Mobilise the Rank and File INTERNATIONAL What Is the Alliance Greece: Potatoes and the Stalinists
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So& Wloirkdersa’ Lirbeirtty y No 238 14 March 2012 30p/80p www.workersliberty.org For a workers’ government Greece: potato Kony 2012 Working-class movement page 3 education page 2 pages 9-10 NHS Bill could be law within the week, but TUC sleep-walks Unite to save the NHS! See centre pages Mobilise the rank and file INTERNATIONAL What is the Alliance Greece: potatoes and the Stalinists for Workers’ Liberty? By Theodora Polenta not-so-publicised “alterna - tive networks of product Today one class, the working class, lives by selling Since the start of March, its labour power to another, the capitalist class, exchange” in which people pictures of farmers in are swapping possessions, which owns the means of production. Society vans distributing pota - and the “social kitchens” is shaped by the capitalists’ relentless drive to toes to queues of people where people are sharing increase their wealth. Capitalism causes have dominated the resources in cooking and poverty, unemployment, the blighting of lives by Greek media. offering food to the desti - overwork, imperialism, the destruction of the tute and unemployed. Producers of potatoes in environment and much else. Other unpredictable forms the Pieria region decided to Against the accumulated wealth and power of the and ways of dealing with get rid of the middleman capitalists, the working class has one weapon: solidarity. basic needs for foods and and distribute their pota - The Alliance for Workers’ Liberty aims to build solidarity shelter will be developed toes at €0.25 per kilo in - through struggle so that the working class can overthrow by the movement. stead of €0.60. capitalism. We want socialist revolution: collective ownership will not solve food high and protests during the The left should not un - Almost everybody across of industry and services, workers’ control and a democracy prices overall, or meets all general strikes. derestimate the danger of the political spectrum, in - of society's food needs. It is in line with KKE's at - these movements being in - much fuller than the present system, with elected cluding the government Last week the KKE paper tempts to build separate corporated by the estab - representatives recallable at any time and an end to and the mainstream media, Rizospastis declared: neighbourhood move - lishment, as a peaceful bureaucrats’ and managers’ privileges. has endorsed this “potato “Pushed by the main - ments, and its hostile charity appendix of the We fight for the labour movement to break with “social movement”, though for dif - stream media and encour - stance towards any move - government's cuts, or chan - partnership” and assert working-class interests militantly ferent reasons. aged by the government, a ment that is not politically nelled into reformist ideas against the bosses. The strident and signifi - propaganda campaign is and ideologically under the and illusions about build - Our priority is to work in the workplaces and trade unions, cant exception is the strong developing that has as its wing of the party. Deploy - ing oases of freedoms supporting workers’ struggles, producing workplace bulletins, though diehard-Stalinist aim to deceive working- ing Stalinism and mecha - within the capitalist sys - helping organise rank-and-file groups. Greek Communist Party class people and the small nistic conspiracy theory in tem. We are also active among students and in many campaigns (KKE). peasants… This propa - classic form, the KKE de - and alliances. The far-left coalition An - ganda is referred to as the clares that the potato POTENTIAL tarsya, for example, has de - potato movement movement is “directed by But these movements, We stand for: clared: “These movements “The aim of the cheap- big capital, like the city with their massive ap - G Independent working-class representation in politics. show that the fat cat mid - potatoes movement is iden - squares movement”. peal, also carry potential G A workers’ government, based on and accountable to the dlemen and capitalist tical to that of the Recently KKE has back - to be a first step towards labour movement. bosses are not invincible... 'indignant citizens' in the tracked a bit. Its secretary, a concentration of forces Getting rid of the middle - G A workers’ charter of trade union rights — to organise, to city squares. It is to try to Aleka Paparyga, has made and the building of a strike, to picket effectively, and to take solidarity action. men is an important step so mislead the poor peasants a statement saying that massive working-class that the producers and the Taxation of the rich to fund decent public services, homes, away from the agricultural there had been exaggera - movement with radical G consumers can cope with education and jobs for all. unions, away from the fight tions in KKE's response, characteristics. the attacks of the [EU/ against EU's Common but the main points had G A workers’ movement that fights all forms of oppression. For that, they need to be ECB/ IMF] Troika and the Agricultural Policy, away been right. Full equality for women and social provision to free women linked with the trade union national unity govern - from the fight against the from the burden of housework. Free abortion on request. Full movement and the work - ment”. monopolies... MOMENTUM equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. place struggles, and with “The feeding of the peo - The movement initiated Black and white workers’ unity against racism. PATRONISING the neighbourhood com - ple, the production of in Pieria has now spread Open borders. “It is patronising to de - munity movements, and G cheap and good quality all over Greece, gaining scribe it as the potato given clear political direc - G Global solidarity against global capital — workers agricultural products, is a momentum every day, movement. It is directly tion by the left. everywhere have more in common with each other than with very serious problem that with councillors and connected with the • Redistribute the land their capitalist or Stalinist rulers. cannot be solved via ac - mayors being involved to needs of both the pro - owned by the church and G Democracy at every level of society, from the smallest tivism, voluntarism and facilitate it. In some areas ducers and the people the big farmers to the peas - workplace or community to global social organisation. sporadic internet orders it has been extended to who are on the brink of ants G Working-class solidarity in international politics: equal [the farmers involved take other products such as starvation and social honey and oil. • Create agricultural co - rights for all nations, against imperialists and predators big deprivation and destitu - orders over the internet]... and small. operatives under peasant tion. It is connected with There is now talk of and social control, with Maximum left unity in action, and openness in debate. GAP G the future. farmers directly distribut - representatives elected, ac - If you agree with us, please take some copies of Solidarity “There is indeed a big G ing rice, flour, olive oil, countable to, and recallable “It carries images from gap between the price at to sell — and join us! beans, and lamb for Easter. by general meetings the future. It reveals the which producers sell The oil will be distributed • Nationalise the fer - 020 7394 8923 [email protected] tremendous potential products to the middle - at €3 per litre (€6 per litre tiliser and farm machine in - opened up when the pro - men and the price at 20e Tower Workshops, Riley Road, which these products are in supermarkets), flour at dustries under workers' ducers and creators of soci - €0.50 per kilo (€1 in super - sold to the consumer. so•ci aClo coorndtrinoal te food pol - London, SE1 3DG. ety's wealth take control markets), rice at €0.70 per icy and agricultural pro - over their products. All “But as long as the laws kilo (€3 in supermarkets), duction on the basis of working class people can of the markets and the beans at €3 per kilo (€8 in Greek society's needs benefit by having access to profits prevail the above supermarkets), lamb at €7 and respect for the envi - cheap and good quality problem cannot be solved... per kilo (€13 in the butch - GET SOLIDARITY ronment. food”. “As long as capitalist re - ers). As Antarsya notes, the lationships are present, ex - It all started a couple of EVERY WEEK! potato movement is con - ploitation will operate at months ago, when the pro - nected and interlinked with every level against the peo - ducers of milk and fruit A sweat-free Special offers the versatile, imaginative, ple, independent of their were protesting against the and multiple forms of Olympics? G Trial sub, 6 issues £5 status, pensioners, workers, EU's Common Agricultural struggle developed during unemployed, producers, Policy outside parliament. 22 issues (six months). £18 waged £9 unwaged the last two years of Greek consumers... Instead of throwing their No Sweat London G working-class struggle. “Under a planned econ - products at the parliament dayschool, Saturday G 44 issues (year). £35 waged £17 unwaged It is connected with the omy, the process of produc - and ministry buildings, as neighbourhood non-pay - tion and distribution of customary in previous 31 March G European rate: 28 euros (22 issues) or 50 euros (44 issues) ment movement, first agricultural products will protests, they decided to against road tariffs and bus guarantee a satisfactory in - distribute them free in Syn - 11am-5pm, Unite HQ, 128 Theobalds Road, London Tick as appropriate above and send your money to: fares, and lately against the come for all producers, to tagma Square. new regressive property WC1X 8TN (nearest tube 20e Tower Workshops, Riley Road, London, SE1 3DG cover their needs, as well Their move gained over - tax.