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Counter Information No. 40 - Part 2
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Seeds of Revolt
In India a grassroots movement has formed to protect the
future of seed.The power of multinationals to control
the genetic information of life itself has been greatly
extended under GATT (General Agreement on tariffs and Trade)
and companies have placed patents on animals, micro-organisms,
the brain coding of human beings etc..Western multinationals
are trying to steal indigenous plants and knowledge from
Third World people and turn what should be a common human
resource into a trade commodity. The seed trader company
Cargill even claims to own pollen and speaks of bees as
"usurping the pollen."In the autumn of 1993 more than
half a million peple gathered together in Banglore, South
India, to protest the freedom of seed.In defiance local
seed banks are being set up at village level in order to
keep seed, regarded as sacred, free from big business
control.
In Britain too grassroots resistance to the rape of
the planet is growing. There has been a spate of Earth
First! actions, mainly against the Tories crazed roadbuilding
program, and more are to come! There seems to be an increasing
success rate with road schemes cancelled under Earth First!
pressure including the M1-M62 link in Yorkshire, the Leadenham
bypass near Lincoln and a link road development in Leicester.
Earth First! direct action is on the increase especially since
the high profile coverage given to Twyford Down and the brief
but glorious establishment of the autonomous republic of Wanstonia
which was viciously smashed by our police state. The violent
response of the state and its unheeding destructon of irreplacable
enviroment has convinced many that it's more than just the
transport system we need to change. Earth First! has no
centralised structure; no offices, leaders or official spokespeople
so anyone who wants can form an Earth First! group or do Earth First!
actions.There are probably as many different opinions on how and
why we should save the planet in EF! U.K. as there are people
involved. There are constant undercover actions such as the two
attacks on an ARC office (a roadbuilding company) where nearly
50.000 pounds worth of damage was done which of course North
Wales EF! "doesn't know anything about"...or brazen ones like
Glasgow EF!'s occupation of Glasgow Council's roads department
building in protest at the proposal to run a road through and
develop Pollok Estate. There is mass local opposition to the
proposed destruction.
In America there is ever increasing co-operation
between indigenous people whose land is being torn from them
and eco-activists. There is need for more solidarity between
the class struggle and the enviromental struggle.Everywhere
it is poor people who are the most immediate victims of enviromental
destruction: exposed to toxins at work and in poor quality housing,
pushed aside by business development and deprived of the right to
land. Resist Much: Obey Little!
See also Aufheben No.3 2 pounds (or 5 pounds for 3 sub)
from Aufheben
c/o Prior House, Tilbury Place, Brighton, East Sussex, BN2 2GY UK
"To the Runways!"
THE STRIKE by Air France ground staff last October against
4,000 redundancies, a wage freeze and the abolition of
bonuses holds important lessons. On 20 October transport
minister Bosson declared this plan "irrevocable". On 24
October the French government withdrew the plan.
Why? Because for 5 days up to 3,000 workers invaded
the Roissy, Orly and Toulouse runways and stopped all
freight and passenger traffic.
Riot police were driven off. "The lads drove into
the cops with runway vehicles and the cops ran away,"
explained a striker.
Solidarity was exemplary - on 25 October 3,000 Orly
strikers went to the police and successfully demanded that all charges against strikers be dropped.
To the Union Bureaucrats' dismay the Union-called
assemblies were quickly terminated by cries of
"To the runways!"
But there were weaknesses. The workers did not
co-ordinate between sectors and sites outside of
the Unions, who negotiated a return to work without a
signed agreement withdrawing the redundancies. The
movement needed to spread more to other industries.
Nevertheless the Air France strikers have shown all
workers the formidable power of mass workers' direct action.
See Contra Flow for extensive report.
Smashing way to change
40,000 young people and students held a victory parade on
31st March in Paris after the French Government caved in
to their demands. Casseurs ('smashers' - disaffected youth)
left a trail of destruction during the celebration
attracting tear gas from the riot police. The march also
called for the release of demonstrators detained in earlier
actions and the return of two Algerians deported after the
Lyons disturbances.
Throughout France, notably in Lyons, quarter of a million
students had demonstrated throughout France against plans
of the conservative Government to reduce the minimum wage
for people under 26 by 20%. This scheme only applied to
young people with less than two years higher education.
This attempt to increase divisions based on qualifications
was resisted by school-students, students and the unemployed.
With 23% unemployment amongst under 25s, anger was widespread
against a system of poverty, little training and
exploitation.
Faced with falling profit rates, the Prime Minister,
Balladur, tried to implement capital's aim to drive wage
levels downwards in a climate of insecurity. In the last
few years, under Socialists and conservative coalition
Governments, 50% of French workers are employed with no
job security leading to an attack on wages and
conditions.
Following the example of Air France strikers, and
peasants, the protests limited the power of left parties
and unions whose aim is to defuse discontent and contain
unrest. Instead, a climate of confrontation and direct
action forced the Government to capitulate. The repressive
power of the State was unable to counter spontaneous demos,
sit-ins, rail and road blocks & other tactics. Loose
'coordinations' bypassed official channels. Although not
revolutionary in aims (unlike the rhetoric of 1968), they
prevented protest from being stifled. Worldwide, such
self-organisation is essential to inflict more defeats on
the ruling class.
Zapata Worldwide
Calcutta: Dec. 19th. Workers occupy jute mill after being
locked out for demanding wages which had not been paid.
Production was restarted and workers' committees set up
alongside a communal kitchen. Jute workers throughout the
region sent messages of support. The courts ordered the
occupation illegal and closed the mill. On January 1st a
worker died of starvation in the mill's living quarters as
his wages had not been paid for six months. Reginald Brealey, owner
of Sheffield United F.C. owns the mill.
Assam State, India: Police kill 4 tea plantation workers
for demanding unpaid wages.
Delhi: April. Tens of thousands protest the signing of the
GATT deal by the Indian government.
Serbia: A ten week strike by Radio Pancero against the censorship
of Serbian government ended in January The strike was supported
by independent media.
29/11/93: 12,000 hospital workers in Kraljevo strike against
low pay and bad working conditions.
The strike lasts a week.
24/25/12/93: 15,000 railworkers strike against
"a bad union under state control"
29/12/93: 60,000 coalminers and power plant workers
go on strike causing power cuts for 2 days. January
sees ringleaders arrested.
USA: Decemeber, 18 childcare workers in Raleigh, North
Carolina strike for higher pay. Kindercare offer 15 pay
rise, the workers are looking for 20%. THis is one of
the first strikes by childcare workers in the US.
Ecuador: 100,000 teachers who had been on strike since
October 4th return to work on January with a 50% pay rise.
Germany: September 27th, 30m of railtrack are lifted in
protest at spent nuclear fuel being transported from
Bavaria to Sellafield. November, 100 protestors
block a fleet of trucks removing spent fuel from
Brokdorf. Water cannons brought in to disperse demo.
Israel: January 7th, Gush Shalon peace activists
distribute leaflets on the main Jerusalem-Bethlehem
road saying: "Dear Citizen, You have left the
territory of Israel. You are now a guest of the
neighbouring Palestinian State. Please avoid
antagonising the local population and observe the
basic rules of behaviour customary among civilised
nations, such as; no killings; no trespassing; no
damaging of property and no uprooting of
trees_remember, the people at home have no desire
to become entangled in war because of irresponsible
acts committed by Israelis abroad.
Go in peace and return safely"
The Other Israel, POB 2542, HOLON, ISRAEL 58125. (edited in CI)
Mexico: April 10th, tens of thousands of indigenous
people and peasants rallied throughout Mexico to
commemorate Zapata. This annual celebration saw
many participants pledge support for the January
Zapatista uprising. This seems to have led to more
unity among peasant organisations. Seventy groups
have set up camps in Mexico City where they'll
negotiate for improvements in living standards and
civil rights. January 18th, Paris, France: Support
group of the EZLN (Zapatistas) occupy the Mexican
embassy for 4 hours. A spokesperson for the EZLN
says "the EZLN is not structured to take power,
and we do not want it" and insists their only
ideology is "either we die or we live with dignity"
Greece, January 94: 100 people throw egss and
tins of paint at the local police station in
Moshato (suburb of Piraeus) to Protest at the
murder of Giakus, a local musician. The cop
who had killed Giakus was attcked by furious
crowds when released from court a couple of
weeks previous.