------------------------- Via Workers World News Service Reprinted from the April 12, 2001 issue of Workers World newspaper ------------------------- WORKERS AROUND THE WORLD ISRAEL: MUNICIPAL WORKERS STRIKE On April 1 over 100,000 workers in 250 municipalities across Israel went on strike to demand better pay. The strike threatens to leave garbage uncollected and bring social services to a halt until the Israeli government agrees to a 3.6-percent raise and a one-time $300 payment for each worker. "There will be no removal of garbage from homes, no fines for illegal parking and social assistance offices will not be open," said Giora Tsur, a spokesperson for the Israeli union federation Histadrut. Government officials tried to use the war against Palestine as an excuse to encourage workers not to strike. They claimed that uncollected garbage would "make it easier for bombers to strike Israeli cities," according to the French Press Agency. These jingoistic appeals had little success in deterring the strike. "It's too easy to put everything on the backs of the workers," Tsur said. SOUTH KOREA: THOUSANDS PROTEST LAYOFFS An angry march of 7,000 workers blocked the streets of Seoul on March 31. Many of the protesters were auto workers from Daewoo Motors, which laid off workers as part of a buyout deal with the U.S.-based General Motors Corp. Workers and their allies burned posters of South Korean President Kim Dae Jung and U.S. President George Bush. The crowd called on the South Korean government to resign. Supporters of the demonstration met riot police attacks with firebombs and stones. The demonstrations come as part of a growing wave of protest against the Daewoo layoffs. The South Korean government agreed to preside over mass restructuring of corporations after the financial crisis of 1997-98. Unions charge that the restructuring is being carried out on the backs of the workers. NETHERLANDS: WORLD'S FIRST GAY MARRIAGES In a historic landmark for the international lesbian and gay rights movement, four same-sex couples got married April 1 in an official ceremony recognized by the Dutch government. The weddings capped a 15-year campaign in the Netherlands for full legal recognition of same-sex relationships. The couples spoke the same vows used at opposite-sex weddings, making the Netherlands the first country to eliminate legal distinctions between gay and straight couples. All the same-sex couples already registered as domestic partners will also be recognized as legally married. "In the Netherlands, we have gained the insight that an institution as important as marriage should be open to everyone," said Amsterdam Mayor Job Cohen at the historic ceremony. Polls in the Netherlands show 75 percent support for the same-sex marriage law that was signed last December. Under the new law, same-sex couples will have the same rights of inheritance, pensions, taxes, divorce and adoption as straight couples. TURKEY: MASS ANTI-IMF PROTESTS Unions across Turkey took to the streets March 30 to demonstrate against a government austerity plan backed by the International Monetary Fund. The plan would restructure the government-owned banking sector and encourage rapid privatizations. "IMF out, this country is ours!" and "We refuse to be a society of poverty" were some of the main slogans as unions filled the streets of the capital, Ankara. In the Black Sea city of Samsun, workers clashed with riot police after cops tried to end the protests early. The unions put forward an alternative plan to address the country's economic crisis and monetary devaluations. Under the unions' plan, workers' salaries would be adjusted to compensate for the falling value of the lira and funds would be raised by taxing capital instead of wages. The unions also called for the government to reschedule debt payments to international lenders. - END - (Copyright Workers World Service: Everyone is permitted to copy and distribute verbatim copies of this document, but changing it is not allowed. For more information contact Workers World, 55 W. 17 St., NY, NY 10011; via e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] For subscription info send message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Web: http://www.workers.org) ------------------ This message is sent to you by Workers World News Service. To subscribe, E-mail to: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To unsubscribe, E-mail to: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To switch to the DIGEST mode, E-mail to <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Send administrative queries to <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
