UİD-DER called out from May Day Squares: “Stand Together Against the Attacks of Capital and the Government!”

On May Day- the International Day of Unity, Struggle and Solidarity of the Working Class- hundreds of thousands of workers and labourers took to the streets across Turkey and shouted that they refused to pay the price of economic destruction. Upon the call of trade unions and democratic mass organizations, workers took to the squares in many cities and raised their demands with the same anger and enthusiasm. They showed that they are carrying on the May Day tradition. They protested against miserable wages, precarious work, usurpation of their rights and repression. They reacted to the attacks of capital, the economic policies of the government, increasing poverty, tax robbery, de-unionization, unemployment, oppressive regime, imperialist war.

We are going through a period in which the attacks of capital and the government are increasing, the serious problems of the working class are seeking solutions, and all kinds of actions and objections of the workers are prevented by oppression and bans. Therefore, it is clear that workers are in great need to come together, to unite, to take strength and courage from each other, starting from their workplaces. Unfortunately, the union bureaucracy is following a different way, instead of making May Day an urgent priority of the workers and arousing the working class to show its strength and will in the streets in order to overcome the bans. The confederations either organize separate May Day rallies or restrict it to a narrow controversy on the venues. Because of these attitudes, May Day cannot be celebrated in unity and massively, i.e. in harmony with the spirit and meaning of May Day.

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May Day in Istanbul has been trapped in a narrow controversy for weeks in advance. DİSK, KESK, TTB, TMMOB and TDB called for celebrating May Day in Taksim. However, as always, they were content with empty claims and calls squeezed into the last days, but not working to make May Day an urgent priority of workers with a serious effort. Rather than a strong organization and preparation, they followed the promises made and the atmosphere created by the bourgeois opposition parties. The limited number of unionized workers and labourers who met in the assembly area (Saraçhane) were also blocked. Moreover, the union bureaucracy did not stop there, they left the workers alone and abandoned Saraçhane. It was a shameful situation far from giving strength and morale to the workers. The unions, parties, democratic mass organizations and representatives of political parties gathered in Saraçhane at early hours of the morning wanted to march to Taksim. But they were blocked by police barricades in front of the historic Valens Aqueduct in Saraçhane. Since all roads going to Taksim were blocked by police forces, the organizing committee announced that they decided to cancel the march. The bourgeois opposition leaders and trade union bureaucrats, who had said “We will march to Taksim, we are determined” before the march, left the mass alone in the face of police violence. Those who wanted to march through the barricades faced police attacks and the police detained more than 200 people. Due to the attitude of the bourgeois order party CHP and the union bureaucracy, May Day could not be celebrated in the biggest city of Turkey, Istanbul, and the heart of the industrial proletariat. Workers were prevented from expressing their demands and protests against the order.

This reveals the importance of workers’ rank-and-file organisation, getting united on the basis of working-class politics, holding the union leaders who are in collaboration with the system accountable, and turning the trade unions back into workers’ struggle organisations again.

Foreseeing this situation, UİD-DER celebrated May Day with workers in other working-class towns, i.e. Bursa and Lüleburgaz.

Fighting for strengthening the unity and solidarity of the working class, UİD-DER took its place in the marches with its disciplined workers’ column composed of workers from all sectors, side by side with workers as it does every May Day. By taking part in the rallies organized in the industrial cities of Bursa and Lüleburgaz, it embraced May Day, its spirit and historical meaning. UİD-DER organized May Day as a day of struggle in which workers, who were pushed to polarize around artificial distinctions, came together around their common demands and drew strength and courage from each other. UİD-DER once again revealed its determination to increase the level of consciousness and organization of the class and to strengthen its struggle.

Bursa

With the call of DİSK, KESK, TMMOB and TTB, workers, labourers, working women and pensioners came together in Bursa. Trade unions, professional organisations, associations, political parties and democratic mass organisations formed an enthusiastic marching column.

Workers from UİD-DER came to the assembly point with their red vests and hats, chanting slogans and with the support of applauding workers living in Bursa. UİD-DER held an enthusiastic May Day programme (presentation, music etc.) at the assembly area. Throughout the programme, starting with the May Day Anthem, major problems of the working class were addressed. Workers were called to stand together against the attacks of the capitalist class and the government.

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The programme stated the following lines: “A handful of parasites rolling in wealth on one side and millions struggling with poverty and unemployment on the other! This is what their system is. Brothers and sisters, the system we live in is a system of exploitation! There is no justice, no peace in this system! We are the ones exploited in factories and victims of murders called “work accidents”. We are the ones killed in wars. We are the ones sacked when seeking our rights, and we are the ones wanted to be silenced by bans and oppression when we raise our voices. In this system, laws are for the bosses and bans are for the workers. The wheels of this system are broken!” UİD-DER workers responded to the question, “Are we going to accept this corrupt system?” with a strong “NO” and slogans full of anger and enthusiasm. They chanted “STAND TOGETHER AGAINST High Cost of Living, Low Wages, Tax Robbery, Slashing of Severance Pay, De-Unionization, Making Workers Pay the Price of Economic Destruction, Attacks of Capitalists and the Government!” 

