不負社會責任的商人不應參與治港 【請廣傳】
邀請團體及個人聯署
不負社會責任的商人不應參與治港
曾蔭權必須摒除羅仲榮於新一屆治港班子之外
由羅仲榮擔任主席的金山工業集團，其轄下的金山電池，由於長期忽略生產安全，2003年底開始導致多人中毒，包括大陸三個廠房有11名工人鎘中毒，400名工人鎘超標被列為觀察對象；香港1個廠房3名工人中毒，21名工人鎘超標被列為觀察對象。
羅仲榮和他的金山工業集團侵犯工人權益，沒有盡上社會責任但2005年曾蔭權居然還委任他為行政會議成員，實在有違公義。曾蔭權當選特首後，很快就會成立新的治港班子，包括委任新一屆的行政會議成員。我們非常關注曾先生會否繼續委任羅仲榮先生為行政會議成員。我們認為，行政會議成員必須具有道德操守和法治精神，尊重人權和勞權，奉公守法；如果本身是商界人士，其所領導的企業必須負起起碼的社會責任，決不進行官商勾結。
因此，我們反對曾蔭權繼續委任羅仲榮出任行政會議成員或任何公職，並要求羅仲榮對有關的中港工人負起起碼的企業社會責任。我們鎘害事件關注組將去信特首曾蔭權提出這個要求。誠邀各團體及個人聯署。聯署信的中英文版本請見附件。有意聯署者，請於4月27日下午五時前回覆至hkjp@hkjp.org。謝謝!
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不負社會責任的商人不應參與治港
曾蔭權必須摒除羅仲榮於新一屆治港班子之外
(邀請團體及個人聯署信)
曾蔭權當選特首後，很快就會成立新的治港班子，包括委任新一屆的行政會議成員。
我們非常關注曾先生會否繼續委任羅仲榮先生為行政會議成員。我們認為，行政會議成員必須具有道德操守和法治精神，尊重人權和勞權 ，奉公守法；如果本身是商界人士，其所領導的企業必須負起起碼的社會責任，決不進行官商勾結。
但是現屆行政會議成員羅仲榮先生卻不符合這些基本條件。
由羅仲榮擔任主席的金山工業集團，其轄下的金山電池，由於長期忽略生產安全，2003年底開始導致多人中毒﹕
--大陸三個廠房有11名工人鎘中毒，400名工人鎘超標被列為觀察對象。
--香港1個廠房3名工人中毒，21名工人鎘超標被列為觀察對象。
鎘是一種有毒的重金屬，對人體影響極大，中毒者會出現頭暈、作嘔、肌肉痛楚、骨骼變形等徵狀，嚴重的會致癌和因腎衰竭而死。
現時，事件還在發展之中。目前國際工會聯合會及其他組織正在發起針對金山集團的運動，而中港兩地的工人也正在通過司法程序向金山集團追討應有權益。另一方面，金山集團繼續拒絕給予工人合理的賠償，並且正在控告幾個支持金山工人的香港團體「誹謗」。
羅仲榮先生在2005年被曾蔭權委任為行政會議成員。他先後擔任過香港工業總會副主席和主席、香港理工大學校董會主席、香港科技園公司主席。根據金山集團的年報, 羅仲榮先生去年從金山集團取得約935萬港元酬金。他對大量工人受鎘毒影響負有不可推卸的責任。
按照大陸的《安全生産法》及《職業病防治法》，金山集團有責任告訴工人所使用的有害化學物，有責任提供足夠的勞動防護，工作場所要符合衛生標準。這一切法律義務，金山在大陸的幾個工廠全部違反。這是導致鎘毒事件的主因。為此其轄下工廠被大陸當地政府罰款16萬元人民幣及勒令停產鎳鎘電池。
事件發生至今超過兩年，儘管有大量媒體報導，又有工人多次採取行動和嘗試談判，但是金山工業集團在以下幾點表現不負責任﹐有違公義﹕
1. 除了在2004年9月前後金山工業集團曾經向鎘超標者發過每人3000-8000元人民幣所謂「補助」之外，至今再沒有對他們作出賠償。但是，這些工人一直出現種種健康問題，又或者因為鎘超標而難於再找到工廠聘用(因廠家害怕要為他們的職業病負責) 。工人向金山工業集團要求賠償，可是它一直拒絕。
2. 金山工業集團有責任安排工人每年在合資格的醫院進行體檢。但是在2007年之前的體檢，地點居然是賓館，還要工人(大部份是女工) 在不明身份的人監視下脫衣洗澡和取尿液樣本。這種侮辱工人的體檢方法所帶來的效果，就是妨礙工人回來體檢。金山工業集團作為實際安排體檢的機構，對此責無旁貸！
3. 金山工業集團聲稱在事件後已經停止鎳鎘電池生產。其實，它不過是把鎳鎘電池生產外判給湖南一家工廠而已，而這個工廠照樣忽略基本生產安全，沒有告訴工人鎘為有毒物質。這真正是重蹈覆轍！金山工業集團作為品牌公司，同樣責無旁貸！
4. 金山工業集團在事件後不斷打壓抗爭工人。2004年9月，它更聯同大陸當地政府警告工人「不得擅自越級上訪」，否則「給予相應處罰」云云 。這明顯是官商勾結，侵犯工人的基本人權。
超霸廠的鎘中毒事件絕不是單一的事件，而是涉及跨國企業一直以來，只顧追求利潤、漠視工人的應有權益，以及再一次暴露出中國大陸的官僚腐敗及官商勾結的一面，致使中國的法規條文上所載明的對工人的權益保障，得不到全面的落實。
羅仲榮和他的金山工業集團如此惡待工人，沒有絲毫的社會責任，2005年曾蔭權居然還委任這樣的人高居行政會議，實在有違公義。
當選特首後的曾蔭權很快就會成立新的治港班子，包括委任新一屆的行政會議成員。因此我們反對曾蔭權繼續委任羅仲榮去當行政會議成員或任何公職，並要求羅仲榮對有關的中港工人負起起碼的企業社會責任。我們鎘害事件關注組將去信特首曾蔭權提出這個要求。
曾蔭權必須摒除羅仲榮於新一屆治港班子之外！
超霸電池鎘害事件關注組
如有任何查詢，歡迎與以下團體聯絡:
香港天主教正義和平委員會
電話: 2560-3865 傳真: 2539-8023 電郵: hkjp@hkjp.org
發起團體:
香港天主教正義和平委員會
國際工會聯合會香港辦事處
亞洲專訊資料研究中心
中國勞動透視
各聯署團體及個人請於4月27日下午五時前回覆, 謝謝!
15 April 2007
Members of the Hong Kong Government should be of the highest integrity
