AN APPRAISAL OF THE RIGHTS AND DUTIES OF MEMBERSHIP AND REPRESENTATION IN THE INTERNATIONAL LABOUR ORGANIZATION

The International Labour Organization is a universal public International Organization established to improve the conditions of labour among the peoples of the world. Membership of this very important organization is highly sought after. The fact of membership attracts privileges and rights, as well as duties for its Members. Representation in this Organization also occurs as a consequence of membership. However, membership of this organization is often controversial because it appears that apart from the legal conditions enshrined in the ILO Constitution regarding membership and related issues, politics, ideology, and sentiments often play crucial roles when decisions on applications for membership are being considered. The aim of this paper is to unravel why this unsatisfactory and worrisome state of affairs exists, and to offer suggestions targeted at correcting this situation.