CANADIAN ANARCHIST MOVEMENT-BRITISH COLUMBIA:

THE SPY AT THE FRONT OF THE BUS:

There's a bit of a scandal going on out BC way. As if spending billions of dollars of taxpayers' money uselessly on the 'Corporate Olympics' wasn't scandalous enough. According to a press report (see later in this blog) Victoria Police Chief Jamie Graham admitted that protesters coming from mainland were driven to the October 30 protest in Victoria by an undercover police officer posing as a bus driver. One wonders about the guy's qualifications to drive a bus, and one also wonders whether he obeyed all traffic laws during the trip, including those that say even the police must use their signal lights to turn or change lanes. Old habits can die hard. One more example of an overly paranoid police force spying on its citizens ? Spending money just because it's there ? You be the judge. Here's the press release response to the incident from the Olympic Resistance Network.

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Release: ORN Responds to Police Allegations of Undercover Cop Driving Protest Bus to Victoria:‏
TO ALL NEWS EDITORS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

OLYMPIC RESISTANCE NETWORK RESPONDS TO POLICE ALLEGATIONS OF UNDERCOVER COP DRIVING PROTEST BUS TO VICTORIA

December 3, Vancouver Coast Salish Territories - According to reports by 24 hours news, on Monday Victoria Police chief Jamie Graham alleged that an undercover police officer was driving a bus organized by the Olympic Resistance Network to transport protesters to Victoria for an anti-Olympic Torch Relay protest on October 30. Graham stated "You knew that the protesters weren't that organized(Is renting a bus "disorganized"? -Molly ) when on the ferry on the way over they all rented a bus, they all came over on a bus, and there was a cop driving the bus."

In response, the Olympic Resistance Network is making the following statement:

"This latest revelation of police infiltration and surveillance reinforces the notion of an Olympic police state that anti-Olympic activists have long been warning about. Infiltration tactics, in conjunction with ongoing harassment of activists and a $1 billion police,security and military budget including high-tech equipment like the LRAD sonic gun and close circuit TV cameras, have created a chilly climate for the right to protest and the protection of basic civil liberties. Our organization and our activities are public. With allies in Victoria we organized a successful and disruptive protest with over 400 people. While the police will increase their surveillance activities and their attempts to divide us, we are seeing increasing resistance across the country with additional protests planned against the Torch relay in Quebec and Ontario.

We encourage more residents who are enraged and affected by the impact of the Games to get involved and to express their right to dissent against this five ring circus of oppression."

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Here, from Global TV BC, is an article originally published in the Vancouver Sun on the matter. What strikes Molly the most is the "offhand" way in which this admission was delivered. More on that later.

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Victoria cop infiltrated anti-Games group:
Civil liberties advocates unhappy with police, call undercover officer’s actions ‘invasive’
Darah Hansen,

VANCOUVER SUN: Thursday, December 3, 2009
Victoria police chief Jamie Graham was lying low Wednesday after reportedly disclosing that an undercover police officer, posing as a bus driver, had infiltrated a group of anti-Olympic activists on their way to a rally.

“You knew that the protesters weren’t that organized when on the ferry on the way over they all rented a bus … and there was a cop driving the bus,” Graham told an amused crowd attending the Vancouver International Security Conference on Monday.

The revelation was made public Wednesday in an audio recording posted on the 24 Hours newspaper website.

The voice on the recording is attributed to Graham.

In it, the chief can be heard saying that police initiated the undercover operation in an effort to quell potential violence stemming from a planned anti-Olympic rally in Victoria.

About 300 people converged on the city’s core Oct. 30 in a coordinated effort to delay the Olympic torch relay from its scheduled arrival at the legislature.

Very few arrests were made.

“Everyone left upset that not very much action happened,” Graham said. ( Is "everybody" the protesters or the police ?-Molly )

He declined The Vancouver Sun’s request for an interview Wednesday.

Victoria police did not issue a denial of the report. Spokesman Sgt. Grant Hamilton responded via e-mail that the chief “will not be commenting any further on this.”

The story broke the same day that a new Olympic watchdog group warned police against planting plain-clothes police officers in protests at the Olympic Games.

The Civil Liberties Advisory Committee (CLAC), in a media statement, said that plain-clothes officers should be allowed to observe protests but not participate in the demonstrations.

Tensions between Olympic resisters and security forces — including municipal police, RCMP and national security personnel — have been building as the Games approach.

Protesters have made repeated claims that police are stalking their movements to deter them from participating in events that are considered to be anti-Olympics.

“They’re treading so close to intimidation,” Olympics critic Chris Shaw said of police tactics, which have included officers questioning family and friends of people involved in Olympics resistance.

Police say they are just doing their job. By keeping tabs on protesters, officers can better maintain public safety while ensuring protest messages are still heard.

“We will use all lawful tools at our disposal to ensure we all enjoy safe and secure Games,” said Staff Sgt. Mike Coté of the Vancouver 2010 Integrated Security Unit.

CLAC spokesman Michael Byers said that having an undercover policeman drive a protest bus isn’t a clear violation of civil liberties because it falls into a “grey zone” between police officers observing and participating in protests.

“I’m not happy about the [bus] incident, but I don’t regard it as fundamentally in contravention of our recommendations,” Byers said.

Meanwhile, David Eby of the B.C. Civil Liberties Association said news of the undercover operation will likely be unwelcome among activists who already feel threatened by police leading up to the Games.

“It makes it very difficult for police and activists to have a constructive relationship with each other when activists know that they can’t even book a bus without potentially engaging a police officer in the middle of their planning,” he said.

Eby called the police decision to place an undercover officer among the protest group “invasive.”

“This is not al-Qaida,” he said. “This is a group of activists whose most serious threat they present is potentially delayed traffic.”

Coté said no one from the ISU was present to hear Graham’s remarks and so he was unable to confirm the accuracy of reported statements. ( I smell male cow manure here. Nobody from the security unit was present at the security conference ? Come on now ! What exactly were they doing ? Keeping their appointments with their audiologists perhaps. They seem to have a bad problem with their hearing.- Molly )

Coté said that generally, “we do not comment on specific investigative techniques that we may or may not be using.”

