The ICFTU and Trade Unions in the Developing Countries: Solidarity or Dependence?

The relationship between international trade union confederations and trade unions in the developing countries2 is complex , and has provoked considerable debate both within and outside the labour movement. From the earliest period of international trade union organisation — going back to the formation of the first ITSs in the last decades of the 19th century, then of the International Federation of Trade Unions (IFTU) at the beginning of the 20th — the labour movement has faced the immense difficulty of constructing international unity of action out of a maze of conflicting interests, beliefs, political and economic systems, and languages. Over the past century, the task has not become any easier, indeed it could be said that today’s extremes of wealth and poverty, of power and powerlessness, make it even more difficult. Yet if the labour movement is to move forward in the 21st century it must learn to act more effectively than ever at the international level. In presenting here some of the lessons of the recent past of international trade unionism, I hope to clarify the tasks now facing the movement and give some indication of its future.