Socialist Worker 2588 2018-01-23 15:58:03.0
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Women’s March protests show the battle against Trump and sexism will go on
On the Women's March in London (Pic: Guy Smallman) Thousands of protesters gathered outside Downing Street on Sunday, a year to the day after women’s marches took place in London and across the US. Demonstrators declared “Time’s up” for oppression and sexual harassment. There was anger at the deep sexism at the heart of the system. Lily was on her first protest. “It feels like the attacks on women are constant,” she told Socialist Worker. “There was the election of Donald Trump, then all the stuff about Harvey Weinstein, then reports about pay disparity between men and women. “This protest feels very timely. It’s time to stand up. I think everyone is fired up for a better world.” Abortion Harriet came from the London Irish Abortion Campaign. “It’s ridiculous that women in Northern Ireland don’t have access to abortion,” she told Socialist Worker. “It’s a human right. “Thirteen women travel to England from Northern Ireland for an abortion every day. It costs hundreds in travel and accommodation.” There was a mix of people on the protest—young and old, black and white. Homemade placards reflected a variety of political views. Some, such as “March to the ballot in 2018”, put the focus on elections to get Trump out of office. Others focused on individual women getting ahead, such as “My favourite position is CEO.” But lots were more general, declaring that women’s rights are human rights. Harriet: “It’s ridiculous that women in Northern Ireland don’t have access to abortion” (Pic: Socialist Worker) Sophie from Chicago said the protest was about “intersectional feminism”. “Traditional feminism hasn’t paid attention to some groups of women,” she said. “But this is about rights for trans women and women of colour.” She added that Trump is a “symptom” of an oppressive society and that getting him out is key. “Do I agree with Hillary Clinton about everything? Probably not. But she was the most qualified candidate in the election, while Trump was the least qualified.” Joanna was one of many protesters from the Women’s Equality Party. She said she was there “to show solidarity with women across the UK”. “It’s important to show that the current political situation needs to change and now’s the time,” she added. “We’re hoping for changes in legislation to make women more equal.” Anti-racism was an important aspect of the protest. A Muslim woman speaker thanked people for protesting against Trump’s racist travel ban. Other speakers denounced the government’s treatment of refugees and migrants, and drew attention to deaths in police custody. One homemade placard read, “Migrants – we get the job done,” while another read simply, “Black lives matter”. Student Fadumo wanted to stress that Trump should not visit Britain. “The government here needs to understand that he can’t come here,” she told Socialist Worker. “If he came, it would just increase the bigotry.” Women’s March round two in the US Saturday marked one year since racist, sexist US president Donald Trump’s inauguration. Hundreds of thousands came on to the streets across the US on Saturday to make clear the fight against him and what he represents has not gone away. Dozens of protests took place across the country. Some estimates put the number marching in Los Angeles at 600,000. 300,000 marched in Chicago,  and over 100,000 in New York. The first Women’s March a year ago was sparked by anger at Trump boasting about sexually assaulting women in a recording that was made public. Seemingly oblivious, yesterday he tweeted, “Beautiful weather all over our great country, a perfect day for all Women to March. Get out there now to celebrate the historic milestones and unprecedented economic success and wealth creation that has taken place over the last 12 months. Lowest female unemployment in 18 years!” Crisis People are furious that Trump has lasted a year of crisis. The day before the Women’s March he spoke to the anti-abortion March for Life. "I’m fed up with this entire administration, and I think it’s important for us to press on for changes,” said Suelita Maki on the New York march. Where the anger goes is crucial. The Democratic Party want it to benefit them at elections. “We march. We run. We vote. We win,” said Nancy Pelosi, leader of the Democrats in the house of representatives, at the Washington march. Author Amanda Litman said, “It is not enough just to march… if you really care about solving a problem, running for office is the best way to do it.” Despite the Democrats’ shameless opportunism, not everyone attending the protests sees them as the answer. People attended the protest for many reasons, not just to wait and vote in the mid term elections in November this year. And doubtless even more would have attended if there had been a more inspirational message than just voting for change.

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Elephant and Castle campaigners tell developers to pack their bags
Protesters arrive outside Southwark council offices (Pic: Socialist Worker) A strong campaign pressured the Southwark council planning committee to vote down proposals to redevelop the Elephant and Castle shopping centre in south London on Tuesday. Earlier hundreds of people had gathered for an angry demonstration and students had occupied against the plan. The vote was to confirm approval of a planning application by Delancey. If it had passed it would have seen luxury apartments built on the site, with expensive shop spaces at the base. A document relating to the redevelopment raised concerns that “there is no traditional social rented accommodation provided.” “One of the most scandalous aspects is the company can make a £150 million profit but say it is ‘unviable’ to make more than 33 social homes,” said Tanya Murat from Southwark Defend Council Housing. The committee’s vote went through at 1am on Wednesday morning, after a seven hour meeting. Four councillors voted against the applications, three voted for it. There was one abstension. As the meeting began protesters listened to speeches from activists and councillors opposed to the plans. Speaking “I will be speaking tonight against the application,” said councillor Rebecca Lury. “The scheme doesn’t comply with council policy. “Members of the community are having community assets taken away from them.” Protesters forced their way into the council buildings. The planning committee meeting, supposedly public, was a ticketed event. On Monday night students from University of the Arts London (UAL) occupied part of the London College of Communication’s campus opposite the shopping centre. They supported local residents’ and campaigners’ demands for the site to remain in public ownership.  On Tuesday evening students joined the demonstration. “We’ve come down to show our support,” Morgan told Socialist Worker. “We want to show our support for local people being affected by the ridiculous drive for profits.” Councillor Paul Fleming (Pic: Socialist Worker) Before the protest set off people heard from Labour councillor Paul Fleming. “This is not just about the big questions” like the role of housing in society, he said. “The bare minimum is being ignored by the developers.” Demolition GMB rep at UAL Matt Phull told Socialist Worker that the anti-demolition movement is pulling people to the left inside Southwark Labour Party. “The left haven’t made the same gains in terms of councillors, but we are seeing people on the right taking up our demands,” he said. In a similar way to Haringey Labour councillors are split over the question of redevelopments, and not just down a left/right divide. With local elections set to take place in May, Labour councillors are weighing up their options. Some on the right have become opposed to redevelopments. Some councillors are sincere in their opposition to redevelopments which will see ordinary people kicked out of their neighbourhoods. Others are positioning themselves to ensure their political survival. Either way, it is an opportunity for the left to push forward in united campaigns including people in the Labour Party and those not in it to defend housing from the developers. A further meeting of the planning committee has been called for 30 January. There is every possibility the council leadership will try and force the committee to pass the planning application in another way then.
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Go and see The Post, but it isn’t quite first class viewing
Ben Bradlee (Tom Hanks) and Kay Graham (Meryl Streep) discuss revealing the establishment’s crimes The press is under attack by a US president desperate to preserve his position and willing to stoop to any level in this aim. The year is 1971. Stephen Spielberg’s latest film has won a clutch of five star reviews. “The best picture of the year. There is no more important film this year,” said Time magazine. The Evening Standard helpfully explains it’s all a metaphor for the Trump White House and Fake News. The Post is a good film—political and thrilling. But it’s just not as good or clever as it thinks it is. The action centres around the leaking of the Pentagon Papers. These were documents which showed that president after president had lied about the war in Vietnam and about the US’s relationship with Vietnam before the war as well. The papers were leaked by Daniel Ellsberg, one of the analysts. They had been compiled by a group of academics at the defence secretary Robert McNamara’s request. The film tells the real-life fight to publish them. In the opening scenes we’re shown successive presidents making statements about the war while a character reads parts of the papers which reveal these as lies. The action moves along at enough of a clip to keep it engaging. But it trips up at the attempts to draw parallels to today. Meryl Streep plays The Washington Post’s owner Kay Graham. Suffocating  She makes difficult decisions in the face of suffocating boardroom sexism. She gains confidence through the film until she throws down the gauntlet to the US state and publishes excerpts of the papers. At the court house a member of the prosecution approaches Graham and thanks her for publishing. “My brother’s still over there,” she says. Vietnam's blow to US empire   Read More We’re reminded frequently that important people are looking out for our best interests. Tom Hanks’s character Ben Bradlee, executive editor of The Washington Post, tells us repeatedly, “The only way to assert the right to publish is to publish.” The freedom of the press is held up as a universal truth. Brave editors and business owners stand up to other powerful people and fight on our behalf. “The days of us smoking cigars together… are over,” says Bradlee about his relationship with politicians. Apparently the Pentagon papers are a historical turning point. But cosy relationships between politicians and the media are far from buried—just think of Rupert Murdoch and Tony Blair,or Donald Trump and Fox News. The problem with drawing wrong historical parallels is that there are plenty of real parallels in history. “An operation essential to American security.” That’s what the Washington Post said about the 2003 Iraq War. The Post rightly attacks Richard Nixon and the other US presidents who killed millions in Vietnam. Maybe when a film is made about Iraq its media cheerleaders will be attacked as much as they deserve to be. See The Post if you like political thrillers, but make sure you take a pinch of salt with you.
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Three Manchester disputes to link up for day of coordinated action over jobs and pay
Bus drivers in Rusholme (Pic: Guy Smallman) Strikers in Manchester from three long-running disputes are rallying together this week against penny pinching bosses. Bus drivers, housing maintenance workers and IT workers were set to strike on Friday in the latest action in disputes that began last year. They are all members of Unite. Drivers at the First Bus depot in Rusholme are striking for pay parity. They are paid up to £5,000 a year less than drivers doing the same job at other First Bus depots. Drivers are striking on alternate Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. They are due to have their first meeting with conciliation service Acas on 31 January. But driver Robert said they weren’t calling off strikes at this stage. “They’re not going to get away with just calling a meeting and us giving up, so we’re still on strike,” he said. Workers have struck almost every week since November. Supporters regularly visit the strikers, including trade unionists and Labour councillors. Robert said the support of others is vital to the success of the strike and said, “People are still visiting us, and we’re getting loads of support from the public.” Meanwhile, housing maintenance workers at Mears housing contracting company are also striking for pay parity and an end to outsourcing. The 160 workers maintain houses owned by Northwards—the arm’s length management company run by Manchester City Council. Their contract was bought by Mears a decade ago—and they want the same pay as those who work directly for Northwards, a difference of up to £140 a week. And after 27 days of strikes last year, workers at IT firm Fujitsu were set to walk out again this week. Victimisation They are fighting against compulsory redundancies, victimisation of reps and breaches of a redundancy agreement. Bosses have now sacked four out of six reps who were leading the fight against job losses, including one who had an outgoing sexual harassment complaint. Dismissed rep Ian Allinson said bosses have threatened to take away staff bonuses for the whole year if they take any part in strikes. He described workers’ reactions as “some feel it’s bullying, but it shows how important the dispute is. “We need to redouble our efforts to raise money for the strikers.” Ian says Friday’s strike rally is “very important”. “There’s relatively little media coverage of our dispute and we’re trying to connect up our three disputes and give each other mutual support,” he said. “We’ve visited each other’s picket lines but solidarity is a lot easier when a significant number of strikers have met each other.” And Ian said meeting up with other strikers had the effect of “reinforcing to people what they’re doing really matters, and they’re right to do it”. Joint strike march and rally. Assemble Friday 26 January, 12 noon, Piccadilly Gardens, marching to Mechanics Institute, 103 Princess Street M1 6DD for strike rally at 12.30pm. For Fujitsu go to ouruniontest.wordpress.com Mears messages of support via colinpitt65@hotmail.co.uk Rusholme buses search for Solidarity with Rusholme on Facebook
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Updated - Theresa May’s Calais crackdown means more refugees will die
Refugees in northern France live in terrible conditions - and are harassed by police (Pic: Guy Smallman) Theresa May has promised £45 million for a fresh clampdown on refugees trapped at Britain’s border in Calais. The money will go towards making it harder for refugees to cross the border—and will mean more deaths. The prime minister’s announcement came after demands from French president Emmanuel Macron, who was posturing before his trip to Britain this week. Lara, a Goldsmith’s University student who recently visited refugees in Calais, told Socialist Worker, “It’s appalling that they’re spending money on stopping people from having a better life. “Refugees should be treated as human beings”. Some 1,500 refugees are trapped around Calais and Dunkirk in northern France after their “jungle” refugee camp was bulldozed in autumn 2016. They suffer police repression, harsh weather conditions—and the risk of death if they try to get to Britain. Lara was part of Stand Up To Racism (SUTR) and Care4Calais south east London delegation to Calais last December. “I was expecting to see people living in appalling conditions, but it was overwhelming,” she said “Police raid the refugees every couple of weeks. They use pepper spray, which means they can’t use the sleeping bags and tents the following night.” Devastation Many of the refugees in Calais are fleeing the devastation of the West’s imperialist wars in the Middle East. They have had to make the hazardous passage across the Mediterranean. Refugees are forced to take more dangerous routes by the European Union’s (EU) racist “Fortress Europe” policy. Lara said, “I’m a migrant myself, the only different between me and them is that I have a European passport.” Meanwhile, St Stephen’s Primary School in Newham in east London has lifted a ban on the hijab for girls under the age of eight. Arif Qawi, the chair of the board of governors who supported the ban, also resigned last week. A petition, started by a Muslim teenager in east London, gained a lot of support. The Tories and schools inspectorate Ofsted have created a climate of Islamophobia in schools, primarily through their racist “Prevent” strategy. Activists are planning another delegation to Calais the day after the SUTR Trade Union Conference on 10 February. Lara said, “We’re doing stalls at railway station to raise collections and awareness, more people need to know about it. The delegations aren’t just about charity, but about building solidarity with refugees and a mass movement against racism. That’s why anti-racists are building to SUTR rallies in the run up to national demonstrations in London, Glasgow and Cardiff on 17 March. The only solution to the Calais is to open the border—and let the refugees into Britain. Go to Facebook event Stand Up To Racism Trade Union conference facebook.com/events/282744872215165/ and Students Against Racism national conference https://www.facebook.com/events/955768344576714/ co-hosted by Student SUTR and Mend.  