The ISU’s portion of the $900-million Olympic security budget is just over $490 million.
dahansen@vancouversun.com
With files from Doug Ward, Vancouver Sun

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So what can you make of this ? Molly has already reprinted an article, originally published at the Nanaimo based Porkupine Blog about how it is a distinct possibility that any violence that could happen at such demonstrations just might be at the instigation of the police themselves, especially undercover infiltrators. Even though there will always be some idiots who get their jollies from riots, it is a proven fact that police agents have been caught in the past attempting to initiate violence. The Montibello Summit stands as a recent example. The Olympic Resistance Network is insistent that it is a public group, and their activities bear this out fully. See the numerous reports I have published here at Molly's Blog on the resistance to the 2010 Olympics.

So what are the possibilities ? Let's count them out. Note that, from the above article Chief Jamie Graham has been "laying low" about his admission. One wonders if his political superiors haven't been twisting his ears hard.

A) The statement was made deliberately in order to intimidate people who might protest the Olympics. Highly unlikely. The various police forces involved in spying on the anti-Olympic protesters have made all sorts of much more visible moves, moves that have been far more intimidating. One doubts that this extra fillip had to be added to the salad. The security services have made it quite plain that they don't give a "number 2" about how visible some of their efforts are. This is partially because they want to cover their collective ass against any future charges that might result from any illegal actions on their part. It's mostly because what they have done so far, in public at least, really doesn't require any secrecy at all. See the complaints in the press release from the Olympic Resistance Network.

B)Chief Graham is a braggart who happened to find himself speaking at a conference attended by the "big boys", and he wanted to highlight the efforts of his own minuscule force. VERY likely. He could probably have kept his self-congratulations to boring everyday details about the efforts of the Victoria City Police, but he felt the need to sex up his speech with a "ha-ha" about how the other side was deceived. Apparently the comment did get a laugh (see the article above). In addition to being a braggart Graham may also be a fool. The two conditions are not mutually exclusive. God knows we have enough of such people here in 'anarchyworld' who are often referred to as the "summit hoppers".

C) The guy was drunk as a skunk and maybe has been in that condition for years. Note to organizers of any conference. Do not, I repeat do not, allow any speakers to get liquored before they climb the stage. One wonders what sort of hangover the guy had as his betters in the political world came down on him. This possibility is not as self obvious as B) above, but it shouldn't be discounted. The liquid anaesthetic does flow freely at most conferences, whatever they are about. Next time I suggest a cash bar rather than free hooch.

D)A combination of B and C above. Who knows. One wonders how the Chief is going to wiggle his way out of this one beyond issuing "no comments". After a decent interval I see early retirement in this man's future.

CANADIAN ANARCHIST MOVEMENT-TORONTO:

EMERGENCY RALLY FOR GAETAN HEROUX:

The following appeal for an emergency demonstration on the 7th (next Monday) is from the Ontario Coalition Against Poverty (OCAP).

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EMERGENCY RALLY:

December 7th ~ Ultimatum To Gaetan Heroux:MOVE or be FIRED!‏:
** please forward widely **

EMERGENCY RALLY!! EMERGENCY RALLY!!

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ULTIMATIUM TO GAETAN HEROUX:

Employers threaten: Move or you will be fired

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EMERGENCY RALLY!! EMERGENCY RALLY!!

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!! COME OUT TO SUPPORT GAETAN IN HIS REFUSAL TO LEAVE THE DOWNTOWN EAST!!

DATE: Monday, December 7th, 2009

TIME: 9 a.m.

PLACE: Street Health

338 Dundas Street East

(just east of Sherbourne, on Dundas St., north side)

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URGENT: Gaetan Heroux has been told he must move to a new location at Victoria Park & Danforth office this coming Monday, December 7. He has been told that he will be FIRED if doesn't show up at the new office on that day.

Gaetan is refusing to go. He has informed Neighbourhood Link and Street Health that, on the morning of December 7th, 2009, Gaetan will be going to work at Street Health as he has been doing for the last ten years.

Street Health & Neighbourhood Link have issued this serious ultimatum which puts Gaetan in a very real danger of losing his job. It is essential that we all come out to support Gaetan!

For more information, call OCAP: 416.925.6939 / ocap@tao.ca / www.ocap.ca

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Please join us in supporting Gaetan Heroux, a deeply respected, much-loved, and invaluable mentor, leader, and friend in the struggle for dignity and justice for homeless and poor people, who has been a front-line worker at Dundas and Sherbourne for the past 20 years. Gaetan has provided ID clinics and drop-in services, and fostered deep relationships with community members, for years - all of this is now in jeopardy.

By moving Gaetan, his employer, Neighbourhood Link, in apparent cooperation with Street Health management, will effectively deny people access to a service that is essential to their lives. What will happen to people who need to access their ID outside of clinic hours? What will happen to people who cannot afford or are literally unable to travel to Scarborough? What will happen to people who urgently need their ID, to access social assistance or PNA, who need to be within walking distance of the PAID Project in order to meet their basic needs? Will people be provided with the transit fares they cannot afford, in order to travel to Scarborough? What about the additional essential support people have gained by accessing Street Health for other services, when they have come to the agency to access Gaetan?

It seems illogical that ID clinics located only minutes away from Gaetan's administrative office at Street Health will now be more than an hour away from his new location. It also seems illogical to sever Gaetan's deep and consistent connection with those he has worked with for years. The move to relocate Gaetan away from the east end comes after he and fellow ID workers wrote a letter of support for the unionized staff at Street Health. This decision will greatly decrease Gaetan's access to the people who need his services, as well as cause a great disruption to his own life. Please come out next Monday to support Gaetan and all the workers at Street Health who are fighting for a fair and timely contract!

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BACKGROUND INFORMATION:

Street Health is an agency in Toronto that provides health, outreach, support, and ID services to homeless and under-housed people, primarily in the downtown east end. It is seen by many as providing some of the most innovative and user-friendly programs for poor and homeless people in the city. Many OCAP members and supporters rely on Street Health and its staff on a regular basis, and we view this agency as an essential part of the downtown east community.

