Graffiti from imprisioned First World War conscientious objector held in the cell block at Richmond Castle.
"By
any criteria the world is in a problematic state. There are ominous
signs of worse to come. The rise of Trump and other populists is the
outcome, not the cause, of a life-threatening crisis for world
capitalism which started decades ago and which has seen the working
class share of GDP decline ever since. Since the 2007/8 financial crash
the pretence that international bodies like the UN can keep the peace or
that the IMF can resolve the problem of a world economy paralysed by
debt has worn more than thin. The ground is now being prepared for the
‘final solution’ to the crisis: war – large-scale, world war. There
isn’t a set of progressive policies which can alter this course."
"But the alternative is not to do
nothing. The alternative is not to be dragged into support for the
lesser imperialism. The only alternative to capitalist barbarism and
towards a civilised future is for the working class of the world to
raise its head and reject all war but our own class war for a new world
of peace and prosperity where borders, wars, states, and the financial
speculation and production for profit which cause them, are a thing of
the past."
"The capitalists think the working class is dead as an
international political force. But there is a groundswell preparing to
challenge their complacency. If you are interested in being part of
this, come and discuss how we can launch No War But the Class War in the
North East."
Organised by the Communist Workers’ Organisation.
Public Meeting.
Friday 9th of June.
Hosted by Communist Workers' Organisation.
Bar Loco. 22 Leazes Park Road.
Newcastle upon Tyne.
NE1 4PG
Showing posts with label Protest. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Protest. Show all posts
Wednesday, 6 June 2018
Monday, 14 May 2018
Windrush – Tories, Labour, LibDems all guilty!
Thanks to Windrush, Amber Rudd has fallen. She became the necessary sacrifice to save the Theresa May government. She has been replaced as Home Secretary by Sajid Javid, the first Black, Asian Minority Ethnic member to sit in one of the three most important positions within the State.
Rudd was forced to resign because she was caught lying about targets
for deportation and to save Theresa May herself, the previous Home
Secretary.
In 2016 almost 40,000 people were removed from the United Kingdom or left “voluntarily” after receiving threatening letters. Many others have been detained at ferry terminals and airports and sent to another country under the “deport first, appeal later” process. In addition, at least 10,000 others have waited for more than six months for decisions on claiming asylum and because they cannot work, live on an allowance of £37.75 a week, which reduces them to extreme circumstances.
This hostile environment, this intimidating atmosphere did not originate under Rudd and neither did it under Theresa May. We have to go back to the Labour Party under Blair for that. In fact “hostile environment” was first used as a term in February 2010 in a Home Office report which said: “This strategy sets out how we will continue our efforts to cut crime and make the UK a hostile environment for those that seek to break our laws or abuse our hospitality.” This was the Home Office presided over by Labour Home Secretary Alan Johnson. He gloated over the destruction and clearance of the “Jungle camps” by the French authorities in 2009. When asked in Parliament “Would you deport a family whose children know no home other than the United Kingdom?” Johnson replied: “It is not my personal job to do the deportation. If that was the judgement, having gone through due process, then yes”.
It ended up with the Labour election campaign of the same year with the slogan “Controls on immigration. I’m voting Labour” on mugs and badges. And only 18 Labour MPS (including Corbyn and Diane Abbott) voted against the Immigration Act in 2014.
The hostile attitude to immigrants continued under the coalition government with the nodding complicity of the Liberal Democrats and then under the Conservatives ruling alone. Rudd escalated the policy as she had promised to the previous Home Secretary and now Prime Minister Theresa May. This was all done knowingly, with an awareness of the terrible consequences for so many working class families.
The destruction of thousands of documents related to Windrush incomers also points to a hostile environment, making it more difficult for people to prove their status.
Labour’s Shadow Foreign Secretary Emily Thornberry backed the checks on people looking for jobs, homes and healthcare, which were brought in by the 2014 Immigration Act. She defended Alan Johnson by saying that “The words were used but the culture was not!!"
We should also recall that after the referendum on the EU in 2016, Corbyn stated on several occasions that immigration controls would remain in place under Labour. Diane Abbott went on to state that Labour did not condone an amnesty, and when questioned, remained silent on what Labour would do about illegal immigrants.
So far, the controversy has centred on Windrush migrants but already tens of EU citizens have been refused permanent residence. We should resist the attempt to divide people into “good migrants”, those who emigrated to Britain from the Commonwealth from the 1940s onwards and “bad” migrants, those from the EU. In particular Boris Johnson is pushing this line with his hard Brexit politics which envisages the re-establishment of better relations, both economic and trading with the Commonwealth countries.
So will the appointment of Javid make a blind bit of difference? The answer is a categoric NO! Many residents of the UK are under the illusion that they have the right to live in Britain. They are kept in the dark about the need to apply for “settled status” whilst others under threat include all those family dependents like children and the elderly who believe that other family members are UK citizens just because they live here!