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UCU calls 14 days of strikes after stunning vote for walkouts over pensions
UCU union members during a previous strike in Leeds (Pic: Neil Terry) The UCU union has called 14 days of escalating strikes across 61 universities starting next month. A two-day walkout is set to begin on or around 22 February, followed by three-day, four-day and five-day walkouts in the following weeks. The move follows a stunning vote for strikes to defend workers’ USS pension scheme. In ballots across 68 universities, over 88 percent backed strikes and 93 percent backed action short of strikes on a turnout of over 58 percent. The result is a testimony to the organising that UCU members have done on the ground – and shows that the Tory anti-union laws can be beaten. Carlo Morelli is a UCU rep at Dundee university and is on the union’s national executive committee. He told Socialist Worker, “It’s a fantastic vote and it far exceeds what everyone thought would happen. It shows members are willing to fight and can be mobilised when the union shows leadership.” Workers are fighting plans to change their USS defined benefit pension scheme to a defined contribution one. This would mean no guaranteed income in retirement and slash the value of workers’ pensions by half or more. It is a massive attack that has generated deep anger among UCU members, and the fight to stop it has brought more people into the union. Roddy Slorach, a UCU rep at Imperial College London said, “Our membership is up by nearly 10 percent in two months. One head of department emailed his entire department about the ballot. He’s never been to a union meeting before.” Lancaster university saw the third highest turnout in the country—over 73 percent. UCU chair Julie Hearn told Socialist Worker, “In November we planned our first ever ‘Get the Vote Out’ campaign. We had 30 reps ready to door knock for it and it worked.” Remarkable Carlo called the strike vote “remarkable”. “No one anywhere for the past month has said this would mean anything other than extended strikes, two, three, four or five days a week,” he said. “People knew what they were voting for.” The lowest vote for strikes across the 68 universities was 70.4 percent – still an overwhelming mandate for action. Yet in seven universities workers didn’t meet the 50 percent threshold in the Tory Trade Union Act, despite delivering huge votes for action. At Swansea university, the vote for strikes was 88.5 percent but the turnout was 49.7 percent. Ruskin College delivered a 100 percent strike vote – but missed the turnout threshold. Carlo added, “We voted to approach the seven branches that missed the threshold to see if they want to reballot. One missed the threshold by just two votes. I’m sure if they do, they will get the vote out. People will want to be part of this.” Talks on the future of the scheme are due to end tomorrow. Carlo said, “The leadership must not throw this away. There can be no negotiation that allows for our benefits to be cut.” He added that the dispute was about more than defending a pension scheme. The attack on pensions is part of a wider agenda of pushing marketisation and privatisation in education. UCU members will now move to organise regional activists’ meetings to prepare for the strikes. Carlo said, “The result marks an historic change. This wasn’t done through email or social media. It was done through knocking on doors and talking to people face to face. “This vote has created a core of active members on the ground. It’s created a trade union.”
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Global elite wallow in wealth at Davos summit
Billionaires Melinda and Bill Gates at World Economic Forum in 2017 (Pic: Remy Steinegger/WikiCommons) Bosses, politicians and celebrities descended on Davos in Switzerland this week for the World Economic Forum (WEF). Politicians claim they are going to secure good deals in the “national interest”. They are really there to prostrate themselves in front of bosses and do cosy business deals. They surround themselves with celebrities and hypocritical do-gooders in the vain hope some of the stardust will rub off on them. This year US president Donald Trump is going—something a sitting US president hasn’t done since Bill Clinton in 2000. He is likely to ridicule the international liberal elite that despise him. Yet he has consistently delivered for the rich and corporations. His trillion dollar tax cut last year will make inequality and poverty skyrocket. Davos comes at the same time as the Oxfam charity releases their annual report into global poverty. Increase It shows that last year 82 percent of the wealth created went to the richest 1 percent. The bottom half of the global population saw no increase in their personal wealth. “All over the world, the economy of the 1% is built on the backs of low paid workers,” said the report. It exposes the hypocrisy of the Davos attendees’ claims to want an end to poverty. The system they profit from produces poverty. Oxfam angered the right when it tweeted, “we have an extreme form of capitalism that only works for those at the top”. The charity is right that the system only works for a few. That’s how capitalism works. It is a machine that inevitably produces and deepens divisions. The report describes how billionaires’ wealth increased by £546 billion in 12 months. “This huge increase could have ended global extreme poverty seven times over,” it said. People attending Davos are not stupid—they know a huge amount of anger at the system exists in society. So the eight person board of co-chairs at the WEF is all women this year. This is a direct response to the #MeToo campaign and growing anger at sexism in society. But as the Oxfam report points out, “Women are in the worst work, and almost all the super-rich are men.” Decisions about the WEF panel will not change that. Labour’s shadow chancellor John McDonnell is set to attend. It’s a sign of the pressure on Labour to appear “responsible” to bosses. McDonnell is making a big mistake—he should stay well clear of the nest of vipers. Jeremy Corbyn did so well at last year’s general election by separating himself from the normal run of besuited politicians. Labour should stay true to that radicalism.
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Nurse speaks out—‘Join our vital health protest’
Tens of thousands came on the last national march for the NHS (Pic: Guy Smallman) Health workers are calling on people to join the demonstration on Saturday 3 February in central London. Staffing figures released this week hammered home the scale of the NHS crisis. The number of unfilled nursing posts in England reached a new high of over 34,000 last year. And some areas are recruiting only one nurse for every 400 jobs advertised Mark, a nurse in Manchester, told Socialist Worker, “There’s not enough funding, there are not enough staff, there are not enough beds. The winter crisis has highlighted how bad things are—we need to stop cuts and privatisation.” He added, “I work with elderly people, I sit in hospital corridors with them for hours while waiting for a bed.” The scale of the NHS crisis is causing rows among the Tories. Boris Johnson briefed that he would call for extra NHS funding at a cabinet meeting this Tuesday. Mark said, “They’re all self-serving. Boris is just after ­Theresa May’s job.” The demonstration, called by the People’s Assembly and Health Campaigns Together, is an opportunity to take advantage of the Tories’ problems. We cannot wait for a Labour government—we have fight for the NHS now. East of England ambulance delays saw 40 people die or suffer harm At least 40 people died or were harmed in the East of England because of ambulance delays over the holiday period, according to a whistleblower. It is another sign of the NHS crisis caused by Tory cuts and privatisation. According to a damning dossier, passed to the Lowestoft Journal newspaper, the deaths included a man who waited 16 hours for an ambulance. The document said the patient from Lowestoft appeared “to have frozen to death” on 27 December. Cops called the ambulance because the man, who is believed to have been in his 50s, was sitting outside his home. The East of England Ambulance Trust (EEAS) decided not to send an ambulance because he had “no obvious injuries”. This meant it was not logged as an emergency call, which requires a response time of seven minutes. Some 16 hours later a second call was made by another person, who reported that the man was not breathing and in cardiac arrest. The ambulance arrived within eight minutes—but he was already dead. Tory budget cuts and privatisation have combined with their decimation of council-run social services. A new report on mental health services, published by the King’s Fund think tank last week, hammers home the scale of the NHS crisis. Mental health trusts’ budgets increased by less than 2.5 percent, well below the inflation rate. This crisis means that people are forced to seek help in accident and emergency (A&E) services. Salena, a mental health nurse in Bristol, told Socialist Worker, “Support services have collapsed so A&E is the only place they can really come. “There’s nothing for people until they reach crisis point, but then the pressure is to get them back out.” Labour politicians have called for funding for mental health services to be “ringfenced” and for “parity” with other services. Labour should be fighting for more funding, not trying to make the best of limited resources and just blaming the Tories. Labour held a national campaigning day last Saturday and planned a Westminster rally with Jeremy Corbyn and John McDonnell this Thursday. Corbyn and the Labour Party should throw their weight behind the NHS demonstration on 3 February. Called by the People’s Assembly and Health Campaigns Together, it could bring tens of thousands onto the streets of London. Activists across Britain have booked coaches. In Nottingham campaigners are planning a series of events in the run-up to the demonstration, including banner drops, meetings and leafleting hospitals. Activists need to go all out to build the demonstration in the final weeks.
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Is a risky pension scheme in the Royal Mail pipeline?
Workers showed they were up for a fight (Pic: CWU Eastern No 5) Postal workers’ CWU union leaders could draw up a deal with Royal Mail bosses this week that would leave thousands of workers with a worse pension scheme. If CWU members back the deal, it would end a dispute that last year saw workers vote by almost 90 percent for national strikes. Bosses originally planned to transfer people who started working for Royal Mail before 2008 onto a defined contribution (DC) pension scheme. This could pay out less and be at the mercy of the stock market. But in talks bosses backed away from that in favour of a new “collective defined contribution”—or defined ambition—scheme. This could be an improvement for workers already on the DC scheme as it guarantees a set wage in retirement. It also means all Royal Mail workers would be on a single scheme—one of the CWU’s key demands. But the amount paid out still depends on the pension’s stock market value when workers retire—meaning workers on the defined benefit scheme would lose out. Last week CWU deputy general secretary Terry Pullinger said negotiators hoped to get a deal “nailed down next week.” Royal Mail has offered to draft the legislation needed to implement the scheme. It is an improvement from the attack bosses had planned. That’s because CWU members showed bosses they were up for a fight. Union leaders shouldn’t accept a pension deal that would harm tens of thousands of workers. CWU members should be ready to reject the agreement—and strike for a better deal for all workers.
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Keep up the Glasgow equal pay fight
Celebrating Glasgow council’s decision to negotiate on pay (Pic: Raymie Kiernan) Low paid women workers are one step closer to justice in their decade-long fight against Glasgow City Council. But they have to keep up the pressure. The Unison and GMB union members are fighting to have single status agreements properly implemented in local government. When the Scottish National Party (SNP) ran in local elections last year it promised to resolve the dispute. The SNP won—then dragged the dispute through the legal system. But in December the Court of Session threw the case out and told the council to pay up. Last week councillors unanimously voted to accept this and begin negotiations. Carol Ball, chair of Unison Glasgow City branch, said, “It’s the right decision. It’s time the council recognised there’s pay inequality in the city and to move on and get it right.” The decision to begin talks was made possible by the determination of the workers, several strong lobbies and a refusal to back off. They should keep the pressure on council bosses until they get the equal pay they deserve. Equal pay or we walk away demonstration—Saturday 10 February, 11am, Glasgow Green
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Letters - violent police will protect the bosses’ elite conference
Lifestyles of the rich and shameless - the airefield at a previous World Economic Forum in Davos (Pic: Kecko/Wikicommons) Spare a thought for John McDonnell this week. He’ll be abandoning his comfort zone to attend the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland. It is reassuring that his summons to this invite-only shindig of the world’s elite suggests that they consider him a likely contender for chancellor. But I am left wondering what sort of reception “Labour’s vision for an alternative economic approach to replace the current model of capitalism” will get? Of the attendees, some 1,500 will be business leaders. Of the remaining 1,000 just 11 will be union leaders. Journalists covering the event are divided by a badge system, which ensures that only those considered worthy by the organisers get full access. Meanwhile those documenting the events outside will get to see the democratic aims of the WEF in action. This event has understandably attracted its fair share of protests over the years. Donald Trump’s decision to attend—so much for his anti-establishment “swamp draining” credentials—will probably see the protests increase in size. And masses of Swiss riot cops will be drafted in to ensure that no one spoils the party. The Swiss police are not well known for their restraint, as I discovered in Geneva in 2003 during the G8 summit. I was photographing them attacking peaceful demonstrators when I was blown off my feet by one of their ‘flashbang’ grenades. I was hospitalised for three weeks. It took nine years and three court cases to win any compensation, which was only possible with the support of my trade union. Unsurprisingly the cops got away with their actions. The WEF states its mission as being “committed to improving the state of the world”. This seems ironic when you consider who makes up most of the guest list and the behaviour of those tasked with providing security. Guy Smallman South London Churchill didn’t bully Whats the point to your article on Churchill? (Socialist Worker, 17 January).Who did he “bully”, by the way? He didn’t even “bully” his way into office. If you’re talking about his support for the British Empire, the word is “imperialist”. But even that doesn’t fit since Churchill was instrumental in destroying the empire—and he knew it. If you want perfection, light a candle to a saint. No politician is a paragon of virtue and most have blood on their hands in some way, even Gandhi. Rob Kenyon on Facebook Churchill was a racist One of my earliest memories is Churchill’s funeral on television and my grandmother laughing and shouting, “He’s dead! He’s dead! The bloody old warmongering bastard is dead!” Years later when I watched Thatcher’s funeral on telly I knew just how she had felt. Sean Barker On Facebook Churchill committed genocide in Bengal, was a rampant racist and vocal about it. He wanted the striking Welsh miners to be machine gunned. During the war he ordered annihilation bombing of German cities, specifically targeting civilians. Max Caley On Facebook Treatment of racist DJ shows campaigns work DJ Mistabishi’s racist comments about London mayor Sadiq Khan are disgusting. He posted an awful Facebook post after Donald Trump cancelled his visit to Britain. Even in the creative industry, racism and homophobia are rife. Drum and bass is a really diverse scene. It’s great that industry websites like Mixmag are talking about it. And his record label has handled it really well—they’ve dropped him and have said they’ll give the royalties to Love Music Hate Racism (LMHR) The reaction to his comments show that campaigns like LMHR work. We can fight racism in the music industry by having no tolerance for it, and calling it out at every opportunity. Lois Browne Love Music Hate Racism Programme challenged stereotypes I disagree with aspects of the review of Working Class White Men (Socialist Worker, 17 January). Despite the title, I welcomed the programme challenging some stereotypes about young working class men. One man said that people felt intimidated by him and his friends hanging around in a group in the park. But he explained they just wanted a job and somewhere decent to live like anybody else. Fascist groups take advantage of the vulnerable and jobless. However it ended on a hopeful note and the presenter said, “It’s not colour that matters, it’s class”. He urged people to direct their anger to the top in society. Well said! David Wainwright Leicester Do plastic charges work? Am I being unduly cynical at the support from retailers for compulsory plastic bag charging? Apart from the few companies that claim to donate this income to charity, the rest will be laughing their way to the bank. John Hein Edinburgh Corrupt Tories have got to go Carillion has to be the one to bring down the Tories (Carillion’s collapse puts thousands of workers’ jobs and pensions at risk, Socialist Worker, 17 January). They are corrupt to the core, and handed out milions in contracts to a company that went under. Martin Sean Beck On Twitter Here’s a thought—the last Carillion chief financial officer earned £460,000 a year, before bonuses, when he was sacked in September 2017. Mike Healy On Facebook Cyrille opened up the sport I was shocked to read Cyrille Regis had died. He was a pioneer who opened the sport up to thousands of black kids that wanted to be footballers. Players like Cyrille played a huge part in challenging racism in the game. Phil Rowan South London I support the guard strikes The rail strikes have my support for what it’s worth (Socialist Worker, 17 January). I would support a general strike tomorrow! Pam Thompson On Facebook No room for redevelopers great to read the good news about the Elephant and Castle housing demo (Socialist Worker online, 17 January). The council voted the proposals down—at least for now! We need to keep pressure on. Homes for people, not for profit. P O’Neill On Twitter
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The Troublemaker - badger throttler clings on after Ukip no confidence vote
Racist Ukip leader Henry Bolton (Pic: Njharris1997/Wikicommons) The racist Ukip party is embroiled in a fresh crisis. Its national executive committee passed a motion of no confidence in leader Henry Bolton on Sunday—unanimously save for Bolton, who voted against. It follows the badger throttler’s current or ex-girlfriend, depending on who you believe, Jo Marney making a number of racist comments. Bolton was refusing to go as Socialist Worker went to press, despite other rats quickly jumping ship. Deputy leader Margot Parker resigned as did Ukip’s immigration spokesperson John Bickley and trade spokesperson William Dartmouth. At least 12 resigned in total. Bolton faces an emergency general meeting where members force him out. One problem with yet another leadership election is that Ukip can’t afford to run one. Another is the lack of credible alternatives. Neil Hamilton, leader of Ukip in Wales, made some effort to suggest otherwise. After suggesting that Bolton “seek psychological help”, Hamilton declared that a “calm, experienced person like Gerard Batten MEP or Mike Hookem MEP” would save the party. This is the calm Hookem who was accused of punching fellow Ukiper Steven Woolfe in 2016. Meanwhile the calm Batten resigned as Ukip’s Brexit spokesperson and tweeted his message to Bolton, “For God’s Sake GO!” Refusing to go gives Bolton’s enemies more time to attack him. Last weekend Bolton’s former campaign chief Neil Jones revealed that he resigned after Bolton bragged about “seeing” a young women while his wife was pregnant. “We went for Sunday lunch and Henry arrived looking really pleased with himself,” said Jones. “He said he was seeing this Italian girl and showed us a picture of her in a yellow bikini.” If Bolton is forced out, Ukip would be looking for its fifth leader in 18 months. Bolton insisted he has done nothing wrong, while admitting that his personal life is “a little bit of a mess”. He also said that a new leadership election would be “unviable” financially and would spell the end of Ukip. Here’s hoping. Northumbria crime family A senior police officer’s son was arrested on suspicion of burglary but he was not charged. His father compensated the victim and details of the incident were deleted from the force’s database. Matthew Vant was questioned under caution on suspicion of burglary and criminal damage. His father Greg is a former assistant chief constable of Northumbria police. Following the arrest of his son in November 2009, the force authorised the matter to be settled through the community resolution scheme with the shop owner receiving an apology and £1,000 from Greg Vant. When the incident was brought to the attention of senior officers, details of the crime were deleted from internal police databases. Northumbria police said the IPCC “found no evidence of misconduct”. Jolly junkets for the Tories Pampered politicians have spent nearly £600,000 going on cushy overseas junkets as trade envoys since 2012. MPs and peers racked up the bill for flights and hotels in four years. They include wealthy Tory Richard Benyon, who spent £20,000 on five trips to Ethiopia, Congo and Mozambique. Benyon was among 15 Tory MPs and five of the party’s peers who went on such jollies . Shamed ex-trade minister Mark Garnier cost us £10,500 on three trips to Burma, Brunei and Thailand. The cost of the envoy scheme was up from £222,377 last year. ‘Splat the chav’ Tory keeps his new job A vice chairman of the Conservative Party once wrote that he was looking forward to watching police play “splat the chav” during the 2011 London riots. Ben Bradley (Pic: Chris McAndrew) In another post he wrote, “For once I think police brutality should be encouraged!”Ben Bradley, MP for Mansfield, wrote, “I’ll be in front of the news tonight watching police play ‘Splat the Chav’.” Bradley was promoted during Theresa May’s January reshuffle to be in charge of persuading more young people to vote Conservative. In a blog post, dating from 2012, Bradley wrote, “Sorry but how many children you have is a choice; if you can’t afford them, stop having them! Vasectomies are free. “We’re drowning in a vast sea of unemployed wasters that we pay to keep!” The prime minister’s press secretary said Bradley had apologised and added that his views had changed Presumbly around five minutes after they became public knowledge. Judge to consider perception of bias A judge is to decide this week whether he will step aside from a case over a report into the Loughinisland murders. Justice McCloskey had been due to announce whether he would quash a report into the 1994 murders. He has been asked to withdraw from the case over a possible perception of bias. Last month, he ruled that the police ombudsman’s finding of collusion between some officers and the killers was “unsustainable in law”. The judge ruled in favour of two ex-police officers who brought the case. Six Catholic men were shot dead in the County Down village in 1994. As a barrister, he previously represented one of the two retired police officers who mounted the judicial review. The judge has insisted he has no memory of representing the officer in the previous case against the ombudsman. Heir's hair sets hares running The hair on Prince William’s crown has been thinning for years and now he has admitted defeat by having it severely shorn. A royal flunky dismisses reports that Prince William paid £180 for a No 1 haircut. They said, “The Duke is very amused that anyone thinks he has enough hair to justify that kind of money.” Specious speechwriting courses Two of Labour MP Jared O’Mara’s staff have gone on speechwriting courses that cost them £875 each. Jared has made not one Commons speech so far. The Sheffield Hallam MP had the party whip withdrawn in October after a string of misogynistic and homophobic online comments were revealed. The things they say ‘I told them I was on the board ofa Chinese company, that I was comfortably off’ Former MP Peter Lilley explains why he wasn’t caught in a Channel Four sting Politicians For Hire ‘You can call me a Corbynist, but I am pro-Nato, pro-Trident and against freedom of movement’ Journalist Paul Mason explains to the Sunday Times his commitment to Labour ‘I have seen people die, I have seen people blown up, I have seen people shot. Even the Taliban doesn’t quite prepare you for Ukip’ Ukip leader, for now, Henry Bolton ‘Beautiful weather all over our great country, a perfect day for all Women to March’ US president Donald Trump misses the point of the Women’s march
