EC Meeting Papers January 2018

Our trade union movement has one political centre, the Trade Union Congress, the TUC. My federation the GFTU was set up by the TUC 120 years ago and works to give education, research and other specialist support to affiliated unions and very specialist trade unions and is not in competition with the TUC, but has a different complimentary role and a separate decision making structure. Both the TUC and GFTU support this campaign and this has been a major development over the last 14 months and we have done a lot. The door is now open for much more to be done. In early 2016 the GMB Union, in which Eleanour Marx once worked, took an initiative to launch a campaign in Parliament to support the Kurdish struggle. This was a spark that has lit an important fire of support. In September 2016 the first comprehensive motion was passed at the TUC Congress of all unions. This was supported by a big and successful fringe meeting. Following this, in January 2017, the GFTU had a young speaker to its Executive from the Kurdish Students Union and we resolved to fully support. It was extremely moving and important for union leaders to hear exactly what has been happening. Of course our media, with the exception of the Morning Star and some social activists’ media outlets has blanked out what has been happening to Kurdish areas in Turkey although there have been programmes about Rojava and about the heroic Kurdish fighters against ISIS. These actually have been favourable and attracted wide interest. The GFTU then invited HDP MPs to our Conference of 27 unions in May 2017 and they told the truth and opened many eyes to the issues. It was very emotional. Genuine and deep friendships were made. I can honestly say that the Ocalan and Kurdish struggles were embraced with warmth and depth of feeling.

4