Statement of the MLPD on the Struggle of the Steel Workers in Aspropyrgos

1. With a great majority in a democratic vote at a meeting on 28 July, the striking steel workers of Aspropyrgos decided to end their strike, which had been going on for 272 days, in order to continue their struggle in „another form“. With that, one of the most progressive strikes of the international industrial proletariat in Europe has first come to an end. We congratulate the steel workers and their families for their struggle, their courage, their perseverance, their willingness to make sacrifices and their determination, and we express our great respect.

2. With their significant struggle they gave important impulses to other workforces in Greece, as well as in Europe, and encouraged them. The 8000 Spanish miners took up the signal of their struggle and have been struggling for weeks with strikes, occupation of mines and streets and in mass demonstrations against the implementation of the policies of the EU, and they are at the lead of a new upswing of mass resistance in Spain. In Greece the strike of the steel workers became the central focus of the resistance against the shifting of the burdens of the crisis. This struggle was also only possible because the families and wives participated, organized themselves and took part in the political discussion.

3. The strike had international significance because it was not „merely“ directed against the capitalist Manesis and the Greek government, but also directly against the solely ruling international finance capital in form of the „Troika“, consisting of its organs EU, ECB and IMF.

5. We have to draw conclusions for the future about how this international unity in struggle of the steel workers, the international industrial proletariat and the masses against the shifting of the burdens of the crisis in Europe can be organized across country borders. Because the dictate of the „Troika“ against Greece and other countries can not be fought against successfully by one workforce or in one country alone. This requires a cross-border struggle like the one in 2006, when a European-wide coordinated strike of 40 000 dockworkers brought about the downfall of the reactionary EU guideline „Port-Package II“ and through a cross-border joint struggle the downfall of the reactionary „Bolkestein-Guideline“. This goes all the more to bring down such EU dictates like those against the people in Greece and in other European countries.

6. We therefore regard the most important lesson to be that we must work even more intensively on building up this international struggling front of the working class. Through the strengthening of the militant internationalist trade union work, through the promotion of international forms of organization, but especially through the strengthening of the ICOR, which can form the leading factor for the joining of the international industrial proletariat and also embodies the societal alternative to crisis-ridden capitalism, the struggle for genuine socialism.

Workers of all countries, unite !

Workers of all countries and all oppressed, unite !

Reinhard Funk

Member of the CC MLPD

* International Coordination of revolutionary Parties and Organizations