Role for trade unions in conflict resolution

TUC response to the DFID

Conflict Policy Paper

November 2006

This submission argues that

• unions can assist in reducing the causes of conflict and in assisting post-conflict countries to return to normalcy;
• DFID should therefore engage with unions, and especially education unions, in post-conflict reconstruction work; and
• the experience of unions in resolving conflict at the workplace, and in bridging divided communities, should be learnt from by DFID (a conference on the role of unions in conflict prevention and post-conflict reconstruction would be useful).

The TUC agrees that conflict has been a serious impediment to development in many parts of the world and that the Department for International Development needs to factor into its policies and aid programmes the implications of existing conflicts and risk of future conflict and welcomes this opportunity to put forward its views.

Most conflicts have had their origin in the real or perceived injustices suffered by a section(s) of society. The need for combating injustice - in all its forms - should inform and guide UK policy on conflict resolution and/or prevention of conflict.

In addition, we are concerned at the effect conflict has on fundamental rights at work and the need to redress that: freedom of association and collective bargaining may be restricted by states in times of conflict (or by insurgents as we see in Colombia and Iraq). Conflicts also dislocate labour markets and often the rule of law too, so we see decreased protection against discrimination and increases in the use of forced labour (Sudan being a prime example), and child labour (worst of all child soldiers and child sex-slaves for insurgent groups) as a result of destruction of adult jobs, forced migration and increased numbers of orphans.

The TUC represents working people in Great Britain through our 62 affiliated trade unions and their 6.4 million members. We are the British affiliate of the International Trade Union Confederation which has 307 affiliated organisations in 154 countries and territories, with 168 million members. This submission reflects the views and experiences of the global trade union movement.

1. What type of conflict prevention outcomes should DFID aspire to?

The Department needs to work, in close collaboration with all interested parties, towards achieving just and durable solutions to problems likely to give rise to or exacerbate conflict - such as high levels of youth unemployment - and avoid politically expedient outcomes. Partial solutions with cosmetic improvements in the status quo rarely lead to permanent peace, as is evident in the conflict in the Middle East. People need to be given a stake in society, and trade unions can help in providing people with that stake, providing them with a say over the society they live in, and providing people with practical experience (through collective bargaining) of non-violent solutions to conflict.

2. How can we better monitor and evaluate conflict work?

In some protracted conflict situations, for instance, in Colombia and Zimbabwe, trade union activists and members, and workers generally, have paid a disproportionately high price, not least for their stance on trade union and human rights violations by parties to the conflict. The Department needs to support trade unionists and collaborate closely with them in its conflict resolution initiatives. It is important to ensure that trade unions are actively involved, not only in monitoring and evaluation, but also in the initial stages of design and implementation of programmes.

3. How should we work more effectively across HMG, including other government departments, the Post-Conflict Reconstruction Unit, and the Africa and Global Conflict Prevention Pools?

The Department needs to ensure policy coherence across all entities engaged in conflict resolution and prevention. It should also make use of the experience and expertise of the communities originating from the countries and regions (Diaspora) affected by conflict.

In particular, in reconstructing societies and communities after conflicts, the TUC believes that HMG needs to ensure that the provision of education plays a key role, and the recreation of civil society institutions such as trade unions should be an early priority. The experience in Iraq, where support for civil society institutions was neglected in favour of protecting infrastructure for some time and indeed unions suffered harassment and repression even after the removal of the dictatorship, shows how this can lead to continued breakdown in society generally. Unions could have played a key role in swiftly returning Iraq to its secular and democratic traditions, and union activists played a key role in defending their workplaces in the early months of the invasion.

In addition, HMG needs to ensure that those in post-conflict situations have employment opportunities - again, Iraq shows what can happen if large parts of the community are left without work - and unions can play a key role in that.

4. How should we work better with civil society?

Civil society organisations including trade unions in conflict-affected countries and regions are often under-resourced and lack capacity to participate in, and make an effective contribution to, conflict resolution. UK policies and programmes should therefore be geared to providing financial and technical support for trade unions and other civil society organisations engaged in conflict resolution. Trade unions could play a catalytic role, as shared interests of workers often transcend racial, ethnic or religious boundaries in their approaches to a conflict. COSATU's contribution to the ending of apartheid in South Africa is a good example in this regard. Unions in Israel and Palestine have worked together to promote peaceful solutions to the problems of the Middle East. Trade unions in Nepal played a leading role within a broad civil society coalition in bringing about the reinstatement of parliament in 2006. At international level, the Department should also collaborate closely with the ITUC, ETUC, regional and sectoral organisations.

