Today's Topics:
1. France, Union Communiste Libertaire AL #301 - Right-extreme:
The deadly tango of Macronie (fr, it, pt)[machine translation]
(a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
2. Czech, AFED: Votes from Notara 26 (III.) The third in a
series of interviews with people who are part of the Athens
refugee squad Notara 26. [machine translation]
(a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
3. Chile, "I assume this confinement as a political prison"
letter from a fellow anarchist prisoner for the revolt (ca, it,
pt) [machine translation] (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
4. A-Radio Berlin: B(A)D NEWS - Angry voices from around the
world - Episode 30 (01/2020) (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
5. Canada, ucl-saguenay, Collectif Emma Goldman - India:
Political parties, unions and their alliances in building checks
and balances (fr, it, pt)[machine translation] (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
6. France, Union Communiste Libertaire UCL press release: Be
careful, on January 19, zombie reactors sweep over Paris (fr, it,
pt)[machine translation] (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
7. cnt.es: Farewell of Elena against her will - Bilbao EDE
Taldea (ca, it, pt) [machine translation] (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Message: 1
After his interview in Current Values, his racist measures against migrants [1], his attempt to rehabilitate Pétain, Macron continues his
flirting with the far right by appearing with Elie Hatem, a former member of Action Française and defender of the anti-Semite Charles
Maurras. Back on the waltz between LREM and the fachos... ---- The photos of the lawyer posing proudly with the Macron made the whole left
react. Even if the Action française (AF), once fond of Hatem's racist and conspiratorial speeches to the point of inviting him to numerous
conferences, has disowned its former leader, the fact remains that the presence of this notorious neofascist à l'Elysée shows how permeable
Macron is to far-right ideas and personalities.
And it is not the first time that the macronie gets hooked up with the fachos: we will remember the selfies (it is a hunk !) Of the former
Minister of the Interior Gérard Collomb with Jérémie Piano, member of Generation identity (GI), as well as its leniency towards GI at the
time of their operation " Defend Europe " in the Alps.
In Current Values (VA), Macron was able to give his racist discourse on the veil and immigration, which the magazine is making its big
splash on. What shocks beyond words is the validation by Macron of the conservative and openly racist line defended in VA. Especially since
this is the first time that a president has spoken, confirming the interest that the latter takes, if not in ideas, at least in the
electorate of the right and the far right. Besides, according to the monthly Yougov barometer, Macron gains 9 points with the extreme right
(15% of favorable opinions) and 16 points with the moderate right (50% of favorable opinions).
On November 8, Macron receives in the gold of the Élysée Palace and poses with Elie Hatem: former member of the Steering Committee of Action
Française and defender of the anti-Semite Charles Maurras.
An electoral romance ?
We can clearly see the calculation that Macron is trying to cross this red line. After the debacle of the Europeans against the RN and that
announced at the municipal elections in 2020, his speech is entitled. It is also out of opportunism and because they defend the same class
interests that the Liberals and the far right are passing the buck. If they manage to maintain themselves or come to power, it is only by
instrumentalizing hatred and fear, so hollow are their speeches and their laws never serving the untraceable " general interest " but only
that of minority of those who already have everything !
This strategy is never as blatant as when it applies to migrants or minorities. Attacks against Muslims, Jews, or considered as such, coming
from the far right are only possible by the trivialization of their ideas, the application of laws that validate their theories and by the
clientelism shown by many and many LREM elected officials to preserve their fragile little power.
The bourgeoisie, when it is afraid of losing its grip, takes refuge in the racist and xenophobic repertoire to divert the proletariat from
its emancipation. And when it defends immigration, it always does so in an economic logic of exploiting the misery of those who try to take
refuge in France, misery very often created by France by its neocolonial policy, in the service of interests of its multi-nationals.
Macron has never been the bulwark on the far right that he had claimed to be. Worse, he serves him the soup to keep his power and the far
right remains the favorite plan B of the bourgeoisie against social movements (the AF and the student cockade have been illustrated since
the beginning of December by violent attacks against student movements ). To fight it, let's fight his ideas wherever they are expressed !
