Tekel workers threaten 'death fast'

Following a month of demonstrations, workers from the country’s former state-owned alcohol and tobacco monopoly, or Tekel, have launched a new wave of protests, saying they will stage a “death fast” if their demands are not met.

“I condemn government officials who are indifferent to our protests,” Mustafa Kumlu, the head of the Confederation of Turkish Labor Unions, or Türk-İş, said Friday.

Sit-in strike begins, ‘death fast’ at the door

 Around 2,000 Tekel workers and their families began gathering in front of the Türk-İş building early Friday for a three-day-long sit-in strike to be followed by a three-day hunger strike. A total of 12,000 people were expected to participate in the protest by 4 p.m., when it was scheduled to start.

 If the government fails to meet their demands, they say, the workers will continue their hunger strike indefinitely, in what they are calling a “death fast.”

 “We want bread, peace and freedom,” said Kumlu. “We want more democracy in our country and we know this is possible with the strengthening of unions. We are staging these protests to create the same understanding among those who rule us.”

 Thousands of Tekel workers have been protesting in Ankara for a month, opposing the privatization of the former monopoly and the government’s refusal to meet their demands regarding a related change in their positions. Dissatisfied with the government-led improvements in wages and the maximum working period, workers say they are determined to move ahead with more dangerous protests if necessary.

 The Tekel privatization obliges workers to either quit their jobs or accept work in another state institution with lower wages and fewer benefits. The former Tekel workers will be employed in temporary positions at other public institutions under Article 4/C of Law No. 657 in Turkey, which they say will cause a significant reduction in wages, by almost half, and the loss of some of their rights. Under Article 4/C of the law, employees are allowed to work a maximum of 10 months.

Protest in Ankara on Sunday

 In an address to the protesting workers, who have come to the capital from every corner of the country, Kumlu said, “You were so just and innocent in your struggle for bread that you have received all of Turkey’s support.” He also criticized the government for remaining indifferent to the workers’ protests, saying: “Such indifference is not possible to understand. Even a stone would break down.”

 The workers will stage a protest Sunday in Ankara, Kumlu announced, in an attempt once more to make their voices heard.