We are greatly concerned with union busting activities that have been taking place at Street Health. Since the workers at the agency joined CUPE Local 4308 in April 2008, Street Health management has delayed bargaining a first collective agreement, has created an atmosphere of intimidation towards those who signed union cards, and overseen a recent failed attempt to decertify the union by staff members who have management's open and visible support. Since March 2009, Street Health has lost over 50 years (at least 12 staff members) of experience and connection with the community it serves. In particular, we are shocked at the most recent reprisal against one of OCAP's own members, for supporting his peers at Street Health in their efforts to unionize.

Several days after Gaetan Heroux and his co-workers at the PAID ID Project (a Neighbourhood Link agency program that has a worker operating out of Street Health - Gaetan) sent a letter supporting the unionized workers to the Street Health Board of Directors, Gaetan was informed that he would be forced to relocate to Scarborough. Gaetan has provided ID clinics and drop-in services, and fostered deep relationships with community members, for years. This decision not only means a cut to services to new immigrants, poor and homeless people in the downtown east, but it also means the driving out of a deeply respected activist who has dedicated his life to fighting poverty and injustice.

Gaetan is an invaluable, experienced worker whom Street Health should have protected at all costs. This mean-spirited relocation will pose a significant hardship on him and his clients. Recent actions taken by management toward the staff at Street Health are creating a negative effect on the important services that Street Health provides.

For more information, call OCAP: 416.925.6939 / ocap@tao.ca / www.ocap.ca

INTERNATIONAL ANARCHIST MOVEMENT-GREECE:

TENSIONS RISE IN GREECE PRIOR TO FIRST ANNIVERSARY OF REBELLION:

As the first anniversary of the lst year's rebellion in Greece approaches social tensions in that country continue to rise. What is different this time is that the new PASOK (Socialist) government is increasingly being seen as unable to live up to the hopes many of its voters put in it. This means that other sectors besides students are now in motion. Here's a report from the Libcom website.

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Tension in Greece before critical weekend:
Strikes, marches, blockades, occupations and nights of fire are setting the climate before the critical weekend of the first anniversary of Alexandros Grigoropoulos murder.

Political and social tension is rising across Greece before the critical weekend (Saturday 5- Monday 7) that marks the first year anniversary of the assassination of Alexandros Grigoropoulos and the subsequent December Uprising.

On the labour front, a series of sectors are restless. On Monday 30/11 Athens saw a demo of hospital doctors who went on a 24h strike in front of the Evangelismos hospital. At the same time nurses of the Agia Eleni hospital have occupied the management offices of the hospital demanding that employed nurses are removed from office work and placed only in medical care. On the telecom front, the workers of Wind have called another 24h strike for Thursday 3/12 in response to the forced "voluntary exit" of 200 workers. At the same time archaeologists employed by the Ministry of Culture have called a 48h strike for Wednesday and Thursday demanding immediate payment of all salaries. The archaeologists gathered in front of the Archaeological Museum of Athens and marched to the Ministry. On the heavy industry side, steel workers have called a 24h strike in protest to the layoff of 16 workers at the National Steelworks. The workers have gathered in front of the main factory of the industry and are closing on and off the national highway south of Athens. On the public sector on Wednesday 2/12 stage workers of the municipality of Salonica have blockaded the municipal headquarters disallowing all citizens and employers to enter the premises. The workers are demanding the revision of the new government's plans regarding the integration of stage workers to permanent employment. On the farming side of things, peach producers have been blockading the Egnatia national highway, halting all traffic from Salonica west, demanding that the Ministry of Agriculture fix a universal price for their products.

Finally a striking event much discussed even in the mainstream media is an acid attack against the car of a cleaner, Venetia Monalopoulou, contracted to the Airport of Salonica. The cleaner is a leading syndicalist playing an important role in the efforts to built a united autonomous union front of cleaners on the model put forward by K. Kouneva, the Athens cleaner who is still in hospital a year after an assassination attempt against her with sulphuric acid. The latest attack came during an assembly of the cleaners and has been condemned by the cleaners as "boss terrorism".

On the student front, a protest march took to the streets of Athens amongst piles of ungathered garbage due to a blockade of the Fylis refuse dump by locals. The students protested the closure of their schools by a collaboration if rectorial and police authorities during the 36th anniversary of the November 17 Uprising last month. A similar protest march took to the streets of the city of Volos on Tuesday 1/12. At the same time workers of the University of the Peloponese who have been occupying the rectorial headquarters of their university moved on Wednesday 2/12 to blockade the main Corinthian highway, thus putting all southbound circulation in the peninsula to a halt.

On the anti-repression front, as the trial of the imprisoned anarchist Ilias Nikolaoy started on Wednesday morning under draconian police presence, a big motorised protest march took to the prisons of Diavata the previous night. At the same time a big protest march took to the streets of Salonica on Monday 30/12 protesting against the para-state bomb attack against the Bueno Ventura antiauthoritarian social centre last week. A day earlier another anti-repression protest march took to the streets of Petralona in Athens against the petrol bomb attack against the house of a member of the Revolutionary Workers Party who is actively involved in the anti-gentrification movement in the area. At the same time two new squats have appeared in the archipelagos of social antagonism: on in Exarcheia and on in Corfu. The latter has been receiving pressure of eviction by local cops.

Finally the already tense social and political climate has been punctuated by a series of attacks against state and capitalist targets throughout the country. The latest of these was Tuesday night's blitz molotov attack against the commercial centre of Kaisariani, an eastern suburb of Athens, targeting mainly banks. In Salonica, a series of attacks against houses of policemen, judges and newspaper managers with small range explosive devices has been claimed by a the urban guerrilla group Convention of Anomics/ Ministers of Erebus.

AMERICAN LABOUR/AMERICAN POLITICS:

SCROOGE OF THE YEAR CONTEST:

Speaking of contests here's another one, this one from down stateside way. the Jobs With Justice Coalition have opened nominations for their 'Scrooge of the Year'. Is there one boss or politician who stands out from the others in pure coal-hearted nastiness ? If you think you know such a one nominate him or her for the JwJ contest. (A note to my fellow Canadians- do you think we can sneak Stevie Harper in there ? ) Here's how.

