The making of trade unionism in Libya (1943–1957): internal and transnational struggles

ABSTRACT

Little is known about Libyan trade unionism and its role in the Arab workers’ movement. Drawing on a variety of archival sources, this article contributes a general overview of trade unionism in Tripolitania and Cyrenaica from the time of the British Administration (1943–1951) until 1957. In this period, the Libyan General Workers Union (LGWU) emerged as the main workers’ organisation and the first trade unions laws were promulgated. Since 1957, with the establishment of the Petroleum Workers Union and the presence of foreigners working in oil companies, the LGWU’s supremacy as a representative of Libya’s workers waned, and Libyan unionism entered a new phase. This article chronicles the unknown history of Libyan trade unionism and highlights the significance of trade union internationalism, specifically, the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions in Libyan labour affairs. This research discusses internal enablers as well as frictions within the labour movement, which ultimately hampered its social and political influence.

KEYWORDS:

• Libya
• trade unionism
• Libyan General Workers Union
• International Confederation of Free Trade Unions
• International Confederation of Arab Trade Unions

Acknowledgments

The author thanks Stefano Bellucci, Martina Biondi and the two anonymous reviewers for comments on earlier drafts.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 University of Maryland, Special Collections and University Archives, AFL and AFL–CIO International Affairs Department, Country Files Libya, 1950–1963, RG18–001.3.1.11.12, 11/12, John Norman to Maida Springer, AFL–CIO, Tripoli, 15 July 1960.

2 This article follows the guidelines of the Journal of Middle Eastern Studies for the transliteration of Arabic. As much as possible, Arabic personal names quoted in documents in European languages were identified by returning to the original Arabic spelling of their names. English spelling as employed in individuals’ signatures in the documentation produced in European languages by the unions themselves was used. The unions are named in both Arabic and English as they appeared on their letterheads of the time, which explains some differences in the nomenclature of the unions when compared to Norman’s study.

3 Archivio Storico–Diplomatico del Ministero degli Affari Esteri e della Cooperazione, Rome (ASDMAE): AP 7536 L/19, Ambasciata d’Italia a Ministero Affari Esteri, ‘Libia. Espulsione comunisti italiani. Documentazione inglese circa la loro attività’, London, 9 November 1951.

4 The National Archives of the UK (TNA): FO 371/80901, Blackley, Chief British Administrator to the Foreign Office, Tripoli, 5 October 1949.

5 Outside of national borders, fascist ideology characterised ‘Italianity’ (Italianità), that is the sense of belonging to the Italian nation–state, as a set of values that had to be protected (Aru and Deplano 2013, 169–171).

6 Archivio Fondazione Gramsci Onlus, Rome (FG): Partito comunista italiano. Libia (PCI.L): ‘Verbale del Primo Congresso del Partito comunista libico’, 15 April 1951; ‘Verbale della riunione del Comitato Centrale del Partito Comunista libico’, 21 April 1951.

7 TNA: FO 371/80901, Telegram no. 86, From Tripoli to Foreign Office, 27 February 1950; ‘Communist Activity in Tripolitania’, Blackley, Chief British Administrator to the Foregin Office, Tripoli 5 October 1949. The daily Italian communist newspaper was estimated to have only 25 copies in circulation and the weekly Don Basilio had only five copies. British documentation reports that other communist papers ceased their importation because of the lack of demand.

8 FG: PCI.L, ‘Relazione del Segretario del Partito al I° Congresso del Partito Comunista Libico’, Tripoli, 15 April 1951, p.1.

9 TNA: FO 1021/371, Memorandum on Trade Unions in Tripolitania, no date, no place.

10 For a complete list of Cibelli’s TWU affiliates, see Karfaʿ 2000, 114–115.

11 This is the English denomination of the union as it appeared on the union’s letterhead. The Italian denomination ‘Unione Sindacati Lavoratori della Libia’ was in the Arabic version of the letterhead.

12 TNA: FO 371/80901, Blackley, Chief Administrator to African Department, Foreign Office, Tripoli, 17 August 1950.

13 Norman (1965, 33) dates the BU’s strike to February 1949; the date reported by Karfaʿ (2000) seems to be more reliable to me because first, British archival documentation always indicated 1950 as the starting date of the strikes and second, Karfaʿ reports excerpts from the press of the time indicate that.

14 TNA: FO 371/80901 Blackley, Chief Administrator to African Department, Foreign Office, Tripoli, 17 August 1950, p. 2.

15 FG: PCI.L, ‘Relazione del Segretario del Partito al I° Congresso del Partito Comunista Libico tenutosi il 15 aprile 1951’, Tripoli, 15 April 1951, p.4.

16 TNA: FO 371/80901, Blackley, Chief Administrator, to African Department, Foreign Office, Tripoli, 17 August 1950, pp. 4–5.

17 TNA; FO 371/80901, Telegram No. 772 From Tripoli to Foreign Office, 29 July 1950.

18 FG: PCI.L, ‘Relazione del Segretario del Partito al I° Congresso del Partito Comunista Libico tenutosi il 15 aprile 1951’, Tripoli, 15 April 1951, pp.5–6.

