ALVARO URIBE VELEZ DECEIVES THE WORKERS OF EMCALI, THE COLOMBIAN PEOPLE AND THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY – SINTRAEMCALI DECLARES “PERMANENT ASSEMBLY”
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In the face of new threats to liquidate EMCALI EICE ESP, made by president Álvaro Uribe Vélez on 13 September, SINTRAEMCALI, declared itself in permanent and states to the world that it will not allow the national government to fail in fulfilling its side of the agreement. On 12 May 2003 in the Nariño Palace [president's official residence], a presidential commission emphasised to SINTRAEMCALI that if the workers were to accept a new Collective Agreement, then the overall agreement would be the National Government's responsibility. The workers sacrificed and ceded employment rights acquired over more than 7 decades, and on 27th June 2003 they signed a new agreement in which the government also committed not to liquidate or privatise the municipal corporation. But now the National Government is trying to retreat from this agreement with the workers and the city. Uribe has deceived not only SINTRAEMCALI, but also the country and the international community. It has given priority to the national and international banks over the rights of the workers and the community; it has irresponsibly mortgaged the corporation with permanent usury and unsustainable interest rates. It has supported the financial demands of creditors of the TERMOEMCALI, TERMOPACIFICO, TERMOCAUCA and PTAR-CAÑAVERALEJO projects, of OVER INVOICED EQUIPMENT, of OVER COSTED TELECOMMUNICATIONS. These, amongst others, are all irregular projects that have been linked with corrupt practices. SINTRAEMCALI demands that the National Government fulfils its commitments. As we do of the finance sector lead by the CORFIVALLE and CORFIPACIFICO groups [finance corporations] linked with irregularities in the TERMOEMCALI business [overpriced electricity generator] and belonging to the LLOREDA family. We ask that the Banking Superviser intervenes in these finance corporations who are creditors of EMCALI EICE ESP and that the irregularities are investigated, as they merit exemplary punishment. We will not allow EMCALI E.I.C.E. ESP to go the same way as TELECOM [liquidated by government decree earlier this year]. We the workers are fulfilling our commitment to the corporation, the city and the country. But in the face of this irresponsible announcement by the national government we will do all in our power to defend the corporation, including giving our lives if necessary. We call on the international community to once again accompany us in our new struggle against neoliberalism, privatisation and corruption and to carry out protest actions in front of Colombian Embassies in Europe, the USA and Canada. Berenice Celeyta NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS CAMPAIGN AGAINST PRIVATISATION, CORRUPTION AND THE CRIMINALISATION OF SOCIAL PROTEST |
