• Analysis of elections in four states on 1st December:
  Indian democracy and its political process are fundamentally flawed

• Defeat the lies of the bourgeoisie!
  Onward with the movement against privatisation!

• No end to the tragedy in Kashmir

• Reality behind the "healing touch" policy

• Attacks on workers in Assam, Bihar and Maharashtra:
  Condemn state-organised sectarian violence!

• Imperialism—source of terrorism

• Protestors unfazed by police violence
  Youth and workers declare – No to the FTAA!

• UN votes overwhelmingly against US blockade of Cuba

• Privatisation in different sectors of the economy
  Petroleum Companies

• The issue in Nagaland

• Far from the truth

• On the ceasefire

• Contradictions in the United Nations

• The program of privatisation and liberalisation needs to be replaced with the program for reorienting the economy to provide protection and prosperity for all

• Measures to strengthen the stranglehold of the big parties of the bourgeoisie

• Miltant Demonstration of Dismissed Workers of Tata Power outside Bombay House

Analysis of elections in four states on 1st December:

Indian democracy and its political process are fundamentally flawed

The assembly elections in four States on 1st December, 2003, confirm that the BJP has emerged as the preferred party of the big bourgeois class to lead India along the dangerous imperialist and fascistic course. This is the course of globalisation and second generation ‘reforms’, accompanied by communal and fascist terror in the name of fighting terrorism and Islamic fundamentalism.

The bourgeoisie has used these elections to decide which of the two main parties defending its anti-popular agenda will do the best job of governing in these 4 states for the next five years. The bourgeoisie has also declared these as a run-up to the General Elections due in 2004.

If the election results are examined, we find that most of the sitting Members of the Legislative Assemblies were voted out of office. This reveals the growing revulsion of the electorate towards their so-called representatives.

It is to be noted that both the main parties of the bourgeoisie—the BJP and Congress—received less votes than before in 3 out of the 4 states, showing that opposition to both these parties is growing among the electorate. This shows that both the BJP and the Congress Party are becoming increasingly unpopular with the electorate.

In Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, about 50-60% of the eligible voters cast their votes. From the vote count it could be said that the BJP is relatively less unpopular than the Congress Party. And this is mainly because the Congress Party has been in power in both these states. Even then, the BJP received less than half the votes, which means less than one quarter of the voting population actually came out to vote for the BJP. Yet the BJP Chief Ministers will now claim to have the ‘mandate’ of the people to carry on implementing the program of the bourgeoisie, while the Congress Party will take its place as the main opposition in the assembly, criticising the BJP for doing what the Congress has been doing until now.

The fundamental flaw of Indian democracy is that the vast majority of people are excluded from the supreme decision making power. While people cast their votes, they have no say in influencing the course of India, which power is in the hands of the same old corrupt and criminal parties financed by the big business houses and other propertied interests. The process of representative democracy ensures that even when the vast majority of people are extremely angry with their representatives, they can only achieve a change of faces, a change of party at the helm. They cannot effect any change in the course set by the ruling bourgeois class.

The party system of rule excludes the vast majority of people from political power. Money and muscle power ensure the domination of the parties of big capital over the polity, with elections providing them with legitimacy and a ‘mandate’ to continue attacking the livelihood and rights of the toiling masses.

It is claimed that every adult has the right to elect and be elected in India today. However, the workers and peasants cannot compete with the power of capital that finances the campaigns of the parties of the bourgeoisie. The size and method of defining constituencies and the electoral laws that give pride of place to the so-called ‘recognised’ parties further accentuate the problem. What exists is extreme inequality of political rights, between the political elite on the one hand, and the candidates of the workers, peasants, women and youth, on the other hand.

The right to be elected to the decision making bodies is in effect the privilege of a minority caste of politicians. The right to select the major candidates is the privilege of the leaders of the ‘recognised’ parties. Candidates of these parties dominate the scene in every constituency. They enjoy maximum time on Television and maximum space in the print media.

The so-called reforms of the electoral process that have been initiated by the Election Commission do not address the fundamental flaw, namely, that sovereignty lies with parties and not with the people. These ‘reforms’ are meant to create the impression that the system as a whole is fine, not flawed, while there are some ‘aberrations’ that can be corrected. They are also aimed at further strengthening the domination of the ‘recognised’ parties over the political process.

If the people have to rule and make those decisions that are vital for their present and their future, then the multi-party representative democracy must be replaced by a new system and political process. The existing monopoly of BJP and the Congress Party must be ended. The party dominated political system must be completely dismantled.

Sovereignty—the supreme decision making power—must be transferred from the hands of the party in power into the hands of the people who vote. The right to select candidates must be transferred from the hands of political parties, where it is concentrated today, into the hands of the electorate, where it belongs. This is the aim of the political program of Navnirman, or democratic renewal.

The reconstituted political process must ensure that the people, organised in their work places, mohallas and villages, enjoy the right to select candidates and put them forward for election. The local samitis of the people—their constituency committees—must ensure adequate space for such candidates selected by the people to propagate their views. Such samitis will also enable the people to disqualify any proposed candidate who has committed crimes against the people.

In the new political process, parties that seek power for themselves will be debarred with the force of law. Instead of the people voting to establish party rule, the new system and political process will have parties enabling the people to rule themselves. The role of political parties in the new political process would be to present a vision for society and organise their class and allies to work for that vision.

Those who are elected would constitute a non-partisan government, subordinate to the legislative organ, which in turn will be subordinate to the electorate. The people, through their samitis, will be able to initiate legislation. Every elected person will be required to regularly render account to those who elected him or her. The people will hold on to the right to recall. They will be able to recall at any time those who they elected, through the convening of the meeting of the constituency samiti.

As the bourgeoisie prepares for the General Elections in 2004, the working class and people need to prepare to become the masters of India and foil the plans of the bourgeoisie. The need of the hour is to build and strengthen the fighting organs of the people, in their work places, mohallas and villages, in the course of opposing the program of the bourgeoisie and pushing forward the program for the Navnirman of India.

Back to Table of Contents

Defeat the lies of the bourgeoisie!
Onward with the movement against privatisation!

The struggle of the working class and people against privatisation has led to the further deepening of divisions within the ruling class. As a result, many of the arguments against privatisation have been actually mouthed by this or that Minister, who is opposed to a particular Public Sector Undertaking being privatised. Questions of principle raised by the leaders of the working class are finding their echo in this or that party of the bourgeoisie. With an eye on the coming elections, various MP’s and Mlle’s have started criticising the privatisation program. Such criticism is also being used by one or another section of the big capitalists, with a view to scuttle each other’s plans. In this process, the lying propaganda of the bourgeoisie in favour of privatisation is getting more and more exposed. The working class has started taking advantage of the contradictions and infighting in the bourgeois camp, to advance the movement against privatisation.

Highlighted below are some of the principled arguments that have been advanced by the working class and people against the privatisation program. The accompanying box items present key facts about privatisation in important sectors of the economy, and in important individual cases.

Privatisation is illegitimate

While challenging the privatisation of Modern Foods in the Delhi High Court, the workers and their supporters pointed out that there was no legal framework in place for privatisation. They pointed out that privatisation was being carried out in an utterly arbitrary manner in the absence of such a legal framework. They declared on this basis that all privatisation deals are illegitimate and demanded that they be annulled.

The Central Government argued that privatisation was a "policy matter" and could not be questioned. The Delhi High Court upheld the government’s logic of privatisation being a "matter of policy", citing the Supreme Court ruling on the Balco case. However, now the same Supreme Court has upheld that parliament cannot be sidelined on privatisation of the major oil companies, HPCL and BPCL.

The Supreme Court has side stepped the issue of the need for a legal framework for privatisation. At the same time, its verdict on HPCL and BPCL effectively overrules the earlier judgement that "privatisation is a policy matter". This has opened up space for the working class and people to renew and step up their legal battle against the privatisation program.

Government has no right to sell the assets of the people

The working class and people have challenged the right of the government to sell social or collective property to some private company. The tribal people in Chattisgarh challenged the right of the Central Government to sell the land on which the plant of Bharat Aluminium Company (Balco) stood. This was land that belonged to the tribal people. The Central Government had used this land for setting up the Balco aluminium plant, on the basis of arguing that this was to serve the general interests of Indian society. It does not have the right to now hand over this land to a private party that wants to pursue its own self-interest.

The principled argument of the tribal people of Chattisgarh was not accepted by the judges of the Supreme Court at that time, who took shelter under the spurious plea that privatisation is a policy matter and hence the prerogative of the elected government of the day. However, this does not mean that the working class must give up the principled struggle on the question of rights over land and natural resources. As noted above, the verdict in the case of HPCL and BPCL has provided new ammunition to continue with the struggle.

In the case of the National Aluminium Company (Nalco), the struggle of the working class and people of Orissa forced all the political parties in the state assembly to come out in opposition to the privatisation proposal. In the face of this statewide unanimous opposition, the central Minister for Disinvestment declared that the Central Government has the final say in such matters. In other words, the people of Orissa do not have the final say over the use of natural resources in Orissa, which is no different than the norms imposed by the British colonialists.

Necessity for State control over strategic assets

The discussion over privatisation has thrown up the question of what is really meant by the term ‘strategic’ assets or ‘core’ sectors of the economy. The bourgeoisie argues that only a minimum of sectors need to be under State control, while the largest part of the economy should be in private hands.

