Egyptian Worker’s Speaking Tour: Good and less good forms of Solidarity

During May 2011 a leader of the independent trade unions of Egypt went on a speaking tour of Western Europe. Addressing meetings in Spain and Britain, he informed listeners about the recent events in Egypt and the lessons he thought could be learnt from them.

There was a marked difference between the meetings the Egyptian workers’ leader addressed in Spain and those in Britain, perhaps reflecting the motives of those organising the meetings and assisting the Speaker in his travels. This became apparent at the meeting which took place in Liverpool.

In Spain, the Speaker addressed a meeting of young people who had been occupying Squares in protest against unemployment and other social problems. The Spanish youth clearly sympathised with the recent rebellion in Egypt against poor living standards and attacks upon the workers.

The Speaker then travelled to Britain, where he was taken around to speak at various Trade Union conferences. The Public meeting in Liverpool was ‘fitted in’ between these other meetings.

The Speaker pointed to the enthusiasm of the Spanish youth, who wanted to emulate the spirit of the occupiers of Tahrir Square in Cairo, and their determination to protest at their appalling social conditions. The Speaker said he was well received at what must have been a sizeable meeting – the occupation of the Spanish Squares went on for some time and drew a considerable number of protesters.

The interesting feature of the occupations in Spanish Squares was that it took place at Election time. Under election laws such occupations are not legally permitted, with the full weight of political pressure (short of physical violence, which would have had dangerous implications for the Spanish state) being brought to bear on the young protesters. The more that pressure was brought to bear (defending the sanctity of the electoral process) the more the protests spread. This is a good form of Solidarity with the Egyptian workers and their struggles.

In Britain, the Speaker was instead directed instead towards the Trade Union bureaucracy as far as a speaking tour was concerned. On the same day as the Liverpool meeting he spoke at the conference of the Fire Brigades Union (which at least has a history of militancy) but that was that – no involvement of the workers in any form, no sign of mobilising support, linking up struggles, nothing to assist the Egyptian workers at all.

The Liverpool meeting, held at the Adelphi Hotel, was organised by the Egypt Workers Solidarity and was hardly advertised at all (except some notices sent out by email) and was not an attempt to mobilise support for the Egyptian workers. The report-back type of meeting, at which questions only were allowed, was not one which allowed debate or discussion on how solidarity with the Egyptian workers could be expressed and organised. If that had taken place then that might have interfered with the meeting scheduled to take place with the trade union leaders meeting at the Trade Union Congress that weekend.

A member of Egypt Workers Solidarity, the organising body which helped to organise the speaking tour, was first to address the Liverpool Meeting. He was followed by a regional official of the Public and Civil Service [PCS] union, who spoke at length about the attacks on the public sector workers and the possibility of linking the official public sector strikes and holding them on the same day, but no more than that. Certainly nothing about linking struggles at the base, amongst the workers themselves, which would threaten the stranglehold of the trade union bureaucracies and officialdom. He went on the express regret at the poor vote in the recent elections for “anti-capitalist” parties (presumably referring to the mixed-bag of Greens, Respect, and the Scargillites, etc. The programmes of these so-called anti-capitalist parties do little to reflect the economic struggles of the working class, and advocate little more than reform of the capitalist state and its policies. It is little wonder that the mass of workers haven’t bothered to vote for them).

The Egyptian trade union leader then spoke about what had been happening in Egypt. There were lessons to be learnt from the middle-eastern struggles, and the Arab revolution which emerged from the events in Tunisia. The demands for freedom and democracy have been met with tear gas (and other riot control equipment, mainly made in the USA). There are many battles still to be fought. The primary need of the workers is the freedom of association. This issue (the right of workers association) needs the support of workers in other countries. There is also a battle going on between the religious and secular organisation of the state.

There have been statements produced in Arabic about the workers struggles going forward. There are independent unions (independent from state-control), which have been affected by workers’ rights from 2006 onwards, and there have been strikes for socialisation of production. This has helped and encouraged meetings to assist other struggles. The leader of the independent trade union federation has come out against the state-controlled unions. During February there were 600,000 workers on strike. The workers need to go forward to the last station – “revolution”: their target are independent unions. The main existing unions had previously been under the control of Nasser & Co.

After a series of questions from the floor, the Speaker expressed the following points. The events in Tahrir Square represented the struggle of all people. There were many women’s organisations involved in the struggles. There is a clear need to go through the process of collective bargaining, then negotiate with the state, and later for a workers party.

Students unions have had a history of being dominated by the state, being controlled by police agents. When this broke down the Muslim Brotherhood moved in to try to take charge. In some Universities students have been able to organise themselves.

Some groups have formed with the goal of protecting the secular aspect of the state.

Under Mubarak, 175 companies were sold off, resulting in 700,000 workers being dismissed/pensioned off, etc.

Independent trade unions need to create links with the grassroots. Forty-four percent of the Egyptian population are below the poverty line. To counter laws against strikes, they need to struggle for collective bargaining on economic issues. The law cannot stop the strikes.

The meeting was concluded by some remarks by the PCS regional official, which certainly did not involve anything more than proposals for some officially organised strikes – which will not threaten the state and the establishment, and probably end up saving on the wages bill.

The next meeting the Speaker would address would be the Trade Union Congress in London the following weekend. There was a lot of publicity about the TUC meeting, but nothing about the Egyptian Speaker’s speech. Perhaps he had a “side-meeting” with some delegates – a separate discussion with some so-called “left-leaning” trade union leaders?

The pride of place for the TUC deliberations would however go to an address by the new Labour Party leader Ed Milliband. Milliband has been spending his time as the new leader trying to define a popular brand for his Party. To make it more attractive to the electorate Milliband has been emphasising the problems faced by the endangered middle (class) – that is people like himself.

