[R-G] Fwd: (en) Argentina, National Conference of Workers from Occupied Factories Buenos Aires, August 25, 2002

[Macdonald Stainsby]

Hoping for some insight on this...

I've heard such starkly contrasted interpretations of the Argentine 
situation...

Can anyone tell me how accurate this is?
Macdonald
-----

Forwarded From: Worker <a-infos-en at ainfos.ca>

  THE FIRST NATIONAL CONFERENCE OF PLANTS AND FACTORIES
 OCCUPIED AND IN STRUGGLE WAS HELD
 
 National mobilization called for next September 10 in
 support of the occupied plants and factories
 
 With the presence of more than eight hundred delegates
 representing factories, trade unions and popular
 assemblies, the First National Conference of Plants
 and Factories Occupied and In Struggle was held,
 organized by the Bloque Piquetero Nacional (National
 Picketeers Bloc) and the Movimiento Independiente de
 Jubilados y Desocupados (Independent Movement of
 Pensioners and Unemployed).
 
 The meeting took place Saturday, August 24 in the
 plant of the Grissinpoli company, occupied by its
 workers. Together with the hosts of Grissinpoli,
 among those present were the representatives of
 Transportes del Oeste (transport workers), de
 Supermercados Tigre de Rosario (supermarket), de
 Metrovas (subway), de Editorial Perfil (publishing
 house / printers), de Clnica Junn de Crdoba
 (clinic), de Mineros de Ro Turbio (coal miners), de
 petroleros de Chubut (oil workers), together with
 those of more than 130 trade unions and shop steward
 committees, as well as 35 Popular Assemblies. 
 
 The Conference approved a resolution promoting
 workers self-management in the factories through
 expropriation of the machinery, buildings and capital
 of the companies, to be handed over to the workers.
 The meeting resolved to hold a national march in
 support of the occupied factories for next September
 10. In the same way, it committed its active
 participation in the roadblocks resolved by the Bloque
 Piquetero Nacional, Movimiento Independiente de
 Jubilados y Desocupados, Barrios de Pie and the
 Coordinadora Anbal Vern (Anbal Vern Coordinator of
 Organizations of the Unemployed), for next Monday,
 August 26, and in the march of Tuesday the 27th
 demanding freedom for Ral Castells. 
 
 Finally, the delegates called for the organization of
 a multitudinous representation of occupied factories
 at the next National Assembly of employed and
 unemployed workers, called for next September 28th.
 
 Another report: 
 
 WORKERS FROM THE MAIN OCCUPIED FACTORIES MET ON
 SATURDAY AUGUST 24 AT BRUKMAN TEXTILE (BUENOS AIRES)
 TO PREPARE THE SECOND MEETING OF 
 OCCUPIED FACTORIES FOR SEPTEMBER 7TH.
 
 Delegations of workers of the main occupied factories
 were present on August 24 in the meeting held at
 Brukman Confecciones. A delegation 
 went to the meeting of the Bloque Piquetero at
 Grissinpoli and read a letter calling them to convene
 together the Second Meeting of Occupied Factories for
 September 7th.
   
 The occupied factories met in Brukman   
   
 Workers from the occupied factories under workers
 administration met today in Brukman Confecciones in
 Buenos Aires City to prepare the Second National
 Meeting for September 7th. They received the fighting 
 greetings and the support of the MTD (Movement of
 Unemployed Workers) of Solano and Varela (Greater
 Buenos Aires), which are part of the Coordination of
 Unemployed Workers "Anibal Vern". These unemployed 
 organizations took the iniciative of the MTD of
 Neuqun  to take part in this meeting. Today's
 pre-meeting was also convened by the workers 
 of Zanon that are producing under workers control in
 the ceramic factory of Neuqun, and along with the
 workers of Brukman were the main convocants of the
 first meeting in defense of occupied factories 
 in last April.    

 But this time the alliance among self-managed
 companies is wider. A delegation voted in assembly of
 the Clinical Junn came from Crdoba 
 Province, workers of the hypermarket "Tigre" from
 Rosario were present. Also workers of Fricader
 (refrigerating factory) from Ro Negro Province,
 miners from Ro Turbio, metal workers of La Baskonia 
 from La Matanza  Greater Buenos Aires, of the "El
 Aguante" Cooperative (ex- Panificadora cinco), of the
 printing shop Chilavert and of food making plant
 Ghelco  all factories managed under 
 different modalities of labor administration- attended
 the meeting. 
 
 Each delegation will return to its factories to
 discuss in assemblies the proposals for the Second
 National Meeting of September 7th.  The first top
 commitment of the attendees is the mutual defense in
 case of any attack or intent of eviction. They also
 agreed to extend to all the workers facing redundance
 the demand and the struggle for the occupation of
 bunkrupt factories and to put them under workers 
 control.  
   
