Demonstration of PAME at the International Trade Fair in Thessaloniki

A mass militant response to the classless call of the government, plutocracy, EU and IMF for new sacrifices

The mass demonstration held in Thessaloniki, the second largest city in Greece, on Saturday 11^th September highlighted the need for the people to realize their strength, to resist and struggle against the monopolies that undermine their rights.

The demonstration was organised on the occasion of the International Trade Fair of Thessaloniki where the Prime Minister announces every year the new measures in economy. The goal of the demonstration was to condemn the barbaric anti-people measures of the government as well as the effort of the Prime Minister Papandreou to convince the people that these measures are allegedly temporary and that the support of these measures by the people is a patriotic duty in order to “save the country”.

The massive demonstration was organized after the call of All Workers’ Militant Front (PAME), the Nationwide Antimonopoly Rally of the Self-employed and the small Tradesman (PASEVE), the All Farmers’ Militant Rally (PASY), the Greek Women Federation (OGE) and the Students' Militant Front (MAS) on the basis of a common platform of demands that meets the people’s needs.

Thousands of employees, self-employed, poor farmers, women and youth that belong to the popular strata protested and declared that the people will not show any tolerance to the policy that identifies the country with interests of the industrialists, the banks, the big merchants, the ship-owners; that they will not give any consensus to the compromised trade union leaderships that adapt the needs of the people to the needs of competitiveness.

The main speech at the demonstration was delivered by Sotiris Zarianopoulos, member of the Executive Secretariat of PAME. In his speech Sotiris Zarianopoulos condemned all those who on the one hand pretend to be against the memorandum signed by the government of PASOK, the IMF and the EU but on the other support the policy that has the same anti-people content. Furthermore, he stressed that the problem “is not any national problem neither has to do with the adverse faith of the country. It has a deep class, political character. It is capitalism that accumulates profits and destroys productive forces in order to create new profits. This is called crisis. We are determined to reach at the end. We might face difficulties and be called to make sacrifices. However these sacrifices will be for us, not for a handful of capitalists. We escalate our struggle and strengthen its political character. We proceed to an organized, popular suspension of payments. We will not pay the debt; we struggle with a strong movement, through a unified front for a descent life and future, for the liberation from the yoke of monopolies, the EU, the parties and the governments that serve them. We change the correlation of forces in the trade union movement and at the political level. There is another path of development; with the basic means of production under the ownership of the people, with the state power in their hands. Speeches were also delivered also by representatives of PASY, PASEVE, OGE and MAS.

These mass organizations have already announced nationwide demonstrations on 23 September with the slogan “no sacrifice for plutocracy, people struggle for the power”

At the same time, the truck and fuel tanker drivers are on strike against the decision of the government for the liberalization of their profession with the aim to accumulate the sector of transports into the hands of monopolies, leading them to destruction. In addition, despite the decision of the Court to ban the strike of the railway workers against the plans to liberalize and privatize the railway sector, the 24-hour strike was held successfully throughout the country.

International Section

14/9/10