| PEOPLE'S VOICE |
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Internet
Edition: March 16-31, 2004 Published by the Communist Ghadar Party of India |
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TABLE OF CONTENTS |
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On
the first anniversary of the aggression on Iraq On March 20,
2003, the US and British imperialists launched their war for the occupation
of Iraq. The aggression was opposed then, as the occupation is opposed
now, by the Iraqi nation as well as all freedom loving peoples all over
the world. Tens of millions of people will participate in protest actions
all over the world this year, on the first anniversary of the invasion. Ever since
the invasion and occupation of Afghanistan, which preceded the war on
Iraq, the struggle of the anti-imperialist anti-war forces throughout
the world has been growing from strength to strength. However, the fact
remains that the US and its allies continue to pursue their aggressive
and criminal course. Despite setbacks, they continue to carry out “nation
building” exercises in Afghanistan and Iraq, and now in Haiti. They
continue to threaten various other countries with military intervention
all the time. In the wake
of the collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of the bipolar division
of the world, the US and other imperialist powers met in Paris in 1991
to sign a ‘Charter of Paris for a new Europe’. This so-called Paris
Charter declared that it was the right of the imperialists, headed by
the United States, to decide what kind of economy and what kind of political
system each people, nation, or country should have. The declaration
extended not only to all peoples of Europe but to the entire world.
Henceforth, sovereignty would be a dirty word equated with words such
as “rogue states” and “failed states”. They renewed their commitment
to the colonial mission of the “white man’s burden”. The imperialists
are using the slogan of “war against terrorism” to implement the hegemonic
aims of the Paris Charter. It is a justification for the ongoing war
to re-colonise and re-divide the world.. The aim of this “war against
terrorism” is world domination, through monopoly control over markets,
zones for the export of capital, sources of cheap labour, raw materials
and energy supply chains. US imperialism is eager to establish its domination
over most of Asia and use it as the springboard to dominate the entire
world. Other imperialist powers are colluding and contending with the
US to advance their own imperialist aims. The offensive
of the US and other imperialists are meeting with great resistance from
the working class and peoples in all countries. “War against terrorism”
is being used to crush this mounting anti-imperialist resistance movement
of the world’s peoples. It is a tool for ensuring the maximum rate of
profit for the richest businessmen of the world. Behind this slogan
lies the greed of the most reactionary, militarist and warmongering
sections of the bourgeoisie on the world scale. The imperialists
have declared that all countries must have political systems in accordance
with what suits the imperialist drive for maximum profits. Constitutions
are being written by the occupying forces. Governments are being set
up by these same occupying forces. Sovereign nations and peoples, who
have a proud and rich history, are being asked to celebrate their enslavement
as freedom. A massive disinformation campaign is being carried out to
create the impression that the occupied people are incapable of governing
themselves, and that the Anglo-American imperialists are discharging
a “noble responsibility” by establishing new political arrangements
of national enslavement. What needs
to be done to prevent the destruction of nations by the imperialists?
What must we do to stop the warmongers and aggressors in their tracks?
These are the critical issues that the freedom, peace and independence
loving peoples of the whole world have to address today. The United
Nations has proven itself incapable of blocking the imperialist marauders.
The Security Council has either toed the line of the US imperialist
aggressors, or has been bypassed by the aggressor forces. The opposition
of the majority of members of the UN General Assembly to the blatant
violation of international principles has been of no avail, given the
domination of the Security Council. The imperialist
aggressors can and will be defeated. They can and will be defeated provided
the anti-war movement becomes a powerful united anti-imperialist movement,
in each country and on the world scale. In each country of the world,
whether it be the US or Britain, India or any other, the need is for
a united movement against the capitalist imperialist offensive. The anti-imperialist
movement must firmly uphold the right of each people to determine their
own destiny. We must uphold the right of every people to the economic
and political system of their choice, and be irreconcilably opposed
to “regime change” under any pretext. The anti-imperialist
movement must firmly take up the question of the democratisation of
the United Nations. The Security Council should be an elected body,
accountable to the General Assembly and with no permanent members. No
member state must have the right to veto. The Security Council must
not have the right to violate the decision of the General Assembly.
