They Lied! Labor Party Re-Starts Privatisation in QLD

THEY LIED! LABOR PARTY RE-STARTS PRIVATISATION OF QUEENSLAND’S STATE ASSETS! MOBILISE WORKERS TO REVERSE PRIVATISATION AND REDUCE THE COST OF LIVING! 

08-03-15 - It was a lie. Just one day before the recent Queensland state election, Australian Labor Party (ALP) leader of the then opposition Annastacia Palaszczuk stated “Under Labor, Queenslanders will own Queensland’s assets and the jobs they create.” (QT website 30-01-15) In fact, the whole election campaign run by the ALP focused on the Liberal National Party (LNP) plans to sell $37 billion worth of state assets, and a claim that the ALP would not entertain this. This was transparently false. Barely a month after the narrow election victory, Premier Palaszczuk announced that there would be selling of public assets, such as “old” public housing stock, as part of “day to day business transactions”!! (ABC news website 03-03-15) The ALP Deputy Premier Jackie Trad stated that assets that are “non-strategic” could be slated for being sold, i.e. privatisation. Trad claimed this was not a broken election promise, as the ALP had only committed to not selling strategic assets. Trad also indicated that some major asset sales, for which contracts had already been signed, would go ahead. (Brisbane Times website – 05-03-15)

The lessons for the working class are clear. No capitalist party – the ALP, the LNP, or any other, can be trusted to do scarcely anything other than serve the interests of millionaires and billionaires, at the expense of workers, pensioners and students, and others struggling to get by. The ALP, just like the LNP, governs for the elite sections of Australian and international capital, and is prepared to use any amount of taxpayers resources to help bail out capital in the midst of the worst capitalist economic crisis in history. During times of such crisis, illusions in social-democracy actually increase, not decrease. In the absence of genuine class struggle, the idea that “all we can do” is to vote for the ever so slightly more liberal major party appears as the only option. Hence at times such as these it is more necessary than ever for pro-working class Union members and left parties to agitate for the breaking of illusions in social-democracy, which in our case largely takes the form of support for the ALP, and to a lesser extent the Australian Greens. This needs to be done in the process of agitating for, and attempting to spur on, class struggle. 

The idea that workers can vote against privatisation, and have privatisation halted, within the existing parliamentary system, has been exposed as fraudulent. Yet this is precisely the false notion that almost the entire Trade Union leadership promoted and carried out in the lead-up to, and during the election campaign. The Queensland Council of Unions (QCU) initiated and funded a “Put the LNP last” campaign. The implication was that they were not calling for a vote for any party, but only a vote against the LNP. Yet this can be seen through like a pane of glass. Without saying so openly, the call to “Put the LNP last” was, in the context of a corporatised two party system, a call to vote ALP. Yet it was the ALP who began the privatisation of state assets in Queensland, which dramatically escalated under former Premier Anna Bligh. The ALP’s privatisation of roads, freight rail, ports and forests was the main reason why the ALP was almost wiped out as a parliamentary party in the 2012 election, and it was the LNP’s continuation of privatisation which led to its dumping earlier this year. No sooner do we have the ALP back in government the privatisation of state assets begins again! Nor is voting independent a guarantee against privatisation either. Peter Wellington, the independent member for Nicklin, who has made some valid criticisms of the excesses of the former LNP government, agreed that the sale of land should go ahead, and that he was only opposed to sales of “necessary infrastructure”. (Sunshine Coast Daily – 06-03-15) This is an identical bogus claim to oppose privatisation as that of the ALP, who has incidentally rewarded his support for forming government with the position of speaker of parliament.

The Electrical Trades Union (ETU) has been the most active in building campaigns to oppose the privatisation of state assets in Queensland. It has organised a “Not4Sale” drive which has been active. However, the leadership of the ETU ensured that it was tailored almost entirely towards electoral ends. There were many pickets and actions organised, outside speaking engagements for the former Premier, or any LNP member. While some of these actions are indeed useful, the only political message put forward was essentially that voting ALP will protect public assets. This was false, and Union members’ money was effectively used to campaign for the ALP. And more damage is done in reinforcing illusions amongst workers not only in the ALP, but in the capitalist system. By continually insisting that there is a more liberal wing of the Australian ruling class that will look after you if you only give it a go, the ETU leadership set up the workers for more and more defeats – as we have now experienced with the ALP committing to selling off more public housing. The pro-ALP ETU leadership was unfortunately joined by some leftist parties, who uncritically endorsed the “Not4Sale” campaign, with its unstated call to vote ALP. By contrast, we in the MLF refused on principle to join the implicit vote ALP campaign, albeit under the rubric of “Put the LNP last”. We called on workers, in the absence of any genuine pro-working class candidates, to cast a blank ballot, but commit to class struggle outside and where necessary, against parliament.