For the working class, strategic assets and core sectors are those that are essential for ensuring protection and prosperity for the toiling masses. This includes not only defence, petroleum, iron and steel, electric power, but also the provision of health care, education, drinking water and sanitation, irrigation, food distribution, transport services, wholesale and international trade, insurance and banking services. The working class believes that all such sectors have to be in the hands of the State, which in turn should be in the hands of the workers and peasants. Many of these essential services can and must be provided free of charge, out of the taxes collected by the State. Others can be provided on a ‘no profit, no loss’ basis. There is no justification to make the people pay monopoly prices for all these things so that some private business houses can reap maximum profits.

Duty of the State to provide for the people

When Modern Foods was privatised, the then Disinvestment Minister declared that it was not the business of the State to be making bread. More recently, there have been other such declarations. The dismantling of the food grain procurement system is being justified by saying that it is not the business of the State to run agricultural markets. People have also been witnessing various state governments cutting back on allocations for education and health care, with the claim that higher education and hospitals are best left to the ‘market forces’.

If providing food, security of livelihood, education and health care are not the business of the State, what then is its business? Is the business of State only to enrich the big capitalists? This is the question that has been repeatedly raised by the working class and people, who are not willing to accept the notion that the State has no obligation towards them.

The bourgeoisie claims that there is not enough money in its hands to provide for the needs of all the people. At the same time, the Central and state governments spend thousands of crores of rupees each year as interest payments to the financial institutions, Indian and international. They spend astronomical amounts to beef up the armed apparatus and on investments that are demanded by the big business houses.

The working class and people are demanding that investing in the people, in their present and future well-being should be the top priority of the State. Cut back on defence expenditure, issue a moratorium on interest payments to the financial oligarchy, and use the money saved to invest in the people! This is the demand of the working class and people.

What is efficient for the capitalists is not efficient for society

One of the most common arguments used by the bourgeoisie to justify privatisation is that it leads to increasing ‘efficiency’. But the facts show that by ‘efficiency’ the bourgeoisie means nothing but maximum profitability for itself. The private monopolies gain; their market share increases. But, the numerous cases and sector profiles shown in the accompanying boxes prove that society does not gain; in fact it loses in the bargain. The ruthless destruction of productive forces, including the human productive force, that has accompanied privatisation, can never be justified as "efficient" for the society. The people as a whole are being made to pay more for all public goods and services, for the sake of guaranteeing maximum profits for the big capitalists and multinationals.

The champions of privatisation claim that opening up all sectors of the economy to capitalist competition will lead to higher efficiency. What they hide is that capitalism has already reached the stage of monopoly capitalism and imperialism. The competition that takes place in modern conditions is monopolistic or oligopolistic competition, where a few players collude amongst themselves to fleece the rest of society. Such competition leads to the creation of excess capacity and to the periodic destruction of productive forces, as one big fish eats many small ones, and even other big ones, in the course of their cut-throat rivalry. This is by no means efficient from the standpoint of society as a whole.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Thus, through uncompromising and principled struggle, the working class has exposed how the privatisation program of the bourgeoisie is a program against the general interests of society. This struggle has led to the sharpening of divisions within the enemy camp. This has created favourable conditions for the working class and people to step up the struggle further against the privatisation program, exploiting the contradictions within the camp of the bourgeoisie.

While using various court judgements in favour of the struggle against privatisation, the working class and people cannot afford to have any illusions about the courts and the bourgeois system of justice. We must never forget that at the present time, it is the capitalist class that controls the courts, makes the law, nominates the judges and bribes the majority of them. We, the working class and people, cannot rely on these courts to safeguard our interests. We can and must rely on our own fighting unity to win victory in this struggle.

The political aim of this struggle is for the workers and peasants to become the masters of society. It is we workers and peasants who must lay down the law of the land and take charge of all national assets. With this aim firmly implanted in our minds, let us step up the struggle to halt the privatisation program!

Back to Table of Contents

No end to the tragedy in Kashmir

What these developments reveal is that a hard road lies ahead for the people of Kashmir, who have suffered enormously over the years. An extremely difficult task confronts the peoples of India and Pakistan, who desire peace and friendship between the two warring countries.

The Indian state refuses to acknowledge that there is an unresolved political problem in Jammu & Kashmir. The Indian state has converted the political problem of Kashmir into a "law and order problem" in the typical style of the British colonialists who dealt with the Indian peoples freedom struggle as a "law and order problem". The "law and order" solution to the problem is based on the premise that there is no genuine problem—that the problem is the creation of trouble makers, communists, terrorists, agents of foreign powers and such like. The "solution" offered is that once some individuals and organisations are eliminated by state terror, or "the rule of law", then things will be fine. Unfortunately, this is not the case either in Kashmir, or in other parts of India wherein people are fighting for justice and rights, and fundamentally for restoration of sovereignty. Many, many people, in fact in their lakhs, have been eliminated; many organisations have been decimated. The problem has only escalated.

A second "solution", parallel with the first, which is proposed by the conciliators with social democracy, is that the problem is "lack of development". The argument is that more funds must be pumped in for "development". The fact that this is a euphemism for bribing sections of the populace, that political problems cannot be resolved by investing in "development schemes" is glossed over. The people want to decide their own destiny. This fundamental aspiration is denied by both the exponents of the "law and order" solution and the "development" solution, which are by no means mutually exclusive.

The Kashmir problem is essentially an unresolved problem stemming from the partition of the country in August 1947. In 1948, Kashmir was partitioned by force by the Indian and Pakistani states. The will of the Kashmiri people was never taken into account by either state. During colonial rule, the Indian peoples, including the people of Jammu & Kashmir, fought for the expulsion of the colonialists and the native exploiters and oppressors, and for the restoration of sovereignty to the nations, nationalities and tribal peoples constituting India. The brutal partition of India led to the partition of the nations of Punjab, Bengal and Kashmir. Power was transferred from London to New Delhi and Islamabad, but not to the nations, nationalities and tribal peoples who had shed their blood to end colonial rule. It is this problem that neither the rulers of India, nor the rulers of Pakistan, are willing to even acknowledge. Each of them treats Kashmir in the colonial imperial style as a territory to be colonised, and not as a people who have their aspirations. This is the same approach New Delhi and Islamabad has always had to all the peoples who live within the present day states of India and Pakistan. In particular, the Indian state has always negated the national aspirations of the Kashmiri people using the slogan of "threat to national unity and integrity". It has used this to justify the use of force and state terror in dealing with the assertion of the rights of the Kashmiri people and to alienate the Kashmiri people from the rest of the people of India. Kashmiri youth and especially Kashmiri muslims have systematically been portrayed by the state and its media as "terrorists" and made the targets of the worst kind of persecution and incarceration. Terrorist attacks organised against the Kashmiri pundits have been used to whip up communal and chauvinist hysteria and to justify communal attacks on muslims and other minorities in other parts of India.

US imperialism, British imperialism, as well as other imperialist powers have a big stake in keeping the Kashmir problem simmering, and in keeping India and Pakistan at loggerheads. They do not want the peoples of South Asia to resolve their problems and become a powerful force in world affairs. This was one of the primary reasons that British imperialism, as a "parting gift" to the peoples of South Asia, organised the partition in 1947. Today, the imperialists are playing with the lives of the Kashmiri people, talking about "peace" while actually inciting India and Pakistan to fight each other over Kashmir. They do not want India and Pakistan to resolve their outstanding problems. They do not want to resolve the problem of Kashmir in favour of the Kashmiri people. The Indian and Pakistani states too do not want to resolve either problem, as to do so they will have to finish the uncompleted task of 1947, which is restoring sovereignty to the peoples of the South Asia. And hence the Kashmiri people continue to be victims of this never ending tragedy.

There is a silver lining in this dark cloud. This is that increasing numbers of people in India and Pakistan are recognising that the conflict between the two countries is causing harm to the struggle of the working class and peoples against the anti-social offensive of the ruling class in each country, as well as facilitating US imperialist encirclement and conquest of the region. Over one lakh people massed on the Wagah border this August 14-15 in a sign of the un-breakable unity of the peoples of the two countries. In response to the overwhelming public pressure for peace on both sides of the border, the governments of both countries have recently concluded yet another cease-fire.

This positive trend must be continued without letup. The recurring massacres in Kashmir are aimed at negating this positive trend and hardening the positions on both sides of the border. Despite the announcement of cease-fire, the situation facing the Kashmiri people has not changed, their aspirations of peace and security remain unfulfilled. The people of Kashmir must reject the politics of terrorism and counter-terrorism, that the Indian state and its agencies as well as the imperialists have tried to impose on them and step up the struggle for their national and political rights. The working class and people of India, all progressive and democratic minded people have to take up the solution to the Kashmir problem in accordance with the will of the Kashmiri people, as a part of the struggle to overthrow the colonial legacy in our subcontinent. The solution to the problem facing Kashmiris is part of the solution to the problem of all peoples of the South Asia. It lies in restoring sovereignty to the workers and peasants, women and youth of the different nations, nationalities and tribal peoples constituting South Asia.

Back to Table of Contents

Reality behind the "healing touch" policy

Kashmiri human rights advocates said continued human rights abuses by Indian forces were fuelling support for the insurgency. They said it was impossible for state officials to control security forces that report to the federal government in New Delhi. "They can’t do anything," said Parvez Imroz, chief of the Public Commission on Human Rights, a Kashmiri group. "They are helpless."

Mr. Imroz’s group reported at least 21 killings of detainees by security forces. Human rights groups said disappearances nearly tripled, to 116, in the first year of the new state government.

The conflict has left more than 2,500 people dead, including 841 civilians so far this year, according to the human rights commission.

In a pastoral village in the hills of Kashmir last month, two young men, whom Indian officials declared foreign terrorists, were killed after the security forces had taken half a dozen local farmers captive. Instead of condemning the youth, villagers called them heroes and accused Indian forces of looting homes and shops during the stand-off. The young men were buried with honour in the village. At the burial ceremony, an 18 year old local farmer who had been taken captive by the security forces, was reported to have said that "They did the right thing. Kashmiris want freedom from India".

