British banks from providing credit. ECGD cover should also be denied for trade with Chile which had increased since the coup. Trade with Chile did not benefit the Chilean people and a trade boycott was necessary to give encouragement to them.
16. The motion was seconded by Mr Kitson of the TGWU who expressed the hope that Congress would apply the same approach to all countries where there was repression. Chile had been the only country in South America to have free elections and the existence of the Allende Government had been seen as a threat to the dictatorships around it. Britain, however, was still assisting the Junta and enabling it to survive. Trade union leaders were elected by a Commission under Government control and working people had to subsist on a most meagre income. 30% of the income of manual workers was spent on bread alone and there were 30,000 children whose only nourishment came from soup kitchens. A further 20,000 did not receive even a soup ration. The British Government had done well to recall the Ambassador but there would be no advantage in closing the Embassy which should remain open to assist Chilean refugees. Mr Kitson also referred to the retention by workers in East Kilbride of Chilean aero engines. The law of the country had provided that the engines should be released but they were still in the country and Mr Kitson appealed to all trade unionists to ensure that they should not be returned to Chile. The motion was adopted unanimously.
Delegates raised a number of points on paragraphs in the Report of the General Council dealing with international activities over the last 12 months.
Cyprus
17. Mr D Starrs of the Technical, Administrative and Supervisory Section, AUEW, drew attention to a brief reference to Cyprus which he said had been forcibly divided between Turkish Cypriots and Greek Cypriots. Both sides needed help from the British trade union. movement and he urged the TUC to support the trade union conference to be held in Nicosia on 22-23 November.
ILO
18. Mr N Stagg of the Union of Post Office Workers drew attention to a paragraph concerning developments in the ILO and expressed the view that the report showed a distinct trend of improvement.. Recent years had seen politicisation of ILO activities and the withdrawal from the Organisation of the USA. The report before Congress showed that the ILO was far from dead and that more time and thought was now being devoted to industrial issues. The Convention adopted at the Conference in June concerning trade union rights in the public service represented a particularly valuable development since it removed a disparity which had existed since 1948 between the private and public sectors of employment.
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