Definitive Report - Report No 116, 1970

Case No 442 (Guatemala) - Complaint date: 11-MAY-65 - Closed

1. 13. This case, which goes back to 1965, was previously examined by the Committee at its sessions in November 1965, November 1966 and May 1968. On these occasions the Committee submitted to the Governing Body, which approved them, three interim reports which appear in paragraphs 541-552 of the Committee's 85th Report, paragraphs 243-251 of its 93rd Report and paragraphs 183-194 of its 105th Report respectively.
2. 14. Following its last examination of the case, the Committee had submitted its final conclusions on all the allegations except one, which related to acts of terrorism said to have been perpetrated against certain trade union organisations. It is this last allegation that will be dealt with in the following paragraphs.
3. 15. Guatemala 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).
   • Allegations relating to Acts of Terrorism Perpetrated against Trade Union Organisations

A. A. The complainants' allegations

1. 16. In a communication dated 25 May 1967 the Autonomous Trade Union Federation of Guatemala (FASGUA) referred in general terms to the repression to which trade unionism in Guatemala had been subjected since 1954. The complainants stated that trade union leaders had been imprisoned, tortured and murdered. As a concrete example they stated that on the morning of 21 May 1967 " our workers' union was the victim of an attack which practically destroyed our offices and seriously endangered the lives of hundreds of peasants who, having attended a general assembly on the previous evening, were sleeping in the FASGUA building ". They added that, in the situation then prevailing in the country, they were prevented from carrying out their trade union activities normally by clandestine organisations which, they maintained, threatened the lives of the trade union leaders; in some cases these threats are alleged to have been carried out since " several peasants' and workers' leaders " had been murdered.
2. 17. The Committee, which had the case before it at its session in May 1968, noted that the Government had not submitted its observations on this aspect of the case and recommended the Governing Body to request the Government to furnish the said observations. The Government complied with this request in its communication dated 3 January 1970.
3. 18. In its observations, the Government states firstly that the state bodies and institutions are constantly on the alert in order to protect the free exercise of the prerogatives and rights of the trade union organisations of the country and of their members, " as is proved by the fact that their respective programmes are freely implemented ". The Government specifies that, for its part, the FASGUA is perfectly free to carry out its activities in the various occupational sectors and that, in the matters with which it deals, it enjoys the same treatment as other trade union organisations as far as the various administrative services and labour courts are concerned.
4. 19. The Government goes on to refer to the gravity of the country's present situation as a result of the activities of terrorist groups acting outside the law and threatening the institutions and law and order. It nevertheless states that it is doing everything possible to defend the institutions, that it has strengthened the services responsible for maintaining law and order and that it is carrying out its duties normally with the co-operation of employers' and workers' organisations.
5. 20. As regards the allegations themselves, the Government indicates firstly that nothing in them points to any responsibility or guilt, whether by action or omission, that could be imputed to the state bodies or institutions. It also points out that the said allegations consist essentially in generalities " and that there is no precise information on any of the alleged facts and no one is identified as having been the victim of any sort of offence whatsoever".
6. 21. The Government concludes by stating that after making investigations, it has been unable to find evidence of any of the incidents alleged by the complainants.

B. B. The Committee's conclusions

1. 22. The Committee has to recognise that, as is pointed out by the Government, the allegations made by the FASGUA are of a very general nature and that they seem to bear on information often going back over a long period. Apart from the reference to an attack on the offices of the FASGUA-where it is not specified whether it was supposed to have been made by the authorities or by terrorist groups-no precise information is given nor any person identified. The Committee notes furthermore that the Government states that the inquiries made have not enabled it to establish whether the alleged incidents actually took place.
2. 23. Although the information available to the Committee reveals a disturbed situation, of which the Government is not unaware, it does not make it possible to establish whether the latter has actually infringed freedom of association, either actively or by omission.

The Committee's recommendations

1. 24. In these circumstances, in view of the fact that the events referred to by the complainants mostly go back a long way and, above all, considering that the complainants have provided no evidence for what they maintain, the Committee recommends the Governing Body to decide that the case calls for no further consideration on its part.