It’s an old saying, but it still rings true. That is, if you vote for one of the two major parties as a lesser evil, you end up with both the lesser evil and the greater evil combined. At election times, many workers come under pressure of their own conservative Union leaders and other liberal wings of the ruling class, to cast a vote for the ALP regardless of how often or how poorly the ALP treats them. It’s a zero sum game. Firstly, it tends to delay serious class struggle for several more years, at which time workers are again called upon to vote ALP, even if in a disguised way such as “Put the LNP last”. The focus on elections and parliament, consciously fostered by treacherous Union leaders, assisted by opportunist left parties, demoralises workers more and more, as they can feel their material well-being, and that of future generations, getting worse and worse. What is urgently needed is a switch of focus to serious class struggle, which can take many forms, but ultimately must include Union led industrial action. It is through this struggle, rather than the endless cycle of parliamentary elections for parties of the ruling class, that has the potential to win real gains for working people, which will then flow on to other areas such as the provision of public services and the genuine preservation of the natural environment. The mobilisation of working people for this task can include workers running their own candidates for election to the rulers’ parliament, but it can never afford to be subordinate to this parliament – ultimately an anti-worker organ.

The only assemblies that workers’ should respect are the representative bodies that form as a result of a successful revolution, with the establishing of a workers’ republic. And these bodies themselves will be a transitional form subordinate to the struggle for workers’ rule in Europe, Japan and the United States, joining with the existing socialist states. Until such time, workers in Queensland need to embark on the path of class struggle to win immediate gains now. There are many negative flow on effects from the relentless drive to privatise, including mass unemployment, unaffordable electricity, water and public transport costs. To contain any struggle against these elements, the government are also trying to normalise the militarisation of public areas and public transport, using fully armed police, combined with Translink ticket inspectors dressed in para-military get-up, who are simply there to harass and prosecute citizens. Enough!  

We cannot afford to go even further backwards. Some of the demands that we suggest should be raised and fought for immediately are:

-          Stop and Reverse Privatisation! Full public ownership of the roads, ports, railways, electricity generation, distribution and supply, water services, state forests, state land, state primary and secondary schools!

-          To address unemployment, a shorter work week with no loss in pay!

-          Stop all public housing sell-offs, and dramatically increase public housing stock!

-          Abolish all water charges! Abolish all toll roads! Halve electricity costs!

-          For concession prices for the unemployed on public transport! Halve all public transport costs! Abolish the Tertiary Transport Concession Card!

-          No armed cops on public transport! Stop the intimidation of public transport users! No prosecution for not having a ticket or go card! 

MARXIST-LENINIST FRONT

0421 408 692

MLF20701@GMAIL.COM

WWW.MARXISTLENINISTFRONT.BLOGSPOT.COM.AU

Venezuela - No more US backed coups!

NO MORE US BACKED COUPS! IMPERIALIST HANDS OFF VENEZUELA, SYRIA, LIBYA, UKRAINE, HONG KONG!

06-03-15 – It is almost exactly a year since a violent coup attempt was made against the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela by ultra-right wing opposition, known as “guarimbas”, in which 43 people perished. This week, Venezuela has again had to act to foil another violent coup attempt, when it was announced that a retired Venezuelan Air Force general was among 10 military and civilian officers arrested. President Nicolas Maduro stated on national television that the coup plotters had confessed. He accused the government of the United States of America for conspiring with the coup plotters. The role of Washington in previous coup attempts has been proven. Indeed, according to Eva Golinger, this year President Obama approved a State Department fund of $5 million to support anti-government groups in Venezuela, alongside $1.2 million in financing from the congressionally funded National Endowment for Democracy. It is estimated that millions more are being pumped into the Venezuelan opposition through unofficial channels. (Venezuelanalysis website). 

What is being attempted repeatedly by US imperialism in Venezuela is the overthrow of a sovereign state. Yet in recent years, there have been many similar attempts by the US to overthrow other sovereign states, and one of them – Libya – has unfortunately been successful. The US, along with the UK, France, armed and funded Libyan opposition groups, many of which were enmeshed with Al-Qaeda. The US then used NATO to bomb Libya, enabling Al-Qaeda and other right wing opposition groups to murder Colonel Gaddafi and destroy Libya’s sovereign government. The government led by Colonel Gaddafi had ensured the highest standard of living in Africa for its people, with no payment required for electricity supply and most education facilities. Despite some accommodation to the West in recent years, Libya remained independent. Former Venezuelan President and inspirational leader Hugo Chavez recognised this, and in one of his visits gave Colonel Gaddafi the Sword of Bolivar, a huge gesture, from one anti-imperialist leader to another. 

Left:  In 2010, Hugo Chavez, the inspirational leader of the Bolivarian Revolution, gave visiting Libyan Leader Muammar Gaddafi a replica of the Sword of Bolivar. The Sword of Bolivar is the sword of Venezuela’s independence  fighter Simon Bolivar, revered in Venezuela’s history. During the visit, Chavez also offered to mediate between the Libyan government and the opposition in order to prevent the overthrow  of sovereign Libya. It was a strong display of anti-imperialist solidarity from Latin America to Africa.

The other major sovereign state which the US is still attempting to overthrow by covert and overt means, is the Syrian Arab Republic. For at least 4 years, the US, along with its allies in Israel, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey, have been waging a proxy war to take out one of the few countries in the Middle East which is not totally subservient to the West. Some of the very Al-Qaeda operatives which helped overthrow Libya are now in Syria, along with jihadists from 83 different countries. All of them are being armed, funded and trained by the US and its allies, the rhetoric about “fighting ISIS” notwithstanding. The Syrian government, led by the popularly elected President Bashar Al-Assad, have heroically resisted this proxy war, protecting its secular state, and many Christians and other faiths at the same time. Former Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez went to his unfortunately early end defending Syria against this horrendous war. Current President Nicolas Maduro is just as resolute in the defence of Syria today.

Left: United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) members demonstrate in solidarity with Syria outside the Syrian consulate in Venezuela. There is a sizable Syrian expatriate community in Venezuela. Nonetheless, Venezuelans, along with most Latin Americans, are very familiar with the US waging a “dirty war” to overthrow a democratically elected government. It has occurred countless times throughout the 20th and 21st century history of Latin America, and indeed is still occurring today.

It should be noted that the Australian government currently has 600 soldiers and 6 Super Hornet fighter jets in the area of Iraq and Syria, expressly backing the US effort to overthrow Syria. And, it has provided “non-lethal aid” to another US backed coup  – the neo-Nazi Ukrainian coup government. (SMH website – 03-09-14) The US government, often with the support of the Australian government, has absolutely no qualms about the political or ideological intentions of those they arm and fund for military takeovers of related countries. In Libya and Syria, the “opposition” forces they armed and funded were some of the most reactionary Islamic fundamentalists ever seen. In fact, there are many doubts about whether ISIS is even based on Islamic fundamentalism at all. Murder, torture, beheadings and even cannibalism were not beyond those who made up the “Free Syrian Army”, Al-Qaeda, Al-Nusra, Salafists and at a later time, ISIS.  In the Ukraine, however, the “opposition” were not jihadists, but fascists. There, the US has been openly politically backing fascist and Nazi groups. These fascist militias are, for the moment, the mainstay of the Kiev coup government. They were used to overthrow the previously elected Ukrainian government led by Victor Yanukovych on February 22 last year.

If the definition of fascism includes the use of violent force to eliminate political opponents, then there is much similarity between the Kiev government and the Venezuelan opposition. Both use violence, or the threat of violence, to overthrow or threaten to overthrow governments not to their liking. Both are backed politically by the US, and overtly or covertly funded by them. The February 22 fascist coup in Kiev last year came after years of US funding for Non-Government Organisations (NGOs) to the tune of $5 billion over the years since the counterrevolutionary destruction of the Soviet Union – by their own admission! (politifact.com – 03-19-14) The fascist supported and US backed Kiev government has gone on to wage war against Eastern Ukrainians, who have been forced to set up their own People’s Republics in anti-fascist self-defence. The ultimate aim of the US is to use NATO to install a pro-Western government, which will then be used as a bulwark to undermine or break up Russia. 