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Bah, Humbug!

Nominate the 2009 Scrooge of the Year:‏
Each year, national Jobs with Justice gives an "award" to the greediest, most cold-hearted company or person of the year.

Past winners of this dubious honor include: Wal-Mart, George W.Bush, and Goodyear Tire & Rubber. National Jobs with Justice is now accepting nominations for the 2009 "Scrooge of the Year"contest. We are collecting nominations this week and will start the election on December 7th.

SUBMIT YOUR NOMINATION TODAY!

http://www.unionvoice.org/ct/cp_xDw71vQ_r/

BLOGGING:

IT'S THAT TIME OF THE YEAR AGAIN...

VOTE FOR MOLLY:

Yes, it's that time of the year again, and Molly is out on the hustings, kissing hands and shaking babies (or is it the other way around?). Yes, we're talking about the annual Canadian Blog Awards, and Molly is once more nominated and in the running for 'Best Political Blog'. Last year Molly made it into the five finalists, but I placed 5th out of 5. This year I intend to hit the podium. Better than the Olympics ! Better than the Grey Cup ! Watch Molly run. Help cheer her on. Here's how...

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If you like what we're doing here why not 'Vote for Molly'. It's simple.

A)Go to the canadian Blog Awards Site ( http://cdnba.wordpress.com ).

B)Click on the 'Vote 2009' heading in the masthead.

C)Go down the list and click 'Political'.

D)Search out 'Molly's Blog' amongst the list and give it your number 1 vote. Check out the other blogs on the list to see if you'd like to name a second,third, fourth, etc. choice.

It's that simple. It's that easy. Do it now and get a customized 'Molly Hug'.

♥!♥!♥!♥!♥!♥!♥!

ENVIRONMENT:

BHOPAL 25 YEARS ON-STILL NO JUSTICE:

It's been 25 years since the night of Dec 2/3 when a Union Carbide pesticide plant near the city of Bhopal India released a toxic mixture of gases into the area, exposing up to 500,000 people to methyl isocyanate and other chemicals. The state of Madhya Pradesh has confirmed 3,787 immediate deaths while others have estimated a death toll of up to 10,000 within the first 72 hours. Another 20,000 have died in subsequent years of causes directly linked to the accident. It was the worst industrial accident in human history. For full details see the Wikipedia article on the subject.

Since then the site gas remained toxic, survivors have battled many chronic health problems and new generations have been born with congenital problems sue to the continued contamination. There has been little progress in either decontaminating the area nor in bringing company officials responsible for the disaster to justice. Amnesty International Canada is asking that you write the Prime Minister of India, Manmohan Singh, demanding that the victims be properly compensated and that the area be cleaning up. Here is their appeal.

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INDIA: Bhopal 25 years on: It’s time to keep the promises!:
It was almost midnight on 2-3 December 1984 in Bhopal, India. Union Carbide’s pesticide factory began spewing gas, waking people in nearby homes. They fled with burning eyes and unable to breathe. Half a million people were exposed that night. More than 7,000 died within days. Another 20,000 have died in the intervening 25 years as a direct result of the massive leak of toxic chemicals.

Today 100,000 survivors continue to suffer from and succumb to gas-related health problems. They lack adequate medical care and still await adequate compensation.

The factory is located in the middle of poor neighbourhoods. The leak has driven almost everyone deeper into poverty. Thousands lost their jobs or got too sick to work. Many who died were the main wage earner in the family. Some families also lost their animals, a key source of income.

The Bhopal disaster is an example of extreme negligence by a company. Years earlier, the company had been warned that the plant was dangerously unsafe. The plant stored huge quantities of methyl isocyanate, a highly reactive and dangerous chemical. Union Carbide denied that methyl isocyanate is toxic. It has yet to name the all the reactive products that leaked with it, leaving medical professionals unable to treat people properly.

Union Carbide left India, abandoning the plant and its barrels of chemicals. This created a second disaster. Chemicals seeped into the ground, polluting the groundwater. Thousands more now have debilitating illnesses. Many did not even live in Bhopal during the 1984 disaster. Medical conditions include twisted limbs, fused fingers, cleft palates and severe brain disorders. Reproductive problems include stillbirths and gynaecological disorders. Girls start menstruating late and women enter menopause early. Boys experience delayed growth. Young men often reject a “Bhopal bride”. They fear future health problems or birth defects in children. This affects the social and economic security of young women.

In 1989, the Indian government settled with Union Carbide for $470 million but without consulting the survivors. The amount is not sufficient for the number of people affected, nor for the seriousness and duration of their medical, economic, and social problems. In addition, the settlement covers the people directly affected by the gas leak of December 1984 but not the people who were later recognized to be suffering from the water contamination that resulted.

Legal action has so far proved unsuccessful, but Bhopalis are not giving up their fight for justice. A civil case at a U.S. federal court has just reopened. The case seeks a thorough cleanup of the contaminated site, as well as compensation and medical monitoring for the water-affected survivors. The criminal case began on 7 December 1984 in India with the arrest of Union Carbide’s CEO, Warren Anderson. When authorities freed him on bail, he immediately fled India. Despite several orders to show up for trial, he has never returned. A Bhopal court issued a warrant for his extradition from the US in 2002, and again in August 2009 but so far the Indian government has not activated it.

In both 2006 and 2008, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh agreed to the survivors’ demands after they marched 800 kilometres from Bhopal to Delhi. He promised that his government would create an Empowered Commission to ensure that they receive clean water, and adequate medical, social and economic rehabilitation. He has yet to keep this promise.
Please write to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
1)Describe who you are.
2)Ask him to create the promised Empowered Commission to provide adequate medical, social and economic rehabilitation to Bhopal survivors and their children.
3)Insist that his government take urgent and effective action to
*clean up the factory site and
*make sure that those responsible face justice.
Write your letter to:
Dr. Manmohan Singh

Prime Minister of India

Room No. 148 B, South Block

New Delhi 110 00

India
Start your letter:

Your Excellency

INTERNATIONAL LABOUR-IRELAND:

IRISH PUBLIC SERVICE STRIKE-DID THEY WIN ?:

Last November 24 public service workers in Ireland surprised the country by engaging in an unprecedented 24 hour general strike. Up to a quarter of a million workers participated in the protest against planned job and service cuts. What does this mean for the future of Ireland and for workers in other countries faced with similar government policies. First, from The Guardian, is a general report of what happened.