Back to Table of Contents

Attacks on workers in Assam, Bihar and Maharashtra:

Condemn state-organised sectarian violence!

At the same time, it has been reported from Mumbai that Shiv Sainiks went on the rampage at Kalyan railway station, attacking and threatening candidates from North India who arrived in the city for Sunday’s Railway Recruitment Board (RRB) examinations. Criminal acts of murder and violence are being blatantly carried out in full view of the press and public, so that people may see and get intimidated. As outstation candidates landed at the train station, slogan-shouting Sena members kicked, punched, pulled their hair and shouted expletives. Sena activists snatched identity cards, tore hall tickets and hauled several students into outbound trains. Sena boss Bal Thackeray has threatened the (RRB) that his party would not allow examinations to be held in Mumbai until it decided to reserve a major share of vacancies for Maharashtrians.

According to reports, Biharis are being killed in Assam because they are seen as taking away jobs from local Assamese. Likewise, the Shiv Sena is arguing that the Railways and other employers are hiring more workers from Bihar and UP than from Maharashtra, thus depriving the local people of employment. A divide is being created between workers from different states so that they are made to be appear as enemies, and an atmosphere of tension and terror is being imposed across the length and breadth of the country.

It is very clear that these acts of violence are not spontaneous acts by workers frustrated that they are unable to secure employment. These are organised forces that have more than one motive. These criminal acts are based on cynical calculations of how to come to political power, how to keep the people terrorised and divided so that they do not organise to protest against the Central and State governments, that have failed to provide them security of livelihood. The Sena reportedly senses an opportunity to raise its profile ahead of the polls next year, and has organised such criminal activity, while trying to make out as if Maharashtrian youth are spontaneously rising up against the Biharis.

What are the Central and State governments doing in the midst of this tragedy? Both sthe President and the Prime Minister are reportedly "seized" with the matter and are very concerned. And the Chief Secretaries of Bihar and Assam are exchanging letters in which, on the one hand they promise to be taking "adequate steps" to stop the violence; on the other, they warn that they cannot stop revenge "sentiments" of people whose kin have been hurt! And the violence continues with each day bringing more horrific reports.

One can see all the hallmarks of organised violence in these latest acts of crimes against innocent people. There are criminal political parties and organisations that are organising the violence. The violence is committed in the cities and in full public glare. It is amply clear that this kind of violence cannot take place without the support and connivance of the state. This is precisely how the Indian bourgeoisie has consolidated its rule over the Indian working masses over the last 55 years, by pitting one section of the toiling masses against another and organising massacres and bloodshed, while the capitalist system, which is in fact the source of all the problems of all sections of the people, remains unscathed.

People’s Voice condemns these latest acts of inhuman crimes against the Biharis, the workers of UP and Assam. It demands that the Central and concerned State governments immediately use their authority to stop this wanton violence, to arrest the criminals and punish them for their crimes.

Back to Table of Contents

Imperialism—source of terrorism

Protests were already underway even as Bush was flying in to London. Over one thousand people marched on the US embassy on the 18th of November 2003.

A large number of protestors attempted to hang up a massive banner from the Admiralty Arch proclaiming that the city of London was "closed to George Bush". In the afternoon, tens of thousands of people gathered at Malet street. A huge banner at the head of the demonstration held up across the road read "Stop Bush". Lakhs of people joined the demonstration as it wound through the streets of London. The protest was one of the biggest-ever-midweek demonstrations in London and attracted a broad cross-section of people. Grandmothers with canes, parents with children in strollers, high school students, women in business suits, besides students and workers, gathered in Trafalgar Square to voice their disapproval of Bush and his administration’s foreign policy. At the head of the march was a group of Americans, led by a Vietnam war veteran and antiwar activist.

The march passed by Downing Street, the official residence of the British Prime Minister, soon after Bush left at the end of a meeting with Blair. While Bush enjoyed a lavish state banquet with the Queen, his effigy was decapitated before being set alight to the cheers of a large crowd. Minutes after Bush’s plane landed in Heathrow airport, a public court case in Brixton heard charges against the US president. The defendant GW Bush was found guilty on many counts, including crimes against humanity; therefore the judge ordered the toppling of his statue. A huge statue of Bush was toppled in Trafalgar Square on Thursday in a reenactment of the destruction of Saddam Husseins’s statue in Baghdad earlier this year. Protestors shouted "Bush, go home!" and held up placards proclaiming him to be the 21st century’s Hitler. The US imperialists had tried to ensure, prior to the visit, that central London would be cordoned off so that Bush would not have to face the protests. However, the wrath of the people ensured that Bush was confined to virtual house arrest!

Protest actions were also held in other places in Britain throughout Bush’s visit. An image of Bush and Britain’s Prime Minister Tony Blair was set alight by demonstrators during an anti-war protest in Edinburgh, Scotland, to coincide with the visit of the U.S. President. Blair had invited Bush to visit his country home in Northeast England. But even there, in Sedgefield, a town of 5,000 in an old coal-mining region, several hundred protesters greeted Bush with chants of "Bush out, Bush out," and displayed upside-down U.S. flags, and posters labeling him the world’s "No. 1 terrorist."

Bush’s state visit to Britain was seen as a big provocation against the people of Britain who were overwhelmingly against the war unleashed on Iraq. The protestors angrily pointed out that the motive for war was oil and big business. As the news of the suicide bombing of the British Consulate in Istanbul came in, people asserted their determination to defeat the Anglo – American "war on terrorism" as it was indeed the prime cause of terror in the world.

The protest actions throughout Britain show that the Anglo American imperialist war- mongering coalition is intensely detested by the people of Britain. The fact that it is the imperialists themselves who are responsible for all the terror in the world is clear to more and more people.

Back to Table of Contents

Protestors unfazed by police violence

Youth and workers declare – No to the FTAA!

Thousands of youth, trade union and other activists braved menacing intimidation to stage a militant protest against the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) on the occasion of the 8th Ministerial Meeting of the FTAA in Miami.

The actions, on November 20, 2003, began with a mass rally in down town Miami at 7 am. Despite the presence of hundreds of riot police carrying shotguns, tear gas and pepper spray who surrounded the protestors from all sides, they were unshaken in their determination. The participants at the rally, including farmers and students, artists and workers, condemned the FTAA and the attacks on the rights of the peoples throughout the continents of North and South America. Following this, the protestors marched bravely right up to the "security fence" which had been erected to protect the imperialists. The police charged the demonstration several times, but the youth were so determined that far from being intimidated, they kept up their action for over two hours.

Though they were tear gassed and had concussion grenades shot into their midst, the youth and other people militantly joined a march called by trade unions at noon. They overcame efforts of the police to split the workers from the students and youth. The main march of the day was a show of great unity, with banners of several leading trade unions from all across the American continents, and delegations from several countries of the Americas taking part. American steelworkers put their stamp on the march alongside the youth. Numerous other workers from auto, the post office, other major union organisations as well as the US Labour Against the War held their banners and flags high. Delegations from Mexico, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay and Venezuela also marched with their colourful banners. They proclaimed "No FTAA! Another World is Possible!", defiantly rejecting the economic world order which the imperialists wish to impose on all. The US imperialists wish to blockade and exclude Cuba, and there was a lot of anger expressed against this during the protest.

The massive repression unleashed on the protestors gives the lie to the claim of the US imperialists that there is "freedom of speech and expression" in the US, and that there is democracy there. Over 8.5 million dollars were spent just to shore up the Miami police against the demonstrators! Armored personnel carriers and water cannon trucks were ranged against the protestors, while rubber bullets and pepper spray were wantonly used against the unarmed people. Access roads to Miami were blocked off and over 185 buses carrying demonstrators were stopped by the police. Hundreds of marchers were arrested by the police and brutalized.

It is reported that though the co chairs of the FTAA meet, the US and Brazil, described the summit as a step forward, there was hardly any agreement reached within the FTAA, and they principally agreed only to keep negotiations open. Protests actions were also held in Montreal on November 20, 2003, to coincide with the actions in Miami during the FTAA meet.

The militant actions of the people in the face of police brutality show the grim determination of the people to work tirelessly for a better future rejecting all the machinations of the imperialists.

Back to Table of Contents

UN votes overwhelmingly against US blockade of Cuba

This was the biggest defeat ever for the US in the General Assembly since Cuba first introduced a resolution against the blockade in 1992. At that time, 59 nations voted in favour of the Cuban resolution. Over the years, the number of countries joining Cuba in condemning the US has steadily risen.

Ever since the people of Cuba overthrew the US backed police state of Batista, in the revolution of 1959 the US imperialists have encircled Cuba, both militarily and economically. The US imperialists wish to restore the neo-colonial domination of the island, which they exercised before the 1959 revolution. The economic blockade of Cuba by the US imperialists has lasted for more than 40 years. Its comprehensive nature has damaged the Cuban economy in all areas of the economy by preventing Cuba from trading with the rest of the world. The US has used the control of the high seas around Cuba, and the fact that trade with most of the rest of the world requires transit facilities through the US, to effect this blockade This has been a great obstacle to Cuba’s economic and social development. It has led to losses of more than $72 billion. Despite this, the people and government of Cuba have been steadfast in their resolve to defend their sovereignty and freedom.

