[NYTr] Guatemalan Banana Union Leader Murdered

[All the News That Doesn't Fit]

sent by marcus - Sep 25, 2007 (activ-l)

Posted to the IUF website 25-Sep-2007
http://www.iuf.org/cgi-bin/campaigns/show_campaign.cgi?c=309


Guatemalan Banana Union Leader Murdered

Masked gunmen murdered Guatemalan union leader Marco Tulio Rammrez
Portela early in the morning of September 23 as he was leaving his home
for work. Marco Tulio was secretary of sports and culture of the banana
workers union SITRABI, which organizes Del Monte workers. His brother,
Noi Antonio Rammrez Portela,is the union general secretary.

Tulio's murder follows a pattern of rising anti-union violence and
institutional impunity in Guatemala. In July, the SITRABI headquarters
was raided by uniformed soldiers using official vehicles, who demanded
information on union officers and members. The union filed a full
report with the Public Prosecutors Office and the Special Unit for
Crimes against Unionists and Journalists.

The IUF has called on the Guatemalan government to immediately
undertake a full and open investigation into this latest union
assassination. You can support the struggle against immunity - Click
here to send a message to the authorities: