Two Days' Strike, But ??
Is it not strange that there is no hue and cry amongst the capitalists after two days of nation-wide workers' strike which is supposed to paralyse the whole country. The capitalists and their governments seem to downplay such strike by apparently taking a careless posture with marked indifference. They simply end up their formal opposition with one or two statements. No vilification of strike and of those who called the strike. Further no effect, no ripple in society. Nothing changed from what was there the day before the strike. Same as in the case of the workers who participated in the strike. Factories remain calm. No change in the workers' mood. No voice is heard over what next.
In fact the capitalists have been accustomed to assimilate one-day strikes for long years. For the last 30-40 years there had been no less than twenty to twenty-five such strikes. Yes it is true that on a few earlier occasions in the initial stages, particularly during the 1970s, there had been vehement opposition and attempts to break the strike, but subsequently they deemed it wise to simply pass over the strike. Probably they understand it better that such annual or bi-yearly strikes called by the leaders of the trade unions do not have a past and nor they will have any future. Probably they understand better that a ritualistic one day strike is necessary for the leaders to survive and obviously their survival on the other hand is necessary for the capitalists, at least for the present. Last but not the least, it has been their long standing experience that the previous strikes have never been total but only partial, extent of which vary this way or that way.
But, it is now the question of the two-day All India Strike, first of its nature in strike-itinerary of the leaders. In the face of it, this two-day strike should have some impact on the capitalists and the government. But in the main the scenario remains the same. No vengeance from the capitalists as a class. Compared to such strikes, including two-day ones, what we may recall is one May-day strike of German workers in 1891, just after the formation of the 2nd International, where German capitalists declared lock-out of factories in retaliation. Is it, therefore, that German capitalists were ruthless in their attack on the working class and in contrast to that the Indian capitalists is less ruthless. No fool can certify in that way the capitalist-imperialists of today. They are no less ruthless in attacking the working-class and in imposing on the workers bitter anti-labour conditions of work by way of abysmally low wages, massive contractualisation, 12-hour duty, work-load increase etc and in taking away the rights of the workers to struggle and organize and finally taking away the existing facilities which working class won through their continuous struggle in the past. Ruthless and brutal class nature of the capitalist comes out nakedly in the individual factories where workers refuse to lie low, form their own union sans old reformist pro-employer leadership and show courage and stand to resist the employer's aggression. Brutal attack of bouncers (employed goondas) on the struggling workers, indiscriminate arrest of leading workers (top example Maruti), summary dismissal of workers and many such others are common features ? only aim being to crush the union and obviously the struggle. In fact the capitalist class and their government are alarmed at these factory level struggles. They find real danger for their future in this new emerging trend. They are all-out to nip in the bud this emerging trend with all the forces in their disposal-police-administration and other machineries of the government. But this is the same capitalist class which deem it wise not to act in vengeance (as in plant level struggles) in relation to even the two-day All India strike involving lakhs of workers and to allow such strike to simply pass-over, with however few local level exceptions. Although it is not that they are not hurt and two day's work stoppage is no less of concern to the profit hungry capitalists. Such a conduct of theirs can only be explained in this way that they think these strikes as a necessary evil- necessary for acting as a safety-valve of the seething anger of the terribly oppressed and exploited workers and also of the people in general. Do the workers fully understand it? Unfortunately not. But we are to note that awareness is growing.
