Ukraine: students protest against new fees in the Crimea

In the following we present a slightly edited report from ”Robitnycha Vlada-Molodi Revolutsiyni Marksysty” (RV-MRM, Workers Power – Young Revolutionary Marxists) on the latest upsurge of the student movement. RV-MRM is the sympathizing section of the LRCI in the Ukraine.

Dear comrades!

In the last weeks we were heavily involved in organising a student movement against the introduction of university fees. If the reactionary Kuchma government succeeds in its plans, this would be a terrible setback for many students who can not afford it. Education again would become a privilege of the bourgeoisie and wealthy middle layers.

In the few last weeks we focused our activities on the Crimean republic – particularly its main city Simferopol. A major role was played by the All-Ukrainian trade union "Progressive Youth " (PM) which has around 8.000 members – students, young workers and school students. RV-MRM is active in building this union and has two representatives in the central leadership structure.

After massive preparation work PM organised together with other youth organisations a demonstration of 2.000 people which is quite a lot in a city like Simferopol.

It was a success that a number of youth organisations were involved in this demonstration representing not only different political currents but also different ethnic groups.

The national youth organisations of the Armenian Diaspora, the Russian Youth Centre, representatives of the Crimean Tatar youth participated plus representatives of the Crimean Komsomol (the youth organisation of the Communist Party) and representatives of the Crimean republican organisation of the Communist Party of Ukraine.

The main slogans of the demonstration were "Give the youth back the right to study!" and "Against the rise in price for most needed living products!". But the demonstrators also shouted ”Capitalism? - No!" reflecting the rising class consciouness and active opposition of young people against the capitalist restoration.

The demonstration was blocked at the central street of Simferopol by the police and there were some skirmishes.

The local authorities led by the Chairman of the Crimean ministerial council have offered to create a conciliation commission for negotiations about the disputed student fees. The representatives of the participating youth organisations have agreed to negotiations.

The protests were a success in so far as they raised the support of young people to build the youth union PM. In the Crimean cities Simferopol and Feodosia the majority of technical training colleges and 15 high schools have expressed the desire to create branches of PM.

We will now try to build the movement against the student fees in other parts of the Ukraine.

RV-MRM is analysis Ukraine capitalism as a highly unstable system. The bourgeois pro-imperialist Kuchma government is ridden by scandals and loosing popularity. In this situation building unions and protest movements is urgent to organise the mass of workers and young people at their workplaces and schools.

But the decisive task remains to build a revolutionary party - as part of the new International - which can act as the brain and the heart of a mass working class movement against the bourgeois attacks and for the proletarian revolution to overthrow the ruling capitalist class in the Ukraine. RV-MRM and our comrades in the LRCI are committed to achieve this goal.

Homepage | Feedback