(en) Britain, Anarchist Federation Resistance bulletin issue 152 June 2013

Contents ---- 1. Divide and Rule ---- 2. Bin Strikin' ---- 3. Police blame anti-blacklist 
victim for two broken legs ---- 4. Rossport solidarity call-out ---- 5. Fighting for safe 
factories in Asia ---- 6. Greek prisoners take hunger strike action ---- 7. Greek 
teachers: Resistance and Betrayal ---- Divide and Rule ---- If the last few weeks in 
British politics have shown up one thing, it?s how easily suspicion of foreigners and the 
poor can be made into a major election issue, especially with help from the right-wing 
press. ---- Attacks on welfare seem relentless. The rich and privileged tell us that the 
reason Britain is in debt is that the poor, sick or old cost too much. They call us lazy 
or undereducated and try to put the blame on the individuals. ---- We have two things to 
say about this. Firstly this is a class war.

In an unequal class system we should, if we can, find ways to control how much work we do 
and how much profit for our bosses. If we have a job and can stick it, fine. But if not, 
let the state pay us a ?social wage? - benefits in other words. ?Worker? must include 
those of us who are unemployed or they will run rings around us.

Secondly, the problems with capitalism are structural. Unemployment is used to keep wages 
don. The economic crisis means the government is getting a lot less in taxes and they?ve 
bailed out the banks, so national debt has increased. Since the economy is hardly growing, 
tax rates go up (unless you are rich or a company owner) or they make cuts, or sell off 
assets like the Royal Mail, or all three. It?s all part of the system. But it?s their 
fault, not ours.

So what do anarchist communists think about immigration? Well, people born in Britain go 
to work or live permanently abroad, and people from other countries live and work here. So 
what? We think people should be able to live and work where they want to, irrespective of 
borders. In fact, we don?t think that nation states should even exist. So arguments over 
immigration or Europe are just not on our level. To us, all workers are equal.

So what of divide and rule? A report, Tough on People in Poverty, from the Joseph Rowntree 
Foundation shows that in 2013, only 27% of Labour Party voters now believe social 
injustice to be the main cause of poverty, down from 41% in 1986 when Thatcher was in 
power. Individuals are blamed instead. It seems someone has found a neat way to deflect 
working class anger from the true cause of economic misery. If we don?t defend access to 
the necessities of life for everyone, the state will continue to cut away until we are 
left arguing over the scraps.


Bin Strikin'

Refuse workers and street cleaners in Brighton and Hove took unofficial action last month 
over pay and allowances. When given an ultimatum of a ?4,000 a year pay cut or the sack, 
300 workers struck and occupied their canteen. You couldn?t hope for a better wildcat 
target as Green Party councillor Jason Kitcat tried to placate workers with individual 
compensations. But workers chanted ?Kitcat out!? and ripped up or handed back unopened 
compensation letters. On Thursday 9th May uniformed workers marched from their depot in 
Hollingdean to the town hall where council leader Jason Kitkat was given a personally 
dedicated rendition of ?you?re shit and you know you are?. At time of writing (19th May) 
Council chief executive Penny Thompson was sending new compensation offers, and the GMB 
union has now balloted (counting on 7th June).

This is not the first time either. In 2008 an equally strong wildcat walkout took place 
from the same depot after managers broke up tight-knit crews who had worked together for 
years in retaliation for falling productivity, calling some of them ?too fat and lazy? to 
do their jobs. But staff shortages and lack of bin lorries were really to blame for crews 
falling behind on their rounds.

Although they did not want to affect residents, workers said they were ?at the end of 
their tether?. When the GMB caught up with the walkout they told the workers to go back 
and the council claimed to be ?baffled? by the unofficial action. But management ended up 
backing down completely, allowing workers back to their old crews and also started talks 
on staffing levels and vehicles. And in 2001 refuse workers of Brighton took collective 
action after sackings following earlier work routine changes.

It?s great to see the wildcat is alive and hissing again.


Police blame anti-blacklist victim for two broken legs

Blacklisting is a systematic effort by bosses to secretly block individuals working in an 
industry, often when they have exposed poor working conditions or tried to form a union. 
On 15th May 2013 anti-blacklist campaigners were blocking the road outside Manchester City 
FC?s new training ground because of site developer BAM Nuttall blacklisting construction 
workers at London Crossrail.

George Tapp who was leafleting ended up needing reconstructive knee surgery after both his 
legs were broken by a hit-and-run driver. He was carried on the bonnet for some distance 
before being thrown off. Paul Kelly who was also there said ?It was being driven by a 
complete maniac. It just zoomed off, taking three of them with it. It was going so fast in 
first gear there was burning rubber, then it braked suddenly and they fell off.? George 
was given morphine for the pain in his legs and also suffered a serious knock to the head 
which bled profusely at the scene. The two others suffered minor injuries.

Chief Superintendant Russ Jackson of Greater Manchester Police admitted there was an 
?incident? but said that CCTV showed men having climbed onto the bonnet of the car which 
then drove off slowly and, ?While we respect the democratic right of anyone holding a 
peaceful protest, if we believe individuals have behaved in an unlawful manner, we will 
take action.? Just who is he referring to here? Is he planning on arresting a man with two 
broken legs and a shattered knee for a crime? The reference to CCTV is also an extreme 
irony considering a Special Branch ?Special Demonstration Squad? are widely believed to 
have colluded with industry blacklisters by bugging union offices.

He is likely to be in hospital for 8 weeks. If you would like to contribute to a 
solidarity fund please send cheques payable to "Salford TUC (George Tapp)", 84 Liverpool 
road, Eccles, Salford M30 OWZ.

Get well soon, George!

