fyi. A.Holberg > > > > The Militant Vol.64/No.43 November 13, 2000 > > Workers in Yugoslavia press for their rights > New regime seeks to demobilize workers, aims to pursue > integration into world market system (lead article) > > [Photo - see caption below] Workers at Yugoslavia's largest bank > demonstrate in Belgrade October 13, demanding a say in choice of > new directors to replace appointees of toppled Milosevic regime. > > BY ARGIRIS MALAPANIS AND BOBBIS MISAILIDIS > NIS, Yugoslavia--On a visit to the Tobacco Industry of Nis (DIN) > complex here October 27, the mood among workers was noticeably > different from what these reporters had witnessed on a previous > visit in April 1999. > > At that time, Yugoslavia was being subjected to a brutal > U.S.-NATO bombing campaign, which in large part targeted > industrial centers. DIN, the country's largest cigarette > manufacturing facility, was one of the plants that was bombed, > and workers there, outraged by the bombing and left jobless, were > understandably tense and nervous about their future. In addition, > they were subjected to the bureaucratic regime headed by Slobodan > Milosevic. > > On the most recent visit to the plant, hundreds of people were > streaming in and out of the main gate during the afternoon shift > change. Among the couple of dozen workers interviewed at the > plant gate, the mood was mostly self-confident and hopeful for > improved conditions. Many described different aspects of the new > political space that working people have won since the overthrow > of the hated Milosevic regime in early October--the increased > ability to speak out, discuss politics, and organize for their > rights. > > At the same time, discussions with a number of people at DIN > indicate that the fight to keep and extend the increased degree > of control that workers have begun to exert--to improve job > conditions, raise living standards, and protect the gains of > nationalized property--is only beginning and is full of > contradictions. > > Similar changes, as well as challenges facing working people, are > unfolding across the country in many spheres of life. > > Outrage over 1999 NATO bombing "Virtually nothing has been > repaired in the factory since the NATO bombing," said Suzana > Storadinovic before going into the plant for her shift that day. > Buildings bombed last year can still be seen burned out. Most of > the complex is operational, however, and workers said the 3,000 > employees have been back to work for almost a year. > > "The one thing that we fixed since last year is the kindergarten > and child-care center," said Ljiljana Jovanovic, who works in > cigarette packaging. "As you can see, that's needed for many of > us to be able to work," she added, pointing to a number of > workers picking up their kids from child care at the end of their > shift. > > These two workers, and all others interviewed outside DIN, voiced > their vehement opposition to the military assault led by > Washington last year. All working people interviewed in different > cities expressed this view, regardless of their opinions on other > questions. > > "It's a lie that Clinton's target was Milosevic and his > military," said Snezana Arantelovic, another production worker. > "Why did he hit our plants? We got rid of Milosevic, not NATO." > > These workers--along with Zoran Milojkovic, who took Militant > reporters to the plant--explained what happened in the days > leading up to October 5, when a mass revolt and general political > strike forced Milosevic to resign and concede victory to Vojislav > Kostunica, presidential candidate of the Democratic Opposition of > Serbia (DOS). Milojkovic is the local president of Nezavisnost > (Independence), the largest trade union federation not tied > directly to the previous regime. > > On October 4, DIN's manager locked employees inside the factory > to try to prevent them from joining protests in town, we were > told. Approximately 50,000 people had gathered in downtown Nis > that day to demand that Milosevic step down. At one point, > unionists led the crowd in a march on the DIN complex, > surrounding the plant and forcing the gates open so that > thousands of tobacco workers could join the demonstration. > > "That was the end of Zoran Arantelovic," said Snezana > Arantelovic, referring to the former DIN director. "And no, I am > not related to that man," she added emphatically, with a smile. > > Workers at DIN launched a five-day strike that day, joining > hundreds of thousands of others around Serbia who had already > taken job action to demand Milosevic respect the popular will and > resign. > > Nearly 10,000 people from Nis, including many from DIN, went to > Belgrade the next morning as part of the half-million-strong > outpouring that led to the toppling of the regime, several > tobacco workers reported. Nis, with a population of more than > 300,000, is Yugoslavia's second-largest city. > > Milojkovic said that on the morning of October 5, he along with > dozens of others took over the main police station in Nis, in a > preemptive attempt to stop the cops from sending reinforcements > to Belgrade. > > Replacement of DIN manager "The main demand of our strike was to > remove the entire management board," Snezana Arantelovic said. > "The manager stole 40 million Deutsche marks from the company. He > forced us to work during the bombings last year. He was replaced > after the strike." Workers in the administration have found hard > evidence of embezzlement, and a committee has now been set up to > investigate, she added. > > The pro-Milosevic manager resigned October 9 and the entire > management board of DIN has since been replaced. Those > interviewed said workers in the plant were not consulted on the > new appointments and did not know who made them. The new manager > is a local leader of the Democratic Opposition of Serbia. > > "It's better now on the job. Today I was able to speak to the new > manager about some problems at work," said Predrag Draganic, an > operator of a tobacco processing machine, after getting off work. > "Before we just had to shut up and work. The old manager was only > for himself, and to hell with the workers. The change is good. > But I don't know how much is due to the new manager and how much > is due to the strike and what we did." > > The old trade union also "fell apart," said Arantelovic, > referring to the officialdom tied to the Milosevic regime. "The > union is still here, but the people who run it have changed. We > put pressure on the union bureaucrats to support us going on > strike. They had no choice," said Arantelovic. > > Earlier that day, Militant reporters had visited the office of > Nezavisnost in central Nis. In an interview there, local union > president Milojkovic said that a number of workers from 30 > companies, including DIN, had left the pro-Milosevic union and > joined Nezavisnost in the last three weeks of October. In > Belgrade, Nezavisnost leaders told the Militant that national > membership has jumped from 200,000 to as much as half a million > in the same period. > > >From what workers at the DIN plant gate and other factories > reported, however, these claims may be exaggerated. At the > tobacco plant, all those interviewed knew about the fleeing of > the old union officials. Only one worker, however, had heard > anything about Nezavisnost organizing at the plant. > > Susana Storadinovic said she had been taking part in protests > over the last 10 years against the wars that the Milosevic regime > initiated, against the regime's chauvinist policies, and for > democratic rights. During all this time, she pointed out, "wages > have not changed." Workers at the DIN complex make on average 200 > DM per month, several reported. > > Even though this is the "best wage in Nis," as Ljiljana Jovanovic > put it, many workers can make ends meet only by getting some food > from relatives in the countryside, cultivating a piece of land > they have, or selling goods on the side. A majority of Nis's > population still has ties to the land, we were told. > > While wages for employed workers averaged 150 DM (US$81) per > month last year, minimum expenses for food and utilities such as > electricity and telephone were around 200 DM per month. > > Economic conditions, not just in Nis but for the majority of > Yugoslavia's people, are devastating. According to figures cited > by Nezavisnost officials and RTS television, unemployment is > somewhere between 50 percent and 70 percent in a population of 11 > million. Inflation is high and the black market continues in > relation to such basic necessities as gasoline, heating fuel, and > a range of food items. > > This economic crisis is the result of the world capitalist > economic crisis combined with the anti–working-class methods of > planning and management by the previous bureaucratic regimes in > Yugoslavia. It has also been sharply exacerbated by the economic > war and military assaults by Washington and other imperialist > powers throughout the 1990s. > > Many working people believe the collapse of Milosevic's police > state means they may have a better chance to fight to improve > these conditions. Others are not as optimistic, however. > > At the DIN plant gate, Militant reporters met a number of > unemployed workers who had just applied for a job at the tobacco > factory. Slobodanka Stoiljkovic said 1,500 people had showed up > that morning to apply for 58 openings at DIN. She thought she had > virtually no chance of getting a job there. > > "Most, if not all, of the 58 jobs have already been given out," > she stated. "Before, you had to be for Milosevic. Now you still > have to be connected with the government." > > Resistance to undermining state property > Among the "reforms" implemented by the Milosevic regime and its > predecessors that opened up Yugoslavia increasingly to the laws > of the capitalist market was a form of "privatization" of some > state-owned industries. Under this scheme, shares were issued to > workers, managers, and others outside the company. The > "stockholders" supposedly decided how the company was run. In > reality, cronies of the regime, especially in management, used > the setup to siphon more