Interim Report - Report No 205, November 1980

Case No 983 (Bolivia (Plurinational State of)) - Complaint date: 18-JUL-80 - Closed

1. 5. By communications dated 18, 19 and 22 July 1980 respectively, the World Confederation of Labour (WCL), the Latin American Central of Workers (CLAT), the Permanent Congress of Trade Union Unity of the Workers of Latin America (CPUSTAL) and the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) presented complaints alleging grave violations of trade union rights in Bolivia.
2. 6. In addition, the ICFTU, the World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU), the International Federation of Free Teachers' Unions (IFFTU) and the CPUSTAL sent information in communications dated 22, 25, 30 and 31 July, and the Miners' International Federation and the WCL sent communications on 7 and 29 August. Finally, up-to-date lists of persons who had been arrested were transmitted by the WCL on 25 September and by the External Co-ordination Secretariat of the Bolivian Central of Workers on 31 October. On 23 September the ICFTU sent a telegram containing further allegations.
3. 7. In view of the seriousness of the allegations, the Director-General, in conformity with the procedure established by the Governing Body and with the agreement of the Chairman of the Governing Body Committee on Freedom of Association, sent the Bolivian Government a telegram on 25 July asking it to receive a senior official of the ILO to discuss the trade union situation on the spot. The Government agreed on 28 August, and this mission was carried out from 4 to 9 October by Mr. Ian Lagergren, Deputy Chief of the International Labour Standards Department, accompanied by Mr. Daniel de Patoul, ILO associate expert. Since then, the Government has supplied its observations in a communication dated 31 October 1980 and transmitted to the ILO on 10 November 1980.
4. 8. In essence, the present case is examined in the light both of the information obtained by the representative of the Director-General during his mission, and of the above-mentioned observations of the Government.
5. 9. Bolivia has ratified the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87) and the Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949 (No. 98).

A. A. The complainants' allegations

1. 10. The complainant organisations have given a general picture of the harsh repression suffered by the trade union movement following the military coup d'Etat on 17 July 1980.
2. 11. In particular, they expressed their profound concern at the reported murders of certain trade union leaders and the many detentions of trade union leaders and activists, the torture and maltreatment of detainees, the occupation and demolition of the headquarters of the Bolivian Central of Workers (COB), the dissolution of trade unions, the confiscation of their assets, and their fears as to the fate of trade union leaders Juan Lechin, Executive Secretary of the COB, and Simón Reyes, a leader of the Miners' Federation. A number of organisations requested the sending of a direct contacts mission and the intervention of the ILO to obtain the release of the imprisoned trade union leaders.
3. 12. According to the ICFTU communication of 22 July, 15 trade union leaders had been shot and 700 active members of the COB arrested.
4. 13. In its communication of 30 July the IFFTU denounces the prohibition by the Government of two teachers' unions (rural and urban).
5. 14. The WCL communication of 29 August alleges that the leader of the Miners' Federation, Gualberto Vega, has been murdered and that 110 persons have bees arrested; a list of these, which was supplied by the External Co-ordination Secretariat of the Bolivian Central of Workers has been conveyed to the Government. According to the WCL, the number of arrests exceeds 1,000, 700 of them immediately after the change of government. Still according to the WCL, the Minister of the Interior, Luis Arce Gómez, admits that 500 persons have been arrested and that other arrests are still being made. In particular, the complainant organisation condemns the use of tanks and aviation in the mining areas where Gualberto Vega is said to have been killed; it expresses concern at the ill-treatment inflicted on Juan Lechin and Simón Reyes and at the hardships suffered by the wounded, who, when taken to hospital, are said to have been kidnapped and sent to camps of the General Staff.
6. 15. CL 31 October the External Co-ordination. Secretariat of the Bolivian Central of Workers sent an up-dating of the lists, which has also been communicated to the Government.
7. 16. In its telegram of 23 September, the ICFTU referred to the arrest and maltreatment of the members of a humanitarian mission which it had sent to Bolivia. During this mission the authorities are said to have confiscated $33,000 which had been destined for assistance to the families of the imprisoned trade unionists.

