Cablegate: Ilo Fiscal Restraint, Cuban Candidacy - Dominican

This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

UNCLAS SANTO DOMINGO 002972

SIPDIS

STATE FOR IO/T-DRISCOLL, WILSON
LABOR FOR ILAB

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ELAB DR AORC PREL CU BB
SUBJECT: ILO FISCAL RESTRAINT, CUBAN CANDIDACY - DOMINICAN
REPUBLIC DEMARCHE

REF: A. STATE 94764
B. STATE 94818

1. Embassy on May 25 provided Ref A-B talking points in
Spanish to MFA UN-OAS Director Michelle Cohen, emphasizing
the importance of fiscal restraint in the proposed ILO budget
for 2006-2007 and U.S. preference for Barbados over Cuba as
the Caribbean candidate for the ILO Governing Body. The same
day we provided the talking points to the Labor Ministry's
director of international relations, Nelson Reyes, who plans
to accompany Labor Minister Jose Ramon Fadul to Geneva.
Reyes informed us that the Dominican Republic "is totally in
agreement" with our position on the ILO budget. On the
competing candidacies of Cuba and Barbados for the ILO
Governing Body, Reyes said he personally would prefer
Barbados because of Cuba's violations of labor union rights
under ILO conventions 97 and 98. However, he said the Labor
Minister would decide the Dominican Republic's position, and
Reyes did not know how that would come out.
HERTELL

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