More info on blacklisting: http://www.hazards.org/blacklistblog/


Rossport solidarity call-out

The AF has previously supported the 13-year-long Shell to Sea campaign near Rossport, 
County Mayo, on the West coast of Ireland. The campaign is against a high pressure raw 
gas-pipeline coming ashore right next to their neighbourhood. This is being built by 
Corrib, a collaboration of Shell, Statoil and Vermillion oil companies.

The campaign has always been creative and outward-looking. The associated Rossport 
Solidarity Camp has welcomed large numbers of international visitors at key times during 
the pipeline development. Support is invited again during a week of action on 21st-30th 
June. Campaign imagery is inspired by the Asterix comics of a tiny village opposing the 
might of the Roman empire. But as they don?t have any magic potion it?ll need feet (and 
tents) on the ground instead.

More details: http://www.rossportsolidaritycamp.org


Fighting for safe factories in Asia

Since the factory collapse in Dhaka, Bangladesh, in April (see Resistance 151), the death 
toll has risen to over 1000. With the catastrophe publicised throughout the mainstream 
press, the finger of blame was pointed squarely at the high street retailers that use 
suppliers based in buildings like this. As a result, some retailers signed up to a new 
legally binding initiative to offer financial support for fire safety and building 
improvements.

This comes too late for 3 people who recently died when a Cambodian factory making Asics 
shoes collapsed. And for 23 people who were injured while making clothes for H&M. And for 
8 people killed after a clothes factory caught fire, also in Dhaka.

But at least eight of the UK?s leading fashion retailers failed to put their names to the 
initiative. George at Asda,Next,Matalan,RiverIsland, Sports Direct, Peacocks, Shop Direct 
and the Arcadia group - which includes Topshop, BHS and Dorothy Perkins - all failed to 
sign up.

This matters because such working conditions do not only exist at the factories of economy 
brands such as Primark. The amount you pay at the till has little to do with the pay at 
the factories. High-end retailers also systematically exploit poor working conditions to 
maximise profits.

So should we boycott retailers? If the result is that retailers end contracts with 
suppliers, this results in depriving people of jobs. We need to support workers? struggles 
for decent wages and conditions, world-wide.


Greek prisoners take hunger strike action

A hunger strike by more than 580 prisoners in the Larissa jail in Greece started on Monday 
29th of April. There was wide scale participation in the hunger strike by those 
incarcerated in the high-security prison. All inmates from section B and C refused food, 
as did one hundred inmates from section A, followed by 25 more people from section E. The 
prisoners expressed their demands and complaints about the jail regime in an open letter. 
They demanded ?Better health care? and ?no reference or mention of any statute-barred 
disciplinary offense.? They insisted on an end to the ?Inadequacy of social workers? and 
no more?detentionofimmigrantinmatesfor an excessive period of 2 months in Larissa 
penitentiary, despite their entitlement for conditional release?. They also stated, ?We 
demand these conditions to be changed and for those who are responsible to be replaced also?.

For info on resistance by prisoners check Anarchist Black Cross and the Campaign Against 
Prison Slavery websites.


Greek teachers: Resistance and Betrayal

In the continuous onslaught on society at the hands of the Greek state and the 
International Monetary Fund, which has already meant austerity measures for the last three 
years, further injury has been inflicted upon working- class conditions in the form of a 
?civil mobilisation? against strikes.Thismostrecentassaultinthenameofprofitand power has 
increased the working week of teachers by two hours.

The Greek teachers? union OLME, responding to the transfer of employees on to the new 
measures, declared a strike on the 17th of May. The Greek government responded with the 
civil mobilisation, where striking teachers now face potential arrest. The Education 
Ministry justified these actions by describing the strike as a ?threat to society?.

On the 18th of May, however, OLME abandoned its members by scrapping plans for further 
strike action. This decision was backed by other major unions and opposition parties, 
including SYRIZA (Greek Coalition of the Radical Left) and the Communist Party of Greece, 
despite teachers voting 90% in favour. So workers are now not only under targeted attack 
from the government and the IMF, they are also subject to systematic betrayal by those who 
claim to represent them.

---

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About the Anarchist Federation

The Anarchist Federation is an organisation of class struggle anarchists (based in Britain 
and Ireland, but with many contacts overseas) which aims to abolish Capitalism and all 
oppression to create a free and equal society. This is Anarchist Communism.

We see today?s society as being divided into two main opposing classes: the ruling class 
which controls all the power and wealth, and the working class which the rulers exploit to 
maintain this. By racism, sexism and other forms of oppression, as well as war and 
environmental destruction the rulers weaken and divide us. Only the direct action of 
working class people can defeat these attacks and ultimately overthrow capitalism.

As the capitalist system rules the whole world it?s destruction must be complete and world 
wide. We reject attempts to reform it such as working through parliament and national 
liberation movements (like the IRA) as they fail to challenge capitalism itself. Unions 
also work as a part of the capitalist system, so although workers struggle within them, 
they will be unable to bring about capitalism?s destruction unless they go beyond these 
limits.

Organisation is vital if we?re to beat the bosses, so we work for a united anarchist 
movement and are affiliated to the International of Anarchist Federations.

Contact the Anarchist Federation

Email: info [at] afed.org.uk
Web: http://www.afed.org.uk

Write to:
BM ANARFED,
London, WC1N 3XX,
England, UK.

Local group and regional contacts: email addresses, websites, Facebook and Twitter:

http://www.afed.org.uk/organisation/contact.html

International of Anarchist Federations (our international coordination):
http://www.i-f-a.org/

--

Resistance bulletin no. 152, June 2013

The Anarchist Federation: http://www.afed.org.uk