VZCZCXRO3094
PP RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDA RUEHDF RUEHFL RUEHIK RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHLN
RUEHLZ RUEHPOD RUEHROV RUEHSR RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHIT #0329 1711123
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 191123Z JUN 08
FM AMCONSUL ISTANBUL
TO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHDA/AMCONSUL ADANA PRIORITY 2360
RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 8250
INFO RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/DIA WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC PRIORITY
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC PRIORITY
UNCLAS ISTANBUL 000329
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ECON EIND EWWT PGOV TU
SUBJECT: TURKEY:ONE DAY STRIKE PROTESTS INDUSTRIAL
ACCIDENTS AT ISTANBUL SHIPYARDS
REF: A. ISTANBUL 180
B. ISTANBUL 363
1. (U) The Ship Construction and Repair Workers, Trade
Union (Limter-Is) held a one day strike on June 16 to protest
14 recent deaths at Istanbul's Tuzla shipyards. According
to press reports, thousands of workers and union supporters
reportedly demonstrated against the dangerous work
environment at the shipyards where 14 workers have died
within the last six months; scene of a series of fatalities
since March (reftel A). No one was reportedly injured or
arrested as a result of the strike.
2. (U) Members of Limter-Is, which is attached to the
Confederation of Revolutionary Workers' Union (DISK), carried
banners attacking the ruling Justice and Development Party
(AKP) as "the murderers in Tuzla". Opposition Republican
People,s Party (CHP) deputy Cetin Soysal, and pro-Kurdish
Democratic Society Party (DTP) deputies Akin Birdal and
Sabahat Tuncel also participated in the protests. In
addition, the Marine Engineers Chamber, the Transportation
Union (Nakliyat-Is), United Metal Workers (Birlesik
Metal-Is), and the Genc-Sen union demonstrated with Limter-Is
at the shipyard. Suleyman Celebi, President of DISK, said
the shipyards in Tuzla should fully comply with worker health
and job security regulations and the contractor system (see
reftel A for details) should be abolished.
3. (U) The peaceful demonstration in Tuzla was a marked
contrast with other recent Istanbul pro-labor marches. Over
500 labor supporters were arrested during this year's violent
May Day demonstrations near Taksim Square for which the AKP
also took heat (reftel B). A two-day strike that Limter-Is
organized at the Tuzla shipyards 27-28 February also resulted
violence with 75 workers and union members were arrested.
4. (SBU) COMMENT: Little has changed since the media began to
focus on Tuzla conditions earlier in the year, despite
continued work related deaths. Shipyards continue to rely
primarily on unskilled subcontracted labor; one of the
primary causes of the work-related accidents according to
many observers (reftel A). Workers are often undocumented
or desperate for employment. The Parliament appointed a
commission to look into the industrial accidents at Tuzla,
however this group took weeks to form and has not yet
finished its investigation.
WIENER