These and other measures must be taken to ensure that the United Nations
actually ensures protection from armed aggression and occupation, to
every member state without exception, and punishes those that violate
the sovereignty of others. In the final
analysis, it is the victory of the anti-imperialist and anti-capitalist
revolution in one or more countries that will turn the tide against
the imperialist system on the world scale. As the anti-imperialist and
anti-capitalist movement develops in each country, the imperialist chain
is bound to break in one or more countries, sooner rather than later.
What is necessary for this to happen sooner is that the anti-imperialist
forces pay first rate attention to strengthening their unity in action.
This must be done in each country and on the world scale around the
common aim of defeating the imperialist offensive. Communists in each
country have to rally around one party and one program for addressing
the immediate crisis and opening the door to revolution and socialism.
They must expose and oppose all attempts to reconcile the anti-imperialist
movement with capitalism and imperialism, on any question and under
any pretext. One year
after the invasion of Iraq, the US imperialists and other imperialist
forces are on an extremely shaky ground, more isolated than ever before
from the world’s peoples. Their attempts at providing their barbaric
occupation of Iraq and other countries with the cloak of legitimacy
are being continuously torn to shreds. The fighting peoples must continue
to tear to shreds any new attempts to legitimise the imperialist occupation.
They must demand the immediate and unconditional withdrawal of the occupation
forces. They must demand exemplary punishment of the guilty parties. The times
are demanding that the anti-imperialist forces step up their struggle,
and consolidate their political unity around the aim of eliminating
imperialism from the face of the earth, so as to ensure lasting peace
and prosperity for all the nations and peoples of the world. Down with ‘regime change’ and
Victory to the heroic people of Iraq! |
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Youth must organise to set the agenda for the future of India March 23rd is celebrated by youth in many parts of India as Shaheedi
Diwas, or martyr’s day. On this day, 73 years ago, Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev
and Rajguru were hanged in the prime of their youth in Lahore Central
Jail. It is a day for commemorating their martyrdom, and that of countless
youth all over India, who sacrificed their life for the cause of overthrowing
colonial rule. They gave their lives for the creation of a new India
without capitalist or feudal exploitation, without imperialist domination
and any kind of oppression. In spite of the heroic sacrifices of our
martyrs, and in spite of being in the 57th year of independence from colonialism, Indian youth
remain oppressed and enslaved today. The rulers
of India are boasting about the fact that the proportion of youth in
the Indian population is among the highest in relation to other countries
of the world. While this youthfulness is potentially a positive factor
and a tremendous productive force, the present conditions of Indian
youth are not anything to celebrate or boast about. Seven out of every
100 children born in the country die before completing their first year.
Of those who survive and enter elementary school, 50% of the boys and
58% of girls drop out before Class-VIII. And of those who complete their
education, a rising proportion faces unemployment and an extremely uncertain
future. The flourishing
capitalist system is leading to massive destruction of the youthful
productive forces of India. Crores of people face a bleak future in
a system which is incapable of ensuring employment to all able bodied
youth. Indian society
can flower only by overthrowing the capitalist system. Capitalism perpetuates
the remnants of feudalism at the base of society and all the barbaric
practices like the caste system. Capitalism supports the superstructure
of imperialism and the legacy of colonialism, using every old and backward
form of oppression to maximise the degree of exploitation and plunder
of our land and labour . The youth
of our country have a long history of courageous struggle against exploitation,
oppression and injustice. Today, too, youth are an active contingent
in the struggle against privatisation, liberalisation and globalisation,
in the struggle against communal violence and against state terrorism.
Youth are demanding quality education and jobs for all. The ruling
bourgeoisie wants to exploit the youth for reaping maximum private profits.
At the same time, the bourgeoisie is extremely afraid of the revolutionary
fighting potential of the youth. In order to blunt this fighting potential,
the bourgeoisie promotes careerism, individualism and the notion that
the wisest thing is to be selfish and “make a quick buck” through any
means. It uses its political parties to divide the youth and convert
them into their henchmen and musclemen. The times
are calling on the youth of our country to come forward and take up
the cause of the revolutionary transformation of Indian society, the
cause for which Shaheed Bhagat Singh and others laid down their lives.
