Monday, 19 March 2012

The Governing Body of the Geneva-based International Labour Organization started its 313th session. At the beginning of the session, the representatives of governments, workers and employers observed one minute of silence to honour the memory of the 28 Belgian, German, Dutch and Polish victims – amongst whom 22 schoolchildren – of the tragic bus crash in Sierre, Switzerland.

Luc Cortebeeck, Vice-Chairperson of the Governing Body and representing the workers, read a declaration for all people involved in the tragedy. The representative of the employers expressed solidarity on behalf of his group and supported the request for a minute of silence. The representative of the Belgian Government thanked the Swiss authorities for their competent support, and the various permanent representations in Geneva for their expressions of sympathy.

This 313th session of the Governing Body will initiate the process for the appointment of the next Director-General of the ILO. The list of candidatures can be found on the ILO website. Other items to be discussed are the situation in Myanmar concerning forced labour and freedom of association, the preparations for the Rio+20 Summit in June 2012, and the ILO role in staving off the renewed financial, economic and social crisis.

The ILO Governing Body is composed of 28 government members, 14 employer members and 14 worker members and convenes three times annually. It serves as the executive council of the ILO and takes decisions on ILO policy.

For more information, please contact the ILO-Brussels Office, ilo-brussels-press@ilo.org, +32 (0)2.736.59.42, Communication assistant +32 (0) 484 91 55 59.