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Irish public servants stage national strike:
More than a quarter of a million public servants, including police officers, staged a general strike in Ireland today to protest against forthcoming cuts in jobs and services.

For the first time, off-duty members of the Garda Siochána joined picket lines during the national one-day stoppage ahead of the 9 December budget when Brian Cowen's embattled government is expected to impose pay cuts in the public sector. The Fianna Fáil/Green party coalition has said the savings are vital to help plug the €22bn (£19.9bn) black hole in public finances.

Trade unions are opposed to the cuts, claiming that the economic crisis was not caused by public sector workers but, in part, by Irish banks lending billions to property speculators just before the housing boom went bust.

On a picket outside Store Street Garda station in central Dublin today , civilian staff member Jane Heuston said she was angry at the way public sector workers were being singled out in government cost cutting.

"We are sitting ducks," she said, holding up a placard for the CPSU public service union. "Public service workers didn't cause this crisis that was the fault of the greedy bankers and developers," she said.

Her colleague Teresa Dodrill, who works as a cleaner at the station, said they had received tremendous support from even the on-duty gardaí at Store Street.

As she held up a placard for the Impact union, two gardaí walked past and wished the strikers good luck.

PJ Stone, the general secretary of the 11,000-strong Garda Representative Association (GRA), said that while it was illegal for gardai to strike, there were 2,400 civilian, part-time "unsworn officers" who had the right to take industrial action and would do so today.

"Those people are entitled to take part in this strike and our advice to our members is that if they are off-duty to come along and stand in solidarity with them because their difficulties are our difficulties."

Speaking at the GRA headquarters, Stone accepted it was unusual for garda officers to join picket lines, rather than police them.

"It is a first, because for the first time in our history there are people working in garda stations who are entitled to strike.

"We need to show other workers that we stand with them and share their anger about the way this government is treating the public services."

He said public service workers, including garda officers, had already put back more than €2bn into the state's coffers in terms of government-imposed levies on their pay.

"We have already plugged a large gap and it is my view that the minister for finance has decided because we contributed in the levy that it will be easy in the budget to take more pay off public servants."

Stone said the pay cuts for gardaí, firefighters and nurses, alongside other public service workers, could amount to 5% to 10% of their salaries.

"If that were to happen, and with some of my people only on junior rank pay, it will create a police force in a complete state of anxiety at a time of rising crime in Ireland. You can't have people coming to work, putting their lives on the line at times, who are distracted worrying about their own financial position."

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Here, from the Irish Workers' Solidarity Movement, is an anarchist view of the events.

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Consequences of the 24th November public sector strike:
On the 24th of November something extraordinary happened. Some 250,000 workers acted together in a day-long strike against the public sector wage cuts planned by the government. The vast majority of these workers had never gone on strike before, yet across almost all workplaces the strike involved 90% or more of those working.

This strike took place in the face of hysterical attacks on public sector workers, which included one business commentator suggesting that those going to strike were guilty of High Treason. Conviction for High Treason when Ireland was under the British empire used to involve the person being hung until they had passed out, then being revived so a hole could be cut in their belly and their entrails dragged out before an axeman would cut off their limbs one by one and then, finally, chop off their head. The Class War is clearly escalating from the point of view of the capitalist class!

There is much that can be criticised about the organisation of the strike; after twenty years of social partnership, almost no one in the unions knew how to organise a strike, from the national leadership to the rank and file. This often left those at the base feeling abandoned or trapped in nonsensical decisions. But that is not the interesting story of the day; the interesting story is that despite all the problems, in almost all cases, workers organised themselves at the branch and section level to build effectively for the strike and day-long picket.

The main outcome of the day was that 250,000 workers quite suddenly found themselves thrust into a common identification of workers standing in opposition to local management and the state. All this under a crazed ideological offensive from the capitalist class. Many, perhaps most, had been very apprehensive about going on strike. The actual experience of strike swept away many of those apprehensions and did more in one week to build a confidence and organisation at the base of the unions then had been done in the previous decade.

At the time of writing, between that strike and the potential second one on the 3rd December, it is not clear how the new found militancy will develop. There may be some crappy deal negotiated by ICTU which will defuse the situation until the next time when the government returns for another cut. But the employers are fighting a very aggressive class war, they may not be willing to allow any compromise. In this case, we may already be in the midst of an escalating wave of strikes.

Either way, we have seen a massive demonstration of the potential power of workers when we stand together as workers. That power has been almost invisible in Ireland for two decades but it clearly never went away. That demonstration is what we can build on to fight the crisis and fight for a new world in the months and years ahead.

---For WSM reports from the picket lines of 24th November see http://www.wsm.ie/story/6241

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Ah, but then, as if both sides in the dispute were shocked by what had happened the unions and the government began to bargain more seriously. The next general strike in the public sector, scheduled for tomorrow, Dec. 3, was called off as the following article from yesterday's Irish Times details.

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Public sector strike planned for Thursday is suspended:
IRISH TIMES REPORTERS
The day of industrial action planned by public servants for this Thursday has been suspended following a breakthrough in talks at Government Buildings this evening.

Taoiseach Brian Cowen said meetings have concluded for the evening and will reconvene tomorrow morning.

He welcomed the fact that the industrial action planned for Thursday will not now take place and said he hoped progress can be made in the coming days.

General secretary of the Impact union, Peter McLoone told reporters outside Government Buildings that the strike was being deferred, “in the light of the progress that has been made in the negotiations over the last number of days”.

He said unions had been told earlier in the day that the Government now felt it possible to “design an alternative” to the pay cuts the Minister for Finance had been advocating. The savings would be based on an extra 12 days unpaid leave in 2010.