Youth must get organised and armed with political consciousness, so
as to deal with the present conditions and set the agenda for the future. Socialism
and communism are the solution to the problems of Indian society and
its youthful population. Revolution, in order to be successful, requires
the youth to be in the forefront of the struggle. The Communist Ghadar Party of India calls on the youth to organise and take up the immediate struggle against the bourgeois offensive, and the program for the Navnirman of India, to open the path for the revolutionary transformation from capitalism to socialism. |
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Magnificent show of unity in struggle by the working class As reported, briefly
in the previous issue of People’s Voice, the All India General Strike
of workers of February 24, 2004 evoked massive response from the working
class and toiling masses. Over 5 crore workers and working people participated
in this strike. The strike was called in defence of the right to strike,
as well as to show the determination of the working class to step up
the struggle against privatisation, liberalisation and globalisation
and the attacks on the liveihood and rights of workers. Below, we
give a report of the participation of the working class in the February
24 action in diferent parts of the country and in different sectors
of the economy. Unity in Action The general
strike revealed the growing unity of working class in struggle against
the anti-social offensive of the bourgeoisie. It showed that the efforts
of the bourgeois parties and their trade unions to line up the workers
behind the parties of the bourgeoisie were being increasingly rejected
by the workers. Three major trade union centres— INTUC, HMS and BMS—
did not participate in the strike. However, in many sectors of the economy,
and in many regions, unions affiliated to these trade union centres
participated in the strike action. This was the case amongst the financial sector
workers throughout the country, resulting in complete paralysis of the
financial sector. Government employees in many regions participated
in the strike action cutting accross trade union and party affiliation.
This was also the case in PSUs in many parts of the country. Everywhere,
the workers and working people publicly declared that the struggle would
continue irrespective of which party was in power in the center. Government employees Government
employees in many states participated in a massive way in the strike
action. According to preliminary reports, more then 80 lakh government
employees including employees of state PSUs, zilla parishad, Panchayats,
and school teachers participated in this strike. The strike brought
government functioning to a halt in most parts of the country. In the central
govenment sector, nearly 30 lakh employees joined the strike. The working
people in the telecom, postal departments, AG office, Income Tax and
Audit offices took part in a big way throughout the country braving
threats and prohibition. More than eighty per cent of the defence sector
employees working in ordinance factories and depots under Army, Navy
and Air Force and the MES offices all over the country joined the strike
action at the call of the All India Defence Employees Federation. The general
strike of February 24 got converted into a complete bandh in West Bengal,
Kerala and Tripura. Also a bandh like situation was created in Assam,
Haryana, Orissa and Jharkhand and certain districts of Karnataka owing
to massive participation of workers cutting across the affiliations.
The massive support received from the people in general created such
a situation. Effect of Strike in different sectors
Reports from the different states Haryana:
The Haryana Roadways workers brought road transport to a grinding halt
converting the strike into almost a bandh in the state of Haryana. Stirke
was total in state government offices. Around 60,000 workers in 350
brick-kilns in the state went on complete strike on this day. The industrial
areas of Sonepat, Panipat, Panchkula, Faridabad and Gurgaon reported
good response. A massive roadblock was organised by the striking workers
at Panipat. The Anganwadi workers statewide went on complete strike
and held demonstrations in many places. In all the 90 blocks in Haryana,
joint demonstrations by the government employees and industrial workers
and workers of the unorganised sector were held. All the four universities
were closed as the teachers, employees and students went on strike. Rajasthan:
The industrial workers in Jaipur, Kota, Ganganagar, Jhunjhunu, Bikaner,
Sikar, Udaipur, Jodhpur, Chittorgarh, Rawatbhata participated vigorously
in the strike. Strike in Khetri Copper Complex and J K Tyre at Kankroli,
Kamani Engineering at Jaipur was near total. The same was the case in
all the three agricultural farms under central government at Sardargarh.
Unorganised sector workers in loading-unloading in the mandis also joined
the strike paralysing the transactions in the Mandi. Uttar Pradesh:
Industrial workers in Kanpur, Varanasi, Saharanpur, Bullandshahar, Sonbhadra,
Jhansi and other industrial centers participated in the strike vigorously.
In Ghaziabad and Sahibabad, the strike was near total. Massive demonstration
and rally were held by the striking workers at Noida. Punjab:
Workers in Jalandhar, Ludhiana,
Hoshiarpur and Amritsar participated vigorously in the strike. Amritsar
witnessed a virtual bandh. FCI godown workers went on total strike while
Punjab Roadways workers staged massive demonstrations in many places
while observing the strike for two hours. Workers of the unorganised
sector, particularly from brick-kiln, responded to the strike call in
a big way. The state government employees observed a half-day strike. Tamilnadu:
The strike was total in major industrial establishments in and around
Chennai, including Ashok Leyland, Ennore Foundries, WIMCO, MRF, Enfield
India, Eveready Industries, EID Parry, Tube Products of India, Sinhua
chemicals, Audco India, ALLSTOM, Hindustan Motors, and Balmer Lawrie.
Workers from Madras Export Promotion Zone (MEPZ) and Electronic Industrial
Estate in Tiruvanmiyur and Industrial estate in Ambathur participated
in the strike. Industrial workers from Textile, Engineering and other
sectors from different parts of the state participated in the strike.
In Tiruppur, hosiery workers participated in full strength. The strike
in public sector units like BHEL, Neyveli Lignite and Salem Steel was
partial. Unorganised sector workers from construction, auto rickshaw,
beedi, handloom etc., participated in the strike in large numbers. Karnataka:
Workers in all PSUs struck work. Auto-rickshaw workers participated
in the action fully. More than 50 per cent of public transport was crippled.
Virtual bandh like situation was there in Gulbarga, Gangavati, Kushtagi
and Davanagere. Maharashtra
: The industrial centers of Navi-Mumbai/Thane, Nashik, Pune, Sholapur,
Ichhalkaranji and Nagpur reported massive response to the strike call.
There was enthusiastic participation from both the organised and unorganised
sector workers. Private transport, auto rickshaws etc were off the road
in most of the cities in the state. In Mumbai, besides the total strike
by state government employees and in banks and insurance, the response
to the strike by the central government employees and workers in other
private sector industries was good. Gujarat:
Response to the strike call among the government employees was quite
good. Textile workers and transport workers from all affiliations joined
the strike. Rallies and dhranas were organised at Ahmedabad, Baroda,
Surat and many other places by the striking workers. Andhra Pradesh:
Complete strike was reported by the government employees, both the state
and central and cooperative sector, banks and insurance. Public sector
workers also joined the strike in a big way. The strike evoked good
response from the Anganwadi workers and gram sevaks. The response was
equally good among the employees of municipality and panchayats. The
strike was near total in various industrial centers. Nearly 60 per cent
road transport workers struck work, severely affecting public transport
in the state. The response to the strike from the unorganised sector
workers was powerful. Madhya Pradesh:
In colliery belt, the strike was more than 70 per cent. The strike evoked
good response in the industrial centres of Gwalior, Indore and Jabalpur. Jharkhand:
The strike was near total in the collieries and the industrial units
of Ranchi, Dhanbad and Jamshedpur. Unorganised sector workers from beedi,
quarry also joined the strike in a big way. Public transport services
were affected in many areas in the state creating a situation of virtual
bandh. In TISCO and Bokaro steel plant, the strike was partial. Massive
rallies and demonstrations were held at Dhanbad and Ranchi. Assam: Besides
complete strike in banks, insurance, BSNL and other government offices,
the refineries, paper mills, private motor transport and small scale
industries reported total strike. Sixty percent of the tea plantations
observed total strike. Railway services were affected in Assam as a
result of the strike. Chhattisgarh:
The state government employees participated in the strike in a big way.
Employees of central services also joined the strike in substantial
numbers. In Collieries, the strike was effective in nearly 60 per cent
area. Himachal
Pradesh: In the hydel projects under construction, the strike was total.
Orissa:
The mining belt witnessed a total bandh. NALCO was shut down as a result
of the strike. As a result of massive response to strike call from workers
and government employees, Bhubaneshwar, Cuttack and some other towns
were paralysed. Delhi: The industrial areas at Okhla, Tughlakabad, Patparganj, Jahangirpuri, Mangolpuri, Wazirpur, Kirtinagar, Mayapuri and Samaypur Badli reported good response to the strike action by industrial workers. Processions by thousands of striking workers were taken out in Okhla, Jahangirpuri, Mangolpuri and Patparganj. At Jahangirpuri, the striking workers faced lathicharge and arrests by police. Delhi University Teachers Association and University and College Employees Union supported the strike and in JNU, the students went on strike in solidarity. |
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People’sVoice condoles the death of Comrade Fenn Walter Comrade
Fenn Walter breathed his last on 19th of February,
2004, in Chennai after a prolonged illness. At the time of his passing
away, Comrade Fenn Walter was the leader of the Socialist Workers Union
in Tamil Nadu, a union with sizable presence in the state, as well as
the President of the Tamil Nadu branch of the Lok Raj Sangathan. As a young
student during the period of the anti-colonial revolution, Fenn Walter
was actively involved in communist politics and study circles. He organised
his fellow students in support of communism. Later he worked in the
Indian Railways for a long time. There
he was very actively involved in trade union work, and became a member
of the Communist Party of India. Leaving
the Indian Railways, he continued his activity of organising workers
for their rights. He distinguished himself as a lawyer who consistently
defended the rights of labour. He dedicated his whole life to defending the
working class and its interests. He founded the Socialist Workers Union. Comrade
Fenn Walter remained attracted to the ideals of communism throughout
his life. He wanted trade unions to be schools for communism.
