We have received the following report
from a Spanish comrade living in Edinburgh, Julia S. Vidania, on her
recent visit to her home city of Madrid. She gives a vivid account of
the almost revolutionary tension in the city as the European austerity
programme and the crisis of capitalism erodes the veneer of stability in
society, exposing the deep fault-lines of the class struggle.
We have received the following report
from a Spanish comrade living in Edinburgh, Julia S. Vidania, on her
recent visit to her home city of Madrid. She gives a vivid account of
the almost revolutionary tension in the city as the European austerity
programme and the crisis of capitalism erodes the veneer of stability in
society, exposing the deep fault-lines of the class struggle.
Street ArtWandering
the streets of Madrid has always been one of the greatest pleasures in
my life. A city of such beauty with so much to offer, where the sound of
a Spanish guitar is never too far away, closely followed by the smells
of amazing food and the sound of a thousand lives coming from all around
you. A city that never sleeps.··It’s weird how far away it seems from
here and how easy it is not to think beyond the downgrading banking
rates and the alarming figures of unemployment. In Scotland it almost
feels as if those things could never reach us in the safety of our home
in the North. In Madrid it used to feel that way too.
From the minute I stepped off the plane I noticed it straight away.
It was electrifying. It was on everyone’s mind: the crisis, at all
levels: economic, political and social. All around me the conversations
revolved around the cuts and the despairing situation of the same people
who used to call themselves the middle class. It was surprising in
itself to hear people talking about politics and economics and demanding
solutions everywhere I went to in a country where talking politics was
avoided for decades because it was not ‘politically correct’. No one
seems now afraid of hurting anyone else’s feelings when it comes to
defend the rights for which the Spaniards have fought and bled for
generations. The vast majority of the population supports recent
protests and strikes against the brutal package of austerity measures
introduced by the right-wing PP government of Mariano Rajoy, and
millions of people turn to the streets every month in massive
demonstrations such as never remembered in living memory. From all
around the country tens of thousands of workers travel to Madrid to
crowd the city with banners and chants demanding the resignation of the
newly elected government and the election of a new and representative
government, that of the people. The numbers are so large that the media,
exposed to the increasing criticism from the people, do not even bother
on giving figures anymore. The working class has awakened in the city
that never sleeps.·
Spanish state, as expected, has responded to this awakening with
extreme violence and repression. Madrid seemed to me a city under siege,
reminding me a bit too much of a police state. The police creep about
the city in their cars with the lights on, moving slower than slowly,
watching… and being watched. The feeling you get in every street corner
is unsettling, the police car creeping up the street while dozens of
people, young and not so young, watch following the car with their gaze
as the city holds its breath. Policemen do not seem comfortable either,
never abandoning the safety of their car and appearing as intimidating
as they possibly can. If you were wondering, they are also armed.·
However, the three main police trade unions (CEP, UFP and SPP)
expressed their rejection of the austerity measures introduced by the
government, which included salary cuts for public sector workers by 5%
in 2010, the freezing of their salaries in 2011, 2012 and 2013 and the
cancellation of bonuses in Christmas as well as a cut to their holidays.
In a press release published in the SPP’s website on the 1st
of October the trade unions emphatically accused the government of
using the police for their own benefit and of “extending the violence
and forcing police intervention”. In addition, the two main associations
of the Spanish army (AUME and Soldiers for Democracy) also publicly
rejected the actions of the government and claimed that “they were
running out of patience” and supporting “every social initiative that
defends the civil rights which we must not lose”. This, added to the
massive increasing figures of unemployment (23% and over 53% of young
people), the brutal reform to the labour law, cut downs to salaries and
public spending and the increase of the VAT to 21%, make the situation
in Spain volatile at best. The anger is already boiling within the very
structures of the state. And the feeling one gets wandering the streets
of Madrid is that the state has raised itself up from society in order
to repress the wave of anger streaming across the country, meanwhile
trying to protect themselves by clinging to the very structures that are
already shaking. In Madrid, the ones who are not running out of
patience are running out of money and the government of Rajoy is running
out of time.·
Unsurprisingly, the Spanish media is publicly displaying their lack
of criticism and understanding, and even of information, which should be
the main priority of the so-called information media. This is also very
unsurprising given the fact that hundreds of journalists and other
media workers have been replaced by the government for more suitable
ones. In Valencia, a group of about a hundred workers from public TV
stormed in the live broadcasting of the daily news to protest against
the labour reform that has sacked 75% of the workers affecting to over
1,295 people. For up to 7 minutes, people around Valencia enjoyed a live
taking over by the workers, joining to the demands of the rest of the
population. The police did of course “enforce the order”, and the public
ended up enjoying a documentary about marine environments instead,··in
another pathetic attempt at censorship that characterises our shaking
government and that reminds so much of old censorships in the not-so-old
fascism.
