THE INTERNATIONAL TRANSPORT WORKERS’ FEDERATION ISSUE 6•2012 CHALLENGING HIV/AIDS IN TRANSPORT ITF SURVEY ON PORTS AND DOCKS NEW RESEARCH INTO HIV LEADS TO INNOVATIVE PROGRAMME TO HELP WORKERS SAFE AT SEA SAFE ON SHORE NEW WAYS OF KEEPING SEAFARERS BETTER INFORMED ON THE RISKS OF HIV INFECTION HEALTHY PLANET HEALTHY PEOPLE HOW WILL CLIMATE CHANGE AFFECT HIV VULNERABILITY AND POVERTY LEVELS? elcome to the sixth edition of Agenda, the ITF’s yearly Contents magazine about its work in tackling HIV/AIDS. It reports on the work of transport unions in partnership 3-6 Unions in Action W Progress reports from Guatemala, with other sector unions across the globe as well as international Indonesia, Thailand, Togo, Sri Lanka, health bodies, national governments and local community Timor-Leste, Mauritius and Kenya groups. In this issue we’re paying attention to the role of trade 7-9 From Research to Action union leadership in empowering communities working to Port unions and the ITF initiate a programme on HIV/AIDS eliminate the stigma of HIV, and in tackling the disease through safe practice and non-discrimination in the workplace. There 10-11 Safe at Sea, Safe on Shore Seafarers need better information is a particular focus on how trade union organising around HIV about the risks of infection, but with can strengthen unions and boost their activities. the help of comic books and family awareness sessions the word is We’re also looking at the importance of dealing with HIV spreading through transport hubs such as major ports, which is why 12-13 Scaling Up a Co-ordinated Response we’re bringing you news about an ITF survey on HIV and the The ILO reports that good co-operation port sector. and research are the key to developing intervention plans, as progress in This year, a greater number of affiliates from different regions Zimbabwe and Tanzania shows have contacted us with reports of the projects they’ve run, raising 14-15 Easing the Road to Good Health awareness amongst workers about HIV and empowering them North Star Alliance provides services in their workplaces to fight for their rights and against prejudice. for transport workers in Southern Africa through a new mobile set up Thanks for these, and please keep sending them in. 16-17 HIV/AIDS as an Organising Tool In solidarity Unions are beginning to understand how HIV/AIDS information and prevention can also be used as a way to unionise workers 18-19 Healthy Planet, Healthy People David Cockroft How will HIV vulnerability and levels ITF general secretary of poverty be affected by climate change? ITF Regional Offices African Regional Office Asia/Pacific Regional Office European Transport Workers' Arab World Office PO Box 66540, Westlands, 12D College Lane, Federation (ETF) Bilal Maikawi Nairobi, Kenya New Delhi, 110001 India Rue du Marché aux Herbes 105, Al-Husseini Group Commercial Tel: +254 (0) 20 44 480 19 Tel:+91 (0) 11 2335 4408 / 7423 Boîte 11 B-1000 Bruxelles, Belgium Building - 5th Floor, Zahran Street (between 7th & 8th Circle), Fax: +254 (0) 20 44 480 20 Fax: +91 (0) 11 2335 4407 Tel:+32 (0) 2 285 4660 Amman 1182 1 P.O. Box 1392, Jordan Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected] Fax: +32 (0) 2 280 0817 Tel: +962 6 58 21 366 Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected] African Francophone Office Inter-American Office Website: www.etf-europe.org Website: 1036 Avenue Dimbdolobsom, 3rd Av. Rio Branco, 26-11 Andar, www.itfglobal.org/itf-arab-world Floor ex immeuble CEAO, 11 BP 832 CEP 20090-001 Centro, Moscow Office Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Moscow 125047, Russia, Oruzejny Tel: +226 (0) 50 301 979 Tel: +55 (0) 21 2223 0410 Pereulok 15a, Moscow, Russia Fax: +226 (0) 50 333 101 Fax: +55 (0) 21 2283 0314 Tel: +7 495 782 0468 Editorial Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected] Fax: + 7 495 782 0573 ITF global HIV/AIDS project Website: www.itf_americas.org Email: [email protected] co-ordinator: Dr Syed Asif Altaf ITF Tokyo Office Editor: Dr Kate Webb Tamachi Kotsu Building, 3-2-22 Editor in chief: David Cockroft Shibaura, Minato-ku, Tokyo 108-0023, Japan Tel: +44 (0) 20 7403 2733 Tel: +81 (0) 337 982 770 Fax: +44 (0) 20 7357 7871 Fax: +81 (0) 337 694 471 Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected] ITF House, 49-60 Borough Road, London, SE1 1DR Website: www.itftokyo.org IN BRIEF Unions in action PROGRESS REPORTS FROM GUATEMALA, INDONESIA, THAILAND, TOGO, SRI LANKA, TIMOR-LESTE, MAURITIUS AND KENYA IN TOGO, ITF AFFILIATES FESYTRAT AND SYNTRAPAL ORGANISE AN HIV/AIDS CARAVAN AND RUN A WEEK-LONG ORGANISING AND VCT CAMPAIGN MAURITIUS GOVERNMENT SERVICES EMPLOYEES’ The authority port of Lomé has been implementing an HIV/AIDS prevention and care