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Recent articles by Melbourne Anarchist Commounist Group
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Recent Articles about Southern Africa Workplace strugglesRevolutionary Trade Unionism: The Road to Workers’ Freedom Mar 24 14 Speech to Metalworkers: anarcho-syndicalism for South African unions? Mar 07 14 South Africa: Workers Face the Backlash from Farmers May 06 13 Support S. African public sector strike![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() MACG Statement A Melbourne Anarchist Commounist Group Statement in support of South African public sector strike The Melbourne Anarchist Communist Group sends its greetings to COSATU and all the striking public sector unions and extends its solidarity to the public sector workers on strike against the Government’s sub-inflation wage offer. By standing resolutely against the ANC Government, the public sector workers are a beacon for the labour movement, not just in South Africa, but throughout the world. Their struggle is our struggle. Their victory will be our victory. Their defeat will be our defeat. The MACG are incensed at the Government’s refusal to grant the workers’ demands, which are in themselves far less than they deserve. In the first place, the Government offer of a 6% wage rise is less than the 7% inflation rate, meaning the Government is insisting that workers take a pay cut. This is unacceptable in any circumstances. Even the revised 7.25% offer is likely to result in many workers having reduced living standards. In addition, we urge the public sector workers to reject any assertion that “there is no more money”. While the Randlords continue (despite the abolition of Apartheid) to live in the lap of luxury and the new ANC elite ride the gravy train, there can be no argument that there are insufficient resources to pay public sector workers a living wage. And while the Government has, under pressure of the current dispute, officially rejected the massive pay rises recommended by the Moseneke Commission, it cannot be trusted to apply to itself after the strike the same sacrifices it is demanding public sector workers take now. We are further outraged by the Government’s tactics in the dispute. Its duplicity in pretending to negotiate for four months, while its supposed “representative” had no mandate, leaves it condemned. The four Cabinet ministers concerned have lost all credibility and, if any of them say that the Sun rises in the East, we would recommend getting up early to confirm it. More fundamentally, the use of the Army, both as s**bs to do struck work and as thugs to break picket lines, is a stark demonstration of just which side of the class line the Government is on. We endorse the right of picketing workers to use reasonable force in self-defence and denounce the Government for its hypocrisy on the question. If they are opposed to violence during strikes, let them first withdraw their military thugs! The fact that, even now, the public sector strike is not resolved is a demonstration of the fundamental conflict of interests between labour and capital. Regardless of the outcome of this strike, while society is divided into a working class and an employing class, there can be no just and lasting settlement to employment disputes. A victory for the public sector workers now would result in the capitalists, at some future time, attacking them or other workers with increased vigour to recover that they have lost. A defeat for the public sector workers would embolden the capitalists to attack them again and to attack other sectors of workers as well so as to entrench their wealth and power. While capitalism continues, the cycle will not end. Finally, the MACG urges all workers in South African to reflect deeply on the role of the South African so-called “Communist” Party. Communism has not failed. Rather, the SACP has failed communism. Under Apartheid, the SACP taught that the workers’ struggle had two stages. The first stage was the struggle for the establishment of democracy, for the abolition of Apartheid and entrenched racial oppression. The second stage, to follow at some point after the establishment of democracy, was the struggle for socialism. To the extent that this was true, they deceived the workers (and many of their own members) by omitting to tell them that in the second stage of the struggle, the SACP would be on the side of the capitalists! The wretched history since 1994 of this once-proud organisation can only be understood as the penalty for its fundamental political errors. The liberation of the working class is the task of the working class itself and cannot be delegated to a political party. Victory to the South African public sector workers! Workers of the world, unite! In Solidarity, Melbourne Anarchist Communist Group |
Front pagePrisões e mais criminalização marcam o final da Copa do Mundo no Brasil هەڵوێستی سەربەخۆی جەماوەر لە نێوان داعش و & Contra a Copa e a Repressão: Somente a Luta e Organização! Nota Pública de soldariedade e denúncia Uruguay, ante la represión y el abuso policial To vote or not to vote: Should it be a question? Mayday: Building A New Workers Movement Anarchist and international solidarity against Russian State repression Argentina: Atentado y Amenazas contra militantes sociales de la FOB en Rosario, Santa Fe Réponses anarchistes à la crise écologique A verdadeira face da violência! Face à l’antisémitisme, pour l’autodéfense Reflexiones en torno a los libertarios en Chile y la participación electoral Mandela, the ANC and the 1994 Breakthrough: Anarchist / syndicalist reflections Melissa Sepúlveda "Uno de los desafíos más importantes es mostrarnos como una alternativa real" Declaración del FAO ante la coyuntura electoral chilena y el quiebre en el movimiento libertario Southern Africa | Workplace struggles | Press Release | en Thu 31 Jul, 21:32
Beginning on Sunday 28 August, Wits students have been littering parts of campus in solidarity with the cleaners’ strike. Cleaners throughout South Africa are demanding a living wage of R4 200 per month: this compares with less than R2 000 paid to cleaners at Wits, who are employed by outsourcing companies such as Supercare. The strike has been undermined, at Wits and elsewhere, by the presence of scab labour; Wits management and the outsourcing companies are striving for “business as usual”. This undermines the entire purpose of the strike, which is to compel exploiter-managers to meet workers’ demands by withdrawing their labour, by preventing the job from getting done – by making sure the campus is not clean.
