Background Korean Immigrant Workers Advocates (KIWA) in the Koreatown area of Los Angeles was founded in March of 1992. In the beginning, KIWA focused on Korean immigrant workers. However, with the increase of the Latino population within Koreatown and the increase of Latino immigrants working for Korean businesses, such as in the Korean restaurant and supermarket industries, KIWA has changed to organize both Latino workers and Korean workers.
Through its work, KIWA has recognized the importance of immigrant workers struggling together in solidarity in order to overcome their present day situation, regardless of race and country of origin. Based on past experience while working in Los Angeles, KIWA has addressed the need to help link the lives and experiences of Asian workers and Latin American workers.
In past years, various labor organizations and workers from Latin America and Korea have contacted the Korean Immigrant Workers Advocates (KIWA) requesting participation in international solidarity work. They hoped KIWA could play the role of a bridge between Latin American workers and the workers in transnational corporations in Korea. Because KIWA is based in the US, working with Latino workers and Korean workers and linking with Korean NGOs. KIWA has helped for campaigning Kukdong, ChoShin and Poongkuk which are owned by Koreans and produced for the US market in Latin America.
Therefore KIWA has formed a new committee named Asia - Latin America Workers Solidarity Committee . With the Asian Latin America Workers Solidarity Committee (ALAWS), KIWA aims to proactively work toward much needed international solidarity between workers of Latin America, the US, and Asia, especially South Korea. The ALAWS aims to build a bridge between the struggles of workers in the US, Asian and Latin America and to mitigate the negative consequences of globalization on workers.
Urgent need to develop Asia-Latin America Workers Solidarity Project
Various plans and programs of Free Trade Agreement (FTA) such as North America Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and US- Chile Free Trade Agreement, have affected lives of workers as well as many others in the US and Latin America. Besides the FTAs relating to Latin America, other FTAs such as Central America Free Trade Agreement(CAFTA), Free Trade Agreement in America(FTAA) and Puebla Panama Plan have been the topic of ongoing discussions. Because of these agreements, not only the US capital but also Asian capital will shift more in Latin America, and as a result, global division of labor and production will be more intensified for the US market and US brands.
As the global chain intensifies, it is necessary to develop new strategies for workers rights, and global workers solidarity . Cases involving Kukdong and Choshin were idea examples global solidarity, targeting retail companies, manufacturers, sub-contractors, and local authorities simultaneously to achieve recognition for trade unions and collective bargaining.
Through globalization, global production chain(value chain) has become a common trend especially within the manufacturing sector. Consequently, various free trade agreements have strengthen global division of labor. Due to the geographical location to the US, Mexico and Central America, many factories, known as "maquiladoras" have been operating for the markets in US and other regions worldwide.
Main reason for Asian capital participation is a result of low capital and labor intensive industry such as garment and textile in Mexico and Central America. East Asian capital (particularly from Japan, Taiwan, South Korea and Hong Kong) has played a leading role in operating maquiladoras. For example, Taiwanese capital makes up a major part of Nicaraguan industrial parks and Korean capital makes up huge portions in Guatemalan and Honduran industrial parks. As for Guatemala, all the maquiladoras are in textile and apparel industry. Among total maquiladoras, over 50% are owned by Koreans.
Asian-owned Transnational Corporations(TNCs) make up a significant amount of the capital invested in Latin America, with hundreds of Asian TNCs employing thousands of workers.As companies and corporations become increasingly transnational in scope, it is imperative that workers' movements expand organizing efforts to cross borders and continents.
Consequently, it is urgent to conduct solidarity activity between the workers of capital sending and receiving countries with a pro-workers' perspective. Although a few NGOs in Japan and Korea are actively involved in monitoring and surveying their own TNCs in other countries, these programs are very limited. Therefore, as in the case of Korea, most monitoring and surveys take place only when labor disputes occur, and even then most surveys concentrate only on the small TNCs where the worst working conditions exist.
The ALAWS Programs
Currently, Asian workers have nearly no interest in workers out side of Asia although such anti-neo liberalization requires the solidarity of workers beyond the region or continent. Therefore, Asia- Latin America Workers Solidarity Committee will serve to help Asian Workers including Korean workers understand the situation of Latin America and workers in this region.
And ALAWS will serve the labor movement in Asia and the labor movement of Latin America by building a relationship between Latin American workers and Asian workers. Uniting workers movements in Asian and Latin America will empower workers to challenge the corporations that exploit them.
ALAWS will contribute to worker awareness and organizing efforts by:
Organizing
Initial Coalition Building : collaborate our efforts with local organizations in the US, Asia and Latin America who have traditionally been actively working on globalization issue or workers' rights issue.
Internet-bulletin board : participation and communication tool for members of ALAWS members worldwide.
Building relationships between workers in Latin America and Asia.
Reporting and Publication
Publication of quarterly booklets to deliver general information or any recent developments in Latin America to Asian labor groups.
Monthly E-newsletter to inform activities of ALAWS to individuals and organizations that are interested in ALAWS.
Document the stories and experiences of workers in Korean -owned maquiladoras.
Reporting and publicizing Research findings to workers in Asia
Research
Researching and monitoring the global development of Korean TNCs in Latin America.
Researching current labor practices of Korean or Asian TNCs in Latin America and the struggles of Latin American workers against these corporations.
Campaign
Organizing campaign for currently demanded solidarity.
Asia-Latin America Workers Solidarity 3465 W. 8th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90005 Tel. 1-213-738-9050 / Fax. 1-213-738-9919 / alaws@kiwa.org
