Workers Strike Back
Insight Myanmar3 Touko 2024

Workers Strike Back

Episode #233: Jeff Vogt, Legal Director of the Solidarity Center and member of the International Labour Organization (ILO) Governing Body, discusses significant labor issues in Myanmar since the 2021 military coup. Vogt explains the role of ILO Conventions 87 and 29, which Myanmar has ratified, focusing on the right to freedom of association and the prohibition of forced labor. He details the historical context of labor unions in Myanmar, noting a brief period post-2011 where laws allowed union formation and collective bargaining, although with many limitations. This period ended abruptly with the coup, leading to the dissolution of unions and a crackdown on trade union leaders.

Vogt highlights the pervasive control and repression by the military that impacts both the public and private sectors. He emphasizes the severe restrictions now placed on workers' rights and the inability of workers to collectively address grievances or negotiate work conditions. Vogt also discusses the ILO's role and procedures, including the significant step of a Commission of Inquiry—a rare measure reserved for severe violations of ratified conventions. He calls for international actions and sanctions to pressure Myanmar to comply with its obligations, stressing the critical importance of organized labor and freedom of association in promoting democracy and protecting workers' rights.

“The ability of workers to be able to associate and collectively form trade unions is absolutely important,” he says. “And it's not only important because of the role of workers in advocating for members of their workplace, but the role of workers in their unions in being proponents for democracy, both in the workplace and in their communities and society.”

Jaksot(507)

From Rio to Rangoon

From Rio to Rangoon

Episode #429: Emmanuel Flores' journey into meditation began at the age of nine in Rio de Janeiro, seated before a candle. His formative years were marked by a quest for positivity, but without a soli...

11 Marras 20251h 6min

Trajectories in Flux

Trajectories in Flux

Episode #428: This panel gathers five voices from Myanmar’s unraveling present—specialists in food, economy, energy, education, and digital life—who together trace the anatomy of a country still fight...

10 Marras 20252h 41min

Meditating on History

Meditating on History

Episode #427: Daniel M. Stuart describes his newest work, Insight in Perspective, as the product of decades of scholarship and meditative practice, aimed at practitioners and academics alike. The book...

7 Marras 20251h 36min

Reclaiming Ground

Reclaiming Ground

Episode #426: The Karenni Interim Executive Council was formed in 2023 to provide services to people in dire need, with an estimated 80% of the civilian population displaced by the conflict. As people...

6 Marras 20251h 51min

A Borderline Personality

A Borderline Personality

Episode #425: Dr. Lalita Hanwong, a Thai historian and analyst, has dedicated her career to understanding Myanmar and its ties to Thailand. “I’m morally attached to the peoples of Myanmar,” she says, ...

4 Marras 20251h 47min

Through Other Eyes

Through Other Eyes

Episode #424: This episode opens the first of a three-part Insight Myanmar Podcast series recorded at the Decolonizing Southeast Asian Studies Conference at Chiang Mai University. The gathering brough...

3 Marras 20251h 11min

Snap Judgments

Snap Judgments

Episode #423: Ian Taylor is a Canadian photographer whose life shifted from the film industry to decades of work and travel across Southeast Asia. His first experience was with a government-sponsored ...

31 Loka 20251h 54min

At The Edge of Self

At The Edge of Self

Episode #422: “There is beauty in owning one's racial identity. There's beauty in owning, valuing, and respecting one's heritage, ancestors, sexual identity, and gender identity. But on the other side...

30 Loka 20252h 14min

Suosittua kategoriassa Politiikka ja uutiset

aikalisa
ootsa-kuullut-tasta-2
tervo-halme
rss-ootsa-kuullut-tasta
politiikan-puskaradio
rss-vaalirankkurit-podcast
viisupodi
rss-podme-livebox
rss-asiastudio
otetaan-yhdet
et-sa-noin-voi-sanoo-esittaa
the-ulkopolitist
rss-tasta-on-kyse-ivan-puopolo-verkkouutiset
rss-kaikki-uusiksi
rss-hyvaa-huomenta-bryssel
radio-antro
rss-kiina-ilmiot
rss-kovin-paikka
rss-polikulaari-pitka-kiekko-ja-muut-ts-podcastit
rss-vain-talouselamaa