Victor Lo Chun-wing should not be selected as a forthcoming Executive Council member
(Letter for Group and Individual Endorsement)
Donald Tsang has recently been reappointed as the new Chief Executive and will soon appoint his new governance team, which includes appointing the next Executive Council.
We are concerned about the possibility that Mr. Victor Lo Chun-wing will be appointed one of the Executive Council members for the next term. We believe, like most Hong Kong citizens, that as an Executive Council member, one should be of the highest professional and personal integrity, be respectful of law, human rights and labour rights, be law-abiding and conduct business dealings with high levels of transparency and ethical standards. A person who comes from the business sector should set a good example by leading his or her company to set high standards of corporate social responsibility and transparency.
However, as a current Executive Council member in the Hong Kong government, Mr. Victor Lo Chun-wing does not appear to fulfill these basic conditions.
Gold Peak Industries (Holdings) Hong Kong [hereafter GP] is chaired by Mr. Victor Lo Chun-wing, who owns the GP batteries in China. Starting from the end of 2003, as a result of GPs long-term negligence in production safety, many workers were found to have been poisoned through their work at GP:
---11 workers from three mainland GP plants and three workers from GP plants in Hong Kong have been affected by cadmium poisoning.
--- 400 workers from the mainland and 21 workers from Hong Kong have been found to have excessive cadmium levels and are under observation.
Cadmium is a hazardous heavy metal used by GP as an electrode material for nickel-cadmium batteries. It is harmful to humans and is a known carcinogen. People poisoned by cadmium can show a variety of symptoms including dizziness, vomiting, muscle pain and deformity of skeletal structures. Victims can go on to die because of eventual cancer and kidney failure.
The case is still ongoing and GP has so far refused to meet the workers’ demands on fair compensation. GP is currently the subject of an international campaign headed by the International trade Union Confederation and other groups and has been the subject of several court cases both in the mainland and in Hong Kong and is also pursuing a libel case against several Hong Kong groups involved in supporting the poisoned workers.