UCL Antifascist Commission
emaildiasporaFacebookprintertumblrtwitter
[1] " Migrants, eternal sacrificed from successive health reforms ", UCL press release, October 7, 2019.
https://www.unioncommunistelibertaire.org/?Droite-extreme-Le-tango-mortifere-de-la-Macronie
------------------------------
Message: 2
3. 'Dokhtar-e-Mah' ---- When a lot of people started coming to Greece in 2015, the idea to found Notar was born. Many people were camping in
Pedion tou Areos, near the Exarchy in the center of Athens, living in bad tents outside. We in the movement decided to help them. ----
Winter was coming. My friends and I had a plenum where we decided to find a suitable building and occupy it as a squat for refugees. After
mapping the area we decided on this one, it belongs to the Ministry of Labor, but it was empty for more than five years. We thought we would
give people what is public. ---- We entered the building on 25 September 2015, but it took another 15 days to prepare it. We divided it into
living rooms, showers, shared areas, warehouses, kitchen and so on. The social kitchens supported our project and brought us food for lunch
and dinner every day, as it did later to other squats in the Exarchy.
Notara 26 is the first squat for refugees opened in the Exarchy. After this, another 12, maybe more, opened. We had no model of how it
should work, and we tried everything on the go. In the beginning, we had plenums every day and set some basic principles. We agreed that
everyone would participate for themselves, not as a representative of a group. And we also agreed on a basic policy framework based on these
values: self-government, equality, horizontality and acceptance of differences.
The concept of "self-government" has become very important to the refugee support movement, what does it mean to you?
It means taking life into your own hands. Together we decide what we do, how we do it, what our visions are and how we want to achieve them.
And from the beginning, we thought we didn't want to have any connection with the state or NGOs.
But self-government is complex. Especially at the beginning, when the borders were still open and the refugees only came for two or three
days, so it was actually a squat of people on their way. Self-government doesn't work much when people can't stay long enough to form a
community. And how can you want people to get involved when this is perhaps the first moment in their lives when they can make decisions for
themselves?
So that was the first part of the Notary story. It was a transit point for refugees who passed through Greece, and the "solidarians",
especially the Greeks and some of the refugees who interpreted, did all the work.
The second part began in March 2016, when the borders were closed and an EU-Turkey agreement was signed. Then many people got stuck in
Greece and stayed on the squat for much longer. In addition, many friends from around the world have come - and are still coming - to
support us.
October 24, 2016 at 4 am came fascist attack. It was an incendiary bomb from canisters with gasoline. A lot of people could die or get hurt
at that time, but fortunately the three residents on patrol responded quickly. One called people to come to support us, the other started
extinguishing with a fire extinguisher, and the third ran up the stairs to wake everyone down and lead them down. A lot of friends arrived
quickly. Then two fire trucks arrived, the fire was extinguished around eight in the morning. Everything in the lower "salon" and the
children's corner was destroyed.
We thought we had lost the building. But there was a huge wave of support. Not only helping hands, but also people from abroad who sent us
money, other squats housed people. In 15 days we opened again.
One day a plenary was held where the squat residents decided not to call themselves "refugees" anymore. They are the inhabitants of Notary.
I think this is the beginning of the third part of this story: when the self-government really started working and it was not just a
theoretical goal. The squat people stayed longer and formed a real community.
Of course, we have experienced hard times and problems. It is an evolving political and social project. I think that only now, after four
years, can we really call Notar a self-governing space. Decisions are largely in the hands of residents and people who support Notar but do
not live here come to help. The work is done collectively, people themselves form teams providing security, cleaning, supplies, food
distribution, babysitting, etc.
Since the beginning, Notara has offered accommodation to more than 9,000 people from more than 15 countries.
In addition, the squat has become the site of many projects and initiatives. Convoys from other countries, mainly France, came here and
brought supplies. We have groups dedicated to women's emancipation, language teaching, children's activities, collective cooking,
photography, dance or theater. One of our basic principles is accepting the differences, and the sign is that one of the first meetings of
the LGBTQI refugee community began here.
I would like to quote something from our first statement that we are saying today. It says, "Let us make odysey refugees for survival the
path of humanity to freedom."