19 TNA: FO 1021/371, Memorandum on Trade Unions in Cyrenaica n.d., n.p.

20 FG: PCI.L, typed note, no date.

21 FG: PCI.L, ‘Relazione del Segretario del Partito al I° Congresso del Partito Comunista Libico’, Tripoli, 15 April 1951, p. 5.

22 FG: PCI.L, ‘Relazione del Segretario del Partito al I° Congresso del Partito Comunista Libico’, Tripoli, 15 April 1951, p. 11.

23 For the text of the Tripolitania Trade Unions and Trade Disputes Laws, see The Tripolitania Gazette. n°4, 1 May, 1951, in Modern Records Centre, University of Warwick (MRC, UC): MSS 292/964.1/4; for a general overview of the legislation in Tripolitania and Cyrenaica, see International Labour Office 1956, 323–335.

24 International Institute of Social History, Amsterdam (IISH): ICFTU Archives (ICFTU) Libya 4110, Letter from al–Dakhil to Oldenbroek, ICFTU general secretary, Tripoli, 15 June 1951.

25 Letter from Shita to Oldenbroek, ICFTU general secretary, Tripoli, 19 July 1952 (in Arabic). In Arabic shughl means ‘work’ not ‘workers’; however, ‘Libyan General Workers Union’ is the English denomination as it appears on the union’s letterhead, which also had its denomination in the Italian language as ‘Unione Generale Libica del Lavoro’.

26 IISH: ICFTU Libya 4110, ICFTU’s general secretary to Shita, n.p. 27 August 1952.

27 IISH: ICFTU Libya 4110, Paper cut of an unknown Arabic newspaper.

28 IISH: ICFTU Libya 4110, Letter from Shitar to Oldenbroek, Tripoli, 8 February 1954 (in Arabic). During its General Assembly the LGWU changed its Arabic denomination to al–Ittihad al–’amm al–libi li–l–ʿummal, substituting the word ‘work’ with ‘workers’. There is no trace of this change in the union’s letterhead.

29 IISH: ICFTU Libya 4110, GLWU to Mudir al–dakhiliyya, Tripoli, 16 January 1954, (in Arabic).

30 IISH: ICFTU Libya 4110, Letter from Shita to Oldenbroek, Tripoli, 3 March 1954 (in Arabic).

31 IISH: ICFTU Libya 4110, ‘Mémoire remis à M. Oldenbroek par M. Salem Scita Sécrétaire général de l’Union Générale Lybienne du Travail’, n.d., n.p.

32 TNA: FO 1021/131, ‘Confidential Trade Unions. Present Position’, Report by F.F. Steele, 28 September 1954, n. p.

33 FO 1021/131, Secret Enclosure to Cyrene Dispatch No. 86 of 21 August 1954, to Foreign Office Memorandum on Trade Unions in Cyrenaica.

34 MRC, UC: MSS 292/964.1/4, Letter from Hassan ʿAli al–Asir to the Chairman of the Workers Trade Union in Britain, Derna, 7 February 1951.

35 MRC, UC: MSS 292/964.1/4, TUC, International Department to P.T Kerby, 3 August 1951.

36 IISH: ICFTU Libya 4110, Letter from Shita to the ICFTU general secretary, Tripoli, 25 May 1953 (in Arabic).

37 IISH: ICFTU Libya 4110, Ibrahim Salim Bin ‘Amir, ‘Nuqabatuna al–’ummaliyya’; paper cut of an unknown Arabic newspaper.

38 MRC, UC: MSS 292/964.1/4, Note, International Labour Conference Libya, 5 June 1953.

39 IISH: ICFTU Libya 4110, Letter from Shita to ICFTU, Tripoli, 3 November 1954.

40 TNA: FO 1021/131 ‘Mission to Libya 19th to 31st April’ Report by R.G. Miller ICFTU Representative, 10 May 1954.

41 IISH: ICFTU Libya 4110, Letter from ICFTU general secretary to LTU, 26 July 1951, n.p.

42 IISH: ICFTU Libya 4110, Letter from al–Dakhil to Oldenbroek, ICFTU general secretary, Tripoli, 15 June 1951.

43 IISH: ICFTU Libya 4110, Sunday Ghibli, Libya Supports Arab stand on Tunis Issue, Sunday, 14 December 1953.

44 IISH: ICFTU Libya 4110, The GLFWU ‘s president to the ICFTU general secretary, Tripoli, 11 January 1953 (in Arabic).

45 IISH: ICFTU Libya 4110, Letter from the ICFTU general secretary to Shita, Bruxelles, 26 March 1953.

46 IISH: ICFTU Libya 4110, O. Becu to UGTT, 12 August 1954.

47 TNA: FO 1021/131 ‘Mission to Libya 19th to 31st April’ Report by R.G. Miller ICFTU Representative, 10 May 1954.

48 IISH: ICFTU Libya 4110, ICFTU Inter–Office Memorandum, 5 October 1954.