After millions of Spaniards and oppressed nationalities walked out yesterday, literally paralyzing the economy of the state for a whole day and also filling the streets of every city and town morning, afternoon and evening... the Spanish ultra-conservative government has declared that they will not change a comma in their law (more details in English language at IPS, for example).
The ruling People's Party (heir of People's Alliance, heir of Franco's National Movement, heir of the infamous CEDA) has the support of 31.6% of adult citizens and 44% of actual voters but only got 500,000 votes more than previous elections, when it ended in the opposition.
On Thursday more than 10 million actual workers, some of which may have been deceived into voting PP, walked out. Add to that the non-working housewives, students and all the mass of unemployed people (5.3 million). That may be some 20 or 25 million people who actually seconded the strike one way or another and flatly oppose the labor reform and the social cuts.
But the reform will not be voted in referendum, nope. The 32% of neo-fascists are imposing their views to the vast majority who is left frustrated, angry and in many cases desperate.
If that's democracy...
We need another general strike as soon as possible.
ReplyDeleteIf I know something about CC.OO.-UGT, and in general mainstream unions, this strike is planned as an outlet to let people vent anger and crash against a wall of indifference and disdain, gradually demobilizing.
ReplyDeleteIn France in 2010 worker assemblies and radical unions managed to extend an already existing strike indefinitely for some 10 days, effectively blocking the economy quite radically but they ultimately were demobilized (although it was a very good attempt)
Strikes are fine but what we really need first of all is a true grassroots organization of the working class that can ignore the direction of the sellouts.