application, is simply an indication of the lack of seriousness given to the fundamental matters raised by the Committee over these many years.

In this respect, the Committee takes due note of the comments made by the ICFTU concerning: the important restrictions placed upon freedom of association by the 1926 Trade Union Act; the dissolution of all trade unions in 1988 by the military regime; Order No. 2/88 of 1988 which makes the gathering, walking or marching of five persons or more a criminal act; and the Unlawful Associations Act which punishes membership in an unlawful association with imprisonment. The ICFTU further refers to the practical application of the Convention and in particular to the Independent Federation of Trade Unions - Burma (FTUB) that it states in the abovementioned context has been forced to operate clandestinely since its inception in 1991. It further refers to two officials of the FTUB and one trade union leader who remain in prison for having exercised their trade union rights and the total absence of due process in respect of the charges brought against them and their trials. Finally, the ICFTU refers to the continuing illegality of the FTUB-affiliated Seafarers’ Union of Burma (SUB) and the continuing prohibition of their contacts with the International Transport Workers’ Federation.

The Committee notes with regret that the Government has provided no information in reply to the serious matters raised by the ICFTU. The Committee recalls that respect for civil liberties is crucial for the exercise of freedom of association and urges the Government to take all necessary measures so that workers and employers can exercise the rights guaranteed by the Convention in a climate of full security and in the absence of threats or fear.

The Committee urges the Government to take the necessary measures in the very near future to ensure that workers and employers can fully exercise their rights guaranteed by the Convention and, in particular: that they may form and join organizations of their own choosing, without previous authorization, for the furtherance and defence of their interests; that these organizations may organize their activities and formulate their programmes freely; that first-level organizations may form federations and confederations and that these in turn may affiliate with international organizations without impediment (Articles 2, 3, 5 and 6 of the Convention).