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Vietnam's blow to US empire
US Marines move through the ruins of the hamlet of Dai Do after several days of intense fighting during the Tet Offensive (Pic: Schulimson/Wikicommons) Fifty years ago this week Vietnamese liberation forces showed the world that it was possible to resist the horrors of US imperialism. Their Tet Offensive, launched on 31 January, was a turning point in the Vietnam War. And it kickstarted 1968, a watershed year that saw resistance to war and oppression across the globe. The Vietnamese had forced their French colonial rulers out of the country in 1955. But “peace talks” partitioned the country between communist North Vietnam and the US puppet regime in South Vietnam. The National Liberation Front (NLF), dubbed the Viet Cong, fought on against the brutal US occupation. Vietnamese New Year on 31 January, known as Tet, traditionally marked an unofficial 36-hour ceasefire. But by 1968 the Viet Cong had built up enough strength to launch a major offensive against the US. Along with the North Vietnamese Army (NVA), they attacked US military installations across South Vietnam. In the capital Saigon, Viet Cong fighters blasted a hole into a US embassy compound and stepped foot on their occupiers’ soil. Exposed It was the moment US power was exposed as fallible. For months the US ruling class had sold the lie that there was “light at the end of the tunnel” in the Vietnam War. Invitations to the New Year’s Eve party at the US embassy in Saigon carried that same message. Sam Oglesby, an agent for the US International Development Agency during the war, described the US military’s arrogance. He filed a report about widespread Communist infiltration in South Vietnam after accompanying a French colonist to a rubber plantation near Saigon. “The American intelligence team scorned any effort to provide real information as ‘tainted’ and ‘French’,” Oglesby wrote. They were “barricaded in their compound with the noise of ear-splitting generators blocking them from the real world outside and fed fabricated ‘intelligence’ by paid informers”. The US Army leadership was largely oblivious to NLF and NVA forces secretly encircling Southern cities. Ho Chi Minh (Pic: Charles Bonnay) A broadcast by North Vietnamese president Ho Chi Minh on 1 January had given the signal for tens of thousands of NVA troops to sneak across the border. Le Van Cho, an NVA soldier, remembered, “To operate in the daytime we had to look like civilians, so we pretended to be farmers and puppet officials. “We would dress up like women and put our AKs under our dresses.” As Vietnamese forces amassed outside the cities, the NVA attacked Khe Sanh, the US’s westernmost base in South Vietnam. It was a diversion—and it worked. The scale of the Tet Offensive a few days later was huge—36 of 44 provincial cities in South Vietnam were attacked, as well as major cities and US bases. Vietnamese Communist Party general secretary Le Duan argued that resistance fighters should attack the cities. “They told us to get ready for a major attack on the cities,” said NVA fighter Nguyen Ngoc. “A total attack and a total uprising. We were on the outskirts of the cities. We could go in and out easily so I thought we would be successful.” Switched Le Duan said the local population would rise up as they had in 1945 against the Japanese and the French. And he also believed the South Vietnamese army, which worked with the US, would switch sides. Unfortunately Le Duan was wrong on almost every count. Despite the anger at the US occupation, with some exceptions, workers in the Southern cities did not rise up. They faced brutal repression from the US and South Vietnamese dictatorship, and the Communists hadn’t organised among the working class in the cities. Some of the heaviest fighting took place in the ancient city of Hue near the border. After a 26-day battle, some 6,000 civilians were dead and 110,000 homes out of 130,000 were destroyed. In Hue and Ben Tre, near Saigon, the Communists had been able to mobilise popular support for the offensive. They had built a base among peasants living in and around the cities. But in Saigon itself the uprising was weakest. The working class, the vast majority of the city’s population, had not been won over. Militarily the Tet Offensive was a decisive defeat for the resistance. Of the estimated 84,000 soldiers that took part, over 58,000 are thought to have been killed, wounded or captured. This devastated the NLF’s organisation on the ground. But the Tet Offensive showed the heroism of the Vietnamese resistance—and that the US was not all powerful. Henry Kissinger (Pic: Marion S. Trikosko/Wikicommons) US war criminal Henry Kissinger said, “We fought a military war—our opponents fought a political one. “In the process we lost sight of one of the cardinal maxims of guerrilla war—the guerrilla wins if he does not lose, the conventional army loses if it does not win.” The US had been waging a brutal war on Vietnam since 1955. US soldiers burned villages and terrorised the peasant population. And from 1962 it sprayed 20 million gallons of Agent Orange and other chemicals onto Vietnam’s forests to deprive the NLF of cover. Children with deformities are still being born today. The Tet Offensive exposed the bloody reality of US imperialism. Ben Tre was razed to the ground in the battle to push the resistance fighters back. One US general was widely reported to have said, “We had to destroy the city in order to save it.” And South Vietnamese police commander executed NLF officer Nguyen Van Lem on live television. “Many Americans begin to ask themselves ‘are we supporting the wrong side here?’” said US army adviser James Willbanks. “It brings home to the dinner table the brutality of this war and the fact that it seems like it’s never going to end.” No one believed the US ruling class’s lies that it was winning the war anymore. US society became polarised. Senior White House staff looked at protests outside their offices to see their families taking part. By 30 March 1968 a Gallup poll showed that 63 percent of people in the US disapproved of the way Democratic president Lyndon Johnson had handled the war. Another poll showed just 35 percent of people approved of the war. Johnson said he would not stand for re-election. Turning Marxist author Chris Harman argued, “Tet represented the turning point in the war because it persuaded key sections of big business that the US simply could not afford the cost of maintaining control of the country.” The crisis for US capitalism unfolded on an international scale. As Kissinger argued, “A demonstration of American impotence in Asia cannot fail to lessen the credibility of American pledges in other fields. We are no longer fighting in Vietnam only for the Vietnamese, we are also fighting for ourselves and for international stability.” In truth, the US was never in Vietnam “for the Vietnamese”. As Kissinger alludes to, it was there largely to limit China’s ability to export its brand of “communism” throughout Asia. The US was desperate for an end to the war, but it did not want to be seen to surrender. It started peace negotiations in 1968, but troops would stay in Vietnam for another five years. Republican Richard Nixon, Johnson’s predecessor, tried to continue the war after he won the presidency by promising peace. The liberal US journalist Theodore White wrote about the impact of the Tet Offensive on the US. “Here, enshrined like myth, in January 1968, was the visible symbol of American faith. “That the power of the United States can be curbed by no one, that the instruments of American government need but the will to act and it is done. “In 1968 this faith was shattered. “The myth of American power broken, the confidence of the American people in their government, their institutions, their leadership, shaken as never before since 1860.” That was down to a badly-armed peasant army fighting the world’s greatest military power. Their courage sparked a remarkable year of resistance that would shape history to this day. The American War—Vietnam 1960-1975 by Jonathan Neale, £7.00 The Fire Last Time—1968 and After by Chris Harman, £9.95 Both available at Bookmarks, the socialist bookshop. Phone 020 7637 1848 or go to bookmarksbookshop.co.uk
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Imperialism won’t end Kurdish agony
Kurdish YPG fighters (Pic: kurdishstrugle) In a Middle East tormented by the domination of Western imperialism, the Kurdish people have been among the greatest victims. When Britain and France carved up the Ottoman Empire nearly a century ago, the Kurds were denied their right to self-determination. Instead they were split between several states—Turkey, Syria, Iraq, and Iran—that have usually oppressed them. This torment continues into the present. Last weekend Turkish forces attacked Afrin, in the Kurdish-controlled region of Syria known as Rojava. But the problem isn’t just the oppressor states but the choice that Kurdish leaders sometimes have made to ally themselves to imperialist powers, particularly the United States. This has long been the strategy of the two Kurdish nationalist parties in northern Iraq, the Kurdish Democratic Party (KDP) and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK). They took advantage of the 1991 Gulf War led by the US against Saddam Hussein’s Iraq to carve out an enclave, benefitting from the protection of American air power. The 2003 invasion of Iraq by the US and Britain allowed the Kurdish enclave to consolidate itself. It seemed an island of relative calm amid the chaos the rest of Iraq descended into. The rise of Isis and its seizure of Mosul in 2014 seemed to offer more opportunities. Kurdish forces took advantage of the confusion in Baghdad to seize disputed areas, above all the oilfields around Kirkuk. And they received massive US support as they fought alongside Iraqi government forces to drive ISIS out of its strongholds. Last September, as the US-led coalition’s grip tightened around Mosul, Masoud Barzani, president of Iraqi Kurdistan and KDP leader, called a referendum on independence. Even though he won an overwhelming majority, he had badly overplayed its hand. The US stood by while its Kurdish clients were humiliated in Iraq. Will it do the same in Syria? The Iraqi government was able to retake Mosul thanks to the support, not just of the US, but also of Iran. Iranian-backed Shiite militias played a crucial role in Isis’s defeat. In October, after Mosul’s fall, Iraqi prime minister Haider al-Abadi redirected some to retake the areas the Kurds had seized in 2014. They fell rapidly, possibly because of a deal cut with Iran by Barzani’s PUK rivals. Now there may be a rerun in Syria. Rojava was carved out by the Kurdish YPG (People’s Protection Units) when the regime of Bashar al-Assad, fighting for its survival after the 2011 rising, abandoned them. The YPG is closely linked to the Kurdish Workers Party (PKK), which has been waging a generation-long war against the Turkish state. As in the case of Iraq, Washington latched onto the YPG as an ally. The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), backed by 2,000 US troops, played an important role in the campaign that finally drove Isis from its capital in Raqqa. They now control 25 percent of Syria. The problem for the US is that Isis’s defeat strengthened Iran, which backs both Assad and al-Abadi. So last week Washington announced it would keep troops in Syria. The ostensible aim was to train up the SDF into a 30,000-strong border force in north-eastern Syria. In reality this move was aimed at Iran, towards which Donald Trump is adopting an increasingly confrontational approach. But in the complex, multi-dimensional chess game that is Middle East politics it inevitably antagonised Turkey. The government of Recep Tayyip Erdogan has escalated the war against the PKK in the last couple of years, and it doesn’t want to see its enemy become stronger in Syria. Another factor in the equation is Russia, which intervened in September 2016 decisively to tilt the balance in the Syrian civil war in Assad’s favour. Russia has also supported the YPG. But, after negotiations in Moscow last week, the Russian military police based in Afrin were pulled out. In effect Vladimir Putin gave Erdogan the green light to attack, and he has. The US stood by while its Kurdish clients were humiliated in Iraq. Will it do the same in Syria? Whatever the answer to this question, it is the Kurdish people who are suffering. Let’s hope its political leaders learn that there is no gain from allying themselves to imperialist monsters such as Trump and Putin.