What does Notara mean to you?
Notara is a place of love and revolution. You will find a lot of people from different cultures, with different experiences of life,
different beliefs and thoughts - but we all try to walk together to freedom. Without the state, without the NGOs, alone and together. This
is revolutionary.
And with love, because as a political and social project we are not only anarchists and anti-authoritarians, but people who are trying to
build connections, looking for things we have in common despite our differences. We have a lot of problems, but we continue. And for that,
love is needed. Because we love our community, we can work to overcome challenges.
Fighters are not enough to continue the fight. Human relationships are needed. Otherwise you have only an army, not a revolution. What we
need are human relationships and a fighting spirit.
What do you think of the current threat?
In July, a few days after the election, the first attack on us came. They've cut off electricity. Since then, most squats in the Exarchy
have been evacuated and there have been many other threats that may come true.
During those four years, Notara 26 was greeted in the neighborhood of the Exarchy and became an active part of life in this neighborhood.
But since the eviction of Spiro Trikoupi 17 and other squats on August 26, we have lived in occupied territory. Heavy-armored men are all
around us. They are there all day, all night, making trouble and provoking - screaming racist curses, slamming windows, trying to kick the
door, and so on - until they are ordered to clear.
We have 24-hour security guards on the squat since the fascist attack in 2016. People in plenary have decided to defend this community. We
will not leave the building. We will defend her every way. And they must know that even if they manage to clear this building, they can't
clear the idea of Notary.
Shortly after the elections, the City Plaza squad, organized by left-wing groups, decided to close. Among other things, they said it was not
safe for refugees to stay in the building during such an intense threat. They were certainly tired after three years. Have you discussed it
with Notar?
Every three or four months we have a special plenary, which is attended only by residents, not by others who support Notar to deal with big
things about squat and its course. After City Plaza was abandoned, we were shocked, especially because of the timing a few days after the
elections, so the residents gathered to discuss it. And they decided they wanted to continue. It is their decision, but the rest of us are
absolutely behind it. We say that whatever happens, we will continue.
Now in recent weeks, we've hired more people from other evacuated squats. They've gone through at least one evacuation and they know what
can happen here. But when you experience freedom in a squat and experience the hellish conditions in state-run camps, what do you choose?
As for fatigue, of course I'm tired. I would lie if I said I wasn't. But when I speak for myself, I can't give up. When I feel tired, I
imagine the image of the utopia on the horizon that we are going to.
How do you see the future?
The future is open. We make our way the way we go. It is certain that Notara will never die. Even if he clears this building, he won't clear
the idea. I know that the community of people and people who support them will continue in other ways. The struggle for freedom and our
human relations - these are things that give us the power to see the horizon and walk towards it.
Source:
https://stateless.noblogs.org/post/2019/11/24/voices-of-notara-part-3-a-place-of-love-and-revolution/
Previous part ( s):
https://www.afed.cz/text/7096/hlasy-z-notara-26-i
https://www.afed.cz/text/7097/hlasy-z-notara-26-ii
https://www.afed.cz/text/7099/hlasy-z-notara-26-iii
------------------------------
Message: 3
When analyzing any edge of the prison, one must first establish or rather, make its history and its purpose visible. We are the ones in the
dump of this society, another instrument of oppression through the law to perpetuate the privilege of the class society, made by power in
its image and likeness, the cane would be like all the bad things in the tight system between cement walls. ---- The very existence of the
cane is political, gear that makes the machinery of death of the State roll, social control, intimidation, isolation, be directed against
whoever it is is necessarily to exalt the triumphant values of the bourgeoisie, competition, submission, exploitation, harassment ,
bourgeois individualism, violence; All this reflects his worst face in this place.
Here the children of violence, poverty and ignorance are raised, a school of fear that maintains the lucrative prison business, being a
product of domination will never have a reforming end, which proclaims with the voice of a prisoner sick with rage . Nothing good can be
taken out of confinement and uniformity, therefore, the mere existence of the prison reflects the type of system that governs us, has the
color it has, is adorned as it is adorned, the existence of the cane has a political aim, therefore, for whatever reason, all presx is a
political presx, because it transcends the filter of the law, which is the preferred son of power.
