People

Lars Lindgren became International Secretary of the Swedish Transport Workers’ Union (STF) in November 2001. He succeeded Malte Segerdahl.

François Yverneau of the road transport branch of the French Transport Workers’ Federation (FGTE –CFDT) retired in September 2001, at the age of 64, after an association with the union going back nearly 30 years, the last 10 as a full-time official. He was very active within the ITF, helping contribute to efforts at European Union level to secure a better deal for road transport workers, especially on the issue of working time. At home he was a leading member of the union team who secured early retirement for truckers, a significant achievement. He was awarded the French national order of merit in 2001.

The new General Secretary of the Senegal Dockers’ Union is Houdou Hane, elected at its 5th Congress in Dakar in July 2001.

Cheran R Arjun is the new General Secretary of the Tamil Nadu Road Transport Workers’ HMS Federation of India.

Obituaries

Tadashi Kubo, former President of the All-Japan Municipal Transport Workers’ Union (Toshiko), died on 5 October 2001. Tadashi was first elected to the ITF Executive Board at the Luxembourg Congress in 1986 and served as Vice President for the Asia/Pacific Region until 1993 when he resigned from the Board on his retirement from Toshiko. David Cockroft adds: “Kubo was deeply committed to international work and played a very important role in the ITF family.”

Lovemore Tserayi Chikono Shana, General Secretary of the Zimbabwe Amalgamated Railwaymen’s Union (ZARU), died on 9 October 2001, at the age of 54. A railwayman by profession, Lovemore started working as a locomotive driver for Malawi Railways in his early twenties. He was a committed trade unionist, and already held office as local branch secretary the year after he joined the railways.

A decade later he left Malawi for Zimbabwe where he continued his railway career with the National Railways and his trade union career with the Railway Association of Enginemen, first as a member of the executive and a year later, then aged just 37, as its General Secretary. This was a post he was to hold until 1987 when his union became one of three that joined forces to become the Zimbabwe Amalgamated Railwaymen’s Union (ZARU). Lovemore took over as ZARU’s first Assistant General Secretary and in 1990 he took the post of General Secretary, running the union’s administration with great skill and dedication during a period of considerable political upheaval.

Lovemore’s vision was never just local. He also served as ITF Sub-Regional Co-ordinator for Southern Africa.

Ben Udogwu, ITF Regional Secretary for Africa, commented: “In this capacity, Shana represented workers in all transport sectors with energy and sincerity. He earned wide respect for the ITF through his outstanding performance at meetings of the Southern African Transport and Telecommunications Commission (an agency of the Southern African Development Community) with which he enjoyed consultative status. He supported the creation of an integrated sub-regional transport network with greatly improved road and rail links, as a means of boosting the prosperity of the Southern Africa region. “Shana was a man of acute trade union instincts who discharged his duties with incredible dedication. His services and friendship will be greatly missed.”