Guatemalan union leader brutally murdered

On January 15, Pedro Zamora, the general-secretary of the dock workers' union STPEQ was murdered by armed assassins, who sprayed more than 100 bullets at his car. Zamora had been leading a campaign against the privatisation of the Quetzal port. Zamora's 3-year-old son was injured in the attack. In a January 17 statement issued by the International Trade Union Confederation, ITUC general secretary Guy Ryder said: "This gruesome killing recalls the darkest days of Guatemala's decades of civil conflict, and the country's reputation will continue to suffer unless action is taken to root out and punish those who commission and perpetrate intimidation and murder. This murder was planned and premeditated, and appears designed to send a message to those who dare to stand up for fundamental rights." For information on the ITUC's international campaign to demand justice, visit < http://www.ituc-A HREF="mailto:csi.org"><csi.org>.

From GLW issue 695