CHAVEZ TO ILO: FRY MONKEYS!

C O N F I D E N T I A L CARACAS 001139

SIPDIS


NSC FOR CBARTON
USCINCSO ALSO FOR POLAD
STATE PASS USAID FOR DCHA/OTI
DOL FOR ILAB
GENEVA FOR LABATT

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/18/2014
TAGS: PREL ELAB PGOV VE
SUBJECT: CHAVEZ TO ILO: FRY MONKEYS!

REF: A. 03 CARACAS 3725


B. 03 CARACAS 3200

Classified By: Abelardo A. Arias, Political Counselor,
for Reasons 1.4(b) and (d).

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Summary
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1. (C) A preliminary report by the International Labor
Organization's (ILO) Committee on Freedom of Association
determined that Venezuela's December 2002 - February 2003
work stoppage was tantamount to a general strike. The
Committee deplored the mass dismissal of more than 18,000
PDVSA workers without due process and encouraged the GOV to
negotiate a solution with the oil workers' union. President
Hugo Chavez scorned the ILO report and swore the oil workers,
"guilty of terrorism and sabotage," would never be rehired.
Separately, Ministry of Labor officials noted that the report
is preliminary and sides at times with the GOV position.
Anti-Chavez unions hailed the report as a victory. We do not
expect the GOV to heed the ILO recommendations, yet another
repudiation from the international community of Chavez's
administration. End summary.

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ILO Body Chides GOV
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2. (U) The International Labor Organization's (ILO) Committee
on Freedom of Association (CFA) released a report in late
March cataloging the status of a host of complaints against
the GOV lodged by labor groups. The CFA report treats
in-depth the complaints brought by ex-PDVSA workers over the
GOV's dismissal of more than 18,000 oil workers after the
December 2002 - February 2003 strike. UNAPETROL, a union
formed in 2003 by PDVSA managers and workers, and FEDEUNEP,
the public sector workers union aligned with the anti-Chavez
Confederation of Workers of Venezuela (CTV) took the
complaints to the ILO. In addition to the complaints about
the mass dismissals, UNAPETROL complained about the Ministry
of Labor's rejection of UNAPETROL's registration as a union,
the forced evictions of fired workers from PDVSA housing, and
denial of education in schools belonging to the state oil
company, PDVSA, to the children of these workers (ref a).

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Mass PDVSA Firings An "Abuse"
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3. (U) The CFA deplored the GOV's "hasty and
disproportionate" nature of the mass dismissals that are
"tantamount to abuses and destroy labor regulations." The
work stoppage was similar to, in the view of the Committee, a
generalized strike. The GOV argued in its response that the
national work stoppage, led in part by senior and middle
class PDVSA managers, had as its goal the overthrow of
President Chavez and was not, therefore, a labor action. The
workers left their positions for more than 60 days, the GOV
argued, which legally permitted PDVSA to fire them without
Ministry of Labor approval. The GOV also admitted that
faulty computer systems at the time caused them to fire 1,032
employees who were on sick or maternity leave, an error that,
the GOV claims, was subsequently rectified. The CFA
concluded that the dismissal of more than 18,000 workers
suggests the strike cannot be attributed solely to senior and
middle managers. The CFA recommended that the Governing Body
of the ILO request the GOV to engage in negotiations with the
most representative trade union to find a solution to the
mass firings (Note: The report does not order the GOV to
rehire the workers, as some media reports suggested). Though
recommending the GOV consult with workers over denial of
benefits such as education and housing, the CFA accepted the
GOV's arguments that it had given ample time for the workers
to make other arrangements.


4. (U) The Ministry of Labor denied UNAPETROL's application

for recognition as a union on the grounds that the proposed
union was to be composed of both managers and employees (ref
b),violating the "purity principle" of union formation. The
CFA accepted this argument, but criticized the GOV for
unnecessary administrative delays in processing the
application, and encouraged the GOV to work directly with
UNAPETROL to find a feasible solution to this objection.

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Chavez Responds ILO
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5. (U) In his weekly television program on March 28, Chavez
responded to the ILO, calling the organization an accomplice
in an international campaign to discredit his government. He
told the ILO that the fired oil workers are "coup-plotters,
terrorists, and saboteurs" who would never return to their
jobs. He told the ILO to "fry monkeys" (best translated as
"take a hike"). He attacked the ILO as "hypocritical
Pharisees" for recognizing the stridently anti-Chavez CTV as
representatives of Venezuela's labor movement. He called the
national work stoppage "sabotage," not a general strike as
the CFA concluded.


6. (U) Ministry of Labor officials minimized the importance
of the report, claiming that it contains only preliminary
recommendations. Vice Minister of Labor Ricardo Dorado told
reporters that, despite Chavez's comments, Venezuela has no
intention of withdrawing from the ILO. A pro-GOV group of
petroleum workers spoke from the presidential palace on March
30 denouncing the fired workers who "abandoned their posts"
in an attempt to topple the Chavez government. The
spokesperson for the group said if the ILO's Committee for
Freedom of Association does not respect the will of
Venezuela's workers, then the worker class does not have the
duty to respect the ILO's resolutions.

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Labor Celebrates
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7. (U) UNAPETROL President Horacio Medina told reporters
March 29 the ILO's report is an important first victory for
the fired petroleum employees. The report, he asserted,
lends credibility to his organization's claims of GOV
violations of labor rights. He added he had already sent a
letter to Minister of Labor Maria Cristina Iglesias to
request a meeting on the points raised by the CFA. Medina
said he doubted the Minister would grant the meeting, however.

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Nest Steps at ILO
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8. (SBU) We understand that CFA recommendations are discussed
but seldom altered by the Governing Body. The CFA will meet
again May 27-28 to produce another report, probably including
recommendations on the charges against CTV President Carlos
Ortega, currently in exile in Costa Rica. The Governing Body
will meet June 1-17, during which time it will approve the
CFA report. The March 2004 report references a total of 12
complaints, but the GOV either did not respond or did not
send comments until the day before the CFA convened. (Note:
The full report may be accessed at
http://www.ilo.org/public/english/ standards/relm/gb/docs/
gb289/pdf/lils-3/pdf.)

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Comment
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9. (C) The fired oil workers' alleged treason against
Chavez's revolution is orthodoxy in the Bolivarian catechism;
the GOV will not change its position based on an ILO report.
Still, a rebuke from international organized labor tarnishes
the GOV's desired image as a champion of the poor. We expect
the GOV to start damage control activities now against the
possible results of the ILO's June meeting. The report,

which has boosted the morale of Venezuelan organized labor,
is also another log on the fire of international opinion
against the Chavez government. Yet no matter how hard the
ILO hits the GOV in a report, the moribund CTV seems
incapable at this time of mobilizing workers. It has
glaringly, for example, failed to use classic labor actions
such as stoppages, walkouts, or slowdowns to protest the
current dismissals and intimidation of public sector workers
who signed the petition for a referendum to recall President
Chavez.
SHAPIRO


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2004CARACA01139 - CONFIDENTIAL