B. Information obtained by the representative of the Director-General during his direct contacts mission to Bolivia from 4 to 9 October 1980

1. 17. The representative of the Director-General had talks in La Paz with Colonel Luis Arce Gómez, Minister of the interior and acting Minister for Foreign Affairs; General Augusto Calderón Miranda, Minister of Labour; Mgr. Jorge Manrique, Archbishop of La Paz; Dr. Armin E. Kobel, head of the international Committee of the Red Cross delegation to Bolivia; and Mr. Ramón Mantilla, representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. He also met the President (Mr. M. Pérez Monasteros) and the executive secretary (Mr. Fernando Moscoso) of the Association of Private Employers of Bolivia. He referred to the allegations received at the ILO, and drew attention to the generally accepted principles governing freedom of association, and inquired as to the Government's intentions. He also asked to meet the trade union leaders Juan Lechin and Simón Reyes.
2. 18. The Minister of the Interior stated that the suspension of trade union rights and civil liberties had become necessary as a temporary measure. The Bolivian trade union movement, whose major concern should be the protection of the economic and social interests of the Bolivian workers, had, he said, departed from its proper course and had become a purely political movement, manipulated by its leaders to serve their own political interests. Trade union rights and civil liberties were soon to be restored, however, and the Government was engaged in a reorganisation of the trade union movement designed to ensure that it would serve trade union instead of political purposes. A number of extremist trade union leaders would be expelled from the country, but other trade unionists held in detention would soon be released. It was the Government's wish that no trade unionist should remain in detention, and it agreed that the representative of the Director-General should meet Mr. Juan Lechin and Mr. Simon Reyes.
3. 19. The Minister of Labour supplied copies of Presidential Decrees Nos. 17531 of 21 July and 17545 of 12 August 1980. The first of those provides for the dissolution of existing trade unions and the restructuring of the Bolivian trade union movement; the second provides for the appointment of workers' representatives ("relacionadores laborales") to carry out certain trade union functions pending the establishment of a new trade union organisation. He also provided detailed statistics of work stoppages in different sectors of the Bolivian economy during the period June 1978 to June 1980; these, according to the Minister, were politically motivated, had a disastrous effect on the country's economy and hence justified the action the Government had found it necessary to take. However, he gave assurances that the reorganisation of the Bolivian trade unions would take place with due regard to the provisions of Conventions Nos. 87 and 98, ratified by Bolivia, and that the Government would seek the advice and cooperation of the ILO when revising trade union legislation. In respect of two of the allegations the Minister explained, firstly, that while it was true that the headquarters building of the COB was being demolished, this demolition was not directed against the trade unions as such but formed part of a major cleaning-up operation affecting several buildings in the most important avenue in La Paz. New premises would be provided for the reorganised trade unions. Secondly, the allegation that trade union funds and assets had been confiscated was false. These funds and assets had merely been "frozen" to make sure that they were preserved, and would be handed over to the new unions once they had been set up.
4. 20. The representative of the Director-General met Mr. Juan Lechin in his room at the military hospital in La Paz where he was recovering from an operation. He was accompanied by Dr. Daniel Salamanca, Under-Secretary of State at the Ministry of the interior, his request that the interview should take place in the absence of any witnesses having been turned down. However, Mr. Lechin did not appear to be in any way intimidated by the presence of a representative of the authorities. He indicated that he warmly appreciated the intervention of the ILO. He stated that his conditions of detention were reasonably good. He has access to, newspapers and a television set was installed in his room. His brother visited him almost daily. At no stage during his detention had he been subjected to any kind of torture.
5. 21. Mr. Simón Reyes was in detention at the Department of Political Order (DOP). The interview with him took place in the prison governor's office, again in the presence of Dr. Salamanca. Mr. Reyes also stated that his conditions of detention were reasonably good and that he had at no time been tortured or subjected to other ill-treatment. Clearly, however, Reyes was a very depressed man, much less talkative and much more subdued than Lechín, although it is difficult to judge whether this was due to differences of personality or to differences in their conditions of detention.
6. 22. The representative of the Director-General also met the President and the Executive Secretary of the Association of Private Employers of Bolivia. The President (Mr. M.P. Monasterios) considered that the dissolution of the existing trade unions had become inevitable. Frequent and irresponsible work stoppages, where trade union leaders manipulated the unions to serve their own political purposes, had had disastrous effects on the economy and on the political stability of the country. The situation was, however, now calm and under control, and it was to be hoped that harmonious industrial relations, untinged by political considerations, would be established with the new trade unions that were to be created.
7. 23. Discussions with the representatives of the international Committee of the Red Cross, the UNHCR and the Archbishop of La Paz made it possible to establish the whereabouts and the current situation with regard to a number of persons specifically mentioned in the complaints (see appendix). In all too many cases, however, the representative of the Director-General states that identification proved impossible since the names provided were incomplete. The delegation of the international Committee of the Red Cross travels freely throughout the country. The head of the Red Cross delegation, Dr. Kobel, undertook to inform any detained trade unionist he might encounter (and he had already seen quite a number) of the ILO's mission to Bolivia and the efforts being undertaken on their behalf.
8. 24. Finally, it should be mentioned that the representatives of the UNHCR and the Intergovernmental Committee for European Migration (ICEN) with whom the representative of the Director General spoke in La Paz declared their readiness to assist with the material arrangements for the departure from Bolivia of those trade unionists and the members of their families who had to leave the country.

C. The Government's reply

1. 25. In its communication of 31 October 1980, transmitted on 10 November, the Government states that the complaints are totally unfounded. It adds that they have at no time been proved and evidence a deliberate desire to damage the prestige of the Bolivian Government for political reasons.
2. 26. The Government indicates that at the present time the majority of the trade unionists who were in detention have been released or exiled at their own request. In other cases, after the subversive activities of the persons concerned had been proved, and after these persons had indicated that it was their wish to remain in Bolivia, it was decided to restrict them to specified towns in accordance with article 112, paragraph 4 of the Political Constitution which provides that, if the preservation of public order necessitates the removal of suspects elsewhere, they may by order be restricted to a departmental or provincial capital; however, persons restricted, prosecuted or arrested on such grounds may not be refused a passport if they request it in order to leave the country, and the authorities must grant them the guarantees necessary for this purpose.
3. 27. As regards the allegations that limitations have been placed on trade union freedom, the Government states that it has not placed any impediment in the way of the free exercise of trade union rights. It adds that it has merely by order ended the term of office of all trade union leaders because the offices in question had been transformed into profit-making institutions and instruments for permanent disturbances. The Bolivian trade union movement was subject to the orders of a few leaders who received guidelines and instructions from abroad. In the Government's view, the workers themselves were aware that the trade unions could not be turned into centres of political agitation and means of illegal enrichment. The Government adds that it will respect the social gains and rights which are recognised by the law and will authorise the free exercise of trade union activities.
4. 28. In order to keep the means of dialogue with the workers open, the Government has authorised the formation of groups of "labour relations agents" democratically elected by workers' Committees to represent them in negotiations and in disputes.
5. 29. The Government next refers to the large-scale politicisation of the trade unions which had resulted in innumerable strikes and work stoppages over the last 24 months, with resulting damage to the economy of the country. In. support, the Government supplies a statistical table on the labour disputes over this period.
6. 30. The Government denies the allegations concerning the demolition of the trade union premises. It states that, on the contrary, it has decided to erect a modern building which will replace the dilapidated premises of the COB and will serve not only as the headquarters of this organisation but also for the benefit of all workers thanks to the inclusion of several levels of car parking.
7. 31. In an appendix to its communication, the Government supplies information on 104 persons who had been mentioned by the complainants. It appears from this information that 30 of them are restricted to a specified town, 56 have not been detained, 5 are in exile, 11 are at liberty and 1 has died in Geneva where he had been living for score years. The Committee noted that the names largely corresponded to those communicated by the complainants.

D. The Committee's conclusions

1. 32. The allegations made in the present case refer to the violent deaths of trade union leaders and the arrest of large numbers of trade unionists, to the dissolution of the Bolivian Central of workers and of the existing trade unions, and to the measures taken against the members of an international trade union mission.
2. 33. Before considering each of the questions raised by the complainants, the Committee wishes to express its deep concern at the gravity of certain allegations, and to recall as a general principle that a truly free and independent trade union movement can only develop where fundamental human rights are respected.
3. 34. The Committee observes in the first place that the Government has supplied no information regarding the death of fifteen trade union leaders who are said to have been shot, nor on the death of the Miners' Federation leader, Gualberto Vega. In this connection the Committee can only urge the Government to supply its observations on these allegations and detailed information on the precise circumstances of the death of these trade union leaders if it is true that they are no longer alive.
4. 35. As to the allegations concerning the arrests of trade unionists, the Committee notes that according to the Government the majority of these persons have not been arrested. It appears however from the information received that a significant number of them have been restricted to specified towns and that a few have been exiled. The Government has given no information on the precise grounds for these measures. Finally, some persons have been released.
5. 36. As the Committee has already had occasion to point out in earlier cases, although the fact of exercising trade union activity or holding trade union office does not give immunity from the application of normal penal law, the absence of guarantees of due process of law may lead to abuses and allow trade union officials to be penalised pursuant to decisions based on groundless accusations. It may also create a climate of insecurity and fear which may be prejudicial to the exercise of trade union rights, and the Committee has often drawn attention to the risks of violations of trade union rights involved in the detention of trade unionists against whom no grounds for accusation are subsequently found; accordingly, the Government should take steps to forestall the risk of unjustified arrests. The Committee has also considered that the granting to a trade unionist of his freedom on condition that he leaves the country although a less harsh measure is not compatible with the free exercise of trade union rights.
6. 37. The Committee has taken note of the Government's statement that suspects who are restricted, prosecuted or arrested can, at their request, be exiled. In this connection, the Committee must emphasise, as it has in the past, that the granting of his freedom to a trade unionist on condition that he leaves the country, although a less drastic measure than detention, cannot be considered compatible with the exercise of trade union rights. Similarly, restriction to a specified town, which also deprives trade unionists of the opportunity to carry on their trade union activities, is also a measure incompatible with the normal enjoyment of the right of association, Such restrictions should also be subject to appropriate judicial safeguards operating within a reasonable time and in particular to the protection of the right of the persons concerned to a fair trial as soon as possible.
7. 38. In addition, the Committee wishes to ask the Government to supply information on the present position of the other persons mentioned in the complaints.
8. 39. The Committee has taken note of the contents of Presidential Decree No. 17531 of 21 July respecting the dissolution of the trade unions of active and inactive workers, except the Transport Workers' Union which, according to the Decree, has acted within the trade union context and remained on the fringe of any political activity. It has also taken note of Presidential Decree No. 17545 of 12 August to provide for the appointment of workers' representatives to perform trade union functions pending the establishment of a new trade union organisation. In this connection the Committee wishes to stress that under Article 4 of Convention No. 87, ratified by Bolivia, workers' organisations shall not be liable to be dissolved by administrative authority. The Committee would like to lay particular emphasis on this principle in the present case, since the measures in question affect almost all the trade union organisations in the country and accordingly have extremely serious implications for the defence of the occupational interests of Bolivian workers.
9. 40. The Committee notes that the Government has authorised the creation of groups of labour relations agents, elected by workers' Committees to represent the workers. The Committee considers however that such groups cannot be a substitute for the trade union organisations which the Bolivian workers had freely set up. It wishes to recall the importance attaching to the right of workers to join the organisations of their choice.
10. 41. As regards the arrest of the ICFTU members on a mission to Bolivia, the Committee notes that the persons concerned, following their arrest and maltreatment, have been released and expelled from the territory. The Committee nevertheless considers it necessary to ask the Government to supply information on the allegation that a sum of money carried by the members of the mission was confiscated.

The Committee's recommendations

1. 42. In these circumstances the Committee recommends the Governing Body:
   • (a) to note that a representative of the Director-General has visited the country to examine the trade union situation on the spot, jointly with the Government;
   • (b) to express its deep concern at the gravity of certain allegations and to recall as a general principle that a truly free and independent trade union movement can only develop where fundamental human rights are respected;
   • (c) to urge the Government to supply its observations on the allegations concerning the death of trade union leaders and to communicate information on the precise circumstances of these deaths if it is true that these persons are no longer alive;
   • (d) to note that certain persons mentioned by the complainants have been released but that a significant number of other persons have been either restricted to specified towns or exiled;
   • (e) consequently, to recall to the Government the principles and considerations set out in paragraphs 36 and 37 above concerning measures of arrest, restriction to specified towns and exile, and in particular the importance of the existence of appropriate judicial safeguards and to ask the Government to supply information on the present position of the other trade unionists mentioned in the complaints;
   • (f) to call the Government's particular attention to Article 4 of Convention No, 87, ratified by Bolivia, according to which workers' organisations shall not be liable to be dissolved by administrative authority;
   • (g) to express the firm hope that the Bolivian trade unions will soon be returned to their previous status and that the proposed new legislation will be in full conformity with Conventions Nos. 87 and 98, and that in revising the trade union legislation the Government will, as it has indicated is its intention, seek the advice and co-operation of the ILO, and to request the Government to supply information on the progress made in the adoption of this legislation and on the evolution of the trade union situation;
   • (h) to note that the members of the ICFTU who were arrested during a mission to Bolivia have been released and expelled but, in the absence of observations from the Government on this point, to request it to provide information on the alleged confiscation of a sum of money carried by the members of the mission;
   • (i) to take note of the present interim report.
     • Geneva, 12 November 1980. (Signed) Roberto AGO, Chairman.

Z. ANNEX

• APPENDIX I
• Information obtained concerning persons referred to in the complaints
• Juan LECHIN OQUENDO Main leader of the COB. In hospital; visited by mission.
• Simón REYES RIVERA Leader of the COB and communist congressman. Arrested during the raid on the COB. Detained at DOP visited by mission.
• Liber FORTI Secretary of the Bolivian section of the International Theatre Institute (ITI) of UNESCO, and Secretary of the cultural Committee of the COB. Arrested during the raid. Free; now in Paris.
• Corcino PEREYRA Leader of miners, constituted in a co-operative, member of the COB. Arrested during the raid on COB. Detained at DOP
• Noel VASQUEZ Secretary of the COB. Arrested during the raid. An ex-miner. Detained at DOP.
• Vladimir ARISCURINADA Secretary-General of the State Employees' Federation and COB member. Arrested during the raid. Detained at Puerto Cabinas.
• Luis LOPEZ ALTAMIRANO Secretary of the Factory Workers' Union. With Mexican Embassy.
• Victor SOSA Detained at El Beni.
• Max TORO. Detained at DOP.
• Luis POZO. Detained at Cobija.
• All members of the COB. Arrested during 17 July raid.
• David ACEBEY Journalist arrested at COB office on 17 July. Detained at El Beni.
• Oscar SANJINEZ Member, Miners' Federation. With Venezuelan Embassy.
• Henry AGUILAR Executive Secretary, National Federation of Metalworkers of Bolivia (FNTMB). Detained at Puerto Grether.
• Porfirio RODRIGUEZ FNTMB delegate to the COB. Detained at Puerto Grether.
• Omar RENDON Former leader, Metalworkers' Union, National Iron Foundry. Detained at Puerto Grether.
• Alfonso LANDIVAR Leader, Teachers' Union, Higher Normal School. Free.
• Father Julie TUMIRI President of the Permanent Assembly on Human Rights (PAHR). Detained at DOP; about to be released.
• APPENDIX II
• Names of persons in compulsory residence, released or exiled, transmitted by the Government on 10 November 1980
• Juan LECHIN OQUENDO compulsory residence
• Simón REYES RIVERA compulsory residence
• Liber FORTI exiled
• Julio TUMIRI compulsory residence
• Victor SOSA compulsory residence
• Max TORO B compulsory residence
• Noel VASQUEZ compulsory residence
• Victor LIMA compulsory residence
• Cayetano LLOBET released 2.11 80
• Gladys SOLON released 9.10.80
• Hernan LUDUENA released
• Oscar PENA FRANCO exiled
• Fernando SALAZAR exiled
• Cosme REYES VALVERDE compulsory residence
• Luis AGUILAR PORTILLO compulsory residence
• Nicasio CHOQUE DONAIRE- compulsory residence
• Rufino COSSIO CALLE compulsory residence
• Luis POZO INIGUEZ compulsory residence
• Rafael ORTEGA VAQUERA compulsory residence
• Miguel ORTIZ SUELAS compulsory residence
• Carlos SORIA GALVARRO compulsory residence
• Asencio QUISFE QUISFE compulsory residence
• Isaac MORALES QUISFE compulsory residence
• Walter HUMEREZ CORTEZ compulsory residence
• Francisco TINTAYA CALLE compulsory residence
• Paulino BENIEZ AROSQUETA compulsory residence
• Wilfredo RUA BEJARANO exiled
• Arturo VILLANUEVA IMANA compulsory residence
• Walter ROBLES BERMUDEZ released
• Julio A. MARQUEZ released
• David ACEBEY compulsory residence
• Amador VILLAVICENCIO released 14.10.80
• Eduardo DOMINGUEZ VERT compulsory residence
• Alberto BONADONA released 30.10.80
• Walter RETAMOZO MONTANO exiled
• Floduardo ORDONEZ compulsory residence
• Raul GONZALEZ ALMANSA compulsory residence
• José MARQUEZ released
• Freddy JUSTINIANO compulsory residence
• Guillermo DALENCE compulsory residence
• Vladimir ARUSINAGA compulsory residence
• Julio MARQUEZ released
• Juan Carlos ORIALES compulsory residence
• Adrian CAMACHO released
• Fernando TORRELY MARIA released
• Armando PORRE released
• Corsino PEREYRA compulsory residence