CITU GENERAL COUNCIL CALL

United Countrywide Mobilisation

For Pro-People Policies

Tapan Sen

THE four-day session of the general council of the CITU, held at Nasik on July 17-20, 2004, called for a countrywide vigorous mobilisation of the working people demanding a pro-people orientation of the economic policy regime of the UPA government at the centre respecting the electoral mandate and withdrawal of the anti-people measures as reflected in the current budget.

TWIN TASKS

The general council while reviewing the developments since the 11th conference of the CITU held in December, 2003, including the role of the working class in the electoral battle leading to the defeat of the anti-people NDA regime led by the communal forces and the situation thereafter, laid down the tasks before the working class movement in clear terms. The meeting endorsed the formulation made in the general secretary’s report: “The present situation enjoins a stupendous task on CITU. The defeat of the BJP combine in the general elections and its replacement by the UPA regime at the centre supported by the Left parties from outside has created high expectations among the working people. These expectations must be articulated loudly, through vigorous campaign and mobilisation, demanding pro-people orientation of the economic policies and expansion of democratic rights; otherwise, demoralisation is likely to creep in, much to the advantage of the communal forces waiting on the wings. Given the class character and inclinations of the parties in the ruling combine to the continuity of liberalised policy regime, it is unlikely that much of the expectations of the people, as reflected in the electoral mandate, will get positive response. The union budget 2004-05 despite containing some positive measures brought home this reality. In this background, the working class movement has to shoulder the task of mobilising people demanding clear pro-people orientation of the economic policy measures and also against the negative measures, as an integral part of its political task to further isolate the communal forces and at the same time facilitate and strengthen interventions by the Left. Such intervention is crucial and essential to maintain the secular governance and isolate the communal forces.”  

COUNCIL PROCEEDINGS

The general council session commenced on July 17 with a welcome address by Jayant Jaibhave, a leading advocate of Nasik and the chairman of the reception committee. M K Pandhe, president of CITU, delivered the presidential address. He dealt on the international developments which witnessed mounting organised opposition through strikes, demonstrations and various other actions worldwide to the neo-liberal policies of imperialist globalisation and its utter failure to address the problems of poverty, starvation, joblessness and widening disparities not only in the developing countries but also in the advanced industrialised countries. The presidential address also noted that along with economic globalisation, the imperialist powers have been desperately targeting developing countries through aggression, military onslaughts and muscle-flexing interference, as was evidenced in Afghanistan, Iraq, Cuba and practically the whole of Middle East, Central Asia, Africa and Latin America. But during the last few years, people all over the world have been increasingly expressing their opposition against imperialist designs by resorting to massive anti-war demonstrations and various other actions, pointed out Pandhe. Regarding national situation, he said that the defeat of the BJP regime in the general elections was a clear cut peoples’ mandate against the anti-people, anti-national policies pursued by the BJP regime against which the working class movement had been consistently carrying on united struggles. The policy of the new UPA government, thus, must mark a clear departure and change of direction towards pro-people measures and self-reliance, asserted Pandhe.

Chittabrata Majumdar, general secretary of CITU, could not attend the session owing to the surgery he had to undergo following an accident. From the hospital, Majumdar sent a message to the general council stressing on the issues to be dealt upon. While referring to the defeat of the BJP-led government in the general elections, Majumdar pointed out “It may also be noted that not only at the centre, but also the state governments which had pursued the neo-liberal policies in their respective states were decisively defeated in the recent elections…. This has proved once again that Fund-Bank dictated path of liberalisation, privatisation and globalisation, which is anti-people and reflects imperialist exploitation has been and will be resisted by the toiling masses.” Majumdar stressed upon the need to continue the struggle against the neo-liberal imperialist globalisation and the capitalist system as such in the context and background of which the CITU has to draw its strategy in the present situation judiciously. “We must strengthen working class unity, organise the unorganised sector with special attention, involve the broader masses in the struggle, putting greater emphasis on cementing the workers-peasants solidarity. The working class movement must intertwine with the class struggle and the democratic movement together, reiterated Majumdar in his message to the general council.

Kanai Banerjee, secretary CITU, placed the report of the general secretary. He hailed the remarkable resilience of the common people and the working class who fought with determination to defeat the anti-people and anti-national NDA combine in the general elections. The report noted the crucial role played by the Left parties and the trade union movement in sensitising the people against the communal NDA regime and emphasised vigorous pursuit of their pro-active and assertive role in further isolating the communal forces from the people on the one hand and force a pro-people orientation of the economic policies by the new government on the other. It noted the positive pro-people commitments in the National Common Minimum Programme (CMP) of the UPA government as also the negative reflections of its maiden budget in the form of a steep hike in FDI cap in telecom, insurance and civil aviation sectors, de-reservation of 85 items listed for small scale industries, move to reduce further the interest rate on Provident Fund etc. In this background, the trade union movement has to take up the task of mobilising people for implementation of the pro-people commitments in the CMP and also to build up strong opposition to the negative measures reflected in the current budget and also for defence of the rights and livelihood of the working people. The working class movement has a challenging task of making the UPA government to fulfil its commitments to the people and at the same time take on the communal forces.  Efforts are already on to move in this direction jointly by identifying the issues of concern to the working people and plan for countrywide united mobilisation for a change in the policy-direction.

DEBATE AND SUMMING UP 

In all, 53 members participated in the debate on the report. They generally urged for intensive countrywide campaign among the broadest section of the working people regarding the implications of the changes in the situation and the twin task of isolating the communal forces and also defending the rights and interests of the toiling people through united struggles. They were unanimous that consistent opposition to the policies of neo-liberal imperialist globalisation by the working class movement and vigorous united effort for change in the direction of the economic policy regime will be the bedrock of our activities. Leaders of fraternal industry-wise federations also addressed the session.

Kanai Banerjee summing up the debate said that the deliberations in general reflected the unity in understanding within the organisation on the changed situation and our tasks. He underlined the crucial importance of carrying on the consistent campaign against the communal forces unfailingly at all levels of the organisation along with mobilising the working people in the struggle for defence of their rights and livelihood. There is an urgent need for continuity of collective ideological and organised assertion against the neo-liberal policies of globalisation by the working class movement.

M K Pandhe, in his concluding remarks called upon the working class to take on the challenge unitedly. He asserted that anti-globalisation struggle is the lifeline of the united working class movement, enabling the class to intervene politically for a regime change. He also cautioned against the reformist and class collaborationist ideas sought to be propagated among the working people and also the virulent pro-globalisation campaign by the bourgeois media and the protagonists of liberalisation. Latest of such ideological offensive has been in the form of posing the current form of globalisation as a universal, inevitable and irreversible phenomenon (which should not be opposed) and also delinking liberalisation from globalisation projecting them as two different phenomena. Quoting Fidel Castro, Pandhe said: “We are not opposed to globalisation per se, we are opposed to this neo-liberal imperialist globalisation.” Liberalisation can in no way be delinked or projected differently or separately from the process of neo-liberal imperialist globalisation; rather liberalisation of the domestic economies through so-called reckless open-door policies is the main instrument to promote the interests of imperialist globalisation to establish the hegemony of the imperialist powers over the economies of the developing countries through new forms of economic re-colonisation. Neo-liberal imperialist globalisation is the most atrocious inhuman expression of the world capitalist order and it can be defeated through united struggle of toiling classes. It cannot be treated as the last word prescribing surrender to its so-called inevitability or irreversibility.  In this context Pandhe pointed out the phenomenon of mounting organised opposition and resistance worldwide against the policies of neo-liberal globalisation and also against imperialist aggression and machinations and also referred to the report of the World Commission on Globalisation appointed by ILO which opens up saying , “the current path of globalisation must change…there are deep-seated imbalances in the current working of the world economy which are ethically unacceptable and politically unsustainable.”

TASKS OUTLINED

The general council adopted as immediate tasks independent campaigns on urgent issues of trade union movement, including those of the working women at the initial phase (see box). The meeting also noted the interactions between the central trade unions for joint action programmes, sometime during the next phase of the budget session of parliament, which reconvenes on August 16. All CITU units should be prepared for joining such action programmes in a big way. The CITU should also take initiative to involve the employees’ federations in Bank, Insurance, Telecom, Aviation, Defence, state and central government and other sectors in the above programmes.

The general council also deliberated on the programmes to be observed by the CITU during the B T Ranadive centenary year. Three central trade union schools are going to be organised in August and September in Delhi, Kolkata and Thiruvananthapuram. It was also decided to hold an all India convention on the ‘Right to Work’ by the end of this year as a preparatory measure to launch a movement on the issue of unemployment and right to work in association with other mass organisations. The CITU centre has also started publishing a series of booklets on BTR’s teachings on various issues. It was also decided that on the next birthday of BTR, on December 19, 2004 a massive seminar would be held in Mumbai.

The general council has also decided to establish a permanent trade union school and research centre in New Delhi with residential arrangement, named after Comrade P Ramamurthy, the founder general secretary of CITU. For the purpose it was decided to collect a minimum of one rupee per member to meet the construction and other expenses, to be completed by December 2004.

On July 17, 2004, after the inaugural session, a public meeting was held in a nearby hall—Kalidas Kalakendra, where hundreds of workers gathered. M K Pandhe, president, CITU, P Sanjhgiri and K L Bajaj, president and general secretary of Maharashtra state CITU and D L Karad, general secretary, Nasik district CITU addressed the meeting.