Javid will change the language from emphasis on targets and deportations but in fact it will be business as usual. He has already been caught out after denying that any members of the Windrush generation had been illegally deported. In fact, this went beyond them and included someone originally from Somalia who was a legal British citizen. The head of Home Office Immigration, Hugh Ind, admitted that such illegal deportations had taken place and said he did not know why Javid and the immigration minister, Caroline Nokes, claimed to be unaware of this.
It should be remembered that in the past Sajid Javid has supported every aspect of the “hostile environment” policy including voting to extend powers to deport before appeal on human rights grounds.
Meanwhile members of the Windrush generation are excluded from Britain after having gone away on holiday, are interned in camps like Yarl’s Wood, are illegally deported and are harassed with threatening notices and denied work and access to health services after checks. Some have lost earnings because their employers sacked them after immigration checks.
At the same time we heard of the women who went on a hunger and work strike at Yarl’s Wood after being detained there indefinitely. In response to the strike they were issued with letters threatening them with accelerated deportation if they continued with their protest. This was all condoned and enacted by Caroline Nokes.
Capitalism and the State use racism and xenophobia to divide and weaken us. We should resist the increasing levels of racism and xenophobia that both the May regime and the mass media are peddling. We should argue against the false divide between “deserving” and “undeserving” migrants. We should mobilise against the “immigration removal centres” like Yarl’s Wood run by companies like Serco, where conditions are appalling and detainees are treated abysmally, and we should fight for the closing down of these centres.
The treatment of the Windrush generation is appalling but we can’t just say that and forget about those who have not been here for as long who are suffering the same treatment. We should not draw any difference between which refugees and immigrants we show solidarity with.
Oppose All Borders! For Internationalism!
In 2016 almost 40,000 people were removed from the United Kingdom or left “voluntarily” after receiving threatening letters. Many others have been detained at ferry terminals and airports and sent to another country under the “deport first, appeal later” process. In addition, at least 10,000 others have waited for more than six months for decisions on claiming asylum and because they cannot work, live on an allowance of £37.75 a week, which reduces them to extreme circumstances.
This hostile environment, this intimidating atmosphere did not originate under Rudd and neither did it under Theresa May. We have to go back to the Labour Party under Blair for that. In fact “hostile environment” was first used as a term in February 2010 in a Home Office report which said: “This strategy sets out how we will continue our efforts to cut crime and make the UK a hostile environment for those that seek to break our laws or abuse our hospitality.” This was the Home Office presided over by Labour Home Secretary Alan Johnson. He gloated over the destruction and clearance of the “Jungle camps” by the French authorities in 2009. When asked in Parliament “Would you deport a family whose children know no home other than the United Kingdom?” Johnson replied: “It is not my personal job to do the deportation. If that was the judgement, having gone through due process, then yes”.
It ended up with the Labour election campaign of the same year with the slogan “Controls on immigration. I’m voting Labour” on mugs and badges. And only 18 Labour MPS (including Corbyn and Diane Abbott) voted against the Immigration Act in 2014.
The hostile attitude to immigrants continued under the coalition government with the nodding complicity of the Liberal Democrats and then under the Conservatives ruling alone. Rudd escalated the policy as she had promised to the previous Home Secretary and now Prime Minister Theresa May. This was all done knowingly, with an awareness of the terrible consequences for so many working class families.
The destruction of thousands of documents related to Windrush incomers also points to a hostile environment, making it more difficult for people to prove their status.
Labour’s Shadow Foreign Secretary Emily Thornberry backed the checks on people looking for jobs, homes and healthcare, which were brought in by the 2014 Immigration Act. She defended Alan Johnson by saying that “The words were used but the culture was not!!"
We should also recall that after the referendum on the EU in 2016, Corbyn stated on several occasions that immigration controls would remain in place under Labour. Diane Abbott went on to state that Labour did not condone an amnesty, and when questioned, remained silent on what Labour would do about illegal immigrants.
So far, the controversy has centred on Windrush migrants but already tens of EU citizens have been refused permanent residence. We should resist the attempt to divide people into “good migrants”, those who emigrated to Britain from the Commonwealth from the 1940s onwards and “bad” migrants, those from the EU. In particular Boris Johnson is pushing this line with his hard Brexit politics which envisages the re-establishment of better relations, both economic and trading with the Commonwealth countries.
So will the appointment of Javid make a blind bit of difference? The answer is a categoric NO! Many residents of the UK are under the illusion that they have the right to live in Britain. They are kept in the dark about the need to apply for “settled status” whilst others under threat include all those family dependents like children and the elderly who believe that other family members are UK citizens just because they live here!
Javid will change the language from emphasis on targets and deportations but in fact it will be business as usual. He has already been caught out after denying that any members of the Windrush generation had been illegally deported. In fact, this went beyond them and included someone originally from Somalia who was a legal British citizen. The head of Home Office Immigration, Hugh Ind, admitted that such illegal deportations had taken place and said he did not know why Javid and the immigration minister, Caroline Nokes, claimed to be unaware of this.