 The occupied factories received also the solidarity of
 the Corriente Clasista y Combativa. Union delegations
 were present, among them the railway workers (Haedo
 Branch - Greater Buenos Aires), shopstewards 
 of the directive commission of the Sindicato
 frigorfico de la Carne (Meat Union) of Buenos Aires
 and Greater Buenos Aires, teachers of the Suteba
 (teacher's union) of La Matanza (Greater Buenos
 Aires), of the Internal Commission of Emfer, health
 workers of Garraham Hospital, university teachers of 
 ADIUC of Crdoba, workers of the Asociacin de
 Trabajadores de Comercio de Rosario (shop workers), 
 university teachers of the CONADU, a delegation of the
 Lista Gris of the metal union UOM (La Matanza branch)
 of the Lista Naranja of the building workers union
 UOCRA- of Neuqun, of the Astillero Ro
 Santiago, workers of Editorial Perfil, of Finexcor, of
 Editorial Perfil, of the big food making plant Pepsico
 Snacks, postal workers from  Rosario city  and
 delegates of civil servant union ATE- Buenos 
 Aires y La Plata branchs.       
 Delegates and members of popular assembies of
 different neighborhoods of Buenos Aires such as San
 Cristobal-Boedo, Parque Lezama, Villa 
 Urquiza, Juan B. Justo y Corrientes, Crdoba y
 Anchorena, Medrano y Corrientes, Ayacucho y Rivadavia,
 Parque Avellaneda, Carlos Gardel 
 attended. Also popular assemblies of Greater Buenos
 Aires such as Lans, Lomas de Zamora, Temperley,
 Carapachay and Avellaneda participated in the meeting.
 All of them supported the convening of 
 the Second National Meeting of Occupied Factories for
 September 
 7th.    
   
 Press release by workers of Brukman and the Secretary
 of Press and Diffusion of the ceramic union SOECN
 (Neuqun Branch).   
   
   
 THE OCCUPIED FACTORIES ALSO CALLED TO THE PICKETERS TO
 A COMMON 
 FIGHT   
 
 The workers of the occupied factories sent a
 delegation to the meeting of the the Bloque Piquetero
 and the MIJD led by Ral Castells. The following
 letter was read in this meeting at Grissinpoli
 factory, by Yuri Fernndez delegate from Brukman- and
 
 Blanco of Zanon.   
   
   
 Buenos Aires, August 24 2002   
   
 Dear brothers and sisters of the Bloque Piquetero and
 of other present organizations   
   
 We send you this letter to reiterate to you our desire
 to advance in a common fight and to invite you again
 to the Second National Meeting of Occupied Factories
 and Companies in Struggle that we will carry 
 out next September 7th. We proposed you several times
 to organize together this meeting. We have just
 finished the prior meeting at Brukman today.  Modestly
 we think that the workers of Zann and 
 Brukman, who are occupying theirs factories and
 running them under workers control for more than 10
 months, should be the organizers of a Meeting of
 Occupied Factories rather than merely guests. We think
 
 we have to organize this meeting together. You decided
 to carry out your own meeting anyway. We believe that
 this should not be an impediment to carry to a higher
 degree the many agreements we already have in the
 everyday struggle. We have been together in the rally
 of May Day at Plaza de Mayo. We have been together in
 the pickets on June 26th, when the rgime cowardly
 murdered Kosteki and Santilln. And also we were
 together in the huge mobilizations of June 27th, and 
 July 3rd and 9th, repudiating the repression and
 Duhalde's government. 
 
 In all of those struggles we were along our brothers
 and sisters of the CTD Anbal Vern. We have
 participated of the picketers occupation of Plaza de
 Mayo on August 7th and 8th. We have rejected the
 government's Crisis Councils and denounced the truce
 of all the union federations. We were together in face
 of the eviction of Zanon in Neuqun and supporting the
 workers of Grissinopoli, also under policial and
 judiciary threat. We share the motto: if they attack
 one, they attack all of us. We ratify this in the
 Plenum of the Mesa Coordinadora Regional de Alto
 Valle, where participated the workers of Zann, the
 MTD and other organizations that are part of 
 the regional Coordinating Board, along with
 delegations of Brukman, Fricader, Chilavert, La
 Baskonia, Clinica Junn, Ro Turbio, 
 Grissinopoli, and fighting unions, organizations of
 unemployed workers and popular assemblies. Both of us
 are demanding the expropriation without compensation
 of the companies that shut-down. We defend the control
 and the labor administration. We fight for the 
 unit of the workers of the occupied factories, the
 unemployed workers, the popular assemblies, to prepare
 a militant general strike until we can kick "all of
 them" out.    
   
 For all these reasons, we want to call you again to
 organize in common the next steps in the struggle and
 in the independent workers organization, like the next
 Workers of occupied factories and Unemployed workers
 Assembly on a national level that must represent 
 as wide as possible all the social sectors in
 struggle. In order to prepare this Assembly, we think
 it is necessary a deep discussion on its program and
 on the methodology of functioning (agenda, 
 representation etc.).   
   
 Finally, we would urge you that all decision this
 meeting adopt, including the support to our struggles,
 should be taken to advance in the unity in the
 struggle and in the organization and for that it is 
 necessary avoid one-sided measures and impositions.
 The Meeting of September 7th will have the same
 unitary character that our First Meeting of April 13th
 had, where you were present. Once again we 
 insist on preparing it together.
   
 We remain waiting for a positive answer.
 With our combative greetings,    
   
 Workers and Internal Commission of Zanon   
 Workers of Brukman Confecciones   
 MTD Neuqun   
 SOECN - Neuqun   
   
 Also sign this letter:
 Cooperative "La Baskonia"   
 Cooperative "J.J. Gmez"  (former Fricader)   
 Printing shop "Chilavert"  
 Cooperative "El Aguante"  
 Workers of Clinica Junn   
 
 =====
 "Revolution is not like cricket, not even one day cricket"



-- 
Macdonald Stainsby,
External Relations Co-ordinator,
Douglas College Students Union.
**
In the contradiction lies the hope. --Bertholt Brecht.
***
"`Order rules in Berlin.' You stupid lackeys! Your 
`order' is built on sand. Tomorrow the revolution will rear 
ahead once more and announce to your horror amid the brass 
of trumpets: `I was, I am, I always will be!'" 

-Rosa Luxemburg, 1918.