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Dear friends and colleagues LabourNet UK, My name is Hiroshi Kanba, a Japanese living in London. I am an anti-war activist of Stop the War Coalition, and I am also doing translation work for international solidarity. I have seen you have had information to introduce trade union movement abroad including Japan. I would be really glad if you take my translation article on your web and enrich your information of Japan’s trade union movement. Thank you. In international solidarity, Hiroshi KANBA
This time I would like to introduce just one article below. Let me send you info one by one.
At Last! Kokuro 8 Have Been Freed!Daily Doro-Chiba, No5799, 26 Dec 2003
On 22nd of December 2003, 8 colleagues and members of KOKURO, Japan National Railway Trade Union, were finally set free. They got unlawfully arrested and were detained more than one year merely because they tried to convince KOKURO Headquarter members and delegations. Their release is a big victory won by Kokuro 8 themselves who exercised the right of silence and have not converted. It also won by their family members, the defence and support from all over Japan. But now, we cannot stop our fresh anger rising from bottom of our guts! Why our 8 members had to stay for long time in detention!? They merely demanded and said “Do not spoil the dismissed members!” at their own trade union conference. How it can be the reason they had to be detained for 1 year and 2months!? This IS unlawful oppression to deny the workers’ right to form trade union and act collectively. We the Doro-Chiba union interpreted this oppression to KOKURO as the repression to ourselves. Much precisely to say, it was unlawful oppression to all the fighting workers. Now, we have to renew our fight in order to achieve Not Guilty & Innocence to all the defendants. We will also fight back the unlawful Supreme Court judgement ruled the same day (*), and strengthen the fight to win the victory for KOKUTETSU 1047 (dismissed 1047 JNR workers). (*) Supreme Court reversed the sentences ruled by Labour Commissions and refused to admit that Japan Railway Companies are the successors of Japan National Railway. In the process of trial, it was revealed that leaders of KOKURO Headquarter and the Special Branch of Metropolitan Police Department had some secret meetings and made a plan before the Extraordinary Convention. Members of Headquarter filmed the camcorder following this conspiracy. When they showed some part of the videotape at the trial, it obviously revealed that SAKATA, then president of Tokyo region KOKURO and now president of KOKURO, gave a call by mobile to a detective of Special Branch. The video tape clearly recorded his voice that said “Can you arrest them?”, “I gave a call to 110 (telephone number to call police), but police officers are just observing”. So, the whole “incident” was a planned frame-up for KOKURO Headquarter to sell out its own union members to the police! Now, the KOKURO Headquarter is trying to accept Supreme Court Judgement and to end the struggle from the side of trade union. We cannot just wait and see this. On 22 December, from 7pm, we had Welcome Party for our freed friends. The real struggle has started now. Let’s reinforce the fight for not guilty of KOKURO 8 and victory for JNR 1047. 23 December 2003 National Railway Motive Power Union of Chiba (Doro-Chiba or DC)
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