2010 ~ Revolutionary year!

The new year looks set to be one of upheaval & revolt.

Where will be the first to break out in struggle? Iran is already hot, and the coming weeks will see it reach boiling point.

Iranian students relaunch protests ~ 16 Azar

Almost six months after the greatest mass movement to shake Iran since the 1979 revolution, and depite waves of brutal repression, the dictatorship has failed to quell protests.

Today, 16 Azar/7 December - Iranian Students' Day - is a day of protest dating back to 1953, when three students at Tehran university were killed by the Shah's forces, months after a CIA/MI6-backed coup restored him to power.

16 Azar has become a focus for students' protests against the Islamic dictatorship. In the weeks up to this day, dozens of student activists have been arrested, with many more receiving threats by email. Hundreds of the hated basij security forces have converged onto campuses. Mothers protesting the detention of their children have been arrested. And now the regime is restricting internet speeds to choke off information and coordination.

Despite this intensified repression, all signs are that the determination of the students will prove stronger than the regime's intimidation. Students have invited parents to their protests.

As events in Iran unfold, it is time for internationalists to renew solidarity with the Iranian democracy struggle. In Iran itself, it is vital that protesting students link their struggles in the universities with workplaces and with workers' districts.

Most of all, Iranian workers and youth need to begin building a party to generalize and coordinate the struggle to overthrow the dictatorship.

Antifascist defense means self-defense - build an antifascist defense league!

We shouldn't depend on the state to ban EDL marches - we have to do the job ourselves. Why? For one thing, if they ban a fascist march, they can ban a workers' protest. Even worse, what happens if they subsequently decide to allow a fascist march? If we have relied on the state, instead of organizing ourselves, we are left totally unprepared for future anti-fascist action.

The reason the capitalist state is not a dependable weapon against fascism is that both arise from capitalism.

We know the state serves the bosses, because it's used to attack us, as at the G20 protests. Fascism is also the bosses weapon - their ultimate WMD, used to smash the workers' movement when the system enters a terminal crisis.

They won't use it yet. They'll keep groups like the EDL at arm's length. They may even ban certain events or organizations. But the fascist virus will never be destroyed by capitalism. Rather, it will act as a willing host, allowing the infection to lie dormant, or slowly spread and mutate into more virulent forms.

The only cure is to terminate the system itself, and replace it with one where workers hold the power and create a society without exploiters.

That's another reason we need to do the anti-fascist work ourselves. In the course of mobilizing to drive the EDL off our streets, we can begin to build the organizations we need not only to defend ourselves, but for other struggles, too.

Most urgent, however, is the creation of an anti-fascist defense league - let's not wait for more attacks like those around City University before we take this vital step.

Police investigate gang attack on Muslim students in London

Iranian revolution needs our solidarity!

I'm not really all that concerned with evidence for electoral fraud in the Iranian presidential election.

As far as concrete (as opposed to abstract) democracy goes, elections are only important to the extent they further struggles for positive change in society - whether that be reforms or the complete overthrow of capitalism and the establishment of socialism.

Of course, progressives should expose fraud and uphold principles of democracy. We know that workers' states are not immune to degeneration; and that has deadly consequences for the very people such societies are supposed to benefit. So fairness in elections is a key issue. (That's one reason we should call for proportional representation and recall as part of electoral reform in the UK.)

False claims of fraud to undermine a regime that imperialism doesn't like is a real possibility, and may even be the case in Iran. We should not be taken in by that. We certainly shouldn't be fooled by, or side with, 'champions of democracy' who simply want to discredit or destabilize the Iranian regime, either to neutralize it as a rival to US dominance in the Middle East, or even justify a 'preemptive' attack.

But what has happened in Iran? Whether justified or not, the main opposition candidate Mousavi (no friend of workers!) cried foul. His supporters came out in thousands, the first open mass demonstrations in Iran for years.

Many, many others have joined the protests. Why? Not because they necessarily support Mousavi, or even believe there was fraud. But because, after decades of suppession, there is a chance to come out in open opposition to the mullahs' dictatorship.

Now, after almost a week of mass protests, brutal beatings and killings of students, plus transparent attempts by the regime to prevent news getting out, it should be clear to anyone that a popular revolution is under way in Iran.

For internationalists, what other response is there but unconditional support for this revolution? And what form should our support take?

The last thing the Iranians want is US or international imperialist intervention. So we should be ready to protest and take action to prevent interference from our governments if the threat arises. To be effective, direct action and above all strikes would be necessary.

But workers, youth and oppressed people of all countries should directly support their Iranian counterparts and comrades. Meetings, protests, on the street and in workplaces and colleges, are a must. So is our political input. Left isolated from international contact, the prospects of victory for popular forces are greatly reduced.