From this we can see that class struggle didn’t feature high on the agenda at the TUC, whether that of the Egyptian, or of the British workers. In fact any talk about independent trade unions would be anathema to the TUC, who would certainly aim to frustrate any such development in the UK. The TUC continues to be what it always has been in the past, a pillar of the establishment and of capitalism in general.

The experience of the British leg of the Speaking tour leads to the conclusion that the bad form of solidarity, with and through the trade union bureaucracy, isn’t to be recommended, and hardly constitutes solidarity at all.

Postscript: Letter from Wales

The Mubarak trial is being presented as a part of the process to demonstrate that on the one hand that Egypt is closer towards a “rule of law” more acceptable to the governments in the US and the European Union – not that these Govts. were particularly concerned about such things before the February revolution. It is also presented as a concession to the Egyptian masses who brought about Mubbak’s fall from power. In April, the independent prosecutor ordered the arrest of Mubarak and his sons, Gamal and Alaa; they were charged with corruption and murder As an indication that anything has really changed it’s a fraud. Yes Mubarak may get his just deserts but that is more to do with preserving the power of The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces than anything else. In Cairo’s military courthouse – known as “C-28” it is business as usual. Up to 10,000 civilians have been tried by closed military courts (usually before a single military Judge – not known for their scrupulous attention to the evidence). They have been tried for offences including “thuggery”, assault and threatening the security of the Egyptian State (catch all charges which were employed by the Mubak regime). Many of those tried being protesters and leading activists as well as common criminals and the odd innocent bystander, sentenced to terms of imprisonment ranging from a few months up to five years.

The February revolution actually came at an opportune moment for the military elite. The tensions between the Military and Mubarak were high. The military control 40% of the Egyptian economy through numerous of companies that manufacture everything from medical equipment to laptops to television sets, and owning and controlling vast tracts of real estate.

At the end of the 1990s, as a part of Mubarak’s ambition to set up a family dynasty, his son Gamal was given an influential position in the ruling National Democratic Party (NDP). Soon he was privatising large portions of state-owned enterprises, handing them to NDP stalwarts like Ahmed Ezz, who obtained a near monopoly over steel production. (Ezz was one of the first party figures jailed after the revolution). In the process 175 companies were sold off, resulting in 700,000 workers being dismissed / pensioned off, etc.

For the Supreme Council, headed by Field Marshal Mohammed Hussein Tantawi, commander in chief of the Egyptian armed forces, they feared their power and influence was being deminished – they cared little about the plight of the workers. Speculation was rife within the military that a coup was on the cards. When protests gathered force in Tahrir Square, the military had more to lose by sticking with the Mubaraks then by bringing them down. Without the revolution-there would have been a crisis. The armed forces were sick of Mubarak’s son and disagreed with the succession plan. They feared that these privatisation schemes would dismantle the military’s enormous business holdings. The only solution open to them was a coup, but that would not be acceptable to their potential allies in Europe and America. That the “people” saved the day and Tantawi being briefly greeted as a hero when he met with anti-government protesters in Tahrir Square (on February 4th) changed all that. His capitalist allies in the US and Europe could hail these developments as progress towards “freedom and democracy”. During February there were 600,000 workers on strike and herein lies the real fears of the Egyptian military and there capitalist allies. The power of organised working class action to carry the protests further to proletarian revolution. The military were desperate to take the momentum out of the protests. Proclamations were issued pledging that the military “will not take over power” in Egypt. Announced a plan to budget $20 million for a “centre for health and social care” for “the families of martyrs of the 25th of January,” as well as those injured during the protests. The most recent proclamation, which followed the late June clashes in Tahrir Square between protesters and security police, condemned the violence but carefully avoided blaming pro-democracy activists. The culprits, the council declared, were “dark forces… who have no excuse but the destruction of the national security and the stability of Egypt.” Proposals for an early election was rejected by most in the pro-democracy movement as a ploy to give the Muslim Brotherhood the upper hand electorally. Protesters were now saying the military were turning the revolution into a coup, “The soldiers are with the people,” but “The leaders are not.”

On July 8th, unable to stem the protests, it was announced that Mubarak would stand trial. The previous day the Judicial Investigation Commission, an independent office set up by the military prosecutor, had announced that another two dozen onetime civilian officials and allies of Mubarak would face murder and attempted murder charges. The announcement was widely seen as an effort to neutralize protest. But the crowds, if nowhere near the size of those that gathered at the height of the revolution, still extended to the edges of Tahrir Square. (Observers would later put the turnout to about 80,000.)

The military are desperate to hold on to executive power and the only people who they can hope to do a deal with are the Muslim Brotherhood. Such an alliance would mean increased repression of working class organisations and trade union activities.

The British TUC supports progress towards “Freedom and Democracy” and to prove it are as usual willing to report on the courageous history of Trade Union history in Egypt – Equating it with another step forward for “Freedom and Democracy” the fall of the Berlin wall. Saying: “Around the same time as the Berlin Wall was coming down Abbas, then a young welder, found himself the ringleader of an ’illegal’ strike by 17,000 workers over pay and conditions at a large steelworks in the southern Cairo neighbourhood of Helwan”.

The response of the state was massive repression. They sent in 5,000 soldiers who used live and rubber bullets as well as tear gas. One person was killed – Abdelhai Suleiman. Fifteen more were injured and more than 600 arrested and jailed.” Which is all very well as background notes but no mention of the strike waves in Egypt or any call for support. All they can do is contribute towards the setting up of an office for the The International Trade Union Confederation in Cairo.