2003 AEU Federal Conference Decision

Peace is trade union business. As education workers, we oppose war in all its forms, particularly recognizing the devastating effects war has on children throughout the world.

Accordingly, Federal Conference directs the Federal Executive to develop a national campaign for the AEU and its Branches and Associated Bodies with the theme 'Working and Teaching for a Peaceful World'. This campaign must be a high priority for the union during 2003. Branches and Associated Bodies are urged to develop action plans to implement this campaign.

The campaign will have the following objectives:
" To raise broad awareness of the critical role that public education plays in achieving a harmonious, tolerant and peaceful society and achieve recognition and public validation of this role from governments and the media.
" To ensure that teachers and other education workers are equipped with the relevant skills, knowledge and resources to fulfill their responsibilities. This will enable an intelligent and thoughtful approach based on a human rights model, in response to current international and national events.
" To ensure that governments and education employing authorities fulfill their responsibilities in regard to human rights obligations and enable public education to achieve a harmonious, tolerant and peaceful society.
" To contribute to achieving real improvements in human rights outcomes in Australia and internationally.

Draft strategies:
1. Empowering Union members at the community and workplace level to raise human rights issues, and to engage with broader community campaigns in pursuit of common objectives.
" provision of campaign resource materials
" use of union publications and web sites to keep members informed
" developing activist networks within the union to link members active in specific human rights campaigns
" continuing to incorporate human rights education into union education programs
" provision of professional development based on a human rights model.

2. Providing quality resources to assist members to address human rights issues within their educational practice.
" Continuing to encourage members to make use of the Human Rights curriculum materials developed by the AEU in association with Amnesty International;
" Identifying, reviewing and publicising teaching kits and similar resources prepared by other organisations, nationally and internationally;
" Identifying areas where new materials could usefully be developed, and working with relevant human rights organisations to ensure that quality resources are developed and circulated in a timely manner;
" Using union publications and conferences to highlight examples of good practice in human rights education by our members.

3. Working with the broader trade union movement, peak bodies, human rights organisations and community campaign organisations, including parent organisations, to extend this work into the broader community and continue lobbying the Federal Government to honour its obligations to the UN Declaration for Human Rights and the UN Convention for the Rights of the Child.

4. An inclusive public education system is vital to peace, harmony and tolerance in our communities. Accordingly, the AEU calls on Branches and Associated Bodies to recognise the risks of a potential war and the effects of disharmony and intolerance and requests community groups to support the socially cohesive public education system.

The AEU endorses the proposal that the Education International and Public Services International establish an international LGBTI trade union forum to advise and assist on matters related to discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression. The AEU will pursue the implementation of this recommendation, including the establishment of a website accessible to all trade unionists that will provide details on best practice.

Branches and affiliates are urged to develop a four-year program of action to be implemented before the third Workers Out Conference scheduled to be held in conjunction with the Gay Games in Montreal in 2006. Such programs could include:
" establishment of support networks for LGBTI teachers, particularly for new and young teachers and those in isolated communities;
" articles about best practice as it relates to the education community and ads publicising relevant resources and contacts in union journals;
" the use of union websites, including adaptation of the material from or links to the EI PSI website, as appropriate; and
" funding of delegates to the Montreal Conference.

The AEU calls on the ACTU to work with the Conference representatives to facilitate the implementation of its resolutions locally and assist other countries in the Asia-Pacific region to do the same. The AEU will work through the ACTU to campaign to amend convention 111 of the International Labor Organisation to include the prevention and elimination of discrimination against LGBTI workers and work with the ACTU to ensure the success of the Montreal Conference."