It should be remembered that in the past Sajid Javid has supported every aspect of the “hostile environment” policy including voting to extend powers to deport before appeal on human rights grounds.
Meanwhile members of the Windrush generation are excluded from Britain after having gone away on holiday, are interned in camps like Yarl’s Wood, are illegally deported and are harassed with threatening notices and denied work and access to health services after checks. Some have lost earnings because their employers sacked them after immigration checks.
At the same time we heard of the women who went on a hunger and work strike at Yarl’s Wood after being detained there indefinitely. In response to the strike they were issued with letters threatening them with accelerated deportation if they continued with their protest. This was all condoned and enacted by Caroline Nokes.
Capitalism and the State use racism and xenophobia to divide and weaken us. We should resist the increasing levels of racism and xenophobia that both the May regime and the mass media are peddling. We should argue against the false divide between “deserving” and “undeserving” migrants. We should mobilise against the “immigration removal centres” like Yarl’s Wood run by companies like Serco, where conditions are appalling and detainees are treated abysmally, and we should fight for the closing down of these centres.
The treatment of the Windrush generation is appalling but we can’t just say that and forget about those who have not been here for as long who are suffering the same treatment. We should not draw any difference between which refugees and immigrants we show solidarity with.
Oppose All Borders! For Internationalism!
Thursday, 19 April 2018
No War But The Class War!
A hundred cruise missiles were launched against the military installations of the Assad regime. In the aftermath the US Ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, stated that the United States was “locked and loaded”. Together the US, France and Britain have engaged in bombings that will be of no benefit to the Syrian masses suffering under the murderous regime of Bashar Assad.
It can be seen that all three regimes in the USA, France and Britain have their own domestic problems, and that a military adventure is always a good ploy to divert attention. Trump is wrestling with the ongoing Muller investigation, the revelations of ex-FBI Director Comey, and ongoing legal wrangles with porn star Stormy Daniels and polls that show his lack of popularity. Theresa May is faced with serious divisions in her own Party, deepening problems over Brexit, not to mention that she is hanging on to power thanks to an alliance with the DUP. Macron faces increasing unrest at home with what looks increasingly like a re-run of May 1968.
Trump was elected President on a populist programme, but part of that programme was that he would withdraw troops from Iraq and not be involved in military adventures in the Middle East. This was in stark contrast to Hillary Clinton who maintained an aggressive stance towards Russia and calls for a no-fly zone over Syria that would have caused confrontation with Russia, Assad’s ally. Now Trump has betrayed his populist base, to the horror of some of his previous conservative backers.
Haley has stated that the US would maintain its troops in Syria and would start sanctions against Russian firms doing business with Assad.
Some of the most virulent critics of Trump have been papers like the Washington Post. In a lead editorial just after the bombings it criticised the joint US, French and British attack as inadequate and attacked Trump for saying that he had been ready to withdraw American troops from Syria. Similar views were aired in anti-Trump paper the New York Post. It is clear that a substantial part of the US ruling class wish to pursue a more aggressive attitude towards Russia and its allies. They are concerned by the new alliance between Russia, Turkey and Iran and the weakening US influence in the Middle East.
For the last quarter of a century, the US and its allies have been engaged in constant warfare, using fabricated excuses like the bogus weapons of mass destruction to dismantle the regime of their former ally Saddam, overthrow Gaddafi in Libya because of an “imminent” massacre of civilians and now the gas attacks by the Assad regime.
The attacks on the Syrian regime were not a last minute response but the result of plans prepared over many months as can be seen by the high level of coordination between the three state powers.
Large sections of the US ruling class including the leaders of the military have little confidence in Trump being able to oversee moves against Russia and its allies. That is why the campaign against Trump is increasing in intensity at the same time as aggressive moves by the US and its allies. This has been explicitly stated by neo-conservatives who link the removal of Trump to the expansion of war moves.
In the USA, France and Britain there is widespread anti-war feeling and this has been aggravated by the bombing attacks. In Germany, sections of the ruling class there have expressed the need to re-arm and, at the same time, pursue foreign policies less dependent on the USA. This turn is justified by lauding German “high moral and humanitarian standards”.
Assad is a bloody dictator and it is highly possible that he used gas attacks against the Syrian population. However those who condemn Assad are the same States that justified mass bombings of Hamburg and Dresden and two atom bomb attacks on Japan during World War Two, the use of the chemical Agent Orange in Vietnam, as well as the deployment of napalm there and previously in Greece, and the use of white phosphorus in Fallujah by Saddam, then the ally of the West. More recently, the British government has had few qualms about providing the weaponry used by the Saudi Arabian military to kill numerous civilians in Yemen.
The USA realised it has lost influence in the Middle East. It and its allies initially backed the Islamist militias in their attempts to overthrow Assad. Now ISIS is a shadow of its former self and Assad controls 75% of Syria. Russia had been warned before the bombing attacks with the hint that its own forces and bases there would not be touched. Nevertheless it was implied that the USA was still the only surviving superpower and that Russia should not overstep the mark.