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Join protest over dismissal of activist Louise Harrison and to defend women’s aid
Protesting to defend women's aid in Doncaster last year (Pic: Neil Terry) Supporters of South Yorkshire Women’s Aid (SYWA) and Louise Harrison were set to protest in Doncaster on Saturday. Louise worked for SYWA before its trustees decided last week not to renew her contract. She has led campaigns to defend women’s aid services and to raise money to keep SYWA going. Her dismissal has led to widespread anger among campaigners, trade unionists and others. Speakers at the protest include Ian Hodson, president of the Bfawu union, children’s author Alan Gibbons and Maxine Bowler from Sheffield trades council. But there is also pressure on some not to support Louise, because she has challenged funding cuts made by a Labour-run council. So some leading trade unionists have opposed the campaign to defend Louise. And the Morning Star newspaper last week printed claims from the trustees defending their position. Campaigners, including Labour Party members, should stand with Louise and fight to defend SYWA. Protest to defend SYWA and Louise Harrison, Saturday 27 January, 12 noon, Mansion House, Doncaster. Contact amycousens123@gmail.com to find out more
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40,000 UCU members could strike, shutting down 68 universities
John McDonnell promised to support the strikes if they went ahead (Pic: Guy Smallman) 40,000 UCU union members are being balloted for strikes over pensions. The ballot ends on Friday. If workers vote for action, walkouts could paralyse some 68 universities across Britain every week next month. Carlo Morelli is a lecturer at Dundee university and a member of the UCU’s national executive committee. He told Socialist Worker, “People need to prepare now for the strikes that will come. We should call activists’ meetings to organise them.” Workers are in dispute over plans to change their USS defined benefit pension scheme to a defined contribution one. Instead of having a guaranteed income in retirement, this would leave workers at the mercy of the stock market roulette. For some, it would slash the value of their pension by half or more. That’s why there is so much anger—and a determination to fight. Carrie Benjamin from Soas UCU spoke about turning out the vote (Pic: Guy Smallman) Carrie Benjamin represents lecturers who are employed on a fraction of a full term contract at Soas University of London. She told Socialist Worker, “For people on fixed term or hourly paid contracts, the defined benefit pension scheme is the one bit of security we have. “I’m hopeful we’ll get a good vote in the ballot.” Workers were still getting the vote out in the final week of the ballot. Carlo said, “I emailed people who hadn’t yet voted on Sunday to remind them to vote. On Monday morning I got a dozen or more people who told me they’ve now voted.” Attack Conor McCann, a UCU member at University College London (UCL), pointed out that the attack on pensions is not the first. “In 2014 our USS scheme changed from a final salary one to a career average one,” he told Socialist Worker. “It feels like a continuous barrage against workers. But universities like UCL have got so much money in the bank.” The ballot has helped to build the union. Roddy Slorach, a UCU rep at Imperial College London, told Socialist Worker, “Whenever you get to speak to anyone about it, the anger comes fizzing out. “I had one head of department who took it upon himself to email his entire department about the ballot. He’s never been to a union meeting before. “Our membership is up by nearly 10 percent in two months. I’ve been at the university for four or five years and this dispute has put me in touch with new people. The ballot has helped create a new network of people who can build the union.” The union’s higher education committee was set to meet on Monday and decide on what action to call. It could call strikes of up to four or five days a week throughout February. UCU general secretary Sally Hunt told Socialist Worker, “UCU is ready and willing to negotiate for as long as it takes to find a better way forward. “But we cannot rule out sustained industrial action if no acceptable resolution is found.” Pledged During the ballot Hunt told UCU members, “Intermittent one-day strikes will not budge the employers.” Shadow chancellor John McDonnell spoke to a UCU rally in London on Wednesday and pledged to back workers in their fight. “I’m here in solidarity,” he said. “We haven’t gone away, Jeremy and myself. “Whatever decisions you take, we will be alongside you in exactly the same way we have in the past, whether that’s in parliament or on the picket line.” The ballot is disaggregated, so each institution’s vote will be counted separately. The employers will hope that some branches will just miss reaching the 50 percent threshold the Tories have imposed on unions. Roddy said, “Activists think that the union should say that we should look at the national result, so areas with lower turnouts should come out anyway.” And Carrie added, “The union should support strikes in any case, regardless of the turnout. I’m hoping that the UCU takes a firm stance on it.” If there’s a vote for strikes, the union should call them – and before negotiations with bosses end on Tuesday. Escalating action has the power to stop their assault on pensions.
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Seize every chance to defeat the Haringey social cleansing plan
Marching against the HDV (Pic: Guy Smallman) The fight against the Haringey Development Vehicle (HDV) continues to expose the contradictions inside the Labour Party. At a recent internal Labour Party meeting the party’s councillors voted by 24 votes to 22 to push ahead with the HDV. The £2 billion scheme would see seven estates in the borough sold off to a private developer. Councillors opposed to the HDV have stayed away from other votes on redevelopments in the council to avoid losing the party whip before the local elections in May. If the whip is withdrawn it means the councillors wouldn’t have to vote with Labour policy—but they also wouldn’t be recognised as part of the Labour group on the council. Challenged Now the Liberal Democrat group on the council have challenged the anti-HDV Labour councillors. In a motion calling for an emergency meeting of the full council the Lib Dem leader Gail Engert argues “to stop the current plans to dispose of any Council assets through the HDV.” The motion points to the collapse of Carillion as a reason for reconsidering the HDV. Joe, not his real name, from Haringey Labour Party spoke to Socialist Worker. He said the Lib Dems were behaving “opportunistically”. “We’re just months away from an election which could see a raft of Labour candidates elected and an anti-HDV majority on the council,” said Joe. “I would advise left wing Labour councillors not to take any step which would lead to a pro-HDV council being returned next time round. “Most of them would not vote in a full council meeting against the HDV. They would have their whip withdrawn, they wouldn’t be allowed to stand at May’s election. “They would be replaced at short notice by the London region with right wing candidates. “In tactical terms it would be a stupid thing to do. It’s all about the best way to stop the HDV.” The best way to stop the HDV would be to strengthen the campaign which has forced Labour councillors to pick a side. That movement, which has brought hundreds onto the streets, has forced right wingers to oppose the HDV. Labour councillors should use every opportunity to stop the HDV. This means joining the movement on the streets—but also fighting on the floor in the council chamber. It is wrong to stay away from key votes or hope that the HDV can be stopped at a later date. Motion However opportunistically the Lib Dems are behaving, Labour councillors should support their motion and others like it. Further delay could give the right wing enough time to push the HDV through the council. If voting against the HDV results in disciplinary action, councillors should appeal to the left leadership of Labour’s national executive committee. The partial defeat of the Labour right has come from outside of the party and the struggle must continue there.
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Birmingham home care workers strike for jobs, the service and against brutal shift changes
The spirit of resistance - despite the snow! (Pic: Guy Smallman) Hundreds of striking home care workers marched through snow in Birmingham on Saturday declaring they would fight to defend their jobs and the service they provide. The Unison union members marched through the city centre chanting, “Home care workers, here to stay!” The workers struck between 11am and 2.30pm and plan to walk out again on Tuesday 6 February. The Labour-led council wants to slash the number of home carers by 40 percent. The home enablement team visit people who have recently been discharged from hospital, and work with them to develop the abilities for independent living. Council changes would also introduce a split shift rota system. The service is currently provided 7am-10pm. The changes would mean carers work 7am-10am, 12-2pm and 4-10pm. This would mean effectively working 16 hours but only getting paid for 11. Determined and confident (Pic: Guy Smallman) Mandy has been a home carer for 16 years. She told Socialist Worker, “People need the quality service we deliver. “These changes would have a huge impact. It would mean you can’t take your kids to school or tuck them in bed at night.” Tracey Mooney, the Birmingham branch Unison deputy secretary explained some of the challenges of being a lone worker. “Last week a home carer was attacked, and a few weeks ago one was locked in a house and the police had to let her out. “It’s difficult to mobilise people when there isn’t a central workplace. We’ve been holding meetings so people feel they’ve got the support. We got a massive vote to strike—99 percent, so we’ve shown it can be done.” Cuts in 2011 meant home carers lost £5,500 a year—now they earn just £9.23 an hour. Mandy said many have taken second jobs to make up the shortfall. And she explained that bosses were telling carers if they couldn’t do the new rotas they would have to go part time. Mandy said the attacks from the Labour-led council are “disgusting—they are supposed to support us. I think they are cutting the service back so they can say that it’s not needed any more, or to sell it off.” Mandy said the rally “gives us a voice. We have got to make a stand for the people who need this service— and if we stick together we can win.” Unison must support the strike at every level—and Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn should publicly support low-paid workers, even if they are fighting against a Labour council. Details of solidarity at bit.ly/2F0AGTr Send messages of support to info@birminghamunison.co.uk Make cheques payable to Birmingham Unison and make it clear it is for the hardship fund
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Twilight—a poignant reworking of a play that exposes injustice
Nina Bowers in Twilight Martin Luther King said that riots are the language of the unheard—this play expresses that. The one-person show, skilfully performed here by Nina Bowers, was first devised and performed by Anna Deavere Smith following the 1992 Los Angeles (LA) riots. The riots were sparked by the brutal police beating of Rodney King and the murder of Latasha Harlins, a young black woman who was shot dead by a shopkeeper. Some 63 people were killed and over 2,000 injured. Smith interviewed more than 300 people—including jurors in the King case, cops, community activists and victims of police violence. This interpretation weaves 19 of those interviews together. The riots are often framed as being about tension between the black and Korean community. But this performance tells a different tale, not just one of racism but of class politics too. For one character it is about black people rejecting the view that they only good at “crime, sports and entertainment”. The voice of Angela King, Rodney King’s aunt, is powerful one. And the voice of a Korean resident expresses that they too were victims of institutional racism. A juror in the second case—when two of the four cops who beat King were found guilty—speaks of the weight of the decision, the breakdown of misconceptions and how it changed all those involved. The final voice of Twilight, an activist looking to bring about a truce between gangs in LA, demonstrates the struggle to come together. This is powerful and poignant performance. It gives a sense of the injustice faced by black people then—and is a reminder of the brutality that continues today. Anna Blake  Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992 The Gate Theatre, London. Until 10 February Coming Out: Sexuality, gender and identity This exhibition opened last month to mark 50 years since the Sexual Offences Act 1967 partially decriminalised homosexuality. It features works by artists including Tracey Emin, Francis Bacon, Grayson Perry, Andy Warhol, Sarah Lucas and Sunil Gupta. Visitors can explore over 80 artworks by renowned artists exploring themes of gender, sexuality and identity in art. The exhibition will releave new research in LGBT+ history. As part of the exhibition, the Coming Out Gallery Trail will see a series of art interventions throughout the museum looking at changing views of sexuality and gender identity. There is also a programme of events including curator tours and workshops. Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery. Until 15 April. Free. For details of events during the exhibition go to bit.ly/2FPK4ul
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We can push back sexism
It's great to see so many out on Women's Marches (Pic: Guy Smallman) A Fawcett Society report this week laid bare the scale of sexual harassment in Britain. Half of all women have suffered sexual harassment at work and nearly two thirds in public places. A fifth of women over 16 have been sexually assaulted. The findings follow a year-long review of sex discrimination law by the charity. It said women who suffer violence, abuse and harassment “lack access to justice”. Women’s sexual history is being used inappropriately in court hearings. And more than a third of people hold women’s behaviour totally or partly responsible for sexual assaults they suffer Experiences The Unite union is surveying its members about their experiences of harassment at work. It found that many women are made to feel that they are overreacting if they make a complaint. Nearly half said harassment had affected their mental health. The Fawcett report recommends changes in the law to try and protect women. Many laws, such as the Equal Pay Act, have been important steps forward for women. But we will need more than legal changes to stamp out abuse and harassment. That’s why it was good to see so many women, and some men, taking part in Women’s Marches last weekend. Collective action can push back sexism.
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Protesters ‘knock down the racist wall’ on Donald Trump anniversary
A year after Donald Trump became US president, protesters with Stand Up To Racism staged a “knock down the racist wall”’ stunt outside the new US embassy in south London.  