It’s not only Russia that the US aims to break up, undermine or overthrow. This is also the plan for the People’s Republic of China – the world’s most powerful socialist state. China itself is too large to overthrow from the outside, so the aim, like Russia, is to break off chunks of the whole by funding counterrevolutionary forces inside. This was why the US covertly funded and politically backed the so-called “Occupy Hong Kong” rallies in September last year. In April last year, pro-capitalist “democracy” leaders Martin Lee and Anson Chan personally met with US Vice President Joe Biden in the White House itself! (rt.com – 07-04-14) Less than six months later, pro-Western and pro-British students led a series of attempted occupations of government buildings in Hong Kong. This included a grossly hypocritical attempt to appropriate the “Occupy” sentiment from the movement which previously was set up to protest against the vast inequalities engendered by the capitalist system, despite some of the participant’s varied views. Yet “Occupy Hong Kong” was implicitly pro-capitalist, albeit under the absurd claim that they stood for “democracy” – when there was not a shred of democracy permitted in Hong Kong under British rule.

Left:  Hong Kong counterrevolutionary “democracy” advocates Martin Lee and Anson Chan personally meet with US Vice President Joe Biden in the White House in April last year. In September, pro-Western students and others attempted violent occupations of government buildings in Hong Kong, essentially demanding different electoral rules there than the rest of the People’s Republic of China. The pro-capitalist rallies failed to gain public support.

There is an urgent need for solidarity with Venezuela in the face of repeated US backed coup attempts. Yet if we are to truly stave off these gross violations of Venezuelan sovereignty, we need to be consistent across the board, and oppose ALL US backed coups. The international solidarity for Venezuela can only be strong enough if it is global.

In a recent interview, renowned international journalist John Pilger described Venezuela as a “reformist social democracy with a capitalist base”. While we agree with this characterisation, this should not in the least diminish our defence of the independence and sovereignty of the Bolivarian Republic. The Bolivarian revolution has achieved many important gains for Venezuelan workers. It has simultaneously pushed back the encroach of US imperialism over Latin America, and internationally. Yet the US funded subversion in Venezuela will continue as long as Venezuela remains in this social-democratic framework. For one thing, US funded subversion is made somewhat easier while this is the case. It is the case that the neighbouring Republic of Cuba, which formed a socialist state out of their 1959 revolution, is still the target of US funded subversion. However, due to the fact that Cuban workers hold state power, they are generally able to intercept, arrest or otherwise prevent serious attempts to foster and foment counter- rebellion against the Cuban revolution. 

The Bolivarian revolution in Venezuela, on the other hand, is not yet a socialist revolution. For a socialist revolution requires the seizing of state power by the workers, supported or at least not opposed, by other social layers. Socialism begins with the seizure of state power, it cannot be achieved even by 15 years of winning elections. One indicator of this was the fact that during the violent attempted coup 12 months ago, the Venezuelan armed forces were mobilised, but not authorised, to put down the violence. For while the Venezuelan armed forces remain national armed forces, they are restricted in being able to reign in the class enemies of the Bolivarian revolutionary process. For this, the Venezuelan armed forces need to be sworn to protect not the “nation”, but the working classes – which again poses the question of who holds state power. In the meantime, the defence of the sovereignty of Venezuela must be absolute.  NO MORE US BACKED COUPS! IMPERIALIST HANDS OFF VENEZUELA!

MARXIST-LENINIST FRONT

MLF20701@gmail.com

0421 408 692

www.marxistleninistfront.blogspot.com.au

Put All Politicians Last!

PUT ALL POLITICIANS LAST! FIGHT FOR JOBS, EDUCATION, HEALTHCARE, HOUSING, CIVIL RIGHTS!