He said: “The purpose of putting forward the proposition on the unpaid days was that we would put a considerable part of the foundation that needs to be in place to create the alternative savings.”

“That’s now recognised, so the reason that we are going back into negotiations tomorrow, possibly into Thursday, is to complete the negotiations on the 2010 problem, so part of what we will be doing is dealing with the figures.”

Asked to comment on reports that the unpaid leave proposal could save the Exchequer €800m, he replied: “There are lots of figures going around about that. What we need to do tomorrow in order that we’re clear and agreed on the contribution is to look at precisely what the figure is.”

“This stuff is still challenging, but given the progress that we have made to date, the feeling on both sides is that, whatever challenges present, we should be able to overcome them,” he added.

Up to 250,000 nurses, teachers and other public workers held a one-day strike last week over Government plans to cut the public sector pay bill by €1.3 billion in the forthcoming Budget.

Earlier today, the HSE began cancelling between 16,000 and 18,000 procedures for Thursday in preparation of any strike action. The HSE said tonight patients who had procedures cancelled would be contacted by their local hospital tomorrow to have their appointments restored where possible.

Tonight members of the 24/7 Frontline Services Alliance welcomed the progress made in talks saying it “represents an important step forward in the search for a fair and equitable way of addressing the problems created by the current economic crisis for the delivery of public services”.

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So, for now, both sides have pulled back from the dispute, each mutually afraid of the consequences should the matter be pushed to a further test of strength. Even though the right wing press in Ireland has gone ballistic on Brian Cowan, the leader of the government,accusing him of "cowardice" at their less strident, he has made just the right amount of concessions to at least delay the matter, and possibly loop the unions back into a 'social partnership' whereby they will negotiate away the rights of their members-just a "little bit" so as to avoid rank and file rebellion. Whether he should have done the "politic" thing in the first place and whittled away at the budget deficit a little at a time (a death by a thousand cuts), avoiding provoking public sector workers by a massive attack is seemingly beyond the ken of the right wing who are spoiling for a fight. From the point of view of the ruling class Cowan could be faulted more from lack of caution than an excess of it. Ah well, his critics on the right will calm down eventually anyways because, in the end, they have no choice other than to support him and his party.

The main "concession" on the part of the unions and the government is to somehow avoid pay cuts by instituting a regime of unpaid days off. How many these would be and over what period of time is still a matter of talks. This sort of thing, of course, is essentially a plan for a 'speed-up' for those public employees who remain at work while others are off (or alternatively everyone speeds up if offices are closed entirely for a day here and there). The matter of how much of the deficit this would cover and what else has to be conceded by the unions is, at this point, the subject of "magical accounting". Numbers that nobody has any confidence float around waiting for a political magician to grab them out of the air. Here's another story from the Irish Times about what is still in dispute.

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Union plan 'not a basis for agreement', says Cowen:
ELAINE EDWARDS, MARTIN WALL and MICHEAL O'REGAN
Taoiseach Brian Cowen has insisted the Government is still looking to secure savings “of the order of €1.3 billion” in the public sector pay bill as part of its ongoing talks with trade unions.

“That remains our position, and we wish to discuss with the trade unions on that basis,” he told the Dáil today. “Those discussions are not complete” Mr Cowen said, adding that proposals must still be discussed and developed.

“However, I made clear what the Government’s position is…and we reserve our position until we see if we can find an agreement,” he added.

Union sources have suggested that a scheme of unpaid leave of between 10 to 14 days could provide the basis for an agreement, although they accept the savings from this will be somewhat less than the €1.3 billion target set out by the Government.

Mr Cowen also said today the reduction to the public service pay bill must be both substantial and permanent. He said the Government told unions the proposals “did not, in their present form, provide a basis for the Government to confirm that it would not consider other options to effect the necessary savings”.

Later, the president of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (Ictu) Jack O’Connor said that Government officials maintain that the proposed unpaid leave arrangement for public servants would not generate sufficient revenue.

He said efforts were being made today to look at other measures that could be taken to enable the formulation of a proposal that would be consistent with budgetary requirements.

He said that there had been a sustained campaign of opposition to prevent the Congress alternative proposal to avoid pay cuts from being implemented.

Mr O’Connor also warned that the proposed strike action could be reinstated in the event of pay cuts being implemented by the Government.

“The decision of the congress public services committee yesterday was to defer the strike, not suspend it and not cancel it” he said.

Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny said it seemed as if the Government had abdicated its responsibility to sort out the economic mess into which it had led the State.

“It is not possible to get permanent savings by having a further 12 days’ holidays,” he added. “It is not possible to give the same level of service with five per cent less man-hours.”

Union leaders and Government officials resumed talks this morning to work on a modified plan to cut the pay bill that involves a 12-day unpaid leave arrangement for public sector workers.

The Government agreed elements of the plan yesterday in order to secure a deal with the public service unions. This led to the suspension of tomorrow's planned one-day strike by public servants.

The draft deal involves two stages, a 12-day unpaid leave scheme to produce savings next year and an overall transformation programme for the public service from 2011.

Responding to Labour Party leader Eamon Gilmore during Leaders' Questions, Mr Cowen insisted that "discussions are continuing" on how to make those savings.

He said that if an "agreed way forward" was to be found, it would have to be before the Budget on December 9th. Minister for Finance Brian Lenihan would have to have available to him the figures for the public service pay bill next year on that day.

“In the meantime, efforts are being made to see if there is an agreed way forward and how to do that," Mr Cowen said.

Mr Gilmore said the Government had a "muddled strategy - if indeed it’s a strategy at all”. He said that if there was an agreement with the unions, the Government still didn't know if it would be confirmed in a subsequent ballot. It did not appear to have a position "on what happens if there isn’t an agreement".

“Those savings have to be made because the Government does not have the money to pay the public sector pay bill as it is presently constituted.”

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SO WHO WON ?

