In the tenth anniversary of the revolution in Tunisia and the entire Middle East
The Tunisian masses are rising again, this time against the government of Said-Meshishi supported by the UGTT
Ten years from the bonzo-type suicide of Bouazizi, the spark that set up the revolution in Middle East, the Tunisian people are once again screaming “we want the fall of the regime!”
The government had decreed a 4-day lockdown, using the excuse of the increase in COVID-19 cases, in its effort to make none of the demonstrations called for the 10th anniversary to take place. But the conditions of unemployment and starvation cannot be beared any more, and the masses took to the streets again, setting up barricades, confronting repression, attacking police stations with Molotov cocktails. It is the workers, specially the unemployed youth, who are leading this actions because they cannot stand the sufferings for the situation of extreme misery, which make them have no work and no income. This situation worsened along last year, in which the GDP fell 9% as the economic crisis and the COVID-19 issue develops.
President Kais Said and prime minister HeishamMeshishi, both jurists and high-hierarchy ranked in the judicial power, called to “respect peaceful protests”. The UGTT, the Tunisian trade union federation, came out to be at the head of the strikes that are underway and called to stage peaceful demonstrations, to take them to a “dialogue” round, while calling to end “violence”. They have the same position as colonialists parties in Tunisia, brothers to the French NPA. Their mothership parties in France, when facing the protests that shook that country, called to condemn and expel the “vandals”.
On the other hand, the forces of repression have already arrested 1000 protestors in only six days. But the protests do not ease and are escalating day by day, with massive demonstrations in daytime and barricades during nighttime.
Ten years have passed since that historical day in which Mohammed Bouazizi set ablaze in front of the local government building after police officers forbid him to sell vegetables and fruits and his goods were confiscated. That had been the spark that set on fire the revolution in Tunisia and the entire Middle East. “The people want the fall of the regime” was the slogan. Ben Ali dictatorship fell. However, the “democracy” that came was a deception and a trap that kept the same politicians, judges, officers and armed forces in charge that were with Ben Ali and left the workers and people of Tunisia without peace or freedom; that’s why they return to the fight.
Tunisia was taken as “an example to be followed” by all the left currents and organizations. The World Social Forum met there in 2013 and 2015, an true international of treacherous leaderships of the working class that launched the war cry “ISIS is the enemy”, which isolated the Syrian masses and all those of the Middle East, justified their being massacred and shielded imperialism, mostly the French one.
These left organizations in Tunisia had supported and being part of the fraudulent “Constituent Assembly” that was set up after Ben Ali’s fall as one of the deceptions to divert the Tunisian revolution. This way, the colonialist parties of the French left that are in Tunisia and internationally, supported the control of French imperialism on that nation, carrying the revolution to the feet of a new pro-imperialist government that has plunged the masses in even more misery.
The current government is consequence of this support of the left and the UGTT, which supported it directly in a call to the “dialogue quartet” which was awarded with the Peace Nobel Prize in 2015 for playing this role. This is how the UGTT bureaucracy, essentially Stalinists and Maoists, inscribed their role of aborters of the revolution and saviors of the politicians, officers and judges of Ben Ali.
The Tunisian workers today are confronting this government, breaking with the UGTT that supports it and with the politics of the leftist parties, totally subordinated to the parliament and the bogus “democratic” institutions.
Once again, as in 2011, the demands are for bread and a decent life. Today, these youth show us the way forward, with a clear message. There can pass one, six, ten or a hundred years but if there is no bread, if there is no decent life, nobody will surrender and the struggle will continue all the way!
The people want the fall of the regime! Don’t pay the foreign debt! Imperialism out!
It is urgent to expropriate all the imperialist companies that plunder the nation, the factories that shut down, furlough or dismiss workers, the closed business that are not paying the wages with the excuse of “COVID-19 restrictions”, without compensation and under workers control! Expropriate the banks where French imperialism takes away the funds of the nation! Thus, we can guarantee jobs for all, sharing the working hours, and guaranteeing a decent wage!
Set up councils of workers in struggle, their vanguard the working youth and the rank-and file soldiers. Self-defense committees to defend yourselves from repression! Out with the government of Said-Meshishi!
This time, to conquer the demand of a decent life, revolution must succeed!
Editorial Board of the newspaper
"The Truth of the Oppressed" |