Coal miners strike in Hunan, Central China
Up to 5,000 workers at four coal mines in Hunan Province, Central China, have been on strike since the 22nd of August over new contracts.
The mines belong to the Jinzhushan Mining Industry of Hunan Coal Group (Xiang Mei Ji Tuan, XMJT), which proposed being privatized and being listed on the stock market. In doing so it demanded workers sign agreements waiving the legally required compensation of one month’s pay for each of their previous years of work – over 30 years in some cases – before allowing them to resume work.
Greek police exposed by torture victim with pierced lung
One of the five arrested of last week’s clashes in Athens exposes the greek police for torture, leading to his lungs being pieced by a broken rib.
One of the five men arrested last Friday in relation to the clashes that occurred with police forces in Exarcheia, Athens, has exposed the greek police for an unrepenting recourse to torture.
Mass class protest march in Salonica, riots in Athens
Thousands march in “independent class” protest march in Salonica, putting party-controlled unions to shame, while anti-police riots break out anew in Athens.
The first weekend of September in Geeece saw the bare teeth of class antagonism in defiance of the ever increasing police brutality and unaccountability.
Statement of Anarcho-Syndicalist Initiative on Arrests of their Members
On September, 4th 2009 District Court in Belgrade decided that arrested members of ASI will be held for thirty days in detention. Our comrades are accused of an act of international terrorism.
Union Confederation “Anarcho-syndicalist Initiative” found out about the attack on Greek embassy, and of the organisation that took the responsibility for this act, through media.
Racist comments spark walkout, sit-in at chicken proccessing plant
Racist comments by security guards have led to wildcat action at Two Sisters Foods in Smethwick, UK.
Workers at a Black Country food processing firm are hailed the success of an unofficial walkout, after management sacked a security guard accused of making racist comments and agreed to come to the negotiating table.
More than 100 staff at Smethwick-based Two Sisters Foods staged a wildcat strike and police were called as their protest threatened to get out of hand.
Belgrade: anarchists arrested; state attorney seeks international terrorism charge
A group of six anarchists arrested under suspicion being connected with Black Elijah (Crni Ilija), which took responsibility for the 24th August molotov attack on the Greek embassy in Belgrade.
The anarchists are members of the Sindikalna konfederacija Anarho-sindikalistička inicijativa (Union Confederation Anarcho-Syndicalist Initiative) which is affiliated to the International Workers’ Association (IWA-AIT). The IWA-AIT Secretariat has made the following statement:
Hunger strikes, pickets and urban guerillas in Greece before critical weekend
In the run-up to the huge protest marches of the coming weekend in Salonica, Greece sees immigrants’ hunger strikes, Wind workers take up pickets for national strike, as well as the Athens Stock Market and one Ministry hit by guerrillas.
Tension is building across Greece in expectation of the International Exibition of Salonica, the annual start of the protest season in the country when the PM usually announces the new year’s programme. As this time around the PM is expected to either announce the dissolution of his government and immediate elections or make some life-saving surprise move, the stakes are high.
Striking South African soldiers sacked
Nearly 700 soldiers from the South African defence force have been sent letters of dismissal following last week’s strike action.
Up to 3,000 military personal clashed with the police on the streets of Pretoria during demonstrations over pay and conditions. The action was condemned by both the defence minister and the secretary general of the ruling party, the ANC. The soldiers’ union says the sackings are illegal and will inflame tensions.
Residents in central China clash with police over canal project
The Hong Kong Information Centre for Human Rights and Democracy reported that a protest involving 3,000 people in Wuhan, capital of the central Chinese province of Hubei, against a planned canal ended in confrontation with the police. 50 people were injured and 100 arrested, their whereabouts unknown.
Events are reported as follows:
At around 0730 on the 21st of August, more than 3,000 people from the Wuhan Heavy Machine Tool Group Company and Wuhan University, including workers, teachers, and retired personnel, began to block Zhongbei Road and Donghu Road, paralysing the traffic in the surrounding areas.
10th of Ramadan textile workers self-manage factory
When their owner fled the country ahead of a jail sentence, the employees at the Economic Company for Industrial Development, faced looming unemployment and the closure of the company’s multiple textile factories. A common enough story in Egypt these days, but in this case, the workers instead embarked on a landmark labor experiment.
For nearly a year, three of the Economic Company’s textile factories in 10th of Ramadan City have essentially been running themselves. Granted the right to self-management by a September 2008 court decision, the workers are paying their own wages, handling customer orders and trying to clean up the financial mess left by the previous owner.