To answer to question posed in the title of this blog, the simplistic answer is "neither side". The advanatge in this "draw" lies with the government as it will be exceedingly difficult for the unions to re-energize any strike movement in the near future, particularily with the Holiday Season drawing close. Further concessions will be made by the unions. On the other hand the very fact that a quarter of a million workers took the unprecedented action of a general strike made the government back down from its initial 'maximal demand'. The unions, however, have no "transition plan" that would allow them to proceed further than single day strikes. Nor should they be expected to have such a plan as it could only be the result of years (decades ?) of igitation amongst ordinary people that bosses, public or private, are not needed, and that people can govern their own lives themselves. Let's hope that such agitation bears fruit sometime in the future.

CANADIAN LABOUR-BRITISH COLUMBIA:

OLYMPIC ATTACK ON WORKERS' RIGHTS:

Out BC way the provincial government has shut down a seven month strike by BC ambulance paramedics. The reason---The Olympics. It seems that the everyday concerns of the citizens of BC are insufficient reason for such legislation, but the needs of the corporate circus are just such a reason. The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) who represent the ambulance paramedics has called for online solidarity to petition the BC government to return to the bargaining table. Here is their appeal.

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The Olympics are no excuse for an attack on workers' rights:‏
CUPE is fighting the BC Liberal government’s use of legislative force against the province’s 3,500 CUPE 873 striking ambulance paramedics. The government shutdown a legal seven-month strike even though paramedics were working under Essential Services orders and were in the midst of voting on the government’s latest offer. The legislation was demanded by the Olympic Organizing Committee which is now considering using scabs to run ambulance services during the Vancouver 2010 Games. This is a fundamental assault on Canadian workers’ rights to free collective bargaining.

Write today and put the B.C. government on notice: They must return to the bargaining table immediately to negotiate a fair collective agreement. The message you sent will go a long way to let them know that workers’ rights cannot and will not be trampled for the Olympics or any other excuse.

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THE LETTER:

Please go to THIS LINK to send the following letter to the government of British Columbia.

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I understand British Columbia is preparing to welcome the world as host of the 2010 Winter Olympics. Unfortunately, the actions of your government in its dealings with B.C. ambulance paramedics makes it very difficult to support this celebration.

You refused to negotiate and forced the 3,500 members of CUPE 873 into a strike on April 1, 2009. You had essential services orders imposed on the paramedics, forcing them to work despite the dispute. For more than seven months your government refused to deal with the critical condition of the ambulance service or agree to independent, third-party dispute resolution.

The ultimate outrage was your decision to impose legislation while the workers were in the midst of voting your own last offer - a shameful first in Canadian labour history. Now you are considering the use of scabs to provide ambulance service at those same Winter Olympics. Shame.

The rights to organize and to free collective bargaining are cornerstones of Canada’s democratic structure. Your actions are trampling those freedoms and must be challenged.

I urge you to immediately get to the bargaining table with CUPE Local 873 and reach a fair collective agreement. Ambulance paramedics deserve respect and the citizens of British Columbia deserve a healthy ambulance service.

LOCAL EVENTS-WINNIPEG:

HOLIDAY MIXER:

This just in. The Winnipeg IWW will be holding a holiday mixer along with the New Socialist Group this coming December 11. Here's the info.

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IWW/NSG Holiday mixer:

marxmas? anarchristmas? revolutionary industrial union-mas?
Host:
Winnipeg IWW
Type:
Party - Holiday Party
Date:
Friday, December 11, 2009
Time:
5:00pm - 10:00pm
Location:
Black Sheep Diner
540 Ellice
City/Town:
Winnipeg, MB
Description
It's that time of the year again, and you're all cordially invited to the IWW/NSG joint holiday mixer! So come on down, hang out, share stories and songs. There will be plenty of marxmas/anarchstistmas fun!

INTERNATIONAL LABOUR-INDIA:
SUPPORT WEST BENGAL TEA WORKERS:
The following story and appeal comes from the international union federation the IUF. First of all their introduction.

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On November 19, local government officials began distributing to workers and their families on the Nowera Nuddy tea estate in West Bengal coupons for emergency rations which are normally reserved only for those officially designated as below the poverty line or victims of natural disasters. The desperate situation on the estate contrasts sharply with Tetley's commitments to refrain from harsh or inhumane treatment set out in the Ethical Tea Partnership standard. Hunger on the estate is the result of a policy of collective punishment. Nowera Nuddy is majority owned by Tata, the transnational Indian conglomerate whose wholly-owned subsidiary Tetley makes the world famous Tetley Teas. The workers have been denied wages and rations for all but two days' work since early August. Management has closed the estate in retaliation for a worker protest in August against the punishing treatment of an 8-months' pregnant worker who was denied maternity leave, forced to pluck tea, and then denied adequate medical treatment. Workers want the estate reopened and their wages paid, but reject the suspension of 8 workers who have been singled out for protesting vile abuses. http://www.iuf.org/den6346
Click here to send a message to Tetley/Tata
http://www.iuf.org/cgi-bin/campaigns/show_campaign.cgi?c=462
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And here, also from the IUF, is the full story.
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At Tetley we want you to enjoy your pregnancy without it being stressful:
"At Tetley we want you to enjoy your pregnancy without it being stressful. That's why we've put together some tips on caffeine and pregnancy. "
http://www.tetley.co.uk/Why-tea-is-great/Caffeine-&-pregnancy/A-healthy-pregnancy




UK-based teamaker Tetley is a wholly owned subsidiary of India's Tata Group. Tata, the powerful Indian conglomerate, holds a 49.98% ownership stake in Amalgamated Plantations Private Limited, with whom it shares share the same office in Kolkata, the capital of West Bengal. Nearly 1,000 tea plantation workers and their families on the Amalgamated Plantations-owned Nowera Nuddy Tea Estate in West Bengal are desperately hungry. They have not been paid for all but 2 days work since August. They are being collectively punished for having protested the abusive treatment of Mrs Arti Oraon, a 22 year-old tea garden worker who was denied maternity leave and forced to continue work as a tea plucker despite being nearly 8 months pregnant.




Tetley is a member of the Ethical Tea Partnership (ETP). According to the ETP website, "The fundamental principles of the ETP standard are those of the Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI) Base Code which is closely based on International Labour Organisation (ILO) Conventions."