Unfortunately for the comrades reading, I did not have the pleasure
of marching with the hundreds of thousands who took the streets of
Madrid on September 15, when the main Spanish trade unions CCOO and UGT,
along with other sector unions, called for a demonstration against the
ironically called Popular Party. I would have probably been amongst the
black wave of angry civil servants, out of the six colours that crowded
the city each representing a body of the public sector (education green,
healthcare white, public services black, trade union rights red, social
services orange and abortion rights violet). Interestingly, workers
dress in their colours on Fridays, reminding the city that the struggle
goes on. And in response to the massive display of the police force I
might have imitated many and might have carried my ID on the mouth.·
had the chance, though, to march myself in October 13, along with other
thousands of people in a demonstration called by the movement M15. The
protest, which was supposed to start at Neptuno Square in the city
centre and finish in Sol Square, was intentionally moved to the tricky
entrails of the city far away from Sol Square and many protesters
received misguided information. Fortunately, the weather in Madrid was
as nice as usual at this time of the year, and hundreds waited for the
protest on the way to Sol by meanwhile starting another protest. I
wandered the streets of Madrid once again under a banner for economic
sovereignty and joined my voice to that of the thousands of workers,
students, young and old who just like me have spare bills at the end of
their salary, and spent the rest of the evening enjoying the
carnivalesque sound of a good Spanish protest.·
A week before that, another protest had been called by the union
CCOO. I hear that there is a similar demonstration called most every
week and in the end of the day people need a rest, even when the city
doesn’t. I ended up having an interesting conversation about how the M15
movement does not support trade unions. This is an old argument that
some are trying to polish, about the legitimacy of the leadership of the
trade unions and therefore the rejection of the whole trade unionising.
But from what I can gather, there is an enormous bottom up pressure
within the unions demanding actions, which already forced the trade
unions to call for a general strike in March 29, and which has this time
forced to join the general strikes already announced by Greece and
Portugal on November the 14th. Furthermore, there are already talks amongst the union delegates to organise an indefinite general strike. The city is busy.
The government is afraid and the upper class is distressed.
Politically, they have lost legitimacy before the eyes of the workers.
Hundreds of thousands shout for the government’s resignation and a call
for new elections, a reform in the justice system and the cancellation
of the Spanish debt. The main opposition however, the so-called
socialist PSOE, does not pose a huge threat to the governing PP. After
nearly 8 years of PSOE’s government, which started with progressive
reforms such as the legalisation of gay marriage and abortion, the
effects of the housing bubble burst shook the country to the ground. The
economic situation of the country was such that the government was
forced to resign prematurely and new elections were called. The PSOE has
not recovered from the blow it suffered in the elections, and the main
left wing opposition in Spain, United Left, has been the beneficiary of
such an electoral force. The party is strong in many parts of Spain.
Meanwhile the bourgeoisie in other parts of Spain are toying with their
national aspirations, and the political climate in Spain is making Prime
Minister Rajoy’s nights very long. Instability is bad for business, and
the economic panorama is not looking good. Of course it is all about
maintaining private property, and so Rajoy has no choice but to play the
game of capital. His government has to enforce the economic conditions
of the capitalists in order survive and the sham of the democracy that
used to protect them from the people has vanished. This is perhaps why
the PSOE has been supporting reforms and being quite otherwise. You do
not want to be responsible of the present situation in our lovely
country. Socially, the tension is breath-taking. The scattered left is
trying to hold on together through the unions and social campaigns. The
situation is so extreme that Red Cross has launched a campaign to help
the thousands of Spaniards living in poverty.
There is a need for a consistent, firm and revolutionary programme,
able to unite the masses of workers against the capitalist system. The
ground in which to grow the seeds of revolution must be social, the
means political and the results economic. As Marxists, we understand the
need of strong links to the working class and the work the comrades
back in Spain are doing is excellent. It is important to maintain a
solid position against the ever tempting reformists on the left. We must
penetrate the unions and the workplaces, proud Marxist workers and
students able to handle the “whys?” and “hows?” of socialism. In Spain,
things are moving fast and the radicalisation of the people is going
apace. The fragile government will eventually have to confront a full
wave of Mediterranean temper as will their counterparts in Portugal and
Greece. People are turning to and radicalising the left and we must be
prepared for what has yet to come. The inherent crisis of capitalism is
never too far away from our doorstep. It is militant times ahead for us
workers of the world.