In March and April 2003, a series of seven armed hijackings of Cuban aircraft and sea ferries took place. These had been organised by terrorists and Mafioso hostile to Cuba. The Cuban government took steps to defend its country and people, and had those arrested for these heinous crimes tried publicly. Four of these hijackings were successful in reaching Florida. The US authorities released the hijackers. These attacks in March and April 2003 were part of a long series of terrorist attacks carried out against Cuba with the full backing of the US government. On the other hand, five Cuban patriots who had infiltrated anti-Cuban terrorist groups to prevent further attacks against Cuba were condemned to harsh prison terms based on trumped up charges.

On October 10, 2003, the Bush administration announced a further series of measures against the people and government of Cuba and US citizens who support them. The economic, financial and commercial blockade was to be further intensified, and travel restrictions to Cuba increased. Renowned US filmmaker Oliver Stone stated recently in Los Angeles that his film Comandante — a portrait of Cuban President Fidel Castro based on interviews - was severely censored in the US.

Addressing the UN General Assembly, Cuban Foreign Minister Felipe Pérez Roque on November 4, 2003 exposed the US blockade of Cuba as a crime of genocide, a judicial aberration and a flagrant violation of human rights. He also demanded that it return of the Guantánamo Naval Base, territory currently occupied by the US against Cuba’s will. The government of Cuba has also demanded that the US imperialists must release the five young Cubans unjustly imprisoned and instead prosecute terrorists who are freely walking the streets of Miami.

The US imperialists have tried might and main to isolate Cuba and bring her government and people to their knees. But the principled stands of the Cuban people and government have succeeded in thoroughly isolating the US imperialists instead! Today, the number of people not only internationally but even within the US who are in favour of ending the travel ban to Cuba and its economic blockade has steadily increased. People’s Voice hails this victory of the Cuban government and people.

Back to Table of Contents

Privatisation in different sectors of the economy
Petroleum Companies

Following the Supreme Court verdict, the Cabinet Committee on Disinvestment (CCD) reversed its own earlier decision and brought Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) back on the divestment list to "compensate" for the delay in HPCL and BPCL privatisation. The objective is to sell at least a part of IOC’s massive public sector oil retailing infrastructure to private capitalists. This decision seems to have been influenced by the fact that neither Reliance, Essar or Shell, the private oil monopolies in India, have a retailing network. Taking over a ready-made retail network will save them the difficult job of setting up a retail chain from scratch. This also explains why the CCD is under great pressure to privatise the oil companies or their retail network before the general elections. The CCD has decided to split IOC in two, with the retail network separated from the refineries and then proceed to privatise 52 per cent of the country’s oil marketing infrastructure, which includes about 8,000 outlets. If such a sale takes place, without its marketing network, IOC will have to depend on the very private company that buys its outlets, to sell its own oil.

Oil workers had contested the privatisation move on the grounds that it is an industry of strategic importance to the nation. Between them, HPCL and BPCL supply 40% of the retail oil needs of the country worth $15 billion. Handing over these two companies to private monopolies will mean handing over the entire country’s retail outlets and strategic reserves. It means jeopardising national sovereignty. The oil workers have also pointed to the fact that it is the American private oil monopolies who were key actors in organising the unjust and debilitating war against Iraq, in order to gain control of the world’s second largest oil reserve.

Privatisation is being pushed in the power sector despite mounting opposition on the part of the workers, peasants and urban petty bourgeoisie. The program has consisted of governments handing over precious sources of energy to private monopoly companies, accompanied by ‘unbundling’ of the State Electricity Boards, so as to enable privatisation of power distribution as well.

The program began about 10 years ago with the promise that private companies would be more efficient than the government in generating and supplying electricity. It was declared that the real beneficiaries would be the consumers of electric power, who would get more reliable supply at competitive prices. After a full decade, this ‘reform’ program has neither ensured reliable supply nor eliminated power theft. On the contrary, it has led to steep and continuing hikes in the tariffs to be paid by the urban and rural consumers. It has also led to thousands of crores of "transitional cost of reform", which the state governments are piling on the heads of the people in the form of additional debt servicing to the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank and the Power Finance Corporation.

The Enron experience showed the real face of privatisation of power generation, as nothing but outright robbery of the public treasury by private profiteers. Even so, there are several Chief Ministers such as in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka who are continuing on the same path as the Government of Maharashtra. They are signing enslaving deals called ‘power purchase agreements’ (or PPA). According to this PPA, the government commits to purchase the power produced by the private company, at a price that ensures at least 16% profit to the company, year after year for an extended time. Even if the government were to find other cheaper sources of supply in the future, or that the demand for power in the state is less than expected, still it has to go on buying the expensive power or pay heavy damages to the private company for violating the PPA.

Following the Enron scandal, the champions of the privatisation program, headed by the ‘experts’ and consultants of the World Bank, started singing the tune that the solution to the problem lies in the privatisation of distribution. Orissa was the first state where power distribution in an entire state was sold to private companies, in 1997. The erstwhile State Electricity Board was split up into 2 generation companies, 1 transmission company (GRIDCO) and 4 distribution companies. One American company, AES, bought half of a generation company and one of the distribution companies (CESCO), while an Indian company, BSES, bought the other three.

Five years after the Government of Orissa privatised the power sector, over 40% of electric supply continues to be accounted as "T&D losses". This T&D stands for ‘transmission and distribution’ but is commonly referred to as Theft and Dacoity. What has changed is that the tariffs to be paid by domestic and commercial consumers have risen. In spite of tariff hikes, the distribution business continues to make losses. The American company AES has abandoned the deal and walked out of the distribution business, handing CESCO back into the hands of the Government of Orissa. Now Reliance Power, which has taken over BSES, is trying to make a fresh deal with the Government of Orissa to claim over Rs. 1000 crore as ‘transitional cost’ to be supported from the state budget.

Jayanti Shipping Company was merged with the Shipping Corporation of India (SCI) in 1971 by an Act of Parliament. Hence, according to the recent Supreme Court judgement, privatisation of SCI needs parliamentary approval.

SCI handles the import of commodities that are vital for the Indian economy and for the well being of its people, such as petroleum, edible oils, steel, etc. SCI is among the most integrated shipping companies in the world — an uncommon feature in the industry. It has a fleet of 116 vessels, which include container carriers, dry bulk carriers, crude oil tankers, chemical carriers, LPG/ammonia carriers, general cargo liners, passenger-cum-cellular vessels and timber carriers, and offshore supply vessels.

By divesting its ownership in SCI to the tune of 51%, the Central Government will become a minor partner. GE Shipping, Essar Shiping, Videocon Shipping, Shreyas Shipping and Malaysia International Shipping are the companies that are bidding for SCI. In order to make the deal as attractive as possible for these private bidders, the government is planning to decanalise oil imports, that is lift the state monopoly. This will enable the new private owner of the Shipping Corporation to bag all the oil import orders. It is expected that once SCI moves into private hands, its stock valuations will move up in tandem with the European and the American shipping monopolies. This will bring in windfall profits for the capitalist owner, without moving a muscle. The entire plan to divest SCI stinks of greed, callousness and treachery of an intolerable order.

The privatisation of National Aluminium Company (Nalco), which was first mooted by the Disinvestment Ministry in September 2001, is still hanging fire. The Ministry had submitted a proposal to sell 30 per cent of the government equity in the aluminum manufacturer and to bring down the government equity to 26 per cent. Later, in July 2002, the Cabinet Committee on Disinvestment accepted a revised proposal to divest 29.15 per cent of the government’s equity, which would have given a controlling stake to a "strategic" partner.

The decision of the Cabinet Committee went against the reasoning advanced by the Seventh Report of the Disinvestment Commission in 1998. That report had categorised Nalco as a company in the ‘core sector’. It had also pointed out Nalco’s "strong business and financial position", particularly its ability to generate funds for investment without relying on the government.

Nalco is the second largest primary aluminium producer in India, after Hindalco. Its facilities are among the most modern and technologically advanced because the company started manufacturing barely 15 years ago, in 1987. Its track record of consistently generating profits rests on its core strength of producing alumina from bauxite ore at the cheapest cost. The ore deposits in Nalco’s bauxite mines in Koraput district of Orissa are regarded as being of excellent quality; at current production levels these are expected to last for another 75 to 100 years. In the last few years its annual post-tax profits have averaged about Rs.500 crores. The company has also consistently paid dividends to its parent Ministry.

The Commission cautioned the government against total privatisation. In it’s assessment, Nalco was the most significant countervailing force representing the public sector in the primary aluminium industry, which was oligopolistic in structure, i.e. ownership and control of industry by a small group. It was reported that "Hindalco was desperate to gain control of Nalco". Sterlite, and Tata Steel, believed to be bidding in collusion with a foreign major, were the only other Indian bidders for Nalco. After its acquisition of Balco, Sterlite controlled about 13 per cent of the market. Hindalco, which already has half the market, would increase its market share to three-quarters if it succeeded in its attempt to buy Nalco. Together, these two companies would control the entire market for primary aluminium in the country.

Opposition to the Nalco sell-off started mounting soon after July 2002. A joint action committee was formed in each of the company’s facilities on the very day the Disinvestment Ministry got the CCD approval for the strategic sale. Nalco workers, cutting across trade union affiliations, have joined hands with the officers and established coordination committees in all the company’s facilities, to resist the attempt to privatise the company.

The Supreme Court ruling on parliamentary approval has temporarily blocked the privatisation of Hindustan Copper Limited (HCL), which accounts for about 30% of the Indian market for copper and copper products. The Ghatshila copper complex of HCL was acquired through nationalisation in 1969.

The Central Government has gone ahead and invited financial bids from Birla Copper and Sterlite Industries, two Indian monopoly companies that hope to capture about half the market share with this acquisition. The government plans to sell its entire 98% stake in the company and transfer management control to the buyer. The people’s rights over the precious mineral and metal resources of the country are being trampled in the mud, for the sake of strengthening the hands of monopolies to make super profits and become world players.