In the normal course of events, unions help to ensure that conflicts at the workplace are dealt with through negotiation rather than confrontation, and therefore give people concrete experience of non-violent problem resolution. In China, for example, it is the absence of free and independent trade unions to represent, channel and resolve workplace disputes which is most likely to cause disharmony and violence as the country experiences increases in social injustice and inequality. DFID could learn from this experience and also help others to experience it.

The Department should also explore the possibility of holding a joint conference with the TUC on the role of trade unions in conflict resolution and prevention.

5. How should we work better across the international system, for example through the UN, the World Bank, and the EU?

The TUC favours close collaboration with UN agencies and EU in conflict resolution and prevention while it acknowledges the role that international financial institutions can play in the post-conflict reconstruction phase. Moreover, the TUC advocates closer collaboration with EU partners and is in favour of a common EU approach to conflict resolution and prevention. The Government in co-operation with other EU partners should support efforts to strengthen UN and regional institutions like the African Union (AU), Organisation of American States (OAS) engaged in conflict resolutions.

However, it is even more vital in post-conflict situations that international institutions do not ignore the people, and impose solutions from above just because the institutions of popular government may be in disarray. Unions can play a key role in representing working people's views to such institutions.

6. How can DFID better engage with non-state actors that are party to conflict?

The status of non-state actors to conflict varies a great deal - from proscribed organisations like the LTTE in Sri Lanka to the PLO, which obtained permanent observer status in the UN in 1974. While we are not opposed to engagement with non-state actors, we believe that each case should be considered on its merits.

7. How can DFID best utilise its increased aid budget to address conflict?

In all conflict situations, it is often the most vulnerable sections of society that suffer most. The DFID should pay particular attention to the needs of children (especially their need for education), the elderly, the sick and the disabled, as they are often neglected in conflict situations. Moreover, governments and civil society organisations do need assistance to rebuild the lives of those affected by conflict in post-conflict period, as was evident in Sierra Leone, Ethiopia and Rwanda. The DFID should work in close collaboration with trade unions and other civil society organisation in the rehabilitation phase. In addition, special assistance should be provided to restore essential public services - schools, hospitals, water and sanitation, destroyed or disrupted during conflict.

8. How can we ensure that our aid does not make conflict worse?

The Department needs to ensure that the recipient governments use British development assistance in a fair and equitable way so that all sections of society benefit from them. Moreover, the Department needs to make sure that all stakeholders including trade unions are actively involved in project design, appraisal and implementation. Special care should be taken to make sure that no technical assistance provided by the UK is used for internal repression. The TUC recalls with horror that, in 1997, the Government of Ethiopia made use of a vehicle donated by the UK to repress protests in Addis Ababa in which a member of the Executive Committee of the Ethiopian Teachers' Association was gunned down.

The example of Colombia is also salutary in showing how important transparency is in such countries. The British Government's refusal to explain exactly what is being done with the military aid provided to the Colombian government makes it possible for it to be characterised as assisting paramilitaries, or being used to clear mines for government military operations (rather than the stated aim of removing mines to protect civilians).

9. Do you know of specific examples where you think DFID's work on conflict has been particularly effective or ineffective? Please give as much detail as possible.

We believe that the DFID work in Sierra Leone has contributed to the political stability and peace in the war-torn country, especially in assisting the development of trade unions in the diamond-mining sector which was such an important part of the conflict. Support for civil society organisations including trade unions has enhanced their capacity to take part in national reconstruction programmes.

10. Ten years from now, what should DFID look like, if it is genuinely addressing conflict effectively?

The DFID should be able to devote all its resources to supporting long-term development with no disruption to its aid programme due to conflict.

11. What are the top three commitments on conflict that DFID should make as we carry our work forward?

Prioritise the needs of the most vulnerable in society when providing humanitarian assistance in conflict situations.

Collaborate closely with trade unions and other civil society organisations in all interventions.

Ensure policy coherence across all government departments and agencies in order to avoid pursuit of conflicting objectives.

12. In terms of DFID's approach to conflict, what would you like more clarity on?

The TUC would like to see greater congruence and coherence between the DFID approach to conflict and UK foreign policy.