20 campaigns in last year – some observations
We’ve run, as it turns out, 20 campaigns in the last 12 months. The results appear below (English language totals only). Here are some quick observations:
- The country we protest the most about is Iran – and the 3 campaigns we waged in support of Iranian workers were among the top 6 campaigns we ran. Clearly this a popular subject.
- We also ran 3 campaigns in support of workers in Turkey – including our most popular campaign this year, and 2 of the top 5 campaigns we ran.
- The most popular campaigns focus on workers’ rights issues – arrests, murders, whippings. The campaigns at the bottom of the list are more traditional workplace issues like failure to negotiate or recognize a union.
- Campaigns which we publicized to specific audiences only (Canada, Australia) in general were considerably smaller than the global campaigns.
- The two biggest campaigns focussed on women — and both had good photos of the women.
- Campaigns in support of workers in the countries our readers live in — Canada, the USA, Australia — were the weakest.
Here is the list:
7412 Turkey: Free jailed woman trade union leader [30-Jun-2008]
5771 Iran: Protest intensified repression against labour activists – No to whippings and executions! [14-Aug-2008]
5571 Iran: Save the life of Farzad Kamangar [28-Nov-2008]
5345 Korea: Stop arrests of trade union leaders [04-Aug-2008]
5121 Turkey: DESA leather workers fight for the right to have a union [16-Nov-2008] – still active
4271 Iran: Drop charges against jailed union leaders [20-Feb-2009] – still active
3439 Colombia: Protest murder of Leonidas Gomez Rozo [04-Apr-2008]
2807 Russia: North Urals mining company refuses to bargain with workers after hunger strike [18-Apr-2008]
2653 Tell the Gap: Don’t Harbor Worker Abuses [24-Oct-2008]
2625 Stop the Attack on Trade Union Rights in Saskatchewan [19-Mar-2008]
2309 USA: Pacific Beach Hotel workers have a right to a union [17-May-2008]
2275 Ireland: BT Discriminates Against own staff because they are Irish [25-Apr-2008]
2122 Russia: Stop attacks on auto workers union [03-Dec-2008] – still active
1452 Turkey: Release jailed road transport union members [30-May-2008]
1335 Australia: Boeing – recognize the union at Hawker de Havilland [10-Jun-2008]
937 South Africa: Woolworths engages in union-busting [10-Oct-2008]
855 USA: Union-busting in Minnesota Attorney General’s Office [27-Feb-2008]
833 Mexico: Reinstate sacked workers in Janos [26-Aug-2008]
825 Tell the Mayor of Ottawa to put an end to the public attack on ATU 279 and return to the bargaining table [24-Jan-2009]
15 Unions in Victoria – Save our TAFES [15-Aug-2008]
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Congratulations to all at labourStart for such impressive results.
Two things strike me – first is that these figures sometimes underestimate activism and impact, because for some of the campaigns there have been parallel protest actions located elsewhere on the web – Education International and the International Union of Foodworkers, for instance, have also had appeals on two of your Iran campaigns, as have we in Amnesty.
The second point I would highlight is the extent that we are now coordinating and collaborating on such campaigns, not only in terms of strategising about goals and targets, but by directing our various activist communities and networks towards common objectives, albeit sometimes on shared and sometimes on separate platforms. Here in Amnesty UK we are pleased to be partners with LabourStart and the global unions on trade union human rights case work. Congratulations on your achievements.
Finally, I just wanted to note that sometimes it is helpful to measure our impact not only by total numbers but by speed and depth of response. In this regard, last year’s appeal to save the eyesight of jailed Iranian trade unionist Mansour Ossanlu was a classic of collaboration – 15,000 protest messages in just five days – while your still active protest for the jailed Haft Tapeh sugar workers has garnered over 4,000 appeals in the few days that it has been “live”.
Shane Enright
Trade Union campaigns Manager, Amnesty UK
Global trade union adviser to the Amnesty movement
Thanks Shane. For the last point especially.