What to do with social cannibalism if there were no prisons? It is the question to dream ...
Build the conditions so that it becomes unthinkable to rot the children of the people to jail. That said, we must also recognize that there
are very few (even) private ones with a revolutionary conscience and practice. The political field in which this place moves has changed a
bit since the beginning of the revolt, in Santiago 1 a special module has been enabled where we are joined by protesters, molotovs, fires,
looting, assaults on large capitals or repressive forces , they are the majority of the charges that they impute to us, but this is only the
most recent history of the political prison, which in this country has a long history since the beginning of the existence of the Chilean
State, which has swallowed and spit out millions of exploited who rebel, with the most diverse intentions, I think that all the prisoners
are political prisoners, but not necessarily revolutionary. Even in this module, it is not about better or worse, but about the institutions
and ends of its protagonists.
There are those who are anti-yuta and courageously went out to face the repression, there are goats, who, given the context, went out to
loot large companies and capitals, something absolutely valid if you ask me. Although their participants have had a conscience of struggle
and class, the medium and time spent transform these acts into seed to further rebel the enemies of the exploited so that the violence and
its tools stop pointing between us and point up , towards the oppressors.
That said, I believe that the declared political prison is a matter of each prisoner, in the sense of exclaiming loudly that their actions
and / or consequences fall within the rebellion against power. Admitting nuances and heterogeneity, each declares why and how he speaks and
acts. I assume this confinement as a political prison, given my practices and ideas. This is not a whim of the ego but a consequence of
where I get up, where there is no possible claudication. Most of here assume the prison as a result of their insurgent practices, with a
greater or lesser degree of elaboration. We recognize ourselves in a collective struggle, not only since the beautiful date of October 18,
but as the continuity of the struggle since domination exists, but I can only speak for myself,
I repeat that the cane is a political and class fact, an absolute reflection of this rotten society and that we cannot forget that those of
us who are here are fed by our bodies, one of the largest and sadistic control systems that exist. But I also repeat that it is our
intentions and facts that make us recognize ourselves as political presxes, because outside they try to intimidate them with fear of
confinement, they do not know that we carry the torch of will and do not manage to bend, either outside or inside, there are that rescue the
rebel seed to cross the meadows where the revolutionary ivy will be born, that of the assumed and conscious praxis that faces with strategy,
strength and projection to power, with the most diverse tools,
Affection and newen out there,
To continue sharpening ideas
Try to live the anarchy!
PP Anarchist
CP Santiago 1
January 8, 2020
https://publicacionrefractario.wordpress.com/2020/01/15/yo-asumo-este-encierro-como-una-prision-politica-carta-de-un-companero-anarquista-prisionero-por-la-revuelta
------------------------------
Message: 4
Dear all, Episode number 30 (01/2020) of "B(A)D NEWS - Angry voices from around the world", a monthly news program from the international
network of anarchist and antiauthoritarian radios, consisting of short news segments from different parts of the world, is now online. ----
Length: 1:10 h ---- You'll find the audio here: ----
https://www.a-radio-network.org/bad-news-angry-voices-from-around-the-world/episode-30-01-2020/ ---- In this episode you will hear
contributions from: ---- 1) A-Radio Berlin: Meuterei goes in the air - a steampunk report ---- 2) Frequenz A: A summary and a short
interview about the case against the Park Bench 3 in Hamburg ---- 3) 1431AM (Thessaloniki): Struggles in Petrou Ralli Immigrantion Office
and Detention Center / 23day-strike in OTE (Organisaton of Telecommunications in Greece)
4) R.O.S.E. (Athens): Eviction of the Utopia squat / Process around the
murder of P. Fyssas
5) Radio Fragmata: Updates on political prisoners and persecuted
antifascists in Greece
6) Dissident Island (London): News of an oil rig occupation in Scotland,
industrial action by precarious workers in London and reports from various hunt saboteur outings around the country
7) The Final Straw: conversation with a translator for the Anarchist
Union of Afghanistan and Iran
8) The Final Straw: conversation with an anarchafeminist about the new, rightwing neoliberal regime of Nayib Bukele and the GANA party in El
Salvador
9) A-Radio Berlin: Call for an International Week of Solidarity with the Political Prisoners of the revolt in Chile (13.-19.1.2020)
Other audios from A-Radio Berlin in English (or Spanish) here:
http://aradio.blogsport.de/englishcastellano/.