Bharat Aluminium Company (Balco) was sold to Sterlite two years ago. If Sterlite succeeds in buying HCL, it will extend its control over both the aluminium and copper resources of the country. The same is true with the Birlas, who already own Hindustan Aluminimum Company (Hindalco). At the time of Sterlite’s acquisition of Balco, it was widely noted in industry circles that the Birlas had deliberately underbid, making it easy for Sterlite to get Balco at a cheap price. It was speculated that this was part of a secret deal between the Birlas and Sterlite, according to which Sterlite would underbid when HCL is put up for sale.

Strongly opposing the moves of the Government to privatise the public sector banks (PSBs) and allow foreign direct investment to the tune of 74 per cent into the Indian banking system, bank employees belonging to both public and private sectors staged a nation-wide strike on May 21st. Fourteen lakh employees of the Indian banking industry belonging to 27 public sector banks, 20 private sector banks, 12 foreign banks, 196 regional rural banks (RRBs) and all the co-operative banks spread across the country, participated in the strike.

One of the main arguments of the bank workers is that privatisation will allow foreign financial monopolies to acquire control over this sector, which is vital for national development. It will enable foreign multinationals to divert public deposits of the Indian people to finance their profit-making ventures. The bank workers pointed out that it is the private sector banks that have been landing into constant scandals and money laundering frauds. They pointed out that if the government allowed the public sector banks to take over the assets of defaulting capitalists, then the high ‘non-performing assets’ — which is being used as a justification for privatisation —can be reduced to nil in a very short time.

The Act of Parliament nationalising various companies in 1974 were of two kinds—one, which imposed a specific bar on the government to lower its stake below 51 per cent and the other, which did not contemplate any such condition. The Acts nationalising banks and coal mines specifically demanded that the government at all times shall hold not less than 51 per cent of the paid up capital. This means that managerial control of public sector banks cannot pass onto private hands as per the 1974 Act.

Coal workers have been one of the most militant and organised contingents of the Indian working class fighting against the anti-social offensive. They have questioned the right of the Indian government to sell the precious natural wealth of the country, which belongs to the working people of India.

Major trade unions in the coal industry organised a convention in September to oppose the government’s moves towards privatising the coal industry. They demanded that outsourcing of coal mines to private parties should be stopped, and working conditions of coal workers should be improved.

The Steel Executives Federation of India (SEFI), the apex body of executives employed in the steel plants owned by Steel Authority of India (SAIL), has opposed the "distress sale" of the Salem Steel Plant (SSP).

The SEFI has pointed out that the profitability of the plant has decreased over the years for reasons beyond its control, since it had to depend on foreign suppliers for input materials. As these suppliers happened to be competitors as well, it has adversely affected SSP’s performance.

SEFI has argued that SSP is being put up for sale to the only bidder, Jindal Strips, and it is really ironical that Jindal, whose products as well as work culture are widely regarded in the market as being inferior to that of SSP, has sought to acquire the latter. Jindal Strips has made an offer of only Rs 110 crore for SSP, when the parent company SAIL had invested nearly Rs 600 crore just a few years back for setting up a modern hot-rolling mill at SSP. How can such a blatant sell-out be justified?

The Salem Steel Plant has played an important role in the industrial development of Tamil Nadu. There is mass opposition among the people to the sale of this plant. The Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly has unanimously passed a resolution against its privatisation.

Through a series of litigations as well as political struggle, the workers of Modern Foods have been putting one spoke after another in the wheels of the Hindustan Lever Limited. They have exposed the real aim and meaning of this, the first outright sale of a Public Sector Undertaking in India.

The Modern Food Industries Employees Union (the union at the centre of struggle at the main and first plant in Delhi) had filed an extremely important litigation with constitutional ramifications in the Delhi High Court, three years ago. This was done in collaboration with the Lok Raj Sangathan. The litigation raised the issue that since the Public Sector was set up by a law, any privatisation is illegal under that law. This covers all cases of privatisation, not only those which were passed by acts of parliament. The union’s case was dismissed by the Delhi High Court without addressing the questions raised. The High Court tool shelter under the BALCO judgement of the Supreme Court that privatisation is a "policy matter" and the prerogative of the government of the day.

The determined struggle of Modern Food workers forced the Prime Minister to set up a fact-finding team last October to look into the conditions of the workers following privatisation. The Committee has acknowledged the allegations of the workers regarding massive retrenchment of over half the work force in the name of "Voluntary retirement", throwing out of casual workers without any compensation, closure of plants and sale of machinery. The Committee also witnessed the open resort to contract labour in the plants, carried out right under its nose. It observed the great increase in workload, breaking all norms set by the Ministry of Labour. It was informed of the out-sourcing of bread production to private contractors in different parts of the country, who are flouting all labour laws. The Committee has acknowledged the fudging of figures by HLL (earlier accepted unquestioningly by the Ministry of Disinvesment), to claim that workers’ wages had been raised.

Meanwhile, reports from Chennai indicate great unrest amongst the workers there. At the time of privatisation, the Chennai unit was producing over 1 lakh loaves of bread per day and generating Rs.1.25 crore as annual profit. Now it is producing only 50,000 loaves of bread per day, with private contractors producing another 15,000. Prices of bread have been increased by 25%. HLL management has been deliberately been cutting down the level of production at the Chennai unit and out-sourcing an increasing share to private contractors. The Chennai workers were overjoyed to hear of the representation of the union at the center of struggle (Bread Unit-I in Delhi) to the Prime Minister’s Committee.

In April 2003, a Parliamentary Standing Committee severely criticised the Central Government and the private capitalist buyer of Balco for going back on their promises to the workers. In its report submitted to Parliament, the committee referred to the inability of Sterlite Industries, the new owner of Balco, to pay in one lump-sum the amount due to the employees who have opted for VRS. Stating that it was not convinced by the explanation provided by the Central Government, the committee concluded that the provisions and steps taken for "protection of employee’s interest" were totally inadequate.

The Disinvestment Ministry had callously argued that since the Balco plant remained shut for over two months immediately after privatisation, this led to a ‘loss’ of around Rs 200 crore and hence the Balco management was justified in not paying the worker’s dues!

Back to Table of Contents

The issue in Nagaland

The struggle of the Nagas against the Indian state has been a long and tortuous one. Before the British established their hold in the 19th century, the Nagas had never been under any administration other than their own. After establishing their rule in Assam, the British gradually, and with great difficulty, extended their hold over the Naga hill areas, establishing a more or less secure administrative hold only as late as 1881. When the British began discussions with the Indian National Congress over the future of their Indian possessions around the time of World War II, the pre-eminent Naga organisation of that time, the Naga National Council (NNC), made it clear that the Nagas had never been part of any Indian dominion prior to the British conquest, and did not want to become part of the Indian Union after the end of British colonial rule.

In the last 56 years since 1947, the Indian State that claims to have ‘inherited’ the right to rule over all the territories taken over by the British, has never been able to put down the struggle of the Naga people for independence. This entire period has been marked by armed struggle on the part of the Nagas and armed occupation by the forces of the Indian State. This war has been punctuated by ceasefires and negotiations conducted sporadically, and even "agreements" between the Indian State and certain Naga groups or leaders, none of which have resulted in lasting peace. The failure of the first talks between the NNC leader Z.A.Phizo and Nehru before 1947 resulted in the NNC’s Declaration of Independence for Nagaland in 1947. Shortly thereafter, they signed an agreement with the Governor of Assam, Akbar Hydari, but this turned out to be a non-starter. Talks begun in 1952 with Nehru again failed, leading to intensification of the struggle. In 1956, the NNC, now driven underground, declared its own "Federal Government of Nagaland". In the early 1960s, the Indian State came to an agreement with a Naga group called the Naga People’s Convention, resulting in the Naga hill areas being separated from the state of Assam and given statehood as Nagaland in 1963. This however, did not lead to an end to either the armed struggle or the armed occupation. Another peace mission and ceasefire was organised in 1964, but negotiations again broke down, and the ceasefire was formally ended by the Indian Government in 1972. After this, yet another "accord", the Shillong Accord, was signed with one of the Naga groups in 1975, but again, the situation on the ground did not change substantially.

The current ceasefire, signed on 24 July, 1997, with the NSCN(I-M), has been accompanied by several rounds of negotiations between the Home Secretary of the Union Government and the Naga leaders in exile abroad. Although clashes between the armed militant groups and the Indian armed forces have come down, the suffering of the people continues. In spite of the ceasefire, the Government has not repealed such brutally repressive laws as the Assam Maintenance of Public Order Act, 1953, the Nagaland Security Regulation, 1962, the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958, and the Assam Disturbed Areas Act, 1955. Under these laws, terrible atrocities can be and are committed by the armed forces against the people, and these are fully condoned. Harassment and torture, raids against whole villages by the marauding companies of the Indian Army, still take place. Almost nothing has been done to improve the condition of the long-suffering people, who continue to be victims of poverty, large-scale unem-ployment, corruption and other ills.

While toning down their operations against Naga militant groups in Nagaland itself, the armed forces continued their drive against these groups in the neighboring states. The resulting demand by the NSCN(I-M) that the ceasefire be observed with respect to all Nagas everywhere, was cleverly exploited by the Union Government to arouse angry and violent reactions against the Naga movement in the neighbouring states of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh and Manipur, where it was made out that this was just a prelude to detaching Naga-inhabited areas in these states and making them part of a "Greater Nagaland". By playing up and publicising this single issue of a "Greater Nagaland", while maintaining silence and secrecy over the rest of the issues, the Union Government can conveniently say that its hands are tied because of opposition from the neighbouring states, and blame lack of progress in the talks on the Nagas.

