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Take Action! U.S. Trade Unionist Assassinated in El Salvador!Information in this alert comes from the National Labor Committee.
For more information: www.nlcnet.org. In this alert:
Information about the murder of an organizer for the International Brotherhood of Teamsters in El SalvadorMr. Gilberto Soto was assassinated Friday evening, November 5, at 6:00 p.m. , while visiting his mother in the city of Usulutan , El Salvador . He was just about to begin organizing Central American port workers and documenting violations of the rights of workers hauling the containers of the Maersk Shipping Company when he was killed. Send the model letter below or a similar letter to Secretary of State Colin Powell asking for an investigation of the murder and of the violation of the labor rights of El Salvador 's port workers. Mr. Soto received a call on his cell phone and had just stepped outside the doorway of his mother's home, searching for better reception, when he was approached by two men who shot and killed him at close range. He was shot in the upper back and on the lower side, near the kidney. It was this shot which severed his aorta, the major artery to the heart. He died immediately. The killers fled, running to a car waiting about 100 yards away. There may also have been a third assailant on a bike. There was absolutely no attempt to rob Mr. Soto. It was clear that the sole intent was to kill him. There were several eye witnesses. Mr. Gilberto Soto was a long time organizer with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT). Based in New Jersey , he was in charge of organizing port container drivers in the northeast of the U.S. He was currently involved in organizing drivers in Elizabeth , N.J. Less than a year ago, Mr. Soto met in New York City with Denmark 's SID Union (The Specialized Workers Union in Denmark ) Central American Representative, Bjarne Larsen. The IBT and SID were interested in collaborating on a joint project documenting the systematic violations of worker rights by Maersk, one of the largest shipping companies in the world. Mr. Soto was just about to begin his organizing work in Central America when he was murdered. He was going to meet with port workers in El Salvador , Honduras and Nicaragua . However, his real interest was to meet with and assist the drivers who hauled Maersk containers. In El Salvador , the working conditions are horrible, with excessive shifts and low wages. The drivers have absolutely no right to organize, and any hint of workers trying to exercise their legal right to Freedom of Association would be met with mass firings. The drivers are paid for only the hours they are on the road. A trip from a free trade zone in El Salvador to Puerto Cortez in Honduras could take seven- to-nine hours. Then there would be all the down time for which they are not paid, followed by another long haul back to El Salvador . In Honduras , about 700 of the container drivers are organized, and a much smaller group was just newly organized in Nicaragua . Weeks had gone into preparing for Mr. Soto's trip. Many emails had gone back and forth, and many drivers had been approached and spoken with. It is possible that word leaked out. Mr. Gilberto Soto's family in El Salvador will not be frightened. They are calling for a full investigation. Mr. Soto's sister told us: "We need an investigation. This murder did not just happen. There is something behind this. We demand justice in this country ( El Salvador ), where there is so little justice." Mr Gilberto Soto would have been 50 years old on Saturday, November 6, the day after he was assassinated. He leaves behind a 25 year old son. His mother and sister are accompanying his body from El Salvador to the U.S. this Thursday. Mr. Soto was born in El Salvador and immigrated to the U.S. in 1975. His family says that Gilberto had no enemies in Usulatan. It was quite the opposite, he was loved and respected. If an international trade union leader can be murdered in El Salvador , we can only imagine the repression the Salvadoran workers are facing on a daily basis. This is another tragic example of how CAFTA (Central American Free Trade Agreement) will continue to fail the workers in Central America and the U.S. While CAFTA goes out of its way to provide all sorts legal protection to the product, there are no similar enforceable laws backed up by sanctions to defend the rights of the human being and workers who made the product. We need to continue the struggle for worker rights protections in Central America and in the U.S. But first we need an immediate and thorough investigation to get to the truth of why and who killed Mr. Soto. As a first step, please write to U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell demanding a full investigation back to top MODEL LETTER:DATE General Colin L. Powell, Secretary of State Dear Secretary Powell: A United States citizen and trade union leader, Mr. Gilberto Soto, was assassinated in Usulutan , El Salvador on Friday evening, November 5. Two men who shot Mr. Soto in the back, at close range, before fleeing to a waiting car. There was absolutely no attempt to rob Mr. Soto, and according to eye witness accounts, it was clear that the sole intent was to kill him. Mr. Soto, who was born in El Salvador , was a longtime union organizer with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, in charge of working with port drivers on the northeast coast of the United States . Mr. Soto was in Central America to meet with port workers and the drivers who haul containers for the Maersk shipping line and other companies in El Salvador , Honduras and Nicaragua . I strongly believe that Mr. Soto was assassinated to prevent his meeting with and providing solidarity to these exploited port drivers. The container drivers in El Salvador work under very abusive conditions, forced to work excessively long shifts for little pay. The Salvadoran drivers are also systematically denied their legal right to freedom of association. Everyone knows that any attempt to organize would be met with mass firings. I urge you to intervene with the President of El Salvador to demand an immediate and thorough investigation of why Mr. Gilberto Soto was killed, and by whom. I also request that sufficient U.S. resources and personnel be made available to monitor this investigation. Certainly out of respect for Mr. Soto, there should also be an investigation into the systematic violation of labor rights faced by El Salvador 's port workers--especially in light of the pending Central America Free Trade Agreement. If a U.S. citizen and union leader can be assassinated in El Salvador , one can only imagine the repression and threats the Salvadoran workers must face on a daily basis. Thank you for your efforts to see that genuine justice is done for Mr. Soto and his family, and for all decent Americans who value respect for fundamental human and workers' rights. Sincerely, [your name] CC: Elías Antonio Saca González, President of the Republic of El Salvador at: http://www.casapres.gob.sv/prescartas.htm back to top |
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