He was one of the rare unionists who looked forward to communists
working in the trade unions that he led, in order to educate and arm
the working class with scientific socialism. Comrade Fenn Walter was one of the many Indian communists who felt betrayed by the split in the Communist Party in the sixties. He followed closely and supported in many ways the work of the Communist Ghadar Party of India and defended its line. Despite failing health, he paid great attention to the building of the Makkal Aatchi Iyakkam (Lok Raj Sangathan) in Tamil Nadu. |
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Condemn the US imperialist led military intervention and coup d’etat in Haiti! Towards the end of February,
US military forces landed in Haiti. Haitian President Jean-Bertrand
Aristide is reported to have said that he was blind folded and kidnapped
by US troops, loaded onto a special plane and flown to Central African
Republic, on his way to exile in South Africa! US, French and Canadian
troops are engaged in “peace keeping” in Haiti. The UN Security Council
has dutifully sanctioned the “regime change” in Haiti that has been
carried out by the US-French occupation forces. The overthrow of the elected Haitian President was on the cards for
some time. US imperialism had imposed an economic embargo on Haiti two
years back. The Haitian economy was in ruins, with mass unemployment.
Cuba, Venezuela and other countries in the Carribean were trying to
assist Haiti with their limited means. Two months ago, the US instigated
the opposition forces in Haiti, part of the infamous “killer squads”
of the former Haitian dictator Duvalier, to begin an “uprising”. These
reactionary forces, armed and financed by the CIA and other imperialist
agencies, began to go on the rampage, indulging in calculated violence
and sabotaging whatever little there was still functioning in the economy.
These fascists began screaming in unison for “restoration of democracy”
and appealing to the US and the former colonial power, France, to restore
democracy by overthrowing the elected government of Jean Bertrand Aristide.
After carrying out a massive disinformation campaign on the situation
in Haiti, the US imperialists carried out the coup d’etat in Haiti. US imperialism
and other imperialist powers are justifying the program of violation
of sovereignty of other countries and peoples, by military intervention
and so called “regime change”, in the name of “democracy” and overthrowing
“failed states” or “rogue states”. In the case of Haiti, the existing
government of Haiti was held responsible for the plight of its people.
However, the US and other imperialist powers deliberately covered up
the fact that the IMF backed economic reforms program that was shoved
down at gun point on Haiti, the economic embargo of that country organised
by the US and the open backing by the imperialist powers to the fascist
opposition forces, all these were responsible for the current situation
in that country. As part of the disinformation campaign, the government
of Aristide was accused of “violating human rights”, while the fascist
death squads, who were roaming the streets with the backing of the US,
were portrayed as “fighters for democracy”. It has been
reported in the media that the CARICOM countries (countries of the Carribean)
had openly written to the US and France, opposing their intervention
in Haiti and the overthrow of the Aristide government. Throughout the
Carribean, as well as in Venezuela and other Latin American countries,
there is a groundswell of anger at the imperialist organised “regime
change” in Haiti. The question being raised in the media and government
circles in these countries is “whose turn will it be next?” It is also
openly being discussed that the intervention in Haiti by the US and
France is to prepare conditions for intervention in Cuba, Venezuela
and other countries of the region, whose governments are standing up
to the imperialists. The coup
d’etat and military intervention in Haiti reveals the great dangers
to the freedom and sovereignty of the peoples of the world from the
US and other imperialists. The peoples need to exercise great vigilance,
not only about the imperialists’ aims, but also to strengthen and safeguard
their independence. There is need for the anti-imperialist, freedom
loving forces world wide, to strengthen their unity and solidarity. The people of Haiti are a proud people. Exactly 200 years ago, they rose up, arms in hand, to overthrow the French colonial power. This heralded a wave of anti-colonial revolutions in the region. The brutal violation of sovereignty of Haiti by the US and other imperialists deserves strongest condemnation from all democratic forces. The working class and people of India support the struggle of the Haitian people for justice, their right to self-determination and sovereignty. |
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Support the Century Mill Workers Struggle On 28th of January 2004, 4 textile workers of Century Mills, Prakash Agwane,
Dattaram Lambture, Sudham Bobde and Madhukar Jadhav and Datta Ishwalkar,
a veteran Trade Unionist, went on an indefinite hunger strike in front
of Century Mill Quarters, Worli in Mumbai. The hunger strike was under
the banner of Girni Chawl Bhadekaru Sangharsh Samiti. The four
textile workers of Century Mill had participated in the historic textile
strike of 1982. After the strike, these four were not allowed to join
back by the management. They filed a case in the court demanding reinstatement.