Almost all the communist revolutionary groups have been found to support the strike, as they did in the past. Virtually no line of difference is drawn with the reformist, opportunist leaders while practically urging the workers to join the strike ?with full strength. Are they not aware of the role of these so-called left parties as the downright betrayer of working-class struggles in the past and their subsequent degeneration to virtually the position of pro-liberal bourgeois in practical politics? Is it not their practical experience in the trade union movement that the workers do not now rely on these leaders in general? Even where workers still remain within unions led by these parties they do not have faith and confidence in them in their trade union struggle. As such workers in places have started forming their own independent unions to fight back the capitalist attack. Under this situation how can the CRs extend full support to the All India strike call given by the same leaders and not only that how can they urge workers under their influence in particular to whole-heartedly join the strike, is the question. They should understand that by doing so, whatever be their reason, they simply play into the hands of the old unions and the parties in projecting themselves as fighting organization before the disillusioned workers in an attempt to regain their lost position at least to an extent and thereby to hold on to their existing positions. By doing so communist revolutionaries are not helping the fighting workers, on the contrary they do harm to the emerging new independent unions and their resistance struggle. Most importantly this will act as a deterrent to the building of class-unity of the workers, particularly of the advanced workers evolving from the plant-level independent struggles. This eventually weakens development of class consciousness of the advanced workers and as a whole weakens the fight against reformism, opportunism.
Some interesting feature is however seen in this strike in few places. For instance, the jute mill workers in West Bengal, particularly in the vast stretch of mills on the both side of river Ganga, have almost en bloc participated in the strike, contrary to past record where there had been little response. As we understand the magic-wand is '18000 minimum wage which brought them spontaneously into the strikes. Workers are reported to have said, this is their own strike, it is not the leaders' one in which they are participating in. Sounds curious, isn't it? Apparently a step forward, so far as separation from the old leaders is concerned. But in fact jute mill workers have long been separated, so to say from the year 2002. But the weakest part of it is that they don't have their own organization, in none of the jute mills so as to effectively assert their independence. It has always been seen that jute workers in their mills spontaneously get united by themselves and get into actions like strike etc, whenever required, ignoring the existing unions. But since they don't have their own organization, they don't have control over the resolution/settlement of this struggle. Naturally it goes into the jurisdiction of the union leaders, obviously leading to betrayal of workers' cause. The stand taken by the jute workers this time is presumably the continuation of their ongoing practice. Fighting jute workers, as well as the general workers, with similar thinking, must understand that demonstrating urge for some demands (like '18000 minimum wage) and/or registering voice of protest through strike is one thing and confronting the capitalist class for realizing demands is something else. The latter one requires organization and finally organization. Without it workers are destined to tailism.
Similar thinking (as of jute worker) has also been found amongst workers in few other states as a matter of participation in this two-day strike. In fact it is learnt that some C R organization did advise the workers to join the strike for their own cause. What it means is really hard to discern. As we know, the organization who called the strike did put forward a grocer's list of demands and we suppose nothing is left out. Anyway, if the said CR organisations find it expedient to call upon the workers to join the strike for their own cause, presumably taking advantage of All India strike call then how come that they are to give full support to the strike called by people with different intent, different cause i.e. party cause away from the cause of class. Do they believe that left organisations (forget about other parties) are really fighting organisations. We don't think so. Shouldn't they understand that within the ambit of general strike, notional separate strike and that to without organization is simply fictitious and misleading. Shouldn't they understand that giving full support to the strike obscuring the design and conspiracy of the leaders from the workers would eventually go to nullify their (CR's) very intent i.e. of 'fighting for their own cause' or by extension their supposed intent of organizing the workers independently for building class struggle. Yes, it would have been the prime duty of the revolutionary proletariat to expose the so-called left parties and others by opposing the strike. Should we then break the strike? No. It would be wrong to advise the workers to act as strike-breakers, obviously not only to oppose any anti-strike anti-struggle opportunist trend amongst a section of workers, if any, but with the mission for winning over the majority from the present position of hopeless minority for higher united action, for our own strike in days to come. The situation is really painful but we have no other way but we are to pay for the follies of our past leaders. We are to bear the pain as long as working class is not organized.
Our hopelessness that gets revealed in such general strikes and particularly the experience from the jute mill workers and on the other hand the conduct of aforesaid CRs once again forcefully brought forward the question of independent and united struggling organization of workers and finally the necessity of a working class party. Organization, organization and organization is the central word at the present moment. Anything which impairs its preparation is to be fought with all our might.
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