US DEPARTMENT OF LABOR CONDEMNS MURDER OF GUATEMALAN TRADE UNION LEADER ANASTACIO TZIB CAAL
News Release
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Deputy Undersecretary for International Affairs Thea Lee released the following statement condemning the June 15 murder of Anastacio Tzib Caal, the recently elected secretary general of the Texpia II workers’ union. Texpia II is a garment production facility in Villa Nueva, Guatemala.
“We lament Anastacio Tzib Caal’s horrific murder and extend our deep condolences to his family, friends and the Texpia II workers’ union. We stand with the Guatemalan labor rights community in calling on the Guatemalan authorities to thoroughly investigate his murder and hold the perpetrators accountable. We hope to see swift justice for Tzib Caal and an end to impunity for violent crimes against trade unionists in Guatemala. The U.S. Government remains firmly committed to supporting workers’ rights in Guatemala through our programs and engagement with Guatemalan authorities, unions, worker organizations and the private sector. In addition to worker rights, the United States supports security efforts more broadly so that everyone can live and work without fear of violence.”
Learn more about the department’s international work.
Agency Bureau of International Labor Affairs
Date June 20, 2024
Release Number 24-1211-NAT
https://www.dol.gov/newsroom/releases/ilab/ilab20240620
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"The murder of Anastacio Tzib Caal is a tragic addition to the 90+ labor activists killed in Guatemala in the past 2 decades. I condemn the targeting of labor activists across the hemisphere and stand with the Guatemalan people in demanding accountability.” -Chair
@SenatorCardin
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Google translated article from Guatemala:
Anastacio Tzib Caal, representative of the textile maquila unions
A union leader was murdered in Guatemala
Guatemalan trade unionist Anastacio Tzib Caal, leader of the general coordination of the network of textile maquila unions in Guatemala, was murdered in a municipality of the capital of the Central American country.
The Guatemalan Ministry of Labor reported in a statement on the murder of Tzib Caal, which occurred on June 15, and demanded an "exhaustive, transparent and expeditious investigation" to find those responsible for the crime.
Tzib Caal was the leader of the general coordination of the network of textile maquila unions in Guatemala and the general secretary of the union of workers of the company SAE A Texpia II, a textile maquila firm located in Guatemala City.
According to local media, he was shot in the municipality of Villa Canales, in the department of Guatemala.
The organization Red de Defensores de Derechos Laborales en Guatemala described the murder as "a direct and cowardly attack against the union movement" in the Central American country.
Repudiation of the United States
The US State Department condemned the murder of Guatemalan leader Anastacio Tzib Caal.
"Attacks on Guatemalan trade unionists limit Guatemala's economic development prospects and undermine human rights in our global supply chains," US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in a statement following the killing on Saturday.
https://www.pagina12.com.ar/745472-asesinaron-a-un-lider-sindical-en-guatemala