In the meantime they continued residing in the Century Mill workers
quarters. In 1996, the courts declared in favour of the management.
Subsequently the management asked them to vacate the quarters. The workers
again went to court on the ground that they had been living in the same
tenements for more than 20 years and hence under the Mumbai Rent Control
Act, they could not be evicted. The case went all the way to the Supreme
Court. On 8th January 2004 the Supreme Court ruled that the workers
had no right to the quarters since they were no longer in employment
with the Century Mills. The Supreme
Court in its recent ruling has shown that it upholds the right of every
capitalist to throw the workers out of their jobs and also the houses
in which they are staying and literally on to the roads. The same Supreme
Court has recently given a series of anti-worker judgements like declaring
that the Central and State Government has the right to sell off Public
Sector undertakings to any private monopoly, and on the other hand declaring
strikes by workers as illegal. In Mumbai,
there are 6000 workers and their families staying in mill chawls. Half
of them are in private mills like Century, Spring and Swadeshi. And
the other half are in NTC mills like India United, Digvijay, Kohinoor,
Jam, Madhusudhan, Tata, Elphinstone and Sitaram. These mill chawls occupy
60 acres of prime land in Central Mumbai and the Mill Owners see a prospect
of huge profits to be made by selling the land. The workers
in these mill quarters face an uncertain future, with the mills closing
one by one and the workers under the double threat of losing their livelihood
and in addition their housing. As the hunger strike of the Century mill workers entered its fifth
day, and the condition of the workers started deteriorating, a junior
minister in the Maharashtra government. came on 31st January
and asked them to call off the hunger strike. He said the government
was forced to obey the orders of the Supreme Court and ensure the eviction
of the Century Mill workers otherwise it would face "Contempt of
Court". How hypocritical, the same government does nothing if by
chance the courts have given a judgement in favour of the workers! Worker brothers
and sisters, The right
to livelihood and the right to shelter are the rights that belong to
every human being by virtue of being human. However in the present day
man eating capitalist system, these rights are completely denied to
the toiling people. The ruling classes and their parties like BJP and
Congress recognise only the "right" of the capitalist class
to make profits when the mills are running and as well when they are
closed! We the workers and all the oppressed toiling people, build these
factories and operate the machines and produce all the goods, the capitalists
then claim ownership of the goods and factories and build their empires
and treat us like used rags. Actually it should be the other way around.
We do not need these parasites to run the factories or to run the country.
It is we who are the real masters, ‘Hum Hai Hindustan, Haum Hai Iske
Malik, Mazdoor, Kisan, Aurat or Naujawan’. But this basic fact is opposed
by the courts and the political system. Hence we need to fight to overthrow
the capitalist system and build a new India, an India whose economy
is geared to providing for the needs of its working people, where it
is the working people who will be the rulers. The future belongs to
us, the working people of India and throughout the world. Right
to Work and Right to Shelter are inalienable rights of the working people! Statement of the Maharashtra Committee of the CGPI, February 28, 2004 |
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Nutritious meals or killer meals? Dear
Editor, In
the last week of February, hundreds of school children of Delhi once
more became victims of mid-day meals that landed them in hospitals.