Or visit the anarchist 24/7 online stream from the Channel Zero Network:
http://channelzeronetwork.com/
Enjoy!
A-Radio Berlin
------------------------------
Message: 5
In Bhopal, India on January 8. ---- During the mass demonstrations of the general strike in India on January 8, our comrades from the
anarchosyndicalist organization Muktivadi Ekta Morcha ( Libertarian Solidarity Front ), from the city of Bhopal, took part in the events
while bringing a point of view. critical of the popular movement. They said: " general strikes like these[in India]are for the most part
political electoral fronts to the detriment of the real demands of workers. Most, if not all, unions affiliated with "left" parties treat
their workers like infants in these protests, controlling them more severely than at their workplace. There are less authoritarian
independent unions, but hardly any truly democratic workers' organization ". In the text below, a union activist from India analyzes the
limits and deceptions of this model of union political action where unions seek to ally themselves with political parties in a quest for
feedback. Once in power, these "workers' parties" turn over their jackets and it is the leaders of these unions who take advantage of new
conditions. For the author, state power ultimately appears to be a trap for the workers' movement and an alternative based on development by
the base of counter-powers must be constructed.
A text by Sameer Pandy (National Congress of Indian Trade Unions), translated by us. This text is adapted from a presentation made at the
11th Global Labor University Conference in Johannesburg, South Africa, which took place from September 28 to 30, 2016.
Historically, workers found themselves at the end of the table, being refused the fruits of their labor. Unionization has therefore sought
to change the balance of power in society. Sometimes unions have tried to align with governments to push them on the workers' side. At other
times, unions have instead developed organizational strategies that look beyond state power. In India as elsewhere, trade union political
action[NDT.Free translation of the concept "political unionism" in the original article]- where unions support a political party in search
of state power - has been very common.
This short article will bring a critical point of view on the history of trade union political action in India. I will defend there the
necessity of a change of strategic perspective of the unions, towards a work which is located outside the state frameworks, towards the
construction of movements which refuse to participate in the State and which seek instead to exert pressure on him to bring improvements
where possible, through bottom-up mobilization, from bottom to top (from the bottom).
Unions are still political and have strong traditions of political engagement. It is important to note that unions in the past have
contributed to the transformation of the political and economic landscapes of many countries around the world, appearing as a source of
power for the working class against authoritarian governments and exploitative bosses. There are different ways in which unions can get
involved in politics, but in the West this has frequently involved union political action in the form of alliances with Labor or Left
parties. In Asia and Africa, trade union political action has developed during and through the course of struggles for independence and has
seen the mesh in several cases of unions with nationalist parties. The problem,
In general, after the anti-colonial victories, trade union political action found itself busy with the postcolonial agendas of developing
states, which saw unions as "subordinate partners" in an era of economic reconstruction born out of the end of the colonial era. Trade union
political action has attempted to influence the state and, specifically, to influence labor policies. Most of the time, however, the union
leaderships have been directly instrumentalized by the state in its objectives. This has weakened unions and - as more and more parties have
emerged - fragmented the union movement as each party sought its own union wing.
Today's unions have been weakened by the changing form and increasing strength of capitalism under neoliberal globalization, but we cannot
reduce the problems to neoliberalism. Unions were already weakened by postcolonial governments, who saw them as threats and reacted
strategically, either by dismantling them completely, or by trying to control and co-opt them. India presents an interesting case: with a
very large population, a high rate of joblessness and cheap labor, it has become a hub for foreign direct investment ( FDI). Workers are
constantly being squeezed out of formal jobs, where unions are most present, and are therefore pushed out of the umbrella of the labor
movement. India today has a plethora of unions, with weakened bargaining powers and real challenges in organizing the growing mass of
workers in the informal sectors of the neoliberal era.