The extended punitive closure of Nowera Nuddy is a catalogue of violations of ILO Conventions. On the issue of maternity protection, for example:
"Pregnant or breastfeeding women are not obliged to perform work which has been determined by the competent authority to be prejudicial to the health of the mother or the child."
Article 3, C183 Maternity Protection Convention




The government of India in 1961 adopted a Maternity Benefits Act stipulating that "No pregnant women shall, on a request being made by her in this behalf, be required by her employer to do during the period specified in sub-section (4) any work which is of an arduous nature or which involves long hours of standing, or which in any way is likely to interfere with her pregnancy or the normal development of the foetus, or is likely to cause her miscarriage or otherwise to adversely affect her health."




The specified time period is "one months immediately preceding the period of six weeks, before the date of her expected delivery;"
The perfect cuppa
The IUF has conducted extensive interviews with workers on the Nowera Nuddy Tea Estate which we will be publishing regularly. One woman worker had this to say:




Arti was asking for leave for several days, but the doctor kept refusing. The doctor threatened Arti when she went to ask for leave.




She went one Monday to ask for leave; she was refused. She went the next Monday; she was again refused. The doctor said: `Are you the doctor or am I the doctor? Don’t I know when you should go on leave?’




So she had to go to work. The section was very far. If we are even a little late, we are sent back and not allowed to work.




That day it was very hot and the sun was very strong. Even a healthy person would have felt ill. And she was in such a condition that she fainted. She was perspiring profusely. She muttered that she was not able to work and fell on the ground.




Another worker told us this:




Our sister has been asking for maternity leave since she was 7 months pregnant. But she was not granted leave. `Work and earn today', `Work and earn tomorrow.' `Work and earn this week, next week.' This is how days just went by. She was angry and just went to work. That day, it was not even 9 am, she fainted and fell down. She mother was called and she came. She was fanned and taken care of. I did not go as i was working quite far away. When we went to weigh the leaves, I saw she was lying on the ground. I asked what had happened. They told me what had happened. The workers asked that a vehicle be sent. They said that there was no vehicle available and that the ambulance was out of order. If the ambulance can be given on hire for other things, it can be used to carry a patient. The ambulance was not made available and the workers were told that she should be got on a bicycle. Can you get a pregnant woman on a cycle? Can you get a patient on a cycle? We insisted that an ambulance had to be sent. They ultimately sent a tractor. We said: `how can you take her in a tractor?' But we realized that her condition is serious and she needs immediate medical help. The sections number 2 and 3, male workers were working. We told them that we need to talk to the doctor immediately. It was our duty to do so. It is our duty to go together. It is not an individual's issue. Because the doctor has systematically neglected all of us workers. And we went there. We asked the doctor: why do you not grant leave?




For daring to protest, these workers have been denied all wages and rations since early August. You can support their struggle – CLICK HERE to tell Tata and Tetley Tea to stop starving workers now! You can also use the features provided on the Tetley Tea website to send the company a message, or use the freephone number provided to give them a call!
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THE LETTER:
Please go to one of the links above or to THIS LINK to send the following message to Tetley and Tata Tea management.
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To Mr Peter Unsworth,
CEO, Tetley Group
Mr. Ratan N Tata, Chairman, Tata Tea Ltd
Mr Percy T. Siganporia, Managing Director, Tata Tea Ltd
Sirs
Since November 19, local government officials have been distributing emergency ration coupons to workers and their families on the Nowera Nuddy estate. Tetley Tea claims adherence to the standard of the Ethical Tea Partnership, which stipulates that there be no harsh or inhumane treatment of tea estate workers. The government has recognized that the workers are hungry, the result of a policy of collective punishment deliberately inflicted to force these workers to renounce their human rights. I urge you to act to ensure that the estate is immediately reopened, that workers are paid their annual festival bonus and the back wages and rations from the period of the lock out which began on September 14, that the suspensions of the 8 workers are withdrawn and management commit to no recriminations against the workers, and that management issue an apology to Mrs Arti Oraon, whose life and that of her child were put at risk by management brutality. These are the demands of the Nowera Nuddy Estate (Tata Tea) Workers’ Action Committee, and I fully support them.
Yours sincerely,

CANADIAN LABOUR/AMERICAN LABOUR:

THE UNION HOTEL GUIDE:

Planning on getting away from it all for the holidays ? If so this item from the AFL-CIO Blog may be of interest. A guide to which hotels are unionized, a better deal because it's a fairer deal. The original guide comes from the Hotel Workers Rising website, sponsored by the Unite Here union. My only objection...the guide only lists hotels that are organized by this one particular union. Here in Canada (and I suspect the case is the same in the USA) there are a number of hotels that are organized by other union such as The Nova Scotia Union of Public and Private Employees, Local 17, the UFCW and, most prominently the Canadian Autoworkers (CAW). You can find a substantial guide to the many hotels organized by the CAW HERE. Think of this addition to what comes below as Molly's little pre-Christmas gift.

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UNION HOTEL GUIDE:

Union Hotel Guide before you book a room. The user-friendly online directory helps you identify union-staffed hotels across the country.

Just plug in city and state( or province-Molly ), and the site will display a list of hotels in the area that employ UNITEHERE! members and are doing right by their workers. You also can add the name of a hotel chain as part of the search. Click here for the Union Hotel Guide.

A link on the site also enables you to quickly see which hotels are on the union’s boycott list and where workers are on strike.

UNITEHERE! is working across the country to bring a better life to hotel workers who often are underpaid and who work long, hard hours to make our stay comfortable and safe. For example, the union is urging customers to boycott three hotels in the San Francisco area, including the Westin St. Francis, where 650 workers ended a two-day strike on Nov. 21. The Palace and the Grand Hyatt, the sites of previous strikes also are on the boycott list.

Members of UNITEHERE! Local 2 voted by a 92 percent to 8 percent margin to authorize strikes at any of the 31 upscale hotels in San Francisco. Despite earning record profits over the past five years, the hotels are using the recession as an excuse to demand changes in eligibility for the employees’ health care plan that would eliminate coverage or put it out of reach for many workers.