About CTUHR

In the spirit of solidarity to fight state repression and to restore workers’ inherent right to life and dignity, the Center for Trade and Human Rights (CTUHR) was conceived by a group of religious people, labour rights advocates and trade unionists in 1984. CTUHR’s purpose is to confront state and capitalist’s human rights violations not with an equally evil force but with an awareness that strength and emancipation lies in the hands of the workers’ themselves and in solidarity with the poor and the oppressed.

CTUHR is committed to the cause of advancing genuine, democratic, nationalist and militant trade unionism. It is against all forms of deception and coercion that seeks to derail this cause. The Center believes that repression can and has taken on different and subtle forms like labour legislations, and flexible employment schemes, amongst others and therefore devotes itself to exposing these devious moves.

Goals and Strategies

  • Opposes and exposes the repression of workers in particular and the trade union movement in general;

  • Advocates against a system that violates human rights and perpetuates repression and oppression of workers;

  • Establishes programs to promote and to strengthen the basic workers’ organizations and genuine trade unionism;

  • Offers social and educational services, and paralegal assistance to workers and the victims of trade union repression and provides moral support to the dependents and relatives of disadvantaged workers;

  • Builds up network with labour organizations at the local, regional and national levels in aid of forming Human Rights Committees; trains and develops Human Rights Correspondents and Paralegal volunteers; and helps strengthen the National Coalition for the Protection of Workers Rights (NCPWR) which it helped established in Y2000;and

  • Establishes network at the international level in pursuit of broader promotion and protection of workers’ trade union and human rights.