DOMINICAN LABOR MINISTER IS CANDIDATE TO CHAIR ILO ANNUAL MEETING

UNCLAS SANTO DOMINGO 001597 SIPDIS DEPT FOR IO; GENEVA FOR LABOR ATTACHE E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ELAB AORC ILO DR PINR RAY GUEVARA MILTON SUBJECT: DOMINICAN LABOR MINISTER IS CANDIDATE TO CHAIR ILO ANNUAL MEETING ¶1. Dominican Labor Minister Milton RAY Guevara called on the Ambassador on March 6 to solicit U.S. support for him within the Americas group to chair the annual ILO session in June. In the normal course of rotation, the Americas are to provide a chair. Ray indicated that the long-serving Labor Minister of Brazil had been tipped to be the Americas candidate but had recently been moved to other responsibilities. ¶2. Ray Guevara said he telephoned Mexican Labor Minister Abascal Carranza, expected to be a strong candidate for the responsibility. After taking a day to think it over, Abascal told Ray he would not contest Ray's bid. ¶3. The Minister asked the Ambassador to advise U.S. authorities of his request for U.S. support for the position. ¶4. Comment: Ray Guevara is well and favorably known to the Embassy. Born in 1948 in Samana, Dominican Republic, he has a long and distinguished career. He graduated in law summa cum laude at the Catholic University in Santo Domingo and completed a master's and doctorate in labor law at the University of Nice, France, as well as a master's in social, labor and commercial law at the Sorbonne. He holds other law certificates from instututes in Strasburg, Trieste and Nice. He was a Minister without portfolio in 1978, Consul General in New York in 1981, and Ambassador to France, the UK, Yugoslavia, Belgium and the European Union in the mid-1980's. Law professor at the Catholic University 1988-1996. He has authored a law text and numerous articles and was a member of the commission that drew up the new Labor Law in the 1990's. Founding member and executive director of the NGO Foundation for Institution Building and Justice, 1990-1996. Senator from Samana province, 1998-2000 and president of the Senate Law Committee. Long list of participation in official delegations. Ray does not speak English. KUBISKE