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- Central and South America Team
Central and South America Team
JILAF invited 10 persons from nine national center organizations in seven Central and South American countries to visit Japan from December 4 to 15.
In the labour-related lectures, the participants learned about the role and issues of trade unions and labour legislation in Japan and acquired basic knowledge of the Japanese labour movement. After that, they visited various labour-related organizations and, in light of the knowledge acquired in the lectures, studied such topics as (1) the organizational outline and campaign policy of RENGO (Japanese Trade Union Confederation); (2) labour administration efforts at the Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare; (3) the efforts of an industrial labour organization to improve working conditions, as well as its policy system and political activities; (4) the productivity movement in Japan and the role of unions; (5) the activities of a local RENGO; and (6) the organization of labour banks and their relationship with unions.
The participants made such comments as “There is no setup like the labour banks in my country, but establishing such bodies would be very meaningful” and “In Brazil we have been repeating trial-and-error efforts to establish an organization like the labour banks, but as yet to no avail. After my return, I would like to make efforts toward its realization in cooperation with JILAF.”
In Hiroshima, the participants visited the Peace Memorial Museum and Atomic Bomb Dome. This visit to Hiroshima was included in the program to enable the participants to feel the importance of peace by observing one of the bombed areas in Japan, the only country in the world to have experienced atomic bombing, with their own eyes. The participants made such comments as “I want to tell many people about my experience in Hiroshima and convey to them how foolish it is to possess nuclear weapons.” Such comments are evidence that JILAF is fulfilling its responsibility as an organization founded by labour unions.
The program ended with a discussion between the participants and JILAF President Tsuyoshi Takagi, in which the participants aired their opinions of the two-week program and confirmed the importance of international solidarity efforts.
List of Cooperating Organizations
| ■ | RENGO Kochi | ■ | Kochi Prefectural Government Office |
|---|---|---|---|
| ■ | Kochi City Government Office | ■ | Harigi Water Purification Plant |
| ■ | Hello Work Kochi | ■ | Denki Rengo (Japanese Electrical, Electronic, and Information Union) |
| ■ | Fuji Electric Co., Ltd., Kawasaki Factory | ■ | Fuji Electric Union, Kawasaki Branch |
| ■ | National Association of Labour Banks | ||
Many thanks to everyone. | |||
Photos of the Participants
 Scene of labour-related lecture |  Learning about gender equality at the RENGO Headquarters |  Learning about labour administration at the Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare |
 Learning about the productivity movement at the Japan Productivity Center |  Reporting on the labour situation in their own countries in the “Exchange of Views on Labour Situation” meeting |  A participant from Chile talks about the labour situation in his country. |
 Learning about the preciousness of peace in Hiroshima |  Discussion with RENGO Kochi executives |  Discussion with Denki Rengo |
 Greetings by Denki Rengo Chairman Shoji Arino |  Discussion with union executives at the Kawasaki Factory of Fuji Electric |  Learning about the efforts of labour banks |