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The programme called for a united struggle against the government’s attacks on democratic rights. The workers were addressed as follows: “Brothers and sisters, bosses and those in power want us to keep silent in the face of injustice. They want us not to come together, not to draw strength and courage from each other, not to organise, not to unionise. When we refuse to do what they want, they attack us with all their might. The bosses fire unionised workers, and the government puts the gendarmerie and police against workers who resist and seek their rights. While punishing the workers who seek their rights, they side with the bosses blatantly breaking the law and usurping the rights of the workers. On May Day, they ban the squares for workers wanting to shout out their demands. But we are braver than the oppressors. Because we are the right ones. No matter what they do, they cannot stand in the way of workers who demand their rights!” The column greeted these words with a “Long Live Our Organised Struggle!” slogan.

The programme emphasised the suffering and destruction caused by the imperialist war that stretches out from Afghanistan to Iraq, from Syria to Ukraine and Gaza. It was also emphasised that the masters of the exploitation system remain silent in the face of this massacre. “It is the working people demanding an end to the massacre and showing real solidarity with the Palestinian people. In many countries of the world, workers, labourers, and young people are taking to the streets and squares and calling for an immediate end to the massacre. It is the struggle of the working class that will bring an end to the war and bring peace and freedom.” All in one voice: “Peace to the world will come through the struggle of the workers!” and “Long Live Workers’ Unity, Fraternity of Peoples!” slogans were shouted.

Throughout the programme, the surrounding workers’ contingents were greeted with enthusiasm and slogans were chanted in unison. Arm in arm with the workers of Durak Tekstil, who are members of Öz İplik-İş union and have been in a wildcat strike for 75 days, Halay was danced. The enthusiastic songs of UİD-DER Music Band UMUT were sung together.

As the march began, UİD-DER column, formed by workers, children, women, young people, pensioners, and also working people from Bursa who wanted to march in UİD-DER column, added enthusiasm to the May Day march with anthems, slogans, cheers and whistles. Workers of UİD-DER marching behind the banner “Let’s Stand Together Against the Attacks of Capitalists and the Government” chanted the slogans of struggle against capitalist exploitation and imperialist war. UİD-DER column stood out with its discipline and enthusiasm.

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Lüleburgaz

Thousands of workers and labourers in Lüleburgaz, a town in the province of Kırklareli, met in the May Day rally organised by the Lüleburgaz Labour Platform. Workers and labourers from nearby towns such as Tekirdağ, Çorlu, Çerkezköy, Saray, Babaeski and Istanbul participated in the rally. Executives, representatives and members of trade unions such as Kristal-İş, Petrol-İş, Tekgıda-İş, TÜMTİS, Emekli-Sen, Tekstil-İş, Eğitim-Sen, Tüm Bel-Sen, Haber-Sen and SES and also pro-labour parties, democratic mass organisations and UİD-DER took part in the rally.

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UİD-DER held its May Day programme and made the workers experience the enthusiasm of May Day. In the presentation, greetings were sent to the working class of the world who filled the squares for May Day from Asia to America, from Africa to Europe, to those who resist, those who do not submit, those who struggle for a world without exploitation. It was emphasised that the government and capital in Turkey want to make the working people pay for the economic destruction. Attacks on workers’ rights were pointed out with the following words: “They are increasing taxes, raising interest rates and inflation. While they give cheap loans to the capital, they even remove the possibility of instalments to the credit cards of workers and labourers. They continue to transfer the funds created with the money deducted from our wages to the bosses. They are further scaling back our pensions, severance pay and social rights. Under the name of saving in the public sector, they are further restricting public services such as health and education. They raise the minimum wage once a year, further reducing real wages.” A call was made to stand against these attacks together as the working class.

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In the programme, working women were addressed with the following words: “Working women who sweat in factories, workplaces, at home, shoulder the burden of life, stand at the forefront of strikes are here. We know that the working class cannot emancipate itself without women joining the struggle! We exist and we are here. We do not remain silent against poverty, violence, contempt, devaluation of our labour, and our children being left without a future. We say no to exploitation, double oppression, gender discrimination. We demand the opening of day-care centres in every neighbourhood and workplace, and free, nutritious and healthy meals for our children in all schools.”

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The problems and demands of the working class youth were also expressed in the UİD-DER column. “There is no future for the youth of the working class in capitalism. The life, future and hopes of our youth are being taken away. Our youth are condemned to unemployment and seen as a source of cheap labour. This order leaves both our youth and society breathless, pushing them into a sense of loneliness and helplessness. Our young brothers and sisters, when we advance the struggle in the ranks of our class, we can stand against futurelessness, unemployment and being seen as cheap labour. When we pour our youth energy into the struggle against capitalism, we can put an end to this order of exploitation.” UMUT’s song, Fist, was sung with enthusiasm. As the march began, slogans continued to rise from the disciplined workers’ column of UİD-DER. The UİD-DER column won the appreciation of the workers and labourers in Lüleburgaz with its red flags, discipline and enthusiasm.

Workers, pensioners, working women and youth in the UİD-DER column shouted slogans expressing the demands and aspirations of the working class throughout the rally. “Our struggle is for the end of capitalist order. Our struggle is for the end of this looting and wrecking order. Our struggle is the struggle to build a new world!” it was said.

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The workers in the UİD-DER column maintained their discipline and enthusiasm throughout the rally, and left the square with the same discipline and enthusiasm. On the way back, UMUT’s struggle songs and anthems were sung together. The workers stated that they were proud to have come together in such a column and to have breathed the spirit of May Day together. They emphasised that they will advance their struggle with the strength they drew from May Day.