The Federation of Anarchists of Greece (OAE) is calling for a further action in terms of unity and organisation.
The Zabalaza Anarchist Communist Federation (southern Africa) supports the public sector strikers, not just in their demand for a wage increase of 12%, which has now been reduced to 10%, but also in their struggle to improve the standard of all public sector services.
The APF will be hosting a May Day Workers Rally in the community of Residensia (Sebokeng – Vaal Triangle) at Tshepo Themba School at 10h00 tomorrow in support of all the working class struggles in the country.
Privatisation – the transfer of functions and industry to the private sector – is widely and correctly rejected on the left and in the working class. Privatisation leads only to higher prices, less and worse jobs, and worse services. Given this, some view nationalisation – the transfer of economic resources (e.g. mines, banks, and factories) to state ownership and control – as a rallying cry for a socialist alternative. This article argues that nationalisation has never removed capitalism, nor led to socialism, and it certainly does not have a demonstrable record of consistently improving wages, jobs, rights and safety. This article appeals to progressive working class forces to look instead to another way:collectivisation from below, where industry is placed under direct workers’ self-management, subject to worker-community participatory democratic planning and control to meet human needs and end oppression, in a universal human community.
The series of strikes and protests that recently took place in and around farms in South Africa’s Western Cape Province was fuelled by the deep-seated anger and frustration that workers feel. On a daily basis, farm workers face not only appalling wages, bad living conditions and precarious work, but also widespread racism, intimidation and humiliation. The extent of the oppressive conditions run deep and it is not uncommon for workers to even be beaten by farm-owners and managers for perceived ‘transgressions’. Indeed, life for workers in the rural areas has always been harsh, but over the last two decades it has in many ways gotten even worse and poverty has in many cases grown.
While any human being with any sense of justice should be appalled by what happened at Marikana it would, however, be a mistake to view it as an isolated incident that emerged out of the blue.
Cleaning workers throughout South Africa have been on strike since Monday 8 August. They are demanding a living wage of R4 200 per month, as well as a 13th cheque and shorter hours.
The biggest single strike since the 1994 parliamentary transition in South Africa showed the unions’ power. It won some wage gains, but it threw away some precious opportunities. We need to celebrate the strike, while learning some lessons: • the need for more union democracy • the need to use strikes to link workers and communities • the need for working class autonomy • the need to act outside and against the state • the need to review our positions: against the Tripartite Alliance, for anarcho-syndicalism more >>
Beginning on Sunday 28 August, Wits students have been littering parts of campus in solidarity with the cleaners’ strike. Cleaners throughout South Africa are demanding a living wage of R4 200 per month: this compares with less than R2 000 paid to cleaners at Wits, who are employed by outsourcing companies such as Supercare. The strike has been undermined, at Wits and elsewhere, by the presence of scab labour; Wits management and the outsourcing companies are striving for “business as usual”. This undermines the entire purpose of the strike, which is to compel exploiter-managers to meet workers’ demands by withdrawing their labour, by preventing the job from getting done – by making sure the campus is not clean.
The Federation of Anarchists of Greece (OAE) is calling for a further action in terms of unity and organisation.
The Zabalaza Anarchist Communist Federation (southern Africa) supports the public sector strikers, not just in their demand for a wage increase of 12%, which has now been reduced to 10%, but also in their struggle to improve the standard of all public sector services.
The APF will be hosting a May Day Workers Rally in the community of Residensia (Sebokeng – Vaal Triangle) at Tshepo Themba School at 10h00 tomorrow in support of all the working class struggles in the country. |