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Stop the war on Iraq! |
Workers Power Global, London: 16 March 2003
On 12 March a "People's Assembly" took place at Central Hall Westminster in London, a few hundred yards from the seat of the UK parliament Over 1,000 delegates, plus observers from the trade unions, political parties, CND, and local STW groups debated the war and how to stop it.
It was called together on the initiative of the Stop the War coalition (STW) with support from the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) and the Muslim Association of Britain. It did call for people to stop work and flood the streets as soon as the war is launched. It resolved:
"The day that war breaks out, the assembly calls on everyone to Stop Everything. Where possible walk out of your work place, college or school and then converge in your city centre."
Further it called for a national demonstration in London on the first Saturday after war is declared and in any case on 22 March.
But to make sure of effective and sustained mass action it is above all the workplaces ÷ factories, offices, shops, public transport that must come to a halt. In short, an all out, indefinite general strike. The Assembly did ÷ on the motion from the Socialist Party ÷ call for popularising the slogan ãstop work to stop the warä. Its practical suggestion to facilitate this was to appeal to the general secretaries of the anti-war unions to provide funds for:
"the publication of two million leaflets, outlining the case against war, explaining how to organise workplace protest and pledging solidarity action against any threat of victimisation."
On the motion of another trade unionist the Peopleâs Assembly adopted the resolution that:
"The trade union movement has the power to stop British intervention against Iraq. We therefore demand that a recall of Congress of the TUC be immediately organised to call a general strike action against Blairâs support for the US illegally planned attack on Iraq."
Calls on the TUC and the general secretaries already actively opposing the war for action up to and including a general strike are necessary but they are far from sufficient. This is true especially at this late stage, after the General Council refused a motion by seven unions to call a special conference to plan action against war.
That is why the Assembly itself should have sent out a clear call for a general strike, aimed not only at the shameful do-nothing TUC and the executives of the different unions, but at the local union branches, district committees ÷ the organisations closest to the millions of rank and file union members. This it failed to do.
Indeed it did not really debate the possibilities for or the obstacles to this. None of the eminent general secretaries reported on the debate on the motion for a special TUC congress at the General Council, let alone criticised TUC leader Brendan Barber for his shameful inaction.
True, a number of top union leaders spoke from the platform, especially from the RMT and ASLEF. Bob Crow, general secretary of the RMT, stated that his unionâs entire executive was present. Alas Crow himself and the other union leaders did not stay long after their speeches. But Crow called for trade unionists to join in blocking roads and occupying workplaces once the war broke out.
He stated that the RMT would defend its members who took industrial action, if they were prosecuted under the anti-union laws. But he added, in parenthesis: "Iâm not saying I can call a strike." This is ominous for those who look for a courageous lead from the new "left" union leaders. In fact so far Crow has proved better at calling off rail strikes ÷ voted for by RMT members ÷ than actually calling them.
Another left leader, Billy Hayes, General Secretary of the CWU, delivered an even more militant speech, saying: "On the day war breaks out, every trade unionist should get into the streets". But again he did not pledge his own union to action.
A highpoint was the delegations of young school students present who had walked out the previous week. They spoke effectively, saying "we did it: so can you".
Amendments or short resolutions were passed calling for the TUC to call a general strike, blockades etc. But no general resolution spelled out the actions and forms of organisation needed except one submitted by Workers Power. The SWP submitted nothing.
The STW officers carried out a blatant undemocratic manoeuvre to stop the Workers Power resolution from being considered by the Assembly. It took a vigorous intervention by Workers Power delegates with the steering committee to even get it back onto the agenda, despite the fact that it had been sent in before the Assembly met. The chair agreed it would be debated in the penultimate session.
However during the lunch break, the STW national officer and SWP CC member Lindsey German interrupted WP members distributing the resolution in the hall. They then did their best to collect them all in! When it finally came to the session on practical action, Andrew Murray ÷ chair of STW and chair for much of the Assembly, announced that "due to lack of time" it was impossible to discuss it. It would have to be referred to the STW steering committee. This was a bare-faced lie. Our resolution was the only one presenting a comprehensive strategy of action in a session that was supposed to be about this.