Russia will not easily abandon its ally, Syria. It needs the Mediterranean ports that Syria provides. On the other hand the USA would like to confine Russia to the Black Sea and is seriously concerned about the new alliance, temporary though it may be, between Turkey and Russia and the increasing strength of the Shiite axis in Iran, Iraq and with Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Israel launched its own attacks on its old enemy, Syria, obviously with the approval of the USA. For its part, Turkey is looking to increase influence and presence in Syria and has moved against the Kurdish controlled enclave of Afrin, exploiting the tensions between the great powers.
Whatever the outcome, it is clear that the different world and regional powers are gearing up for more armed conflict. In Syria over 400,000 people have been slaughtered and many more have been displaced. The situation is the same in Iraq. The masses there have nothing to gain from the murderous and barbarous depredations of the different armed gangs, whether they be Russian, American, Turkish or Islamist etc. Only revolution to overthrow all these regimes offers any alternative.
For now, we call on all internationalist and class conscious workers, communists, anarchists and revolutionary socialists to come together under the ‘No War But The Class War’ banner to promote working class resistance to the bosses’ war machine.
War Is The Health of The State!
No War But The Class War!
No War but the Class War
Thursday, 5 April 2018
Afrin: an internationalist position.
French Translation.
Afrin : Une Position Internationaliste – Déclaration de l’ACG
Nous déplorons l’invasion de la ville d’Afrin par l’Etat turc et ses forces armées. La principale raison de cette aventure militaire est que le gouvernement turc soit préoccupé par le fait que les Forces Démocratiques Syriennes (FDS) – principalement contrôlées par des forces kurdes comprenant le PYD (Parti de l’Union Démocratique), les Unités de Protection du Peuple kurde (YPG) et les Unités de Protection des Femmes (YPJ), étroitement liées au PKK, le parti nationaliste kurde opérant à l’intérieur des frontières de l’Etat turc – ait tenté de créer une zone d’influence proche des frontières de la Turquie. Avoir une zone kurde si proche fait peur au régime d’Erdogan en Turquie, qui redoute les encouragements que cela donnerait aux 16 millions de Kurdes vivant à l’intérieur des frontières de la Turquie.
Pour sa part, la Russie a conclu une alliance avec la Turquie, ce qui représente des problèmes pour son satellite, le régime d’Assad en Syrie. Les forces aériennes russes contrôlaient l’espace aérien au-dessus d’Afrin, ce qui signifie que la capture de cette ville par l’armée turque n’a pu se faire qu’avec l’approbation tacite de la Russie.
Le régime d’Assad est préoccupé par le soutien américain aux YPG. Les Etats-Unis ont soutenu les FDS dans ses attaques contre les djihadistes de l’EIIL, tout en renforçant leurs intérêts et leur influence dans la région. Ils ont établi dix bases temporaires afin de faciliter ces objectifs.
Le régime d’Assad veut voir le retrait de toutes les forces d’occupation en Syrie, y compris celles des Américains et des Turcs. La Russie, qui jusqu’à présent a pleinement soutenu Assad, a établi des relations avec la Turquie et souhaite la fin de la guerre dans la région qui, jusqu’à récemment, impliquait sa propre intervention dans la région avec des frappes aériennes et le déploiement de forces spéciales. Le régime d’Assad est lui-même préoccupé par le développement des enclaves kurdes mais il est conscient que l’Etat turc ne souhaite pas seulement détruire ces enclaves mais démanteler la Syrie, avec son soutien aux forces armées djihadistes.
Les Etats-Unis ont soutenu les forces kurdes non pas par souci de « démocratie », mais afin d’utiliser ces forces pour combattre l’EIIL et d’accéder aux ressources pétrolières et gazières. Les YPG, quant à eux, étaient assez heureux de ce soutien. Cependant, les Etats-Unis craignent que leur alliance avec l’Etat turc ne soit compromise par les relations de plus en plus cordiales entre le gouvernement turc et la Russie, ce qui explique la décision des Etats-Unis de mettre fin au soutien aux Kurdes.
Pour nous, en tant qu’internationalistes, notre premier objectif doit être de condamner et de mobiliser contre l’invasion turque et contre la poursuite des livraisons d’armes britanniques à l’Etat turc.
Comme nos camarades du groupe communiste anarchiste en Turquie, Yeryüzü Postası, le notent :
« Nous pouvons voir que les détenteurs de pouvoir dans différents pays se frottent les mains en jubilant à propos de l’opération Afrin. Il est entendu que la Russie et les Etats-Unis sont en train de construire leur plan de division de la Syrie en fonction de leurs sphères d’influence et ils se sont probablement mis d’accord à ce sujet. Pour ce qu’on peut en déduire des déclarations de l’Angleterre, ils sont prêts à prendre une part des réserves de pétrole et d’autres ressources naturelles – peut-être, encore une fois, grâce à un partenariat entre Shell et Koç Holding. La France veut rétablir son activité dans la région. »
Pour sa part, l’auto-administration démocratique de la province d’Afrin, qui est le gouvernement de facto de la région et contrôlé par les FDS, a demandé à Assad de leur venir en aide. En d’autres termes, le soutien d’un régime meurtrier dont ils veulent s’autonomiser.
Comme l’a remarqué un anarchiste kurde,
« Je peux conclure qu’au Bakur et au Rojava, deux partis politiques fortement disciplinés et autoritaires, le PKK et le PYD, sont à l’origine de la construction du confédéralisme démocratique dans deux parties du Kurdistan, le Bakur et le Rojava. Ce sont ces partis qui prennent les décisions les plus importantes, qui planifient et conçoivent les politiques, et qui établissent aussi des relations diplomatiques avec d’autres pays et d’autres partis politiques. Ce sont eux qui négocient avec leurs ennemis ou les Etats, et font la guerre ou la paix. Bien sûr, ce sont de très gros problèmes et extrêmement importants car ils façonnent la destination future de la société. Cependant, ce sont malheureusement les partis politiques qui prennent ces décisions et non les gens dans leurs propres assemblées et réunions de masse, ou par l’action directe. »
Comme d’habitude, les puissances impérialistes prennent parti en fonction de ce qui convient à leurs intérêts et non de ce qui est le meilleur pour les gens au Moyen-Orient. En tant que communistes anarchistes, nous ne soutenons aucune faction dans une guerre inter-impérialiste, même si certaines d’entre elles semblent se ranger du côté de ceux qui sont attaqués par l’Etat islamique ou par la Turquie. Nous ne soutenons pas non plus les partis politiques nationalistes qui ont pour but d’établir de nouveaux Etats, peu importe à quel point la rhétorique peut être libertaire. Il peut bien y avoir des exemples d’auto-organisation dans des zones du Rojava mais le problème, c’est qu’ils sont toujours contrôlés en fin de compte par des partis politiques autoritaires qui ont voué un culte à leur chef Öcalan. Ce n’est pas un mouvement vers une véritable auto-organisation si vous êtes capable de le faire parce que le grand leader a dit que c’est ce que vous devriez faire. La situation est très compliquée et bien que nous soyons solidaires avec tous ceux qui sont tués et qui résistent aux forces turques, aux forces syriennes, à Daech, etc., nous ne soutenons pas pour autant sans réserves les partis nationalistes tels que le PYD qui a assumé la direction de la résistance.
Ce sont les masses de la province d’Afrin et de Syrie, les paysans et les ouvriers qui souffrent des déprédations de tous ces gangs meurtriers, que ce soient ceux de l’Etat turc, des différents groupes djihadistes, des USA et de la Russie, du Hezbollah et des unités iraniennes. Ce sont les masses qui subissent les déplacements, les massacres, les bombardements, les viols de masse et la destruction de leurs terres et de leurs maisons. On ne peut pas non plus compter sur les nationalistes kurdes qui cherchent à maintes reprises à former des alliances avec différentes puissances régionales et mondiales, pour être finalement trahis à chaque fois et sans exception. La seule réponse à cette situation, c’est le développement d’un puissant mouvement ouvrier contre la guerre et contre le capitalisme lui-même.
Source en anglais : https://www.anarchistcommunism.org/2018/04/03/afrin-an-internationalist-position-acg-statement/
Traduction française : BLESK
French Translation provided by BLESK on Libcom.org
Afrin : Une Position Internationaliste – Déclaration de l’ACG
Nous déplorons l’invasion de la ville d’Afrin par l’Etat turc et ses forces armées. La principale raison de cette aventure militaire est que le gouvernement turc soit préoccupé par le fait que les Forces Démocratiques Syriennes (FDS) – principalement contrôlées par des forces kurdes comprenant le PYD (Parti de l’Union Démocratique), les Unités de Protection du Peuple kurde (YPG) et les Unités de Protection des Femmes (YPJ), étroitement liées au PKK, le parti nationaliste kurde opérant à l’intérieur des frontières de l’Etat turc – ait tenté de créer une zone d’influence proche des frontières de la Turquie. Avoir une zone kurde si proche fait peur au régime d’Erdogan en Turquie, qui redoute les encouragements que cela donnerait aux 16 millions de Kurdes vivant à l’intérieur des frontières de la Turquie.
Pour sa part, la Russie a conclu une alliance avec la Turquie, ce qui représente des problèmes pour son satellite, le régime d’Assad en Syrie. Les forces aériennes russes contrôlaient l’espace aérien au-dessus d’Afrin, ce qui signifie que la capture de cette ville par l’armée turque n’a pu se faire qu’avec l’approbation tacite de la Russie.
Le régime d’Assad est préoccupé par le soutien américain aux YPG. Les Etats-Unis ont soutenu les FDS dans ses attaques contre les djihadistes de l’EIIL, tout en renforçant leurs intérêts et leur influence dans la région. Ils ont établi dix bases temporaires afin de faciliter ces objectifs.
Le régime d’Assad veut voir le retrait de toutes les forces d’occupation en Syrie, y compris celles des Américains et des Turcs. La Russie, qui jusqu’à présent a pleinement soutenu Assad, a établi des relations avec la Turquie et souhaite la fin de la guerre dans la région qui, jusqu’à récemment, impliquait sa propre intervention dans la région avec des frappes aériennes et le déploiement de forces spéciales. Le régime d’Assad est lui-même préoccupé par le développement des enclaves kurdes mais il est conscient que l’Etat turc ne souhaite pas seulement détruire ces enclaves mais démanteler la Syrie, avec son soutien aux forces armées djihadistes.
Les Etats-Unis ont soutenu les forces kurdes non pas par souci de « démocratie », mais afin d’utiliser ces forces pour combattre l’EIIL et d’accéder aux ressources pétrolières et gazières. Les YPG, quant à eux, étaient assez heureux de ce soutien. Cependant, les Etats-Unis craignent que leur alliance avec l’Etat turc ne soit compromise par les relations de plus en plus cordiales entre le gouvernement turc et la Russie, ce qui explique la décision des Etats-Unis de mettre fin au soutien aux Kurdes.
Pour nous, en tant qu’internationalistes, notre premier objectif doit être de condamner et de mobiliser contre l’invasion turque et contre la poursuite des livraisons d’armes britanniques à l’Etat turc.
Comme nos camarades du groupe communiste anarchiste en Turquie, Yeryüzü Postası, le notent :
« Nous pouvons voir que les détenteurs de pouvoir dans différents pays se frottent les mains en jubilant à propos de l’opération Afrin. Il est entendu que la Russie et les Etats-Unis sont en train de construire leur plan de division de la Syrie en fonction de leurs sphères d’influence et ils se sont probablement mis d’accord à ce sujet. Pour ce qu’on peut en déduire des déclarations de l’Angleterre, ils sont prêts à prendre une part des réserves de pétrole et d’autres ressources naturelles – peut-être, encore une fois, grâce à un partenariat entre Shell et Koç Holding. La France veut rétablir son activité dans la région. »
Pour sa part, l’auto-administration démocratique de la province d’Afrin, qui est le gouvernement de facto de la région et contrôlé par les FDS, a demandé à Assad de leur venir en aide. En d’autres termes, le soutien d’un régime meurtrier dont ils veulent s’autonomiser.
Comme l’a remarqué un anarchiste kurde,
« Je peux conclure qu’au Bakur et au Rojava, deux partis politiques fortement disciplinés et autoritaires, le PKK et le PYD, sont à l’origine de la construction du confédéralisme démocratique dans deux parties du Kurdistan, le Bakur et le Rojava. Ce sont ces partis qui prennent les décisions les plus importantes, qui planifient et conçoivent les politiques, et qui établissent aussi des relations diplomatiques avec d’autres pays et d’autres partis politiques. Ce sont eux qui négocient avec leurs ennemis ou les Etats, et font la guerre ou la paix. Bien sûr, ce sont de très gros problèmes et extrêmement importants car ils façonnent la destination future de la société. Cependant, ce sont malheureusement les partis politiques qui prennent ces décisions et non les gens dans leurs propres assemblées et réunions de masse, ou par l’action directe. »
Comme d’habitude, les puissances impérialistes prennent parti en fonction de ce qui convient à leurs intérêts et non de ce qui est le meilleur pour les gens au Moyen-Orient. En tant que communistes anarchistes, nous ne soutenons aucune faction dans une guerre inter-impérialiste, même si certaines d’entre elles semblent se ranger du côté de ceux qui sont attaqués par l’Etat islamique ou par la Turquie. Nous ne soutenons pas non plus les partis politiques nationalistes qui ont pour but d’établir de nouveaux Etats, peu importe à quel point la rhétorique peut être libertaire. Il peut bien y avoir des exemples d’auto-organisation dans des zones du Rojava mais le problème, c’est qu’ils sont toujours contrôlés en fin de compte par des partis politiques autoritaires qui ont voué un culte à leur chef Öcalan. Ce n’est pas un mouvement vers une véritable auto-organisation si vous êtes capable de le faire parce que le grand leader a dit que c’est ce que vous devriez faire. La situation est très compliquée et bien que nous soyons solidaires avec tous ceux qui sont tués et qui résistent aux forces turques, aux forces syriennes, à Daech, etc., nous ne soutenons pas pour autant sans réserves les partis nationalistes tels que le PYD qui a assumé la direction de la résistance.
Ce sont les masses de la province d’Afrin et de Syrie, les paysans et les ouvriers qui souffrent des déprédations de tous ces gangs meurtriers, que ce soient ceux de l’Etat turc, des différents groupes djihadistes, des USA et de la Russie, du Hezbollah et des unités iraniennes. Ce sont les masses qui subissent les déplacements, les massacres, les bombardements, les viols de masse et la destruction de leurs terres et de leurs maisons. On ne peut pas non plus compter sur les nationalistes kurdes qui cherchent à maintes reprises à former des alliances avec différentes puissances régionales et mondiales, pour être finalement trahis à chaque fois et sans exception. La seule réponse à cette situation, c’est le développement d’un puissant mouvement ouvrier contre la guerre et contre le capitalisme lui-même.
Source en anglais : https://www.anarchistcommunism.org/2018/04/03/afrin-an-internationalist-position-acg-statement/
Traduction française : BLESK
French Translation provided by BLESK on Libcom.org
Monday, 19 February 2018
National Day of Action against Universal Credit
"On Thursday 1st March there will be a national day of action to call for Universal Credit to be
scrapped. We hope local groups will be able to support
this and please send details of any planned events to
mail@dpac.uk.net "
Day of Action against Universal Credit - local protests
Brighton – March 1st Clock Tower, Brighton, 10.30 am – 1pm information handout https://www.facebook.com/events/327263861014031/
Bristol – March 1st at Broadmead Shopping Centre 12 – 2 pm. All meeting up in the middle. Please wear black if possible.
https://www.facebook.com/events/1725015990888709/
Edinburgh: Thurs 1st March 1pm - 2:30pm.
Leith Jobcentre, 199 Commercial St, Edinburgh EH6 6JF.
Edinburgh action called by Edinburgh Coalition Against Poverty – grass-roots anti-austerity and disability rights groups invited to participate with their banners and stalls.
https://www.facebook.com/events/437482893334245/
Falmouth: March 1st 8-11am at Penryn Jobcentre, Penmarin House, Commercial Rd, Penryn TR10 8SB.
https://www.facebook.com/events/560750934288894/
Manchester: March 1st at 13:00–15:00pm.
St Peter’s Square, Manchester,
https://www.facebook.com/events/382322465513090/
Norwich – Norwich City Hall 12.30 – 2pm
Day of Action against Universal Credit - local protests

Bristol – March 1st at Broadmead Shopping Centre 12 – 2 pm. All meeting up in the middle. Please wear black if possible.
Edinburgh: Thurs 1st March 1pm - 2:30pm.
Leith Jobcentre, 199 Commercial St, Edinburgh EH6 6JF.
Edinburgh action called by Edinburgh Coalition Against Poverty – grass-roots anti-austerity and disability rights groups invited to participate with their banners and stalls.
https://www.facebook.com/events/437482893334245/
Falmouth: March 1st 8-11am at Penryn Jobcentre, Penmarin House, Commercial Rd, Penryn TR10 8SB.
https://www.facebook.com/events/560750934288894/
Manchester: March 1st at 13:00–15:00pm.
St Peter’s Square, Manchester,
https://www.facebook.com/events/382322465513090/
Norwich – Norwich City Hall 12.30 – 2pm
More info
https://dpac.uk.net/2018/01/national-day-of-action-to-stopandscrap-universal-credit-march-1st/
https://dpac.uk.net/2018/01/dpac-position-statement-and-motion-for-union-branches-on-universal-credit/
http://communistanarchism.blogspot.co.uk/2018/02/national-day-of-action-against.html
Friday, 2 February 2018
Bristol Radical History Group
Check this excellent website by the Bristol Radical History Group. As they say themselves: "Since 2006 BRHG have organised over 250 events; staging walks, talks, gigs, recreations, films, exhibitions, trips through the archives and fireside story telling. We have several active research projects, publish a range of books and pamphlets and host an archive on this website.
BRHG projects and events are organised by local people from Bristol and are NOT funded by universities, political parties, business or local government. To break even we rely on members giving their labour for free, donations from the audiences and the sale of publications.
BRHG are associated with several other history groups in Bristol including Remembering the Real World War One, Eastville Workhouse Memorial Group and the Counter-Colston Group. BRHG have also recently become a member of the International History From Below Network."
Bristol Radical History Group
Wednesday, 24 January 2018
Demo at Senate House 25th January
The
University of London continues to deny the outsourced workers that keep
the institution running the terms and conditions afforded to their
colleagues that are directly employed by the university. Outsourced
workers suffer from far worse pensions, holiday entitlements, sickness
entitlements, and maternity and paternity leave than in-house
employees.
Full text here:
London Anarchist Communists
Full text here:
London Anarchist Communists
In Days of Old
A leaflet from October 1896 for a meeting of London Anarchist Communists to 'bid farewell to Louise Michel and Pietro Gori on their departure to America on a lecturing tour' The meeting at the Club & Institute Union Hall in Holborn also
featured the prominent anarchists Errico Malatesta and Sebastian Faure,
as well as Tom Mann one of the leaders of the 1889 dock strike in London.
Stop Universal Credit!
May's Tory government is bringing in Universal Credit (UC) by stages. It replaces Job Seekers Allowance, Income Support, ESA, Housing
Benefit, Tax Credits and Working Tax Credits. At the moment there are 590,000 people on Universal Credit in England and Wales,
with around 50,000 new claims each month.
Housing subsidy will be cut creating more homeless.
Disability elements cut or abolished
completely.
Some rates lower than current benefit rates.
Support for child care massively cut.
Easier sanctioning, forcing people off UC to live on nothing.
UC will be time-limite.
The six weeks already means referrals to food banks, many getting in arrears with their rent, resulting in evictions. One foodbank has said that its referrals have doubled. Two south
London boroughs have said that half of the claimants there have gone into further debt as a result.
“While the Universal Credit will in many cases increase the financial incentive for one person in couple households to move into some form of employment, incentives for many second earners will be weakened in comparison to the current situation…This will particularly affect women as they are more likely to be the second earners in households and they usually earn less than men and do more informal caring work. Worryingly, the Government finds ‘that any such risk of decreased work incentives for women in couples is justified.’ … this could mark the start of a return to a ‘male breadwinner model’ in which men do paid work and women stay at home to look after children and other dependants.” (Women’s Budget Group)
The above text is for a leaflet for the Universal Credit demo this Saturday Jan 27th at 1pm, Trafalgar Square
London Anarchist Communists blog
The Tories have been planning this
since the 2010 Election and have been slowly introducing Universal Credit since
2013
Lies
Lies
·
The Tories say it will encourage more
people back to work
·
It will be more efficient than previous
benefits
·
It will improve people’s lives and raise
their incomes
Facts
More people back to work?- in minimum wage, zero hour contract or other unreliable jobs!
More people back to work?- in minimum wage, zero hour contract or other unreliable jobs!
· More efficient? You can only apply for
Universal Credit online, and only get messages about UC online. But many don’t
have the internet at home, and with the closing of many public libraries with
free internet access, many a will be forced to pay to use a cybercafé. Already, people have to wait six weeks or longer
to receive their first UC payment. This causes hardship to many who have no
savings to rely on.
Billions
taken from the unemployed, the disabled, the needy
When fully implemented millions will be
worse off. What this is really about is cutting social security.Housing subsidy will be cut creating more homeless.
Disability elements cut or abolished
completely.
Some rates lower than current benefit rates.
Support for child care massively cut.
Easier sanctioning, forcing people off UC to live on nothing.
UC will be time-limite.
Facts
Many have turned to Citizens Advice - one in ten of those already claiming UC.The six weeks already means referrals to food banks, many getting in arrears with their rent, resulting in evictions. One foodbank has said that its referrals have doubled. Two south
London boroughs have said that half of the claimants there have gone into further debt as a result.
“While the Universal Credit will in many cases increase the financial incentive for one person in couple households to move into some form of employment, incentives for many second earners will be weakened in comparison to the current situation…This will particularly affect women as they are more likely to be the second earners in households and they usually earn less than men and do more informal caring work. Worryingly, the Government finds ‘that any such risk of decreased work incentives for women in couples is justified.’ … this could mark the start of a return to a ‘male breadwinner model’ in which men do paid work and women stay at home to look after children and other dependants.” (Women’s Budget Group)
The
Way Forward
Universal Credit could be the equivalent of the Poll
Tax for the May regime. The Thatcher government’s very unpopular Poll Tax
resulted in mass non-payment, riots and the eventual resignation of Thatcher.
This government is weak and fragile and mass resistance
could topple it. But we have to turn the despair at worsening conditions into a
positive anger and a determination to resist. But don’t rely on the Labour
Party to help. All they can offer is not abolition of UC but a tinkering with
it.
Already the Tories have been forced to climb down over
the 55p a minute Universal Credit helpline charge. As well as that, twelve back
bench Tory MPs are worried about a Poll Tax style scenario and about their
seats and asked the
Work and Pensions Secretary David Gauke to pause the roll out back
in September 2017.
The
message has to be NO! We won’t pay for your crisis!
London
Anarchist Communists
London Anarchist Communists blog
London Anarchist Communists support Anti-Fracking Leafleting in Dorking
Members of
London Anarchist Communists helped out with leafleting alongside Surrey &
Hants Anarchist Federation members plus a member of Surrey Communist Anarchists on Saturday January 13th in Dorking to publicise the
proposed drilling at nearby Leith Hill.
All
necessary planning consents are now in place for the drilling of the
Holmwood-1 exploration well. This well is intended to test the Portland
sandstone, Kimmeridge Clay and Corallian targets, and is similar to the
Horse Hill-1 well drilled by UKOG. At present Europa is planning to
attempt to drill the Holmwood-1 well in late 2016 or 2017.
Fracking company UK Oil and Gas Investments (UKOG) have
stated that the proposed Holmwood-1 well at the site would provide a
further valuable “proof of concept” step in UKOG’s plans to exploit the
Kimmeridge Clay for shale oil. This threatens the drilling of thousands
of wells across the Weald. The British Geological Surveys estimates well
over a thousand wells while those from UKOG, based on data from Horse Hill, might require over 3000 wells.
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