But union weakness did not start with neoliberalism. At independence in 1947, the Indian government implemented a new industrial policy:
from 1947 to 1966, it resulted in intensive transitions to industrialization by import substitution (ISI). The unions were large enough and
exercised enough influence at the time to pressure the government to nationalize banks, mines, oil companies, etc. The ISI has led to the
growth of state-owned enterprises, which in turn have brought strong growth in the number of public sector employees and the rapid rise in
unionization rates. The state was now one of the largest employers and played a major role in defining wages and working conditions.
However, workers remained excluded from any control over state possessions. Union structures became highly centralized, as the state aimed
for centralized collective bargaining, and collective bargaining became entangled in parliamentary politics due to union political action.
Unions have not united, the same pattern of divisions has long been established. The number of recognized unions increased from 4,623 in
1951 to 14,686 in 1966[2]. By 1979, the number of recognized unions had skyrocketed to 34,430.
The Congress of Indian Trade Unions (AITUC) was formed in 1920, and is linked to one of the communist parties, the Communist Party of India,
founded in 1925. Nationalist politicians and union leaders formed the National Congress of Trade Unions Indians (INTUC) in New Delhi in
1947, aligned with the then ruling party, the Indian National Congress. Its purpose was to unite the workers' movement, but it did not end
the divisions within it. India saw the establishment of the Hind Mazdoor Sabha (HMS) trade union center in 1948, which was oriented towards
a socialist ideology; then came the United Trade Union Congress (UTUC) in 1949, linked to the Revolutionary Socialist Party and with an
ideology based on Maoist communism; the United Trade Union Congress-Lenin Sarani (UTUC-LS) in 1951, linked to the Center of Socialist Unity
of India (Communist) and to Soviet Communism; then the Bharativa Mazdoor Sangh (BMS) in 1955, based on the right-wing nationalism of the
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (National Patriotic Organization), parent of the Bharativa Janata Party (BJP). The fate of the unions was linked
to that of the parties. For example, with the rise of the BJP, the BMS and its affiliates have experienced an increase in their verified
membership to 6.2 million in recent years, making it one of the largest trade union centers.
A fundamental element in the link between unions and parties and an essential factor in understanding the incessant divisions is that the
leaders of unions allied with political parties can be generously rewarded when their party forms government. They are appointed to the
offices of president, directors and members of companies, parts of the public sector, banks and commissions. There is fierce competition for
these lucrative positions and the ruling class prefers union leaders who have a bad reputation or dark backgrounds. They are corruptible.
Generously rewarded, they forget the mandate given by the workers they are supposed to represent, acting instead as managers in unions.
Around 1980, the state gradually went from ISI to neoliberalism in a context of recession. Rather than standing united in the face of these
affronts, the unions quickly multiplied and joined different political parties in a movement of competition between each. As a result of the
economic downturn and increasing repression, the number of recognized unions fell sharply from 34,430 in 1979 to 15,042 in 1981[3]. Then,
the number of recognized unions increased drastically, more than triple, from 15,042 in 1981 to 53,535 in 1991. As the number of unions
increased, these became more and more polarized and divided as much national than state level.
India has the largest labor force after China, but the working class in India is clearly divided and retreating. It is incapable of building
a counter-power from below. Around 2008, there were a dozen federations or union centers. Meanwhile, unions together organized only about
13.4% of all workers (including permanent and temporary workers) and only 28.8% of permanent workers - numbers that in both cases have been
declining since 1993[4].
The trade union movement is not in a position to build a counter-power which can profoundly change the balance of power between the classes
at this stage. He may suggest policy changes, but it is ultimately up to the ruling party and the capitalists to decide whether these
proposals should be accepted or not. The parties see the unions as reservoirs of votes and as a means for politicians to ascend the class
system and consolidate their positions within the ruling class. As in the West, the workers' movements are exploited for the benefit of
parties and elites - after the elections, the promises are betrayed and the reforms forgotten. For example, the BMS, as well as other union
federations, took part in national strikes against privatization and subcontracting, but the BJP continued these policies; INTUC has had the
same experience with the governments of the Indian National Congress. Rather than helping unions, these party alliances have hindered them,
weakening their bargaining power and their ability to exercise structural power in places of production.