programme since 1996. Recently, in collaboration UNION ORGANISES with the peer educators and women’s network of ITF affiliate, SYNTRAPAL, organised a caravan with the port authority under the theme of: SEMINAR ON HIV/AIDS "Universal access and human rights; no HIV/AIDS-related stigmatisation; we're all affected". The caravan travelled around the port and went to a An ITF affiliate, the Mauritius Government Services nearby market to create awareness and distribute condoms. It was Employees’ Union, in collaboration with the Indian Ocean accompanied by a band and a famous Togolese singer. More than 2000 Commission (IOC) ran a seminar in September 2011 on people were reached during the caravan’s journey. HIV/AIDS. The workshop was inaugurated by R Sadien, FESYTRAT, the ITF road transport affiliate in Togo, joined with general president of the Government Services Employees’ SYNTRAPAL to organise a VCT campaign. The week-long event focused on Association, who said that as part of the union’s education unorganised taxi drivers and workers in motor spare-parts shops. A programme, he believed the workshop would be beneficial screening campaign was held at three sites including the port area, hosted to union leaders, educators and activists. He also by ICD-TOGO, the ETS and the Office of the URT. Counselling and emphasised that sensitisation campaigns for HIV/AIDS awareness sessions on HIV/AIDS were also conducted during the testing awareness should be an on-going item on the union’s and 157 transport workers were screened. These were members of agenda. FESYTRAT, and members of other haulage, HGV and taxi driver unions. Resource persons from the Ministry of Health and the Drivers from Benin, Niger, Burkina Faso and Mali also took part in the Ministry of Labour facilitated the sessions in the seminar screening. Of the drivers tested, only five were HIV positive and these were which included: basic facts about HIV/AIDS; prevention referred for support to the Health Centre of the Autonomous Port of Lomé. and control of HIV/AIDS; testing and treatment; Togo lies in the middle of West Africa's main trade and transport counselling techniques; and tackling HIV/AIDS in the corridor. According to UNAIDS, the total number of people living with HIV workplace. is 120,000. Deaths due to AIDS are 7,700 and 66,000 children have been During her presentation, Prema Ramdhian, from the orphaned by the illness. These figures may be under-estimates because AIDS Unit of the Ministry of Health, explained that the the HIV surveillance system is inadequate. However, the Togo government HIV/AIDS Act of 2007 was a weapon with which to fight is showing increasing commitment to fight HIV/AIDS and since a decree in against discrimination and stigmatisation in both the 2008, antiretroviral treatment is free of charge for all HIV positive people. workplace and the community. UNAIDS estimates that around 8,800 people are living with HIV in Mauritius, and Bina Valadon of the IOC told the workshop that the HIV prevalence rate in Mauritius is the highest in the region, exceeding that in Madagascar, Comoros and the Seychelles. Women take the lead with an anti-HIV/AIDS caravan in Lomé port agenda 3 IN BRIEF THAILAND RUNS HIV TRAINING FOR BURMESE Training peer educators AND CAMBODIAN MIGRANT and spreading knowledge WORKERS IN THE FISHING about HIV/AIDS among INDUSTRY maritime workers Burmese migrant workers in Thailand will soon be able to spread the HIV/AIDS awareness message among their peers thanks to a series of education workshops. Two workshops took place: one in February, in a Mahachai hospital meeting room in Samut Sakorn province, involving 30 participants; and one in April with 35 participants. They were led by the ITF coordination committee in Thailand and the training was run by the women’s network. Their aim was to build the skills and knowledge of Burmese activists so that they can pass on information to migrant workers, many of whom work in the fishing industry. As trained peer educators, the activists will be able to create a better understanding of HIV and safer sex, and to refer NATIONAL UNION OF workers to the Raks Thai Foundation’s clinics, a local NGO which has worked with migrant workers for many years. SEAFARERS SRI LANKA (NUSS) There are about two million migrant fishermen in LAUNCHES A LONG TERM Thailand who come from Burma, Cambodia, and Laos PDR, yet only one-quarter of this group is official. Mahendra Sharma, WORKPLACE HIV/AIDS the ITF Asia-Pacific regional secretary, said: “Migrant fishers are largely undocumented, most of them do not have access EDUCATION PROJECT to proper health care and HIV/AIDS prevention and support In June 2011, the National Union of Seafarers Sri Lanka (NUSS) programmes.