24-01-15 – The unpopular Liberal National Party (LNP) Government led by Premier Campbell Newman has called an early election for January 31^st, seemingly to avoid a further slide in approval ratings. The severe assaults on jobs, working conditions, public services and democratic rights by this administration has been unprecedented. Approximately 15 000 public servants have been sacked, throwing their futures and their families into precarious positions. Nurses have been retrenched, further limiting health services. The privatisation of state assets continues as far as the LNP believes it can get away with, and the anti-association laws, ostensibly aimed at bikies, have shredded what limited democratic rights were available until this time. An itemised list of public spending cuts could fill a book.

Let us not, however, believe for a minute that all of these assaults on working people and the poor, and the contempt shown for the natural environment, are a result of the work of the LNP, or the ideological predilections of the LNP – although that plays some role. The ongoing war on working people is ultimately a result of the worst capitalist economic crisis since the 1930s, which has not relented since it began in 2008. This crisis, affecting all capitalist economies around the world, has perhaps been most acute in Greece and Spain. Australia has not sunk to the depths of Greece and Spain thanks largely to trade with socialist China. China’s majority state owned economy, which despite the crisis in the capitalist economies, is still powering along at around 7.5% GDP growth, salvaging Australia and many other trading partners. Yet even the power of Red China is not enough to prevent the Australian ruling class from launching savage attacks on the living and working conditions of people here, as part of an attempt to get us to accept lower wages, high unemployment, unbearable working conditions for those still in work, the increasing militarisation and securitisation of society, permanent poverty and disdain for the environment. They want us to accept the idea that their government has no obligation to provide basic public services – such as jobs, healthcare, education and public transport.

The Queensland Council of Unions (QCU) has launched a campaign to “Put the LNP last”. No matter which way this is spun, this is an implied call for an ALP government, or perhaps an ALP/Greens government. This is the same QCU which did not organise one minute of industrial action to fight against 15 000 job cuts from the public service in 2012. The QCU barely lifted a finger to oppose the VLAD laws – laws ultimately aimed at Unions themselves. These actions, more or less working with the LNP they claim to oppose, has led to widespread demoralisation amongst workers, many of whom now mistakenly believe that “nothing” can be done to fight the loss of jobs and conditions won over a century of struggle. Little could be further from the truth – provided a spark, workers could push aside the Union misleaders, which will probably entail exposing and removing anti-working class officials concerned only with furthering their careers. The Unions and their considerable resources could then be transformed into anti-capitalist organising centres, if not at the very least centres which organise campaigns against unemployment and for the full repeal of the VLAD laws.

The LNP is only carrying out what is required by a capitalist system in dire crisis. Therefore, the election of Labor in Queensland – the second party of Australian capitalism – will not stop the attacks on workers!  Nor will it help to elect other parties committed to the capitalist system, such as the Greens, the Palmer United Party, Katter’s Australian Party, or the Family First Party. The attacks will continue no matter which party administers capitalism at this historical juncture. Capital requires still more drastic reductions in the cost of labour, in a vain attempt to restore some rate of profit – hence the assault on jobs and working conditions for those that still have jobs. They also understand this will provoke political resistance – hence the VLAD laws to stop workers organising in their own defence. The ALP understands this, which is why it worked to prevent Unions from mobilising, and why it voted for the VLAD laws. It is also why it began the privatisation of state assets.

All of social democracy, and hence the QCU, are behind the push to “put the LNP last”. Yet for workers, the result of an election is far less important than the level of class struggle. It is class struggle, the efforts of workers in their workplaces and Unions, supported by pro-working class students and others, that has the potential to win lasting gains. Voting for the parliament of the rich is ultimately a futile effort, in terms of expecting a result. However, the ruling class has decreed that workers will be fined for not voting, so to avoid fines, we at least have to have our names crossed off the role and drop a ballot in a box. For this reason, in the absence of any genuine pro-working class candidates, the MLF recommends that workers cast a blank ballot on January 31^st – but commit to building a class struggle for jobs, healthcare, education, public transport, public housing and civil rights. For it is the class struggle of workers, not voting in elections dominated by those with wealth, that has potential to reverse the damage done by both the ALP and the LNP.

Permanent gains for workers ultimately can only be gained when the workers sweep away capitalism by using newly won state power to expropriate the capital that workers have helped build over centuries. In the meantime, let all working brothers and sisters struggle together against the nefarious inroads of their crisis. Jobs for all! For workers’ power!