Demonstration in Montreal in solidarity with the social movement in India last December.
Photo: André Querry
It is essential to shape a new trajectory for trade unions, a new trajectory that could be built on the positive developments of recent
years in the face of the challenges of neoliberal globalization. Among these are the efforts to overcome union divisions: in India, the
relatively new Forum of Federations brings together unions of different ideologies under one roof and organized three historic national
strikes that forced the government to back off a bit. There are also new organizational strategies, among them activism with civil society
(beyond parties), including NGOs, and engagement in mobilization and awareness campaigns. Many have formed new collectives in unions, such
as health collectives, youth collectives and women's collectives. These have helped raise awareness among women workers around issues like
pay equity, health insurance, working conditions and above all, raise their voice against sexual harassment in the workplace. . There are
also organizational efforts in areas of informal work.
It is crucial to create a distance from political parties and their schisms, and to opt for a class approach, inclusive and "bottom-up"
(from bottom to top or from the bottom). It has become imperative for unions to start thinking of alternatives outside their alliances and
outside the state, to build structures of counter-power, which can hold out against the state and capital while fighting for the workers and
the less fortunate.
This includes fighting divisions, intolerance, bigotry and right-wing ideas and aiming to build a new society of equality and freedom.
Sameer Pandy
Translation of the Emma Goldman Anarchist Collective Blog
1. Ahn P, (2010). The Growth and Decline of Political Unionism in India. The Need for a Paradigm Shift.
2. Ibid.
3. Ibid.
4. Rajiv Shah, 25 August 2019, "India's trade union density lower than Brazil, South Africa; there is tendency to victimize unionized
workers: ILO, "Counterview, https://www.counterview.net/2018/08/indias-trade-union-density-lower-than.html
Listed 16 hours ago by Collectif Emma Goldman
http://ucl-saguenay.blogspot.com/2020/01/inde-les-partis-politiques-les.html
------------------------------
Message: 6
Another manifestation of the reactionaries to legitimize their hatred of those who do not correspond to their narrow standard. The UCL
supports initiatives against this gathering and calls for everyone's vigilance. ---- Sunday, January 19, the infamous " Manif pour tous "
reiterates its call to demonstrate against the alleged disappearance of family landmarks. Even if the ranks of this group of diverse and
varied reactionaries have greatly shrunk year after year, we can still expect a large crowd. ---- Attracting the entire sphere of the far
right to defend their rancid family ideals, one can fear the inevitable procession of hate attacks of all kinds, whether oral or physical.
The day of Sunday must therefore be placed under the sign of vigilance for all, and more particularly for those who dare to publicly display
their differences, in a public space still largely permeated by homophobia, as evidenced by the attacks. regular LGBTI people just guilty of
wanting to exist. Vigilance, but also resistance, because there are several calls for counter-rallies. UCL joins forces and calls for
participation in the initiatives which are organized to cover the voice of the reactionaries.
Behind the facade facelift promoted by posters in garish colors, the Manif pour tous deceives no one: it is ultra-conservative France at war
against equal rights that will speak this weekend. Once again, they will use the question of childhood to camouflage their visceral
homophobia, even if their slogans come to stigmatize all those whose family does not correspond to their narrow vision, all those who are
subjected to physical violence and sexual acts of the hetero-patriarchal family, violence on which the Manif pour tous et consorts are and
will remain silent. The choice of dates for their demonstrations, one of which will take place on March 8, day of women's rights day, proves
if it is still needed,
The UCL reaffirms its solidarity with LGBTI people struggling for their emancipation and their freedom all over the world. It also reaffirms
its conviction to fight relentlessly against all the reactionaries and their allies for a truly free and equal society for all, free of
discrimination and violence against LGBTIs, women and children.
https://www.unioncommunistelibertaire.org/?Attention-le-19-Janvier-les-reacs-zombies-deferlent-sur-Paris
------------------------------
Message: 7
Hi, I am Elena, a worker at Suspergintza Elkartea (an entity that together with EDE Foundation and Suspertu SL has been part of EDE Taldea)
for more than 15 years, many of you know me and others don't. I turn to all to say goodbye, from now on I will no longer work, against my
will, in EDE Taldea. ---- As many and many of you know, I have been organizing trade union activity in the trade union section of CNT in EDE
Taldea since 2013, actively and publicly. For this reason, and in a context of a hard negotiation process in 2015, a worker from Suspertu SL
verbally assaulted me because of my union work in my job. His coordinator not only did not stop him, but applauded him , encouraged and
defended.