Mr. Victor Lo Chun-wing was appointed by Donald Tsang as an Executive Council member in 2005. He had been the vice-chair and chair of the Federation of Hong Kong Industries, the president of the board of directors of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, and the president of the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation in addition to his business role as Chair of Gold peak Holdings Hong Kong. Currently apparently earning around 9.35 million HKD in remuneration from Gold Peak Mr. Lo has an inescapable responsibility for the large number of workers who have been affected by cadmium poisoning.
According to mainland laws—Safe Production Law and Law on Prevention and Treatment of Occupational Diseases—GP must tell workers how to use hazardous chemicals and provide adequate protection to workers and ensure workplaces meet safety and hygiene standards. These laws appear to have been grossly violated by the three GP factories in China. This was the main cause of the poisoning and led to GP factories being fined 160,000 Yuan by the local government and being ordered to stop producing nickel-cadmium batteries.
The incident was exposed more than two years ago. Although there has been major media attention, worker organized protests and attempts by GP workers to resolve the situation through negotiation; GP continues to show a surprising lack of responsibility and sense of justice:
1. Those placed under observation have not received any compensation except a small sum in the form of a “subsidy” ranging from 3,000 to 8,000 Yuan per person paid by GP in September 2004. However, the affected workers have different kinds of health problems and many have not been able to get a new job from other factories because of their excessive cadmium levels. Workers ask for fair compensation but until today GP refuses to provide this.
2. It is GP’s responsibility to arrange annual medical check-up for workers in a qualified hospital. However, all the check-ups before 2007 were arranged in a guest house. Workers (mainly females) were asked to remove all clothing and take a shower before giving a urine sample whilst under surveillance from unidentified persons. Whatever the motive behind the arrangement, the result was to scare many workers from returning for body checks. It is GP’s responsibility as the employing company and organizer of the medical check ups to ensure that proper conditions are arranged for the check ups and that they do not cause affront to the workers.
3. Although GP has claimed that their factories in the mainland have already stopped manufacturing nickel-cadmium batteries, in fact GP appears to have outsourced production to other factories. These factories are reportedly not informing workers that the cadmium they work with is a hazardous chemical and there is little or no protection provided, thus increasing the probability that the risks to these workers will in fact be more serious than before. GP as a top brand company in Hong Kong should not shirk its responsibility.
4. GP has continuously tried to suppress those workers who have organized petitions and called for proper compensation. In September 2004, GP management issued a joint statement with the local government warning workers that it is forbidden to organise appeals over the heads of the immediate authorities without prior authorization; “Those refusing to mend their ways despite repeated disciplinary actions will be punished by public security organs in accordance to the relevant public order regulations.” These scarcely veiled threats reveal company-government collusion and violate basic human rights.
The GP cadmium poisoning case is not a single incident, but a sad reflection of how TNCs put profit before workers. The incident has also exposed the corruption and collusion between officials and the business sector in mainland China. Under these circumstances, existing Chinese legislation which protects workers’ rights cannot be adequately implemented.
The way Mr. Victor Lo and his company have treated their workers shows that GP is severely lacking in minimal corporate social responsibility. Despite these concerns, he was still appointed to be an Executive Council Member in 2005 and we hope this will not happen again.
We are urging the Chief Executive Donald Tsang to stop appointing a person such as Mr. Victor Lo to be in the Executive Council member or any other post in the government until this case has been resolved. In addition we urge Mr. Victor Lo and his company to listen to the proper demands of the workers and fulfill the basic requirements of corporate social responsibility to workers in Hong Kong and mainland China.
Donald Tsang must keep Victor Lo Chun-wing out of the Executive Council for the next term!
GP Cadmium Poisoning Coalition
For any enquiries, please contact:
Justice and Peace Commission of Hong Kong Catholic Diocese
Tel: (852) 2560 3865 Fax: (852) 2539 8023 Email: hkjp@hkjp.org
For information on the international campaign please visit http://www.global-unions.org/pdf/ohsewpQ_9i.EN.pdf.
Groups signed the letter:
Justice and Peace Commission of the Hong Kong Catholic Diocese
The Hong Kong Liaison Office of ITUC(ICFTU)/GUF/HKCTU/HKTU
Asia Monitor Resource Centre
Labor Action China
Please send your endorsement before 5pm April 27, 2007. Thanks!
15 April 2007
超霸電池鎘害事件關注組上 |