Various possibilities present themselves at this juncture. On the one hand, as has happened many times in the past, the talks and negotiations can get bogged down in a stalemate, leading to either an undeclared or a formal termination of the ceasefire and the continuation of the same situation that has prevailed all these decades. On the other hand, the Union Government may be having a larger game plan. Nagaland lies directly in the corridor of the Government’s much-touted "Highway to the East" meant to connect India directly with the countries of mainland South East Asia up to Vietnam. This is part of the Government’s "Look East" policy which seeks to expand the scope of the operations of the Indian big bourgeoisie in the region. For any kind of transport corridor to the eastern countries to be effective, some kind of cessation of hostilities with militant groups lying in its path would be necessary. It is significant that out of the Rs.520 crore package announced by Vajpayee during his visit to Nagaland, Rs.400 crore have been allocated for the building of a four-lane express highway through this otherwise poor and economically backward state.

Thus, it is possible that the Union Government may actually arrive at some kind of agreement with some parties involved in the Naga armed struggle that would give it freedom of maneuvre in the region to pursue other interests. Given its track record, it is highly unlikely that the Government is interested in arriving at a comprehensive settlement that would give justice to the Naga people, make reparations for the wrongs done to them in the past, and fulfill their aspirations. The state of the Indian big bourgeoisie is the true successor of the former British colonial state, which does not recognize even the existence of the various nationalities within the present Union, let alone their rights. Just like its predecessor, it does not hesitate to use wholesale repression to put down struggles that challenge its domination. Experience shows that even when it concludes agreements with oppositional forces, it does so largely with the objective of splitting these forces, pitting them against other people, and promoting its own brand of reactionary politics among them. This is what seems to be happening in Nagaland.

After so many decades of intense fighting and suffering, it is understandable that there may be a sizeable number of people in Nagaland who yearn for peace. At the same time, the Naga people must be vigilant, particularly at this time, against sacrificing their basic interests through the manipulations of the Indian State. Vajpayee and others are holding out the promise of greater "development" for Nagaland through the linking of Nagaland more closely with the mainstream Indian economy. But whatever "development" or funds have come into Nagaland all these years has resulted only in riches for the few and poverty for the majority, together with all-round degradation of their social and political life. The Naga people must openly and collectively discuss and decide on their future course of action, which must ensure justice and well-being for the majority, and should not be at the expense of other peoples.

Back to Table of Contents

Far from the truth

I read the article "PM’s beliefs are far from the truth" and am in complete agreement with the views expressed therein on the absurdity of his beliefs. The whole thing would be so laughable, if it were not so tragic for the people. Vajapayeeji wants us to "make believe", i.e. deny reality. Else, he would not be asking us to believe that faster capitalist growth will lead to poverty eradication and job creation. His other "beliefs" that have been discussed in the article are equally absurd and false, but let us look at this one.

From all accounts, the Indian economy has seen faster capitalist growth in the 90s since the economic reforms were introduced. If that is accepted, then I would like to ask the PM some questions:

• What has happened to the workers who worked in the textile mills in Kanpur and Coimbatore, Ahmedabad and Mumbai?

• What has happened to the workers of the shipyards, the coal mines, the Public Sector banks, the privatised PSU’s like Modern Food Industries and BALCO, who have lost their jobs?

Can he honestly answer why capitalist growth has not generated jobs for these workers?

The list of workers who have lost their jobs in the prime of their lives — in their twenties, thirties, forties and fifties, reads like a killing field of the Indian working class. Mr Vajpayee is welcome to live in a world of make believe, but if he cares to know the truth, he would gain by talking to such "beneficiaries of capitalist growth" who are pulling rickshaws in the streets of Kanpur or trying to eke out a livelihood in other desparate ways.

At the same Indian Labour Conference, Vajpayeeji talked of the Information Technology (computer-related) boom resulting in increased employment. No doubt, the IT sector employs more people than it did thirteen years ago. But did it compensate for the loss of jobs in other sectors, either in numbers, or equally importantly, in terms of providing jobs for those who lost it in other sectors? The answer is an emphatic no! Vajpayeeji skirts this issue. He also covers the unpleasant fact that the boom in the IT Sector has gone bust in the last three years, leaving in its wakes the shattered dreams of lakhs of youth and their families.

The National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) data quoted in your article shows that the growth rate of employment declined from 2.7% per annum during 1983-94 to 1.07% during 1993-2000. In these same periods, GDP growth accelerated from 5.2% to 6.7%! I would like to quote some more data from the same news report, which shows that labour productivity has improved rapidly, but actual employment has only risen marginally. Take the case of Gujarat; this is a state, which received a substantial portion of new investments as compared to other states. Aggregate employment in the organised sector in Gujarat grew barely 1.8% in the nineties. This is substantially lower than the 4.6% employment growth the country as a whole achieved during this period. In Maharashtra, aggregate employment in the organised sector grew by barely 3.1% in the same period. In West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh, it declined by 4.6% in the same period, and by 3% in Bihar in this period. The report indicates that the fall in West Bengal was mainly due to closure of numerous private sector establishments, while in UP it was due to closure of PSU’s.

Mr Vajpayee sounded very concerned about workers when he gave homilies to the capitalists on how they should "retrain workers" to make them fit for another job, and how they should ensure that their suppliers and distributors and subcontractors do not exploit the workers too much. This, too, is absolutely laughable if it were not so tragic. What is the track record of the biggest employer in India, the government, (we are referring to the PSU’s), whose CEO Shri Vajpayee himself is, on this question? What is the advice that he himself would like to follow, regarding the workers of MFIL or BALCO or the NTC and BIC Mills in Kanpur, Ahmedabad and other towns? Would we be right in assuming that Vajpayeeji has organised for the training program of these PSU workers – how they could run cycle rickshaws at the age of 40 plus or retrain themselves to cook and sell food from dabba’s in Mumbai and Delhi, Kanpur and other towns?

Like you have rightly pointed out, the Prime Minister wants to place facts on their head and even worse, is chiding the people for not accepting this "upside-down" reality. However, it is not so easy to ignore realities and they will catch up with him sooner or later.

Radha, Kanpur

On the ceasefire

There has been a great sense of happiness in the country at the ceasefire along the so-called Line of Control (LOC) and the Actual Ground Position Line (AGPL) the former along the largest part of Kashmir and the latter in the vicinity of the Siachen Glacier that has come into being on the day of Id-ul-Fitr, November 26, 2003. This is in consonance with the general desire for peace between the peoples of India and Pakistan amongst the largest section of the population in both countries. It is also a great relief for the people of the troubled region in Kashmir, where two large powers have been contending for supermacy. There has been speculation in the media about what the motive of Pakistan could be in offering the ceasefire and what the motive of India could be in accepting this. Obviously there is no way of knowing for sure what these could be, but it does present an opportunity for the people to come to ask some telling questions to the rulers of each of the countries. It is well known that neither India nor Pakistan has even acknowledged that there is a genuine problem of nationality in the Kashmir question, and instead pose it as a dispute between the two countries. The aspirations of the Kashmiri people for genuine nationhood is not a question that either of these countries is willing to countenance.

Furthermore, in the true legacy of their colonial birth the countries have locked each other into a hostile embrace and have generated an arms race that is costing the people of each of them dearly. Furthermore each of them has imperialist ambitions, with India nursing the hope of being the regional superpower, working in close collaboration with global imperialism of the USA and UK, hoping to carve out a sphere of influence for itself, through its military might and with naval power in particular, and with Pakistan nursing the hope of being the leader of the ‘Islamic world’ as being the sole custodian of the ‘Islamic (nuclear) bomb’.

The ruling bourgeoisie of each of these countries has had over 55 years to prove beyond any doubt that the legacy they have inherited from the British is suited to only enrich the smallest section at the expense of the toiling millions. The atmosphere of war, and military competition between them has served to divert the attention from the pressing problems that the common people face, with these countries boasting of the some of the poorest peoples in the world. Thus, their sudden posturing towards peace and cooperation should not distract the working masses from organizing themselves and work towards a better tomorrow by eliminating the parasitic classes and their state and to replace them with the state of workers and peasants. It is only the state of workers and peasants in each of these countries that can be a permanent bulwark for peace. It is only the efforts of the workers and toilers that can defeat the imperialist ambitions of each of these countries and can help defeat the imperialist expansion spearheaded by the USA.

G. Rajan, Chennai

Back to Table of Contents

Contradictions in the United Nations

If there is one sphere in which the discriminatory practices of the United National Organization stand out in sharp relief, it must be that of the control of nuclear materials. It is worth recalling that the UNO was born at the end of the second world war and also at the beginning of the nuclear age ushered in by the bombing and Hiroshima and Nagasaki by the United States of America in order to lower the curtain on the war. The hope of the world at the end of the war was the the UNO would be play an unprecedented role in eliminating the danger of nuclear or for that matter conventional war among countries as a means of resolving disputes. The formation of the UNO also signalled the hope that atlast a world would come into being where might is not necessarily right, in the comity of nations, all nations big or small, powerful or not would enjoy equal status.