After the denunciation of this event to the Human Resources Area, a mediation process began that supposed a new aggression for me, since its
object was not the repair of the damage, but the interests of the management of EDE Taldea were prioritized and his rejection of me for my
union activity, the main objective of the process being to silence what happened and avoid consequences for the aggressor and those who had
allowed or encouraged him. Thus, the head of Human Resources ended up labeling the aggression as a mere disrespect.
«In the mediation process, its purpose was not to repair the damage, but the interests of the EDE Taldea management and its rejection of my
union activity were prioritized.»
For all this, and in order to ensure that I could work in a safe and non-hostile environment, I was moved from my structure post in
Suspergintza, where I had been working for about 10 years with good assessments from my coordinator, to a put in an external project outside
Bilbao, of lower category. I was told that it was provisional and that at all times the possibility of return would be sought, but things
were not so. During all these years I have been denied any possibility of return, relocation, training according to my category and
professional development. Meanwhile, in my area of origin contracts were made to perform the tasks that I had been performing for many years.
In December 2019, the service in which I work has gone out to tender and Suspergintza has decided not to show up to manage it, and although
I have requested it both continuously during all these years and recently, I have been denied the possibility of return to some structure
post Suspergintza Elkartea, so shortly, I will go to work in another company.
In all this time:
I, the attacked, have seen my quality of life, my chances of conciliation, training, professional development worsen, while the people who
made the aggression and allowed it have not undergone any changes.
I, the victim, have seen how I was denied the possibility of participating in the selection of my job for years referring to inconsistent
and unreal arguments.
I, the victim, have seen how the agreements made with me were broken without an explanation or response.
I, the victim, I am the one who is now expelled from EDE Taldea, while the aggressor and those who allowed him remain in their work spaces,
positions of responsibility and tasks.
I, the victim, notified the person in charge of Human Resources that the aggression would not have happened if she was not a woman, and
before this she did nothing. Instead, the person who attacked me and the person who allowed it are publicly against violence against women.
Given this unfair and harmful treatment, EDE Taldea is publicly shown as a feminist entity, when women who do union work are again and again
attacked, ignored and humiliated by a direction that only seeks to be able to do and undo without having to give account to no one. But I
remind the management of the company that without respecting the labor rights of women, you cannot call yourself a feminist.
«I, the victim, have seen my quality of life worsen, while the people who carried out the aggression and allowed it have not undergone any
changes.»
In these years in the EDE I have learned, grown, worked, built, contributed..., but above all I highlight the luck of being able to share
and build with all the people who have had the courage to do union work, despite having everything against, despite the pain and the
attacks, because they have put into practice everything we say and write so much: cooperation, equality, empowerment, participation,
solidarity, mutual support, critical spirit, solidarity and social transformation. To all of them, thank you, you have been and are an
example of teamwork, resistance and dignity.
The EDE will not be able to build a better world or transform it as long as it continues talking about feminism, equality, participation,
solidarity only from a theoretical level and alien to its internal organization. As long as he continues to need and exercise union
repression, while his leadership requires lies, punishments and humiliations, he will be weak and poor leadership. The management of this
entity seems to sometimes win in its injustices, as is my case, but it does not know that it loses by showing everyone smaller, far away and
without legitimacy.
I say goodbye, by force, with anger, with sadness, but with the certainty of being on the right side, of not having looked the other way, of
not letting myself be ruled by fear, of not having fallen into personal attacks, with the tranquility of defending with high head the steps
taken and with the lived experience of having done trade unionism, as Yayo Herrero says, " as an act of love for life and people ".
Take care and take care of the rest.
A hug
https://www.cnt.es/noticias/despedida-de-elena-en-contra-de-su-voluntad/
------------------------------
Geen opmerkingen:
Een reactie posten