MARXIST-LENINIST FRONT http://googled22.wix.com/marxistleninistfront/ facebook/0421 408 692/mlf20701@gmail.com

Rebuild Our Unions from the Ground Up!

REBUILD OUR UNIONS FROM THE GROUND UP! PUSH ASIDE OFFICIALS WHO STAND IN OUR WAY! FOR WORKERS’ POWER! 

4-3-15 – It is well past time that some semblance of a fightback is organised. Workers’ rights in 2015 stand at the lowest point since Federation. Even before the world crisis of the capitalist economies began in 2008, workers had been hit with three decades of assaults on rights and conditions won over a century of struggle. Since the crisis, these assaults have picked up pace. The Victorian Electrical Trades Union (ETU), in the process of building today’s rally, suggested a list of items to march against. These included: Removing penalty rates, attacking RDOs, increasing the retirement age to 70, the Federal Building Code, the reintroduction of the Australian Building and Construction Commission, dismantling Medicare, deregulating TAFE and Universities and slashing support for apprenticeships and training for unemployed youth.

It is of course more than welcome that today’s national rallies have been called by the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU). However, we should be wary of giving the top leadership of the ACTU, and their associated state bodies, a carte blanche to steer this campaign in defence of our rights as workers, and as the public. For the top leaders of the ACTU have allowed the situation to reach the dire stage we find ourselves in today. For example, around 40% of the Australian workforce is in temporary, casual or contract work. This is a staggering figure, but for the employers it means ongoing downward pressure on wages, conditions and rights of those who are in permanent work. And the working conditions for those who are in relatively stable work are frequently stressful and physically and mentally exhausting. The conditions in many workplaces, especially in the construction industry, are simply unhealthy. Unemployment is another huge problem, now the highest it has been in 12 years. Unemployment needs to be fought; we can’t just sit back and wait for better times.

At left: Graph supplied by the Australian Bureau of Statistics relating to Unemployment trends. At the start of the year, official unemployment stood at 6.3%. These are the “official” statistics, which are widely known to well under represent actual unemployment.

Workers and their allies know how bad the situation is, but how do we fight it? First, we have to recognise that some of the conditions we face are a result of the worst capitalist economic crisis in over 100 years. This crisis, which began in 2008, is a systemic, rather than a standard cyclical boom and bust. But this is only half of the story. The other major reason why Australia’s workers find themselves in ever-worsening circumstances is the betrayal by our own Union leaderships. There are exceptions, but for the most part, Union leaders have either been silent about, or have been complicit with, major assaults on workers’ rights and conditions over a 30 year period. Many Unions simply don’t have members meetings, the conservative officials refuse to organise them. Many officials don’t even call meetings at the time when workers are under attack in the workplace. For example, in Queensland, up to 15 000 state public servants were sacked in 2012, and no Union leadership called even one minute of industrial action!

Many of these officials are in very well paid and stable jobs, which often the members they represent don’t enjoy. This whole officialdom, the trade union bureaucracy, is a product of economic development itself, so they can’t be wished away. To rebuild our Unions, conservative officials need to be pushed aside – but workers can only do this collectively. Going one out before the Union bureaucracy plays into their hands. But if a group of workers, or a whole workplace, was to place the pressure on their Union officials, it’s a different situation. In many cases, it will be necessary for workers to take action without the sanction of the conservative bureaucracy. 

What is desperately needed in this struggle is workers’ unity. This needs to be extended to all workers in Australia, whether or not they are on a 457 visa, and all workers overseas. It is worth noting that workers in the socialist states in the Asia-Pacific region – China, Vietnam, the DPRK – often have stable working conditions and stable jobs – given that the victory of socialism in their country has taken their economies out of the capitalist casino, which remains in dire crisis. Ultimately, workers’ rights can only be permanently guaranteed through the establishing of a workers’ republic. In the meantime, through workers’ unity, the Union movement is capable of pushing aside treacherous leaders and officials, rebuilding itself, and once again winning real gains for workers. Some slogans the workers’ movement could put forward are: Permanent jobs for all workers! Full Union rights! Fund Universities, TAFEs, Healthcare and public transport! For workers’ rule!

Marxist-Leninist Front

www.marxistleninistfront.blogspot.com.au

MLF20701@gmail.com

0421 408 692