In
the advanced capitalist countries people take water almost for granted, or at
least they did until recently. Now more and more of us have to pay huge bills
for our water. In the underdeveloped countries, however it is much worse, with
over one billion having no access to safe water. Water will become a source of
class conflict, as the experience of Bolivia has confirmed.
On Wednesday the 24th of May there was a meeting of nursing students at the University of East Anglia in Norwich. This came about after sustained pressure by the increasingly militant trainee nurses, who demanded answers to the compulsory redundancy (read sacking) of 18 members of staff.
Here we publish an article sent to us by a sixth form student and Labour Party member. It details the hypocrisy of the New Labour agenda, obvious to all ordinary working people, yet ignored by the mainstream media. Expressed is an instinctive distaste for the shallowness of bourgeois democracy, and a desire to fight for socialist policies far removed from the Blairite government a generation of young people have grown up under.
On Tuesday 15th
May Hands off Venezuela travelled to Brighton to attend the annual PCS
conference. The intervention was a success, helping to raise awareness of the process taking place in Venezuela, particuarly the plight of the workers of Sanitarios Maracay.
Bullying Tesco bosses have plumbed new depths sacking 65 drivers involved in
a lawful, official trade union dispute. The 150 drivers at the Tesco
distribution centre in West Lothian will be on strike from midnight tonight.
Taxi's arrived at drivers homes on Monday night with letters telling the men
they were sacked.
John Pilgers first outing as a documentary film-maker covers the revolution which is taking place in Latin America, despite US imperialisms attempts to wreck a process that is bringing hope to countless ordinary peoples everyday lives.
We publish a revealing letter describing how ordinary workers are beginning, themselves, to draw conclusions about the nature of capitalism, in total contrast to the propaganda put out by reformist politicians and big business.
Earlier this month Socialist Appeal reported on strike action to be taken by Tesco drivers in West Lothian this May 24th. Rather than sitting down with the representatives of the union and working out a solution, mangement attempted to use other drivers to break the lawful strike by their own innocent workers.
Throughout the history of the labour movement we have witnessed the development of sectarianism within a section of the left. It reflects the inability to understand that the mass of the working class moves through its traditional mass organisations. The sectarian ignores this and believes that all you have to do is declare the "new party" and then the masses will come flocking.
Chavez has announced sweeping measures of nationalisation. This represents a big step forward for the Venezuelan revolution and would be a serious blow against capitalism and imperialism. Big enemies are lining up to stop this process, the most dangerous being inside the Bolivarian movement itself. It is now time to go all the way and put an end to capitalism in Venezuela and spread the revolution to the rest of Latin America.
We are reproducing here a letter sent by John McDonnell to all his supporters in which he stresses the need to now build the Left of the Labour. The campaigning work of the recent period is not wasted. It can be the basis for strengthening the left.
The ranks of the Labour Party and trade unions have been
denied the right to vote on who they think the next leader of the party should
be. This has been achieved by convincing a handful of Labour MPs not to
nominate John McDonnell. But this is not the end of the story. Now is the time
to redouble efforts to build up the left of the Labour Party in the coming
period.