The Mutual Legal Assistance against Law on Offenders and Criminal Matters (Amendment) Bill 2019 (hereafter: extradition bill) has been the catalyst for many demonstrations and public disturbances in Hong Kong over the past 2 months.
The Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions (HKCTU) released a statement calling on all workers to respond to the city wide strike on 5 August, and demand the government to respond to the five demands put forward by supporting groups:
a) Permanent withdrawal of the extradition bill;
b) Release of arrested protesters without charges;
c) Withdrawal of the characterization of the 12 June protest as a "riot";
d) Independent investigation into police violence and abuse of power; and
e) Implement full universal suffrage.
For the 5 August strike, the HKCTU made the following four appeals to all employers and employees in Hong Kong:
- We appeal to employers in all walks of life to be considerate and supportive. The amendment of the Extradition Bill not only threatens Hong Kong employees and ordinary citizens, but also causes serious damage to the business environment and affects investor confidence. Many companies and organizations spontaneously will launch strikes or make flexible work arrangements to allow their employees to participate in the fight against amendments. The HKCTU urges employers to respond to the strike on 5 August, or to make special arrangements to allow employees to attend the assemblies in various districts.
- We call on employees to participate in the various assemblies on 5 August and to proliferate the message, invite colleagues and peers from your workplace and industry to participate. Employees can formally submit a notice to the employer or supervisor in advance to reiterate their stance in opposition to the amendment of the Extradition Bill and, for the sake of Hong Kong’s future, decide to go on strike and participate in the various 5 August assemblies.
- We also appeal to trade unions from all walks of life to formally request the employer or management to allow employees to participate in the5 August assemblies in the form of strike and agree to the safeguards proposed by the union. We stress that this strike is a political strike, which is different in nature from the strikes caused by labour disputes. The focus of resistance is neither employers nor managements, but to fulfill the civil responsibilities and protect the future of Hong Kong. Therefore, we expect the employers to lay down their differences and support the demands and safeguards proposed by the unions. The various safeguards include: no deduction of the original benefits due to employee participation in the strike, no disciplinary action against employees participating in the strike, and no discrimination against employees participating in the strike.
- If any employee receives unfair treatment or discrimination as a result of participating in the strike, we urge the affected workers to contact the HKCTU and relevant affiliated trade union for assistance. In the past, many labour struggles have shown that even if the existing legislation does not provide sufficient protection for industrial actions, employees can still resist unreasonable labour rights infringements as long as they are united and help each other in times of difficulties. At the same time, we also urge employees who have not yet joined the trade union to join trade union as soon as possible. The employees who do not have independent trade unions in their workplaces may also consider setting up their own trade union to enhance the protection of future struggles with collective strength.
Any such strike action is likely to have a significant impact on the daily working life of many commuters, retail workers, civil servants and other residents. We will continue to monitor the situation closely.
Paul Arkwright
Publisher
