Leroy Trotman Barbados Joao Felicio Brazil Japhta Radibe Botswana Sharan Burrow Australia Mody Guiro Senegal Khurshid Ahmed Pakistan Rabiatou Sera Diallo Guinea Basile Mahagan Gae Côte d’Ivoire Luc Cortebeeck Belgium 2. By a letter the same day, addressed to the President of the International Labour Conference, 13 Employers’ delegates filed a complaint under article 26 of the Constitution of the ILO against the Government of Zimbabwe for non-observance of the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87). The complaint was worded as follows: Taking into account the discussion that took place at the Committee on Application of Standards and the conclusions adopted that followed, the undersigned Employers’ delegates to the 97th Session of the International Labour Conference (Geneva, June 2008), would like to file a complaint under article 26 of the ILO Constitution against the Government of Zimbabwe for non-observance of the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87), ratified by Zimbabwe on 9 April 2003, and which came into force for Zimbabwe on 9 April 2004. This complaint is based in the following: 4 – The persistent obstructionist attitude demonstrated by the Government through its refusal to come before the Committee on Application of Standards in two consecutive years and thus seriously hamper the work of the ILO supervisory mechanisms to review the application of voluntarily ratified Conventions. – The contempt shown by the Government to the Committee on Application of Standards and the gravity of the violations observed had led this Committee to decide last year to mention this case in a special paragraph of its report and to call upon the Government to accept a high-level technical assistance mission. – The Government’s refusal of the high-level technical assistance mission that the Committee on Application of Standards had invited it to accept. – The serious allegations of the violation of basic civil liberties, including the quasisystematic arrest and detention of trade unionists following their participation in public demonstrations made by the Committee of Experts. – The continual recourse made by the Government to the Public Order and Security Act (POSA) and lately, to the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act of 2006 to repress basic civil liberties and trade union rights. In the last few months, trade union leaders and members have seen systematically arrested, detained, harassed and intimidated for the exercise of legitimate trade union activity. – The vast information presented to the ILO supervisory bodies concerning the surge in trade union rights and human rights violations in the country and the ongoing threats to Meetings-2009-Zimbabwe C of I-2009-12-0035-3-En.doc/v3