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Picturehouse bosses resort to legal threats in response to strikes
  On the picket line in Hackney (Pic: A Living Wage for Hackney Picturehouse Staff/Facebook) Picturehouse cinema workers struck at five sites in London last Saturday and Sunday. It is part of a long-running dispute for the London Living Wage of £10.20 an hour and maternity, paternity and sick pay. The members of the Bectu arm of the Prospect union had been due to strike for 13 consecutive days from 8.30pm on each day. But they backed down after Picturehouse management issued a legal threat to their strike. The firm used a 2015 court decision relating to a strike by UCU union members to justify this. The ruling found that walking out for a few hours, rather than a full shift, could still mean the loss of an entire shift’s pay. The Hackney Picturehouse manager sent a letter to workers. “We wish to make it clear that we will not accept the working by employees of part shifts—we will not accept partial performance of contractual duties,” it said. Loss It went on to say that any strike for part of a shift would mean the loss of the whole pay for that shift. Workers said similar letters were sent to them by managers across the Picturehouse chain. Gruff Jones, a Hackney Picturehouse worker, said, “As a result of this move by management we have no choice but for all future strikes to last the entire day.” Workers will have to choose whether they want to directly challenge management and hold all-day strikes or back down for good. Escalating the strikes would be a step forward for the dispute. But they must be backed up with a recruitment drive that pulls in workers from the wider Cineworld chain, which owns Picturehouse. To donate to the strike fund go to bit.ly/2dLeKnv
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More strikes set to stop academy plans in east London
Teachers and parents united at Cumberland School (Pic: Guy Smallman) NEU education union members at Avenue School in Newham, east London, were set to strike on Wednesday and Thursday of next week against academisation. The action comes after two one-day walkouts in November and December. Parents and children joined strikers on the picket line. Avenue parents have issued a 19-page letter from Bindman’s law firm challenging the consultation process that led to the school’s decision to join the EKO Trust. Local Labour MP Stephen Timms is now showing an active interest in the anti-academisation campaign, due to the uproar from parents. Meanwhile union members at Cumberland School are set to strike again in February following a successful 24-hour strike earlier this month. Workers at Avenue and Cumberland could strike together on 22 February. At Shaftesbury primary the prospective academy CEO was taken by surprise as parents packed the hall for the one day of consultation they were allowed. They are calling for an extension of the consultation period and a parent ballot. Next week formal ballots for strikes begin at Shaftesbury and at Keir Hardie, another Newham primary school. Newham Against Academisation campaign has taken to the streets to broaden awareness and support. Campaigners plan to lobby Newham council on 26 February. The scandal at Carillion has shown up the dangers of handing key services to private firms. The mood against privatisation and outsourcing should boost the fight to stop academies. Send messages of support to assistant.secretary.nta@gmail.com The Anti Academies Alliance has called a meeting in London on Saturday 3 February. It will hear from campaigners involved in local battles and discuss Labour’s position on academies. Academies, the “middle tier” and social justice—what should be done? Sat 3 February, 2pm, The Wesley Hotel, 83-103 Euston Street, London NW1 2EZ
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Reports round-up - anti-racist protest humiliates EDL fascists in South Yorkshire
Anti-fascists protesting against the EDL in Hexthorpe, Doncaster (Pic: Unite Against Fascism) Supporters of the fascist English Defence League (EDL) were humiliated in Hexthorpe, Doncaster, last Saturday. They drew just 37 people for a “regional” demonstration in the South Yorkshire town. Around 150 people joined the counter-protest called by Doncaster Unite Against Fascism, Stand Up To Racism and Doncaster Anti-Fascists. Energy workers won’t be tracked Some 270 EDF energy meter installers and fixers are planning to strike next Monday over the introduction of vehicle tracking systems in their company cars. The Unite union members fear this will lead to bosses disciplining workers if they are found to be “driving uneconomically”. Strike ballot at Bromley council Outsourced council workers in Bromley, south east London, are balloting for strikes over working conditions. Some 36 workers at 14 libraries in the borough are employed by Greenwich Leisure Limited. A further 20 care workers are employed by Certitutde Support at the Astley day centre. Poverty pay protest hits Weymouth Campaigners in Weymouth and Portland have launched a campaign against poverty wages in the area—now the lowest on average in Britain. The campaign was launched with a lobby of South Dorset MP Richard Drax and members of the local Chamber of Commerce in Weymouth. Drax refused to discuss the crisis. Phil Marfleet Oil workers on strike in Cheshire (Pic: Alan Gibbons) Oil workers on all-out strike in Cheshire Unite union members at Suttons Tankers oil refinery in Ellesmere Port, Cheshire, are on continuous strike against bosses’ attacks. Bosses plan to sack 30 workers then re-employ them on worse terms and conditions in February. Day of action called on Universal Credit Disabled People Against Cuts has called a national day of action to scrap Universal Credit (UC) on 1 March. UC aims to make it easier to harass benefit claimants and is driving people further into poverty. Sellafield nuclear workers strike Firefighters at Sellafield nuclear reprocessing plant in Cumbria struck on Monday. It is part of a long-running dispute by the GMB union members to force a pay rise from bosses. Meanwhile, the Unite union suspended a planned walkout by outsourced construction workers at Sellafield in a separate pay dispute. Bus drivers win licence to fight for more London bus drivers are celebrating the introduction of the Licence for London, a step towards pay harmonisation across the network. Currently drivers at different bus companies are paid different rates for doing the same job. And if drivers take a job at another bus company, they will often start on the lowest rate—even though they may have years of experience. The new licence promises drivers that they will be able to start at a new company at a pay grade equivalent to their level of service and experience. A London bus driver said, “We’ve lost terms and conditions in the time I’ve been a driver so to gain something is a positive. “It’s not everything we wanted, but it’s a foundation to build on. “In the past we’ve been told that separate companies have to negotiate separately with Transport for London, but this shows that can change.” Strike looms on the DLR Workers on the Docklands Light Railway in London are preparing to strike over pay. after a “comprehensive breakdown in industrial relations.” The RMT union members, who work as cleaners, security and travel safety officers, struck in December and are planning to walk out on Thursday 1 and Friday 2 February. They’re also planning a programme of work to rule between 1 and 3 February. RMT general secretary Mick Cash said management was trying to “impose fundamental changes to working conditions”.   No to a two-tier workforce in Tarmac Tarmac Building Products in Essex, maker of concrete breeze blocks, is set to be hit by strikes over cuts to pay, and two-tier working. The company, based in Stanford Le Hope, wants inferior terms and conditions for new starters, creating a two tier workforce. The Unite union represents 100 percent of the workforce. A ballot returned a huge yes vote and a 24-hour strike is scheduled for Tuesday 30 January. Further strikes are planned for 6, 8, 20, 22 February and then on 20 and 22 March. Unite regional officer Guy Langston said, “Unite’s members have made it totally clear they will simply not accept their terms and conditions being eroded.Tarmac’s plan to cut pay for new starters is the thin edge of the wedge. “Our members believe that if this is unchallenged it will lead to further attacks on terms and conditions.”   Housing workers strike in Merseyside Housing maintenance workers in Merseyside are carrying on strikes against the “pig headed” management. They have overwhelmingly rejected the bosses’ offer of a 2 percent pay “rise”. The 120 workers are employed by Vivark and Knowsley Housing Trust. They have walked out every Monday and Friday since 1 December last year and have resolved to continue action until 22 February as well as an overtime ban. The Unite union members do repairs and maintenance work on the Trust’s social housing properties. Unite regional officer John Sheppard said, “Vivark’s pig headed attitude to negotiations in preventing this dispute being resolved is creating misery for tenants.” Unison black workers call for union to stand up against Home Office The Unison union black workers’ conference, held in Liverpool, could have been a head-nodding exercise. However delegates discussed direct action in response to the Tories’ hostile environment to migrants. Many members talked about refusing to be agents for the Home Office and said the union should defend service users. They added the union should develop a united approach to this. Members also talked about the rise in racism and how the Grenfell Tower fire and austerity disproportionately affect black people. One member said—to rapturous applause—that if protest got Robert Mugabe out in Zimbabwe then we can take on this Tory government. People also discussed the Stand Up To Racism (SUTR) demonstrations on 17 March and building the SUTR trade union conference. There was a successful SUTR fringe meeting. Shazziah Rock
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What would Labour in office need to survive?
The Labour leadership is being hunted - how can it survive? (Pic: Guy Smallman) Two new books published this month ask what sort of society a left wing, Labour government can create—and how it can defeat attempts to bring it down. A collection of articles by prominent left wing activists, For The Many—Preparing Labour For Power, looks at the sort of changes a Corbyn government could make. Editor Mike Phipps’ introduction reminds us how Labour’s manifesto marked a break from the pro market, austerity-lite approach of Labour’s past leaders. Director Ken Loach asks how Labour can manage society in the interests of workers when “capital and labour will always be at each other’s throats”. And sociologist Hilary Wainwright uses her contribution to try and find a solution. She has more space to explain in her own book, A New Politics from the Left. Transform Her answer is to transform the economy by nationalising most of Britain’s infrastructure and bring in co-ops, trade unions, community groups and social movements to help run it. But what happens when this vision of society runs up against the bankers, financiers and capitalists? They would rather sabotage the economy than let their power and wealth be taken off them, as the experience of Syriza in Greece shows. Wainwright looks to the power of movements outside of parliament to resist this. Previous left governments have failed because movements “have been subordinated to what has all too often become a decidedly old way of managing the political institutions”. Wainwright wants to transform Labour into a party that puts the needs of the movement before the needs of parliament. Attitude Yet whether this is even possible depends on more than just the attitude of the people in control of the party. Working class people’s ability to transform society is in the power they have together to bring society crashing to a halt. Through collective action we can take the bosses’ power off them and wield it against them—and build a new society ourselves. But the Labour Party has tried to manage society through parliament in the interests of both bosses and workers. Contributors to the book talk of how Corbynism has become the new “common sense”. And it’s true that for millions of ordinary people Corbyn’s ideas make perfect sense. But they don’t make sense for the bosses—whose biggest fear right now is a Corbyn-led government. They fear his election would harm their ability to make huge profits at the expense of jobs, wages and public service. Preparing for the challenges a Corbyn government will face means building the sort of movement that can break with parliament completely. This means the needs of the working class cannot be subsumed into the needs of the Labour Party. That means the struggle can’t be postponed in an effort to get Corbyn into office. Order For the Many and A New Politics from the Left from Bookmarks, the socialist bookshop
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No charges for Rashan Charles cop
Rashan Charles The police officer who stopped 20 year old Rashan Charles will face no charges over his death, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has said. The officer was shown on CCTV chasing Rashan into a shop in Hackney, east London, in July last year. After wrestling him to the ground, the officer holds Rashan in a headlock. Rashan was taken to hospital and was pronounced dead around an hour later. The exact cause of death has still not been confirmed. The CPS said the officer could have faced a charge of common assault. But “the evidential test for a prosecution for common assault is not met”. Rashan’s family said in a statement, “The CCTV shows a police officer taking very forcible hold of Rashan from behind. “To us, this seems to show an unnecessary use of force.” Training The family added that any changes to police training should not “detract from the question of whether this officer acted lawfully”. Rashan’s death led to angry protests in Hackney.The Independent Office for Police Conduct, formerly the Independent Police Complaints Commission, is still investigating the officer who restrained Rashan. He could face gross misconduct charges for his restraint and his handling of the medical emergency. Immediately following Rashan’s death, a Scotland Yard spokesman said Rashan had been “trying to swallow an object”. One health worker told Socialist Worker that police told paramedics that Rashan had died of a heart attack after swallowing cocaine. Several media reports implied that he swallowed drugs to hide them from the cops. It was later confirmed that a package removed from Rashan’s body contained a mixture of caffeine and paracetamol.
