Unite the Union has written to the Colombian embassy in London over the murder of Colombian retired trade unionist Ovidio Baena of the USO oil workers union. Ovidio was murdered at his home in Bolívar, northern Colombia, on 26 June.
In the letter, Unite’s General Secretary Len McCluskey highlighted Colombia’s appalling record on violence towards organised labour, citing the International Trade Union Confederation’s recently-published Global Rights Index which again found the country the world’s most dangerous for trade unionists and among the ten worst for overall labour rights. The ITUC documented 14 murders of trade unionists between January 2019 and April 2020. The figure does not include Ovidio Baena.
‘We consider this appalling violence to be a major factor in the fact that the ITUC consistently places Colombia among the ten worst countries in the world for overall labour conditions. Improving security for trade unionists is therefore critical to improving the lives of millions of ordinary working people,’ wrote McCluskey.
Unite has a formal partnership with USO through the international trade union Workers Uniting.
You can read or download the full letter via the link below.