“From Scotland to Spain, the problem is the same!” was one of many slogans being shouted from the streets of Edinburgh today (29th May) as around 200 – 300 people (most from Edinburgh’s sizeable Spanish
community) organised to demonstrate in solidarity with revolutionary
movements in Spain and elsewhere in Europe.
“From Scotland to Spain, the problem is the same!” was one of many slogans being shouted from the streets of Edinburgh today (29th May) as around 200 – 300 people (most from Edinburgh’s sizeable Spanish
community) organised to demonstrate in solidarity with revolutionary
movements in Spain and elsewhere in Europe.
The
completely peaceful march was tremendously lively in nature and gave
locals in Edinburgh a wee taste of the electric atmosphere that is
emanating from cities all over Spain. Above all it emphasised anger at
the cuts and the lowering of living standards ordinary people are being
condemned too under capitalism, and offered fundamental solidarity to
those fighting cuts all over Europe.
The demonstration in
Edinburgh occurred as the Spanish revolution was attacked in Barcelona
where thousands of young people have been gathering to demand real
democracy and justice. Riot Police moved in to violently remove the
protesters using the excuse that they needed to “clean the square” in
anticipation of FC Barcelona winning the champions league and the
resulting celebrations. With youth unemployment reaching an unbearable
45% and the IMF threatening even greater cuts in public spending there
is little to celebrate, despite how clean the square may be. Spain is
being run like a business and in order to pay for the debts of the
banks, the futures of a generation of young people must be sacrificed.
In reality it is the Capitalists and their supporters controlling the
Spanish state who have forced people onto the streets and it is they who
are now violently trying to force them back off. However, faced with
such a mass movement they have lost control of the situation and it will
take more than police batons to silence the youth.
Another chant
heard in Edinburgh today was “RBS and Santander, fight them here and
fight them there!” recognising that the nature of the crisis is
fundamentally global and capitalism must attack workers everywhere in
order to survive. In Scotland workers are already beginning to feel the
strain of the cuts (with much more to come) and the demonstration was
warmly received by onlookers, themselves facing an uncertain future.
Even the police are not safe from the cuts and some officers were
clearly sympathetic to the protest, accepting (and wearing!) flowers
from the protesters.
Supporters of Socialist Appeal and Militant
Student attended the demonstration handing out the same leaflets that
are being distributed by our comrades in Spain (corrientemarxista.org)
calling for real democracy and not the dictatorship of the market.
Indeed, it is the dictatorship of the “free” market that has demanded
that workers all over the world save them from crisis by giving up their
long fought for and hard earned living standards. It is the elected
governments all over Europe that willingly sell out generations of young
people and at the same time hand billions over to the banks. Real
democracy means the right to decent job and a future, exactly what
“democracy” under capitalism must take away. Only Socialism can remove
the dictatorship of the markets and make democracy an everyday reality
ensuring people come before profit.
Note: The action in Edinburgh was organised by Real Democracy Now! Scotland.
Source: Militant Student (Britain
