11 April 2012 – Hasan Abazi the leader of the metal workers union of Kosovo has been arrested by the Serbian government despite its promise to allow free movement of Kosovars through its territory.
To the prime Minister of Serbia, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Minister of Internal Affairs, the Minister of Justice, the Minister of Labour and Social Policy and the Minister for Kosovo and Metohija.
Dear Sirs,
We the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) are outraged to learn of the arrest of Hassan Abazi, President of the SPMK Industrial Union (Kosovo).
We are further angered to hear of his illegal detention by the Serbian authorities in an attempt to prevent free movement of Kosovars through its territory, despite an agreement which was a precondition for granting Serbia candidacy status by the European union coming into force in December 2011.
Hasan Abazi has been held without a warrant for his arrest being forthcoming, without access to a lawyer and held in solitary confinement, which leaves us concerned for his health and well being.
We stand in Solidarity with the SPMK, Amnesty International and others in their condemnation of this arrest and urge you to intervene immediately as well as unconditionally in these arcane actions to secure the release of Hasan Abazi whilst dropping any charges against him.
We look forward to hearing from you with news of Hasan Abazi’s release