The IUF and other international unions are calling on all members and the wider labour movement to support the ongoing protests in Istanbul and throughout Turkey with actions, demonstrations and marches on June 21 and 22 at and around Turkish embassies and consulates. Thousands of activists and citizens have been injured and there at least 4 known deaths attributed to police violence. The government is escalating its brutal crackdown with new arrests.
You can find a list of embassies and consulates here: http://www.mfa.gov.tr/turkish-representations.en.mfa [1]
The trade union movement demands:
- The Turkish government must put an immediate end to state violence against peaceful demonstrators and guarantee the rights of freedom of expression and assembly in all public areas of Turkey.
- Those responsible for the injuries to thousands of people and the deaths of Mehmet Ayvalitas, Abdullah Cömert, Ethem Sarisülük and Mustafa Sari should be held accountable, dismissed from their posts and prosecuted before the law.
- Detained trade unonists, journalists, and all others citizens who participated in legitimate acts of protest and political opposition should be immediately released with an official statement declaring that all legal investigations will be dropped.
- The removal of all legal and practical barriers to the exercise of trade union rights, including the right to strike.
You can download a model letter and campaign banner here [2]on the website of our sister organization ITF.
You can also support these demands by sending a similar message to the Turkish government through labourstart here [3]