Nevertheless the events unfolded differently mainly due to the intransigence of the United States which did not wish to give up nuclear weapons in order to threaten the world with nuclear holocaust if countries were to fall to Communist rule. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics was soon to join the nuclear club, in addition to the two other victors of the second world war, France and the United Kingdom. China, India and most recently Pakistan have joined this dubious club of those that are in a position to subject the world to nuclear blackmail. It is widely believed that the Republic of South Africa and Israel have also acquired nuclear capability and are in possession of weapons that can be readily deployed. The stringent nuclear inspection regime of which the International Atomic Energy Agency is the custodian as an arm of the UNO are often used to threaten various countries that are not in the nuclear coub with sanctions due to their supposed weapons programs.The inherent dis-criminatory attitude of the IAEA towards countries such as Iran and North Korea is something that all democratic minded persons are likely to react to with the greatest revulsion. Most recently, under great pressure from the US to corner and box in the Islamic Republic of Iran, the IAEA has stated that it has discovered that Iran has been concealing what could be a weapons program, in contrast to what is supposed to have been a purely peaceful nuclear program.

All democratic minded persons would have to ask the question as to why the same standards are not applied to the Big Five of the Security Council, India and Pakistan (and South Africa and Israel). In particular, if the UNO is to restore faith in the masses that it is indeed concerned with being the harbinger of a just world where all nations are equal, it must applies all laws equally.

A. Narayan,
Bangalore

Back to Table of Contents

The program of privatisation and liberalisation needs to be replaced with the program for reorienting the economy to provide protection and prosperity for all

Facts reveal this program to be aimed at making the rich richer, at the expense of the masses of workers and peasants. Figures show that between 1993 and 1997, the total assets of the 50 largest business houses of India grew from about Rs. 1,50,000 crore to Rs. 3,00,000 crore. They became twice as rich in just four years. They continued to grow richer between 1997 and 2001, but at a slower pace. Their wealth grew from Rs. 3,00,000 crore to about Rs. 4,00,000 crore.

On the other hand, only a small part of the working class managed to get wage increases to compensate for the price increase in the market for food, clothing and shelter. Even this section has suffered as a result of the huge cost increase in education, health services and public But the vast mass of workers, particularly the unorganised workers, grew poorer in absolute terms. According to one Report of a Special Group of the Planning Commission, the number of unemployed increased during the 1990s from 200 lakhs to 267 lakhs.

Liberalised imports and dependence on seeds and pesticides supplied by capitalist monopolies and multinational corporations have led to a steep rise in the indebtedness of the peasantry. Numerous cases of suicides by peasants have been reported from Andhra and other places. The godowns of the Food Corporation of India are overflowing today, even as millions of workers and peasants go hungry. Rice has become one of the fastest growing export items, while the average consumption within India is on the decline.

Speaking at a recent function where the heads of the biggest capitalist corporations of India were being given awards for their ‘performance’, Deputy Prime Minister Advani declared that growth was picking up and that a ‘feel good’ factor is evident for the Indian economy. The big capitalists, headed by the Tatas, Birlas and Ambanis are indeed feeling good, as their wealth has expanded enormously over the past 12 years since the ‘reform’ program was launched. Today, they are hoping to once again accelerate the pace of expansion of their wealth. So they can continue to ‘feel good’.

On the other hand, the workers and peasants of India, who constitute the vast majority of the population, do not feel good at all. They are unhappy with what has happened over the past 12 years. They are extremely anxious and insecure about what the future holds for them. And they are being fooled with empty rhetoric.

We, the toiling and oppressed people, were told that liberalisation, involving the removal of all restrictions to imports, and cutting down of food subsidy, would improve the standard of living of all Indians. The result has been the loss of lakhs of jobs every year, accelerated ruination of peasants all over the country and the multiplication of hunger and poverty.

It was claimed that the inefficient Public Sector was the cause of the problems of the Indian economy and that the solution lies in privatisation, or handing over public assets to private companies. The result has been that the big capitalists have grown bigger and extended their domination over the economy, while workers face job cuts and curtailment of hard won rights.

The Congress and BJP, the principal architects of this anti-worker and anti-peasant program, are the two main parties in contention in these state elections. The peasants and workers, who constitute the large majority of voters, are being told to vote for one of these two parties. They are hoping to once again fool us into reposing faith in them, gain our votes and on that basis declare they have the ‘mandate’ of the people, to continue with the anti-people program.

As they prepare for the polls, the BJP and Congress Party are outdoing each other to convince the big capitalists that they will implement their program as before. At the same time, they are not advertising the merits of privatisation and liberalisation to the voters. On the contrary, they are promising measures in the opposite direction, such as more jobs and assured government procurement of the peasants’ produce. They are promising heaven on earth for all the toilers and tillers, just before the elections. It is a sign of the weakness of these two parties and the credibility of their program.

If the track record of the past 12 years is examined, it shows that both the BJP and the Congress Party, at the centre and in the various states, have resorted to violent and criminal means to impose the anti-popular program of privatisation and liberalisation all over the country. The organising of communal violence, genocide and pogroms against religious minorities, inter-caste clashes and persecution of dalits, bomb blasts and other forms of violence and mayhem have become institutionalised. They have become the preferred means to divide, divert and suppress the people in order to preserve the rule of big capital and stay on the path of privatisation and liberalisation. Army rule in many parts of the country, black laws such as POTA and other draconian measures curtailing the rights of individuals, and armed suppression of entire nations, nationalities and tribal peoples in the name of defending the "unity and integrity of India" have become the norm.

Warmongering against Pakistan and stepping up of military and ‘intelligence’ cooperation with the United States has become the preferred policy of the Indian rulers. The growing militarisation of the economy is driven by the imperialist ambitions of the Indian big capitalist class. The Congress Party and BJP have been the champions of this Indian chauvinist and imperialist course, including the armaments program. Leaders of both these parties have amassed wealth in scandalous deals such as Bofors and the deals exposed in the Tehelka episode. It is a course that has a heavy economic and political cost, which the people are made to bear. Militarisation and the arms race consume precious resources without adding any value. Collaborating with the US imperialists and soliciting their help to pressurise Pakistan increases the danger to peace and sovereignty of all the nations and peoples of South Asia.

To vote for either BJP or the Congress Party means to vote for the continuation of the anti-social offensive. These two parties have done all that is in their might to ensure that the rich grow super rich while the poor are left to the mercy of the ‘market forces’. It is as clear as day light that to vote for either BJP or the Congress party is to vote for fattening the Tatas, Birlas, Ambanis and other monopoly houses and multinationals, and for the ruin of the workers and peasants, the vast majority of Indian people. It means to act against one’s own interests, the interests of the toilers and tillers of India. It means to mortgage the future of India and her sovereignty.

The time has come for us, the majority of Indian people, to refuse to legitimise a path that spells disaster for us and our children. Time has come for each voter to say a resounding NO to this anti-worker and anti-peasant program. Saying NO to both BJP and the Congress Party is part of the struggle against the anti-social program of the ruling class.

In order to win victory in the battle against the all-round anti-social offensive, we, the workers and peasants, need to put forward our own alternative program. The main aim and thrust of this alternative program must be to provide protection and prosperity to all of us, the workers, peasants, women and youth.

The land, the forests, minerals, rivers and other natural resources of India are the heritage of the peoples who have inhabited this land for thousands of years. This heritage belongs to all of us. The demand of the times is that this must be used to provide prosperity and protection for all. It must not be handed over to the big capitalists and multinationals, to be used to make them richer and expand their private empires.

It is we, the workers and peasants, who interact with nature to produce the annual Gross Domestic Product of India through all our combined hard work. We must stake our legitimate claims on this GDP. We must demand that our claims take priority over the illegitimate claims of the big capitalists and money lending institutions, and fight for the fulfillment of this demand.

Investing in the people and ensuring human conditions of life for every human being must become the central orientation and engine of economic growth. There is enormous work to be done to feed, clothe and shelter all the people and provide them with living conditions that are fit for humans. A life fit for humans, in the conditions of the 21st century, includes not only adequate food but also good quality housing, education and health care, safe drinking water, public transport and electricity for every home, at the minimum. If all available human resources are deployed to fulfill these needs, then there will be no shortage of jobs. There will be plenty of work for all able hands.

In order to establish the fulfillment of the needs of the toilers and tillers of India as the central aim and orientation of the economy, the workers and peasants must become the masters and set the agenda for the society. They must direct the State to take control of foreign and domestic wholesale trade. Trade between the peasants and the users of agricultural produce cannot be left in the hands of private profiteers. Trade must not be opened up for global giant companies to dominate and take over.

The State can and must guarantee affordable input supply and purchase of the peasants’ produce at remunerative prices. It can and must restrict the purchase of land and water resources and the rape of forests by private trading or manufacturing corporations, as part of ensuring the security of livelihood to the peasantry, the tribal forest dwellers and other small producers.

The State can and must extend financial support to ensure the supply of all essential mass consumption items at affordable and stable prices through a strengthened Public Distribution System. State control over foreign trade and internal wholesale trade, in the interests of providing economic security for workers and peasants, will ensure that a surplus is generated. This is because the State, in such a scenario, will buy more when there is a bumper crop and prices are low, and sell more when there is a shortage and prices are high. This trade surplus can be ploughed back for raising the living standards in villages and urban slums.

The champions of liberalisation and privatisation claim that the government cannot afford to provide public goods and services to all the people, at prices they can afford. They claim that there is no choice except to make the people pay more for education, health, water, electricity, transport, etc. The alternative program must include concrete measures for raising resources to finance improved and adequate supply of public goods and services, free or at affordable prices, for all the toilers and tillers of the land.

One quick and concrete measure is for the Central Government to issue a moratorium on debt service payments to all big banks and financial institutions, including the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank. Another measure is to seize all the hoards of black money by issuing new Rupee notes and declaring the old notes invalid after a cut off date. Yet another way to save money is by cutting down on the most unproductive use of public resources, such as on arms and armaments, on the black cat commandos and the entire apparatus of state terrorism.