Like all popular revolutions, the Iranian uprising is not homogeneous. Various sectors of society are involved. As yet, workers are underrepresented, a factor that would be fatal for the revolution if it were maintained.

Either, lacking the backbone that workers in struggle give it, the revolution would be crushed, with massive repression in its wake. Or it would 'succeed', in a superficial political sense, replacing one set of dictators with another, along with a few reforms that would slowly be whittled away.

While we should not be preaching to the Iranians, solidarity is a must, and it should be unconditional - which is not the same as uncritical. Criticism, such as pointing out problems in the struggle so far, along with constructive suggestions based on working class revolutionary experience, is a good thing. If we put ourselves in the Iranian position, wouldn't we want both solidarity and positive critical input to our struggle? I certainly would.

A look at some of the stuff on the net (see the Anonymous Iran site) shows the Iranian masses do not need practical lessons - they are learning very fast (as we would need to, and would do). One example is a Protest advice thread, which includes things like making smoke bombs to cover escape from police onslaughts, first aid for bullet wounds, and suggestions for an anthem.

But political input is essential. How else can people avoid repeating past mistakes? Sure, there are Iranian left revolutionaries, clued up on working class history. But without a mass revolutionary party, political ideas from international sources are vital. For that matter, as the experience of both national workers' parties and internationals shows, comradely discussion on an international scale is needed by strong, established parties, too.

So I hope supporters of the Iranian revolution will get involved in the internet sites, and I hope they will go beyond discussion to organize Iran solidarity events around the UK and worldwide!

Solidarity with the Iranian revolution!

Iran ~ Solidarity with youth ~ General strike now!

Iranian youth protests meet with brutal repression ~ only a general strike can overthrow the mullahs' dictatorship and open the way to workers' power!

no2eu - yes to UK bosses' democracy?

The no2eu site has an About us page

It states “No2EU Yes to Democracy is an electoral platform. It is a trade union-backed alliance of political parties and campaigning groups.”

There’s nothing about how the alliance decides on policy or action, but there seems no way that workers can participate directly and vote. So it is not a democratic workers’ organization.

Another page is Our supporters

This has a list, “All in a personal capacity”, of mostly trade union leaders, with a few apparently rank and file members. So again, there seems to be no official support from existing democratic workers’ organizations.

As for policies, the About us page lists the following:

• Reject the Lisbon Treaty
  
• No to EU directives that privatise our public services
  
• Defend and develop manufacturing, agriculture and fishing industries in Britain
  
• Repeal anti-trade union ECJ rulings and EU rules promoting social dumping
  
• No to racism and fascism, Yes to international solidarity of working people
  
• No to EU militarisation
  
• Repatriate democratic powers to EU member states
  
• Replace unequal EU trade deals with fair trade that benefits developing nations
  
• Scrap EU rules designed to stop member states from implementing independent economic policies
  
• Keep Britain out of the eurozone
  

A moment’s thought shows this is not only nationalistic but fails to mention any challenge to the British bosses’ agenda. What about UK privatization and anti-union laws (brought in by Thatcher, kept by Blair/Brown)? What about our own military, currently waging war overseas, and our nuclear weapons program?

Talk of “defending” the economy in Britain (and stuff the workers of Europe?) is naïve as well as nationalist. How will keeping out of the eurozone help, when even the US dollar is threatened with collapse? Oh yes, we have the mighty pound!

How can any state “implement independent economic policies” in a global capitalist economy in global crisis? And what hypocrisy to talk about “unequal EU trade deals” – as if trade deals have ever been fair between imperialist states like the UK and developing nations.

“Repatriate democratic powers”? Just what democratic powers did workers have in the UK or other member states before the EU came along? Certainly, with regard to the economy: NONE. But the clear implication is that we would be better off under UK capitalism than we are under EU capitalism.

In fact, the British state has opposed EU social reforms, like limits on the working week, as well as being dragged to the European Court on civil liberties, as with the infamous 'police kettle' tactic. Of course, European capitalist institutions will not protect us, but neither will our 'own'.

It’s absolutely right that we need a new workers’ and youth party in Britain. It’s just as clear that this rehash of ‘left’ Labour/CP reformism is no basis for such a party. Nor should we be waiting for the outcome of the elections to (as they seem to hope) give credibility to some self-appointed group.

A new workers’ and youth party will only be built based on struggles, fighting British, European and global capitalism, with a program to overthrow the system here and abroad. To succeed, a British workers’ and youth party would need to become part of an international workers’ and youth party, too.

Did G20 cops beat Ian Tomlinson to death?

Ian Tomlinson's died of internal bleeding - did G20 cops beat him to death?

A second post-mortem into the death of Ian Tomlinson showed he died from an "abdominal haemorrhage" and not a heart attack.

Photographs have also come to light of Ian apparently remonstrating with officers in a riot van in Lombard Street up to an hour before this footage.