Greece: February 24 massive general strike – workers’ movement back in action! Yesterday Greece was shaken by a massive 24 hour general strike. In some sectors there was a total walk out, and in industry as a whole 70% of the workers came out. This is the answer of the Greek working class to the government’s severe austerity measures. The task now is to build on this and keep up the pressure to get the whole package withdrawn.
Greece: We are not sacrificing our lives to pay interest to the lenders! We provide here the text of a leaflet published for the build up to yesterday’s 24-hour general strike in Greece and distributed on the rallies.
Bankruptcy threatens Greece: Let’s sacrifice capitalism! What should a genuine socialist government do in the face of the severe economic and financial crisis that has hit Greece? The only real answer is a socialist programme based on the nationalisation of the banks and the commanding heights of the economy. There is no other way out. [This article was published in the latest issue of the Greek Marxist paper Marxistiki Foni, Marxist Voice, of the Marxists inside the Synaspismos party.]
The crisis of Greek capitalism and how it is impacting on the labour movement The crisis of Greek capitalism is clear for all to see. The bosses want draconian economic policies to be implemented, but the workers have already given more than they can afford to give. Bosses and workers are on a collision course as the call for a 24-hour general strike on February 24 clearly demonstrates.
Severe austerity package provokes wrath of Greek working class Greek capitalism is in a deep crisis. It is the weak link in the chain and it is beginning to break. The country risks defaulting on its debt repayments, posing a serious threat to the stability of the euro. Severe austerity measures are being imposed and these are provoking a working class backlash.
The struggle of the dockworkers in Greece A major trade union conflict erupted in October in the Piraeus Port Authority, where dockworkers are fighting attempts to destroy all their hard-won rights, of privatisation of the port which is being handed over to COSCO, a Chinese company. After a two week strike they suspended their action awaiting results of negotiation. Now they have taken up strike action again.
Greece: A historical defeat of the bourgeois party - mass shift to the left! The recent elections in Greece saw a massive shift to the left in Greek society, with a total of 56% of the electorate voting for the left parties. The PASOK alone received almost 44%. This is a vote that rejects the austerity measures of the outgoing conservative ND government. The problem is that the PASOK leaders are promising more of the same. For the workers this vote was a victory, but they did not vote for more cuts. This opens the prospect of renewed class struggle in the coming period.
Greece: The working class in revolt – the government could soon fall On Thursday, April 2, in Greece there was a general strike. A mood of distrust of the trade union leadership emerged in the discussions with the workers. On the other hand all the workers participating in the demonstrations expressed a desire for an escalation of the struggle.
The “Greek December”: a short balance sheet of a betrayed movement The huge eruption of youth protests in Greece in December have receded. The key element in explaining this was the role played by the leaders of the main workers' parties, who rather than build up the protest and involve the labour movement as a whole, worked to re-establish calm. Here the Greek Marxists explain the background to how this came about, but also stress the generalised mood of protest is simmering below the surface preparing new social explosions.
Revolutionary ferment in Greece – a taste of what is to come for the whole of Europe The events that have unfolded over the past month in Greece have revealed the immense revolutionary potential that had accumulated below the surface of society. The anger of the youth can only be explained by the severe crisis of capitalism afflicting the country, a reflection of the international economic crisis. And the conditions that exist in Greece are the same that exist across the whole of Europe.
Greece: teenager uprising, big general strike, but the left parties refuse to give a political solution The movement taking place in Greece demonstrates the enormous power of the working class and youth. But it also highlights the weaknesses of the leaders of the trade unions and the official Left parties who have no clear alternative to pose. The task is to build a leadership worthy of the name within the Greek labour movement.
Greece: massive school student attack against police stations all over the country! The situation in Greece is growing ever more tense with each hour that passes. Today the country is being rocked by a general strike, while the youth continue to mobilise massively. In this situation the state is exploiting lumpen and ultra-left groups to portray the movement as a crazy violent outburst of criminal elements, but the anger of the Greek workers and youth cannot be calmed with these methods.
The Greek police kill school student – big wave of mobilisations all over Greece The brutal killing of a young 15-year old school student in Athens over the weekend at the hands of a police officer has suddenly radicalised the whole of Greek society, bringing to the surface all the tensions that were brewing below the surface.
Greece: Another important general strike – right-wing government in deep crisis On Tuesday, October 21, Greece was once more rocked by a general strike, the ninth since the present ND government has been in office. There were also many students on the rallies, as a wave of school occupations spreads across Greece.
Greek edition of "Lenin and Trotsky – What they really stood for", by Ted Grant and Alan Woods The Editorial board of the Marxist journal, Marxistiki Foni, has just published a Greek language edition of Lenin and Trotsky - What they really stood for. It is dedicated to the memory of the founder of the International Marxist Tendency (IMT), Ted Grant. The book is now available to order.