From newspaper reports, it emerged that this was the third case of food
poisoning in the month. School children in different areas of north
and north west Delhi have earlier also been affected by porridge and
other concoctions of mid-day meals dished out to them. What happened
in February is not some stray case. This has been, more or less, a regular
feature over the years. This particular incident has caught the eye
because of the large number of children affected and also because the
politicians are trying to cash in on the situation, in view of the coming
elections. Over the
last year, there have been cases of rats, worms, lizards and who knows
what else, in mid-day meals. What kind of State is this, that in this
day and age it cannot provide hygienic and nutritious food to school
children? Immediately after the incident, the functionaries of the state
government are busy blaming the NGOs, who in turn, blame the contractors,
while the education department blames the parents for not actively involving
themselves in the tasting committee or the central government for not
providing enough funds. This passing the buck is a convenient practice,
to let the storm blow over and the public outrage die down. The government
backed by the State does not want to take responsibility or be accountable
to its citizens. It does not want to accept that it is the right of
these children to have nutritious and hygienic food. Instead, it expects
the students and their parents to be grateful for the largesse that
is being dished out. The MCD
caters to the poorer class of students, sons and daughters of the working
class and toiling sections. The MCD runs 1098 schools in Delhi, of which
101 are reported to be running in tents, 41 have no drinking water,
most of them do not have proper sanitation facilities, 562 schools have
damaged walls, floors and roofs. School children are facing precarious
conditions on a day to day basis and on top of this, they face the onslaught
of poisoned meals. The citizens
of Delhi have to demand from each and everyone who will now come to
seek votes, that they should guarantee proper learning conditions and
hygienic and nutritious mid-day meals for the school children. The citizens
of Delhi must force the contenders in the coming elections to sign a
citizen’s charter on this count. Any representative who does not take
this up as his or her duty will have to answer to local citizen’s committees
and be accountable. If they cannot fulfil this duty, they have to step
down. It is time for the people to take such actions and force the issue. Yours, |
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Bourgeois Views of a “Marxist” leader Dear
Editor, I
am a regular reader of People’s Voice. I am also in agreement with the
general political line of the paper and fully convinced that the one
and only path for the well being of the toiling masses of this country
is the path of social revolution. What has
prompted me to write this letter is a recent interview that I happened
to read, in an all India newspaper, given by the Chief Minister of West
Bengal who calls himself a communist. I was shocked to read that he
says that gheraoes and aggressive protests being resorted to by the
workers in the state have to be condemned and the state government (which
calls itself a Marxist Government) cannot support this course of action
by workers any more. He has even gone to the extent of advising the
Trade Union, CITU that they should not indulge in movements that will
bring a “bad name” and “create problems for the state government”! In
other words, his “Marxist” government is extremely worried about the
bad name it will acquire in the eyes of the big capitalists and multinationals
whom it wants to woo into West Bengal. He says “we want a harmonious
relationship between the management and labour”. According to him Trade
Unions will have to evolve “newer methods of bargaining in keeping with
the global economic and political change”! Clearly, his “Marxist” government
speaks in defence of the superprofits of the big capitalists and multinationals,
and certainly not in defence of the interests of the working masses,
whose intense exploitation Buddhadeb wishes to guarantee, for the benefit
of the capitalists, by denial of gheraos and what he calls “militant
forms of bargaining”. This man
who calls himself a communist, says he has devised ways of taking West
Bengal to the status of the highest ranking state in India in terms
of the economy. For this to happen, he has opened up the various sectors
of the State to foreign investment in the name of “creating employment”,
an euphemism for the loot and plunder, the super exploitation and devastation
of the workers and peasants in the State. It is obvious that the “Marxist”
government of West Bengal advocates and works for class peace at the
expense of the exploited. Further,
Bhattacharya congratulates Bhutan for crushing “terrorism” in the North
East. He says that he is going to advise the Bangladesh government to
follow the example of Bhutan in crushing the peoples who are agitating
for their rights in the areas bordering West Bengal. Here is where he
clearly reveals on whose side he stands, on the question of state terrorism
vs the struggle of the oppressed and exploited peoples. The declarations
that Bhattacharya has made in his interview and the actual practice
of the Left Front government in West Bengal over the last 26 years clearly
shows that they have nothing to do with revolution, with bringing the
working class to political power. Their program is confined to
sharing of parliamentary seats and political power with the bourgeoisie.
It is a program of class collaboration and class “peace”, aimed at reconciling
the working class to the capitalist status quo. Yours,
Prema Sundaram, |
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