Maquila Solidarity Network
Duro Campaign Update
March 5, 2001

Election Fraud Triumphs at Duro: Workers Denied Secret Ballot Vote

Mexico's newly elected president Vicente Fox has betrayed his election promise to respect freedom of association and has allowed traditional electoral fraud to triumph at the Duro Bag factory in Rio Bravo, Mexico.

Despite growing national and international pressure for a free and fair, secret ballot union representation election (recuento), on March 2, Duro workers were forced to walk through a gauntlet of over 50 thugs inside the factory, and then publicly declare their vote in front of representatives of the company, the "official" union of the CROC, and the thugs.

Not surprisingly, over 400 workers voted for the "official" CROC union, and only three workers dared to declare their support for the independent union. The CTM union, which had formerly "represented" the workers, withdrew from the election, although its lawyer showed up to represent the CROC.

Although some representatives of the independent union were permitted into the factory to witness the vote, election observers from Mexico, Canada and the US had to wait outside the plant throughout the election. The employer was able to prevent contact between workers and their supporters by ordering the second shift to stay overnight at the factory, together with the thugs from the CROC, and the first shift to arrive early the morning of the vote.

Many new employees and management and office personnel, who did not legally have the right to vote, were apparently allowed to participate in the election, while some illegally fired workers were denied their legal right to vote.

The three election observers from Canada were Sheila Katz of the CLC, Michael Lambert of the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers union (CEP), and Larry Steinberg of the Canadian Association of Labour Lawyers (CALL).

HOW YOU CAN SUPPORT THE DURO WORKERS:

Write to Mexican president Vicente Fox, protesting the election fraud at Duro and demanding protection for the Duro workers who support the independent union.

Fax: 011-525-516-5762
Webpage: http://www.melodysoft.com/cgi-bin/gbook.cgi?ID=fox2000&do=sign

[For non-Spanish speakers, you will be asked to fill in the following information: name, e-mail, web, country, age, how did you find us?, what do you think of the web page?, do you want your message to be private? (Don't click on this one.), place to type message. After you've printed your message, select "enviar" to send, or "borrar" to erase. When you send your message, you should be able to see other recent messages sent to Fox, including those from other supporters of the Duro workers.]

Send a copy of your letter to Canada's Minister of Labour, Claudette Bradshaw.
Fax: (819) 994-5168
E-mail: bradsc@parl.gc.ca

SAMPLE LETTER (Please write your own and send copy to the MSN.)

Vicente Fox, Presidente
Republica de Mexico

Estimado Presidente Fox:

I am writing to protest the electoral fraud your government allowed to take place on March 2 at the Duro Bag factory in Rio Bravo, Tamaulipas. Despite calls from numerous religious, human rights and labour organizations in Mexico, Canada and the US for a free and fair, secret ballot election in a neutral location, your government permitted the traditional electoral fraud of the PRI to be perpetrated on Duro workers.

Duro workers, who had earlier been threatened with firings and the closure of the plant if they supported the independent union, were forced to walk through a gauntlet of over 50 thugs from the CROC who had been brought into the factory the day before the vote, and then required to publicly declare which union they supported in front of representatives of the CROC, company management and the thugs.

I am disturbed that Mexico's champion of democratic reform would allow officials of his government to collaborate in electoral fraud with the corrupt leaders of the old "official" unions of the PRI. This is in direct contradiction to your election pledge to guarantee the right of freedom of association, and to put an end to the impunity enjoyed by the official unions. It is also a violation of the May 18, 2000 Joint Declaration signed by the labour ministers of Mexico and the US, and witnessed by the Canadian minister of labour, in which Mexico pledges to promote "the use of eligible voter lists and secret ballot elections in disputes over the right to hold the collective bargaining contract."

I will also be bringing this matter to the attention of the Canadian government as an example of the failure of your government to carry out promises made as part of the NAFTA labour side agreement process.

I urge your government to ensure that, in the wake of this fraudulent electoral process in Rio Bravo, Duro workers will be protected from any further illegal firings, acts of intimidation or violence by the company, the official unions and/or local authorities.

Yours truly,

cc. Claudette Bradshaw, Minister of Labour, Government of Canada

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