These are examples of resource raising measures that will have the support of the vast majority of Indian people, as measures essential for fulfilling the claims of the majority and for wiping out poverty from the face of India, on a war footing. Such measures will be opposed only by the minority of big capitalists and their foreign imperialist allies, and the politicians who are financed by such propertied interests.

The program being implemented today is supported only by a tiny minority of richest exploiters while it is opposed by the vast majority. The replacement of this anti-popular program by the proposed program to reorient the economy will therefore be a most democratic act.

India is at the crossroads. The times are calling for a radical change in orientation. The champions of globalisation through privatisation and liberalisation, accompanied by state terrorism, militarisation and communal violence, are trying their best to hide the real nature of their anti-social program. They are making all kinds of false promises to the people. This is a sign of their weakness.

The resistance of the people to the anti-social offensive has managed to score some important gains, such as the temporary break in the plan for privatisation of petroleum companies. It is a sign that we, the people, have the strength to block and defeat the offensive of big capital, provided we act in unison.

The popular united front of workers, peasants, women and youth constitutes the force that can bring about the reorientation of the Indian economy. Such a popular fighting front can and must be built around the act of rejecting the program of privatisation and liberalisation, and hence rejecting both the BJP and the Congress Party. It can and must be built around the alternative program aimed at providing prosperity and protection for all.

Workers, peasants, women and youth must begin to organise in their respective regions and local areas. They must build and strengthen their fighting organs, their sangharsh samitis, around such a fighting program as outlined above. The immediate agenda for every local samiti and every mass organisation among the people will be to discuss the program, agitate for its implementation, and contribute to its further development. It will be to prepare such candidates from among the people who will fight for the alternative program, in this election or the next. It will be to carry on this work in between elections, on an ongoing basis – to educate, agitate and organise the force that will build the new India.

Back to Table of Contents

Measures to strengthen the stranglehold of the big parties of the bourgeoisie

There is widespread and growing criminalisation and communalisation of politics. It is known to all that the political parties of the ruling bourgeoisie like the BJP and the Congress use their control over the state machinery as well as their private armies to terrorise and depoliticise the broad masses of toiling people, and keep them marginalised from the political process. Money and muscle power is openly used by these parties to retain their monopoly control over the state machinery. Elections are used to resolve which amongst the parties of the bourgeoisie should be allowed to wield the state machinery to exploit and oppress the workers and peasants and working people. Once a Party gets a majority in the legislature, it forms the government and acts as a gate keeper keeping the people away from power. The state machinery is wielded to implement the program of the bourgeoisie against the workers, peasants and other working people, and to enrich the members and hanger-ons of the ruling party.

The Election Commission has raised the ceiling on expenses to Rs 10 Lakh for an Assembly constituency and Rs.25 Lakhs for a Parliamentary constituency. This does not include expenses incurred by the Party which are not attributed to any candidate. This very act ensures the strengthening of the stranglehold of the parties of the rich over the electoral process. Meanwhile, the Election Commission has announced free Radio and TV time to the 6 recognised national parties—the Congress, BJP, BSP, NCP, CPM and CPI. These parties will have the use of the state media and be able to campaign at public expense. Independent candidates and those representing "unrecognised" parties will not have this right.

According to the rules put forth by the Election Commission for the ensuing elections, all candidates will have to file an affidavit declaring their assets, their criminal records, and their educational qualifications at the time of registering themselves for the elections. These will be publicly displayed by the Election Commission. Failure to file such an affidavit will mean immediate disqualification. Where will this lead to? Indications are that this affidavit will be once again used to increase the domination of the big parties over the electoral process. They will use their money power to try to get rival candidates disqualified. The biggest victims will be candidates from the poorer classes, who cannot afford hiring Chartered Accountants and such like to file their exact economic status.

Over the decades, the successive reforms in the election laws have all been in one direction—retrograde. They have been aimed at strengthening the party system of governance, of weighting the elections itself officially in favour of candidates of the so-called recognised political parties. From state subsidy for these parties, to allotment of symbols, these parties are given a head start in the campaign over others. Those elected in this party system of governance are not accountable to the electorate. The electorate can do nothing to them if they or their party violates its election promises carries out policies against the broad masses of toilers and tillers. None of the measures announced by the Supreme Court or the Election Commission even touch at this problem that the electorate has no control over the elected representatives.

The party system of governance marginalises the broad masses of people from the political process. Rule by decree is the norm in this system of governance. The working class and toiling masses must escalate the struggle for the renewal of the political system and political process in a direction that will lead to their empowerment.

Back to Table of Contents

Miltant Demonstration of Dismissed Workers of Tata Power outside Bombay House

The workers had immolated themselves at a time when the Tata Power management was striking an agreement with a treacherous trade union leadership to by pass the repeated demands of 70 dismissed workers for reinstatement. The dismissal had taken place in 1996 and the courts had ordered their reinstatement in the long years of court battles, but nothing had changed on the ground for these workers and their families. These workers had been working as casual / contract workers between 15 to 20 years on different projects of the Tata Power companies.

On November 3, at 1100 hrs, the dismissed workers of Tata Power along with their wives and children gathered at Chatrapati Shivaji Terminus (VT). They were determined not to let the death of two of their comrades, who had given up their lives exactly a month ago, go in vain. They had decided to march to Bombay House to fight for their just demands. They had invited all the trade unions of Bombay and fraternal organisations to participate. At the same time they had not informed the police as they knew they would not be given permission. The assembled workers, women, children and representatives from the above organisations made their way in twos and threes to Bombay House. They were avoiding being noticed by the police who were out in large numbers that day to protect the heir to the British throne, the Prince of Wales, who was visiting the areas nearby the same day. Everybody managed to reach Bombay House. Unfurling the banners and placards that they had previously prepared, they squatted outside the main gate to Bombay House. Hearing the militant slogans of the workers the Tata management panicked and closed all the entrances to Bombay House and rushed all their security to the main gate. The workers demanded to see the concerned management representatives. Very soon, a posse of police officers landed up. He went straight into Bombay House without even bothering to ask the assembled workers what was the cause of their anger. He emerged after some time and asked three representatives of the workers to accompany him to meet the management. He also asked the workers to stop slogan shouting and move to one side of the pavement to allow unobstructed access to Bombay House as "important" visitors; Indian and foreign were moving in and out. When the assembled workers heard this, they flatly refused to budge. Five representatives of the workers then went to meet the management inside the building. Once inside the workers were threatened that they were violating the law by assembling and that they could be arrested. The leaders of the workers said that they had nothing to fear in being arrested. In any case they were starving and the jail authorities would feed them and their families as per British police law! Hearing this, the police officers told the management to sort out the matter quickly! After three hours of devious tactics by the management, when they realised that the workers were not going to bend, the Tata House managers phoned their boss. Ratan Tata, the owner of the Tata Group phoned and assured the workers that their demands would be looked into within 15 days. The representatives asked for a commitment in writing. However, the management asked the workers to take their "Gentleman’s Word". The representatives came down and gave the assembled workers the report of the negotiations. The workers agreed to disperse and determined to maintain their unity and continue the struggle. Representatives of the Jagrut Kamgar Manch, Lok Raj Sanghathan, Lokshahi Hakk Sanghathana, Yuva Bharat and democratic individuals were amongst the assembled workers.

Earlier on October 20, 2003, over 300 trade union activists joined the rest of the 70 dismissed workers and their families, in a militant demonstration at Hutatma Chowk. They demonstrated 100 meters from Bombay House, as the police did not give them permission to gather outside the Tata headquarters. They demanded reinstatement of the remaining workers and action against the Tata management who had forced the two workers to take this extreme step. The very next day, trade Union leaders of Mumbai gathered in a Sangharsh Sabha on October 21 in Prabhadevi to decide the future course of action. Anjali Anant Dalvi, wife of one of the deceased workers, addressed the gathering. She called on the activists to fight that justice should be given to all the 70 workers who had been dismissed and had been suffering all these 7 years.

At this meeting, the representative of Lok Raj Sanghathan recalled to the assembled activists the gory and anti-people history of the big capitalists of India, including the Tatas. These were a stratum groomed from the most traitorous sections of the Indian people, who were nurtured in the bosom of the British rulers. The Tatas had amassed fortunes from sale of opium to the Chinese people as part of the British Empires effort to conquer China. The Birlas started their business in 1857, the same year as the First War of Independence of the Indian people. When the British were putting out with fire and sword the revolt of the Indian people, they were rewarding their loyal lackeys with licenses to start businesses! A week back at the Oberoi Sheraton Hotel in Mumbai, the descendants of these traitors had assembled to award one among themselves the "Best Businessman of the Year"(the capitalist who had managed to squeeze the maximum surplus value from the labour of the working people of India) and such other awards. The 50 or so capitalists present there controlled annually Rs. 9 lakh crores worth of products produced by the working people of India. The total value of the annual industrial production in India is 13 lakh crores. Fifty or so big capitalists control 75% of the total annual industrial production in India. The Indian state—the government, the police and the judiciary are completely under the control of these big capitalists. Using state power, they ensure that they continue to grow fatter while the mass of the Indian people find their conditions deteriorating to such an extent that workers and peasants are forced to commit suicide. Workers, peasant, women and youth have to take power in their own hands as a precondition to improving their lives.

The representative of the National Railway Men’s Union (NRMU) announced that their union had collected Rs. 1 lakh towards the families of the two workers. The Joint Convenor of the Trade Unions Joint Action Committee, AD Golandaz, announced that the working class of Mumbai would not take this lying down. The cruelty of the maaliks had crossed all limits. The Sangharsh Sabha pledged to fight to ensure that all the 70 dismissed workers would be taken back in 70 days.

Back to Table of Contents