Nevertheless, Workers Power delegate Jeremy Dewar managed to put one key point (a call for delegate based people's assemblies in every city and town) as an amendment to a resolution that Murray did take ö on recalling the Peopleâs Assembly. Jeremy was able to argue that without local organising centres for action, mass strike action, would be difficult if not impossible to organise. This proposal ÷ unlike all the other amendments and resolutions caused evident discomfiture on the platform. It provoked Andrew Murray to deem the speech ãout of orderä. The SWP delegation then voted against it en bloc. It fell but nevertheless about 40 per cent of the delegates voted for it.
In summary the assembly was long on rhetorical pledges to take action, and the union leaders promised to support their members if they took it but short on what could be done to bring this about. The SWP joined their CPB allies in determinedly blocking the creation of delegate-based mobilising councils that could deliver anything approaching a general strike. This could well prove fatal to any hopes of mass strike action.
Obviously the SWPâs reasons are linked to those it has for opposing the building of social forums before and after the European Social Forum in Florence. The SWP always wants to keep a tight bureaucratic, grip on any united front. They tightly control the STW campaign through the full time officers.
The 40-70 strong STW steering committee is a democratic facade, much like the ESF Co-ordination in Florence and the ESF preparatory assemblies. But the real decisions are taken behind the scenes. Why do they do this? Because they have no overall independent perspective beyond tailing the left union leaders and MPs in STW or the reformist right wing in the ESF.
To preserve this block with forces well to its right the SWP engages in real opportunist concessions. For example the SWP went along with inviting Liberal Democratic Party leader Charles Kennedy onto the February 15 platform and a Liberal MP spoke from the platform of the Peopleâs Assembly too.
No matter that Kennedy has made it clear that the moment "our boys" go into action all opposition to the war from his party will cease. No matter that only a tiny sprinkling of Lib-Dems have participated in the movement. Obviously CPB Stalinists like Andrew Murray are seeking to turn STW into a fully-fledged Popular Front, but why does the SWP need to help them?
The present STW local structures cannot deliver a general strike or probably even mass involvement by organised workers. The SWP now leaves this to spontaneous militancy and the good graces of the left TU bureaucracy. Once again the SWP shows that it will not lead a mass movement itself but will hand the reins to the reformist bureaucracy when the chips are really down.
Workers Power resolution to the Peopleâs Assembly
ãThis Peopleâs Assembly declares an all-out struggle against the unjust war being prepared against Iraq. We proclaim that this war will not be waged in the name of the people of this country and we pledge ourselves to do everything in our power to prevent it or halt it.
This assembly calls for the immediate formation of peopleâs assemblies against the war in every city, borough and town throughout the country.
It calls for the election of accountable delegates to these bodies from trades councils, trade union branches and district committees, local anti-war committees, local organisations of the black, Asian and immigrant communities, schools, colleges, womenâs and youth organisations, political parties fighting the war including local Labour parties.
The purpose of these peopleâs assemblies is to mobilise in every town and city for mass direct action against the war, including strike action by workers, school and students, for traffic blockades, demonstrations, pickets of MPs surgeries or Labour Party meetings, obstruction of the movement of military supplies, blockades of air bases or ports and other forms of protest.
The peopleâs assemblies must act as the base for mass strike action up to and including a GENERAL STRIKE and a mass popular uprising of protest. To this end this people's assembly calls on all trade union leaders to organise industrial action to stop the war effort and protest against the war. We call on all MPs to force a vote and vote against the war or ÷ if no vote is allowed ÷ to disrupt the normal workings of parliament as part of the campaign to stop the war.
Our aim is to either force the abandonment of the present mobilisation for war and the withdrawal of British troops, or to bring a halt to the war if it is launched.
This Assembly endorses the call issued by the European Social Forum for mass strike action and civil disobedience immediately any war begins and will endeavour to link up with other anti-war movements across the globe. In the meantime it appeals to trade unionists to organise a national day of strike action on March 21, when European unions will be taking action.
To these ends this Assembly elects an executive committee of x members, charged to forward the above process of forming peoples assemblies across the country and to recall the Peopleâs Assembly on 22 March, ensuring it is made up of delegates of local peopleâs assemblies and national trade unions and other antiwar organizations.ä
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