Monday, January 05, 2009


INTERNATIONAL LABOUR-IRAQ:
IN MEMORY OF HADI SALEH:
The following item is from the online labour solidarity site Labour Start. It deals with a book that has been published in memory of the murdered Iraqi trade unionist Hadi Saleh. The bare details of this case can be found on the Wikipedia article on Saleh, and a more detailed account of the case can be seen at the report of his death from the General Federation of Iraqi Workers ((GFIW). It has been four years since his murder by "persons unknown", and the perpetrators have yet to be found. It is certain that he had a surfeit of enemies. He was opposed to Saddam Hussein's dictatorship from underground and in exile. He also opposed the American invasion, and his general socialist politics were certain to enrage the Islamists. Too many suspects. Here's the story of a book on his life, available from Labour Start.
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In memory of a murdered Iraqi trade union leader:‏
It has now been four years since the murder of Hadi Saleh, the international officer of the Iraqi Federation of Trade Unions.
I had the honor of meeting Hadi not long before his death when he visited Britain. We discussed the trade unions in Iraq and ways in which we could give them support and solidarity.
Not long after Hadi was killed, the Trades Union Congress (TUC) in Britain published a book in his honor entitled "Hadi Never Died".
"On January 4, 2005," it began, "masked assassins broke into his home, bound his feet and hands, and blindfolded him. Then they tortured and burned his body and, finally, strangled him with an electric cord. A life of idealism and selflessness, filled with solidarity and love for his family, country and the labour movement, came to this terrible, pain-filled end."
The book does much more than describe Hadi's murder. It tells the story of death and re-birth of the Iraqi trade union movement.
"Hadi Never Died" is a large format, full-color paperback and LabourStart is pleased to be able to offer it to our readers for £10.00 (about US$14.50) -- with free shipping to anywhere in the world.
Please order multiple copies for yourselves, your co-workers and other members of your union.
To order "Hadi Never Died" securely go here:
Thank you.
Eric Lee

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