@intro2 =Below is a February 29 statement by the International Trade Union Confederation, which represents 168 million workers in 155 countries and territories and has 311 national affiliates. Visit <http://www.ituc-csi.org>.
The ITUC has strongly condemned and denounced the murder on February 12, in Colon province, of trade union leader Hiromi Smith from the Sindicato Unico Nacional de trabajadores de la Industria de la Construccion y Similares (SUNTRACS).
Smith was shot by police anti-riot forces following a protest against unsafe working conditions at his place of work. Another two workers, Donaldo Pinilla and Eustaquio Smith, were injured.
According to reports on the national TV channel Canal 2, the police used tear gas and Smith was shot as he approached the Hugo Spadafora Policlinic to seek refuge and medical attention for his colleagues injured during the protest. Some 30 workers were arrested during the clashes.
In a letter to the Panamanian authorities, the ITUC recalled that it had already written in protest six months ago, following the murder of two SUNTRACS activists, Osvaldo Lorenzo Perez and Luigi Antonio Arguelles. This was during the union's campaign against safety standard violations, which aimed to end the deterioration in working conditions and the wave of deaths in the construction sector.
The ITUC, pointing out that nothing has been done to resolve these problems, urged the Panamanian authorities to take every possible step to ensure the urgent implementation of the safety regulations applicable to the Panamanian construction industry, and to end the national police's excessive use of force against workers.
"Panama needs to see the opening of a broad dialogue in which all those concerned, especially SUNTRACS and the Panamanian Construction Chamber, can commit to optimising workers' safety", said Guy Ryder, ITUC general secretary. "Panama is under an obligation to respect ILO Conventions 87 and 98, both of which it has ratified."