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Mass demos mark the end of Trump’s first year as the bigot in chief
Lots of homemade placards in Baltimore (Pic: Elvert Barnes/Flickr) Hundreds of thousands of people came onto the streets across the US to mark one year since racist, sexist US president Donald Trump’s inauguration. Over 200 protests took place across the US last weekend to make clear the fight against him and what he represents has not gone away. Some estimates put the number marching in Los Angeles at 600,000. Some 300,000 marched in Chicago, and over 100,000 came out in New York. In many places organisers reported more people attending than last year, although numbers appeared to be down overall. Protests took place across the world in solidarity as well. Thousands came out in London, Rome, Buenos Aires and Sydney. Donald Trump’s first twelve months in office - a year of horrors and resistance   Read More Fuelled The first Women’s March a year ago was fuelled by anger at Trump boasting about sexually assaulting women in a recording that was made public. Seemingly oblivious, this year he tweeted, “Beautiful weather all over our great country, a perfect day for all Women to March. “Get out there now to celebrate the historic milestones and unprecedented economic success and wealth creation that has taken place over the last 12 months. “Lowest female unemployment in 18 years!” People are furious that Trump has survived a year of crisis. He spoke to the anti-abortion March for Life last Friday, doubling down on his misogyny and sending a clear message to his reactionary political base. “I’m fed up with this entire administration, and I think it’s important for us to press on for changes,” said Suelita Maki on Saturday’s New York march. What happens to this anger is crucial. The Democratic Party want it to benefit them at elections. “We march. We run. We vote. We win,” said Nancy Pelosi, leader of the Democrats in the House of Representatives. The Democrats are targeting states such as Nevada in the midterm elections in November. These are for the whole of the House of Representatives and about a third of the Senate. Hope A Women’s March statement claimed they hope to register one million voters through the campaign. The Democrats’ unprincipled fight over rights for undocumented migrants (see below) is linked to this drive. But not everyone attending the protests sees elections as the answer. People attended the protest for many reasons. And doubtless even more would have attended if there had been a more inspirational message than just voting for change. The fight against racism is at the heart of the resistance to Trump Anti-racism was at the centre of this year’s Women’s March message. Last year the march was criticised for being too white. Demanding an end to Trump's immigration policies in Minnesota (Pic: Fibonacci Blue/Flickr) The need for an anti-racist movement against Trump was underlined by a shutdown of federal services at the start of this week. Democrats in the Senate refused to back a short-term budget if Republicans wouldn’t guarantee rights for undocumented migrants who came to the US as children, known as Dreamers. They quickly backed down after the shutdown went into its third day. They accepted Republican promises of a debate on Dreamers in the future. Deportations Trump undermined this by saying an immigration deal would only be made if “it is good for our country.” The Harvest Movement organises against deportations. “Every day, workers and members of our community with Daca are being used as bargaining chips in this political game,” it said in a statement. Resistance on the streets is making gains. The California district attorney issued notices to employers on Thursday of last week, saying they would be fined £7,000 if they cooperated with immigration raids. Rhetorical attacks at the top of society result in brutal repression at the bottom. A new report has found that supplies of water left at the US-Mexican border to stop people dying have been systematically sabotaged. The report by No More Deaths and La Coalicion de Derechos Humanos alleged the US Border Force was behind the sabotage. It found that, between 2012 and 2015, water points were vandalised 415 times and 3,586 gallons were wasted. Attacked Trump has consistently attacked ethnic minorities, and both he and his family have close ties with racist organisations. For instance, Trump has endorsed right wing student organisation Turning Point USA in tweets. Donald Trump junior was a keynote speaker at one of its conferences. The organisation has a long history of racism. In a private text conversation national field organiser Crystal Clanton said, “I HATE BLACK PEOPLE, like fuck them all… I hate blacks.” Wall comes tumbling down Stand Up To Racism protesters staged a protest outside the new US embassy in south London on Saturday. “We say to Trump, ‘We don’t want your racism, we don’t want your sexism, we dom’t want your anti-gay policies here,’” said Paula Peters from Disabled People Against The Cuts. Naima Omar from Stand Up To Racism said, “We have to make sure the Stand Up To Racism demos on 17 March are large. “Trump doesn’t want to come here because he’s scared of the people who are going to turn out. We will stand in unity as we did against the Muslim Ban and on the Women’s March at the beginning of last year.” Protesters knocked down a symbolic wall as part of the protest.
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Solidarity with the People of Turkey conference says no to repression
The Sport conference heard calls for solidarity with the victims of the repression unleashed by Turkish president Recep Tayip Erdogan (above) (Pic: World Economic Forum) Over 300 people came to the Solidarity with the People of Turkey (Spot) conference last Saturday. It brought together MPs, campaigners and activists from Turkey and the solidarity movement in Britain. Turkey’s president Recep Tayyip Erdogan has unleashed fierce repression using the excuse of a failed coup in 2016. Over 150,000 people have been arrested, and tens of thousands sacked from public sector jobs. The peace process with the Kurds has been abandoned. The conference heard calls for increased solidarity from British trade unions to add to the present backing from the NEU, RMT, PCS, Bfawu and others. David Lammy MP denounced the British government for its support for the repressive Turkish regime. Hisyar Ozsoy, an MP for the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) said that Turkey is now an “open prison”. But he cautioned against thinking the situation was just about Erdogan. A debate in one workshop about the US support for the Kurds in Syria in recent years heard calls from SWP members for full support for Kurdish rights but opposition to US—and Russian—manoeuvres in the region. During the day news came through of the Turkish assault on Afrin (see page 6). The conference applauded condemnation of the invasion and calls for the British government to halt all arms sales to Turkey. Spot and Stop the War statement on the invasion of Afrin at bit.ly/2n0DI3t For details of Spot go to spotturkey.co.uk
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Vote yes for Further Education pay strikes
College lecturers on strike for fair pay in 2016 (Pic: Jenny Sutton) Workers at 19 further education colleges began balloting for strikes over pay this week. Bosses have offered the UCU union members an insulting 1 percent “rise”—a cut in real terms. The ballot runs until 12 February. Mandy Brown is a UCU rep at Lambeth College in South London, and is on the union’s national executive committee. “We had a branch meeting last week and people were really up for the ballot,” she told Socialist Worker. “We’ve only had one pay rise in seven years and that was below-inflation. But they can find the money when they want to, to pay principals and contractors. We’ve had enough.” Khadeeja Ali is an hourly-paid lecturer at City and Islington College. She told Socialist Worker that pay is just one issue among many driving workers’ anger. “Two years ago we were told our contracts might not be renewed,” she said. “On top of that we haven’t had a pay rise. So many people have left because of the conditions. This is for the future, for the students and for education.” UCU members backed pay strikes by 75 percent in a consultation last year. And shadow chancellor John McDonnell pledged his support for workers at a UCU rally in London last week. College lecturers were buoyed by the 88 percent vote for strikes by UCU members in higher education over pensions. That ballot showed the value of organising at department level. Mandy said, “We are going to have an extreme, militarised operation to get the vote out.” Khadeeja added, “We need a good vote to show employers we mean business. If we don’t deliver that, they will get even more emboldened. They need to be told.” The colleges balloting are City and Islington, CHENEL, Westminster Kingsway, South Thames, Carshalton, Kingston, City of Westminster, CONWL, Hackney, Redbridge, Tower Hamlets, Croydon, Epping Forest, Havering, Lambeth, Richmond Upon Thames, Sandwell, Sunderland, and Sussex Coast College Hastings
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The great PFI swindle
It’s a long way from the partly built 40-mile £750 million Aberdeen bypass, work on which has been routinely delayed, to the £4 billion luxury development in Doha, Qatar. But these construction projects, plus public-private partnership hospitals in Birmingham and Liverpool, meant the end of leading outsourcer Carillion. Carillion’s collapse has put the whole sector under scrutiny. For example, Interserve is under government monitoring and its share price is diving. Carillion boss Keith Cochrane claimed last year, “In too many cases, we were building a Rolls-Royce but only getting paid to build a Mini.” In fact Carillion bosses got paid the cost of the Rolls-Royces many times over in order to keep speculators and shareholders happy. And they weren’t the only ones. The Private Finance Initiative (PFI) sees private firms building hospitals, schools and roads instead of the government. It is part of an ideological attack that treats the free market as the solution to every problem. PFI was designed to make it look as if governments were spending less than they were. In fact the deals are much more costly—as the government’s own spending watchdog admitted last week. Construction The National Audit Office (NAO) report lays bare the scale of the PFI disaster. It said PFI schools can cost 40 percent more to build and maintain than if the government simply did the work itself. And it used research showing that privately financed hospitals typically cost 70 percent more than state-financed ones. There are 716 PFI projects in Britain either under construction or in operation, with a total value of £59.4 billion. Future payments for existing projects are forecast to total £199 billion, an average of £7.7 billion a year over the next 25 years. The NAO said even a number of Whitehall departments have complained of being trapped in schemes that they want to abandon. But they can’t afford the exorbitant exit fees. Some eight out of 11 government departments have turned to consultants to reduce the huge costs, which is somewhat akin to pouring oil on the fire. The watchdog said the private finance route “results in additional costs compared to publicly financed procurement”. The Tories’ national infrastructure plan suggested in 2010 that capital raised through PFI cost 2 percent to 3.75 percent more than from state borrowings. Yet the actual damning part of the report confirmed, “We have been unable to identify a robust evaluation of the actual performance of private finance at a project or programme level.” In other words, nobody really knows what all this costs or how well or badly it works. Outbreak Governments pretend their decisions are open and subject to debate. But corporations seek to protect themselves, their decisions and their funds from public scrutiny. Again and again PFI companies disguise their costs from the people who are partly, often mostly, funding them. One consequence of the outbreak of bidding and tendering for contracts was an increased determination to encourage “commercial confidentiality”. So, Carillion’s trading statement in December 2016, full-year results last March and an annual meeting update in May gave no hint of the troubles ahead. That this led to a profit warning last July and Carillion’s ultimate collapse last week does not imply fraud. In fact, Carillion was bidding for contracts to cover its debts from previous projects. It was so crucial to win the new revenue that the tender price was pushed low, leading to soaring debt in a later phase. But the bosses won’t pay for that crisis—we will. Tory policy that won New Labour hearts The PFI model of handing public projects to private capital began under John Major’s Tory administration in 1992. It was later enhanced by New Labour. John Prescott, the voice of working class Old Labour, spoke to the 1993 Labour Party conference. He made it “crystal clear” that a Labour government would renationalise the railways if the Tories privatised them. Prescott added that the PFI Birmingham relief road would be built “over my dead body”. He went on to preside over the privatised railways and gave the go-ahead for the Birmingham relief road in a Labour government. Some 24 former Labour ministers ended up in the PFI industry. The theoretical regulators of corporate power became its champions. Private companies are supposed to fund the construction of facilities and the state then pays for their use and management. These contracts can see private firms reaping repayments for 30 or 40 years. Some 85 percent of payments last year related to procurement decisions made more than ten years ago when Labour was in office. It is claimed that PFI limits capital expenditure and transfers risk to the private sector. It does the opposite. Subsidise Under PFI the private sector finances capital expenditure, in other words borrows the money for it. Firms get credit cheaply, though not as cheaply as the government could, because they are working on projects that are underwritten by the state. So governments first subsidise the private sector, then the public sector funds the projects through annual payments to PFI consortia. The initial cost to governments can appear small, which is why successive chancellors used PFI deals to build schools, hospitals and roads “off balance sheet”. This meant the projects did not count against their own public sector borrowing rules. John Major singles out his next privatisation victim (Pic: Chatham House) Yet the total cost is enormous. Projects worth £13 billion cost the NHS £2 billion last year alone—or £3,729 every minute. There is also the daft idea that for-profit businesses would bring market rigour to public works. Does anyone seriously believe that the key to securing the NHS is private capital plus competition? Another self-declared advantage of PFI is that it displaces the risks of delays and overruns in building programmes onto the private contractors. And again, it does the opposite. PFI contractors pitch low cost tenders in the hope of undercutting competitors—then squeeze costs wherever they can. This mostly hits workers’ pay. For all the claims that PFI transfers risk to the private sector, private suppliers don’t like risk. So the market had to be made sufficiently attractive in order to entice them. That means there is no real competition, because it might frighten off investors. The public sector continues to carry the ultimate risk. When private companies fail, we are left to bail them out. And by the time things go wrong, bosses have already made millions. Carillion’s former boss Richard Howson received more than £6 million in pay and bonuses since 2012. It is obvious who benefits from PFI—private sector contractors, shareholders and investors. Winners include big banks, accountancy firms, construction companies and private equity firms. The losers of PFI are ordinary people. And that’s when it works. Shorts, spivs & speculators As much as 80 percent of the profit made in PFI projects comes from refinancing. Firms trade on the debt to finance the project, assuming that they will reap the rewards from predicted future profits. That’s when it’s going well. When it’s going badly, speculators can make money by betting against the company or “shorting”. Investors borrow shares and sell them, hoping to buy them back for less, return them to the lender and keep the difference. Ahead of the first of three profit warnings last July, more than 25 percent of Carillion’s issued share capital was out on loan. When the music stopped this week it was more. PFI bankers and speculators are taking money from the public sector. There are winners and losers on the markets but when the game is rigged by PFI, we always lose. Their debt and ours As Carillion collapsed in debt last week another story about financial woe got much fewer headlines. This was a report from the Institute for Fiscal Studies. It found that one in four of the poorest households are falling behind with debt payments or spending over a quarter of their income on them. These debts won’t be written off. But banks started writing off Carillion’s debts before the firm announced its liquidation, according to analysts from CreditSights. They said this meant banks’ losses “might not be as substantial as feared”. It’s not the first time the rich have been bailed out. In 2008, following the financial crash, Britain’s government gave the banks £37 billion in cash and £250 billion in credit. Worldwide, governments handed trillions to the banks—transferring their debts to ordinary people. If you’re rich and in trouble, capitalist states throw money at you to keep you rich. If you’re poor, you’re left to rot. Locked into high prices and poor deals The National Audit Office pointed out that some PFI providers are overcharging the public sector for insurance. It said, “In one case the PFI firm eventually agreed to return over £100,000 of insurance savings after being unable to provide evidence that part of the saving should be withheld.” lBristol Metropolitan Academy. The secondary school paid £8,154 for a blind because of its PFI contract. Under “lifecycle” costs written into some deals, schools can be locked into contracts that force them to pay high prices for small items. lNewman RC College. This Oldham secondary school was charged £48 for security guards to open the premises so pupils could use the lavatory—each time. Subcontractors who subcontract Companies bid for schemes and then outsource the work as much as possible to escape responsibility. After a firm bids to win a government contract, the whole process starts again as other firms bid to carry out sections of the work. Carillion was made up of a number of companies but that wasn’t the end of the story. For instance, Carillion sold Crown House to Laing O’Rourke in 2004. Drake & Scull has been owned both by Balfour Beatty and Carillion. Both companies were serial blacklisters of construction workers. The aim of subcontracting is to produce a multi-layered false economy. As the number of participants in the market increases, so the opportunities for squeezing workforce costs are enhanced. Wages are forced down. The responsibility for paying for training, holiday entitlements, sick leave and pension rights is displaced down the subcontracting chain onto workers. Last week 30,000 subcontractors were waiting for money owed by Carillion. Some are small businesses but thousands are construction workers. Work ground to a halt on all Carillion sites because no one knew who was funding the work or who they were now working for.
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Richest 1 percent took 80 percent of wealth created globally last year
Private security guards at this year's Davos summit (Pic: World Economic Forum on flickr) The world’s richest 1 percent grabbed £4 out of every £5 of new wealth created in the world last year says the Oxfam charity. Meanwhile the poorest half of the world saw the amount of money they had stagnate. And in its latest update to its indices of gross inequality, Oxfam found 42 people hold as much wealth as the poorest half of the world’s population. Booming global stock markets, fuelled by money pumped out at low interest rates by governments, were the main reason for the increase in the wealth of the rich during 2017. The founder of Amazon, Jeff Bezos, saw his wealth rise by £4.3 billion in the first ten days of 2017. Overall, of the £7.3 trillion increase in global wealth between July 2016 and June 2017, around £6 trillion (82 percent) went to 75 million people, while the bottom 3.7 billion saw no increase. It helped spark the sharpest increase in the number of billionaires ever recorded, to 2,043, with one created every two days, according to Oxfam's report. It was published ahead of the annual World Economic Forum of global political and business leaders in the Swiss ski resort of Davos. The wealth of those billionaires increased by £550 billion over 12 months. Wrong Mark Goldring, chief executive of Oxfam GB, said the statistics signal that "something is very wrong with the global economy". "The concentration of extreme wealth at the top is not a sign of a thriving economy but a symptom of a system that is failing the millions of hard-working people on poverty wages who make our clothes and grow our food." He said a living wage, "decent conditions" and equality for women were essential if work was to be a "genuine route out of poverty". "If that means less for the already wealthy then that is a price that we - and they - should be willing to pay," Goldring added, as he pushed for a crackdown on tax avoidance and other measures. Oxfam said tax avoidance by businesses and wealthy individuals is costing developing countries and poorer regions around £123 billion a year which could otherwise be allocated towards public services and "used to fight poverty". Chasm Capitalism is an engine for creating and accelerating a chasm between those at the top and the rest. Under socialism, where the means of producing wealth would be collectively owned and democratically controlled, any meaningful inequality would be sharply reduced and then effectively eliminated. This would be popular. An Oxfam survey found people believed the ideal ratio of the pay of those at the top and bottom of a company should be 7 to1. At present chief executives of big firms quoted on the London stock exchange earn on average 120 times more than the average employee. The measures called for by Oxfam would be welcome, but the rich are very good at finding ways to avoid and evade taxes. A tenth of global wealth is held in tax havens. And to win such reforms will take a war on all the mantras of the last 40 years about the need to slash taxes for companies and the rich, shrink the welfare state and weaken trade unions. The ruling class has greeted the prospect of Jeremy Corbyn as prime minister with a mix of fear, outrage and preparation for resistance. Imagine how they would react to a government that really started to address not just the rise in inequality but the driver of inequality in the first place—capitalism. Large and growing inequality is another reason for revolution.
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President Mnangagwa tries to woo big business and the white farmers
Zimbabwean president Emmerson Mnangagwa gets chummy with South African president Jacob Zuma (Pic: GovernmentZA/Flickr) Zimbabwean president Emmerson Mnangagwa was set to tell the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, this week that the country is “open for business”. It lays bare Mnangagwa’s real aims after he came to office in a military coup against former dictator Robert Mugabe last November. Many workers and the poor wanted Mugabe out. There was a window of opportunity to raise their own demands. But Mnangagwa wants to snuff that out. He has called for restoring relations with former colonial power Britain and rejoining the Commonwealth, a relic of the Empire. “What they’ve lost with Brexit they can come and recover from Zimbabwe,” he told the bosses’ Financial Times newspaper. Plunder British capitalism is not looking to replace European markets with Zimbabwe, a country whose economy was destroyed by decades of imperialist plunder. Mnangagwa himself is mainly looking to Chinese investment. He plans high level talks in the Chinese capital Beijing soon after Davos to discuss “mega deals in infrastructure and railways”. Mnangagwa wants to revive Zimbabwean capitalism by pushing through wide-ranging free market reforms. For his plan to succeed, he needs the West to end sanctions and give access to financial markets. This means that winning approval from world rulers at Davos is key. And it’s also why he plans to financially compensate descendants of the old racist regime, the white farmers, some of whom lost their land in the 2000s. Mnangagwa, the regime’s former torturer in chief, is no alternative for the Zimbabwean working class. His rise to power was a product of a bitter faction fight within the ruling Zanu PF party over how to deal with the crisis of Zimbabwean capitalism. Compromised Mugabe began as a hero of struggle against colonialism and white minority rule. Yet once capitalism nose-dived in the 1980s, he compromised with imperialism, implemented some free market reforms and increasingly became a dictator. This failed to solve Zimbabwean capitalism’s crisis—and came to a head last autumn. Mnangagwa needs to “open up” Zimbabwean capitalism to foreign investment—and consolidate the position of the new ruling faction. Mnangagwa said, “The entire economy is open except for two minerals—diamonds and platinum.” These are both industries that the military profited from, the same military that brought him to power and now staff the cabinet. The only solution is for working class people to assert their own independent demands—and bring down Zanu PF’s whole rotten regime.
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Israeli siege leaves Gaza on the brink of collapse
The Gaza Strip is on the brink on catastrophe after years of Israeli siege Israeli security officials have admitted that the Gaza Strip is on the verge of catastrophe after more than ten years under siege. One official told the Haaretz newspaper recently that conditions in Gaza had gone “like from zero to below zero”. The Israeli government hypocritically blames Palestinians for their own suffering. Israeli president Reuvin Rivlin claimed on Sunday, “The time is coming near when the infrastructure in Gaza will collapse leaving many civilians in distress, with no sanitary conditions, exposed to pollution, impure water and epidemics.” Yet Rivlin blamed Hamas—the Palestinian resistance group that has governed in Gaza since it was elected in 2006—for the crisis. “Israel is the only one in the region that transfers basic essentials to the residents of Gaza, so that they can sustain the body and mind,” he said. “We will not tolerate accusations of blame.” Accelerated That’s a blatant and shameless lie. In recent weeks the Israeli military has accelerated its destruction of tunnels connecting Gaza to the outside world—a supply lifeline for Palestinians. Cuts to Gaza’s electricity supply—which Israel controls—mean that there isn’t enough electricity to sanitise the water supply. Some 95 percent of Gaza’s water is undrinkable. Raw sewage flows in the the sea, increasing risk of disease. It’s all part of Israel’s plan to collectively punish Palestinians and crush resistance to the occupation. Hamas appeared ready to agree to a reconciliation deal with the Fatah party, which controls the West Bank, last year. This could have alleviated conditions. But that deal broke down and now Israel hopes to further raise the pressure on Hamas. Earlier this month Israeli minister Uri Ariel demanded more Palestinian deaths under Israeli airstrikes, which have peppered Gaza in recent weeks. Crackdown “What is this special weapon we have that we fire and see pillars of smoke and fire, but nobody gets hurt?” he asked. “It is time for there to be injuries and deaths as well.” At the same time Israel has continued its renewed violent crackdown in the West Bank following a speech by US president Donald Trump in December. Protests erupted across Palestine after Trump declared Palestinian city Jerusalem “Israel’s capital”. Israel’s military unleashed a wave of violence in response. Israeli soldiers shot dead three Palestinians—two of them teenagers—last week. Palestinian Authority (PA) president Mahmoud Abbas said last week he would no longer accept the US as a mediator between the PA and Israel. It was a sign that the “peace process,” which saw Palestinian leaders agree to police the resistance in return for a promise of a state, may have collapsed Abbas is now looking to European Union countries for support. Yet the lesson of the “peace process” is that Israel will never accept a Palestinian state anywhere. Justice for Palestinians means resistance to the Israeli occupation—and a single secular state with equal democratic rights for all its citizens.  
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