assets from these firms. > > In some cases, managers had gone so far in acting as company > owners that they tried to legalize turning over the entire > enterprise to themselves, especially as they saw the end of the > Milosevic regime approaching. > > One such case was Rudo, a plant in Nis that manufactures > orthopedic medical equipment. It was one of the plants that was > badly damaged by the NATO air raids. The damage to the top floors > from the bombs last year has not been fixed. > > When Militant reporters arrived at Rudo on the afternoon of > October 27, the shift had ended early so we did not meet any of > the workers except the security guard, who is in the union. The > story he and Nezavisnost officials recounted was largely > confirmed in articles from the local press. Workers have put up a > large poster with the names of all the company managers whose > removal they have won, and have dubbed that side of the factory > building "the wall of shame." > > A number of the 100 workers at this factory found out that most > of the company managers were trying to privatize the company -- > that is, make it their own -- days before Milosevic's downfall. > The workers' union, Nezavisnost, is officially in favor of > "privatization," according to union brochures. > > Workers immediately occupied the plant October 2, declared a > strike, and demanded the arrest of these managers. The arrests > took place by October 7, the day after Milosevic resigned. Two > weeks later, a local court codified the workers' victory by > annulling all the actions of the managers to make the plant > private property. > > It is such actions by workers -- not by the newly formed "crisis > committees" as the Militant reported in a previous article -- > that in practice have defended nationalized property relations > and countered attempts by the would-be capitalists in power to > open up Yugoslavia further to capitalist penetration. > > Character of 'crisis committees' > As far as Militant reporters could find, these "crisis > committees" at many different workplaces have been organized by > leaders of the Democratic Opposition of Serbia from outside the > enterprises involved. They are not made up of workers. The > committees seek to ensure that DOS supporters are appointed as > new managers in workplaces where workers have forced the removal > of hated directors. > > In Kragujevac, for example, DOS leaders initiated such a "crisis > committee" to replace the management of the large Zastava auto > plant. The committee was led by a representative of the Christian > Democratic Party who had never worked for Zastava. The old guard > was swiftly replaced by new directors loyal to DOS, with little > or no consultation with the workers. Nezavisnost, which organizes > about 20 percent of the workers in that plant, and its members > were excluded from any involvement in this process, said Milan > Nikolic, a Nezavisnost executive board member in Belgrade from > the metalworkers union. > > In other cases, DOS leaders have tried to slow down removal of > hated managers -- especially where workers have taken steps to > assume more control on the job -- and strike deals with Socialist > Party officials, who continue to head many of the country's > institutions and enterprises. > > At the Ikarbus bus manufacturing plant in Belgrade, for example, > the majority of the workforce abandoned the pro-Milosevic trade > union and signed up with the metalworkers branch of Nezavisnost > to fight more effectively to improve working conditions and > wages, Nezavisnost supporters reported. One of the demands of the > workers was the removal of the company manager for bureaucratic > abuse of the workers and corruption. These unionists said their > goal was to do this by secret ballot of all employees. They also > planned to elect worker representatives to an assembly that would > give workers a say in who is appointed as new administrators. > > DOS leaders, however, pressured and convinced union lawyers, > administrative personnel, and Nezavisnost officials to slow down > this process and, instead, build up a criminal case against the > manager so he could be replaced in "a legal manner." > > Changes within the privileged caste > These instances underscore the fact that the new government > headed by Vojislav Kostunica does not represent a qualitative > break from the former Milosevic regime in its political course > and class character. While the old police-state regime has been > replaced, the new petty-bourgeois government continues to defend > the interests of the privileged bureaucratic caste that > politically rules the Yugoslav workers state. > > The leaders of the DOS and Serbian Renewal Movement--the two main > opposition groups that are now part of a "transition government" > in Serbia along with the former ruling Socialist Party of > Serbia--are part of the same social caste that Milosevic and his > cronies belong to. > > The new regime incorporates new layers from the intelligentsia > and middle classes who were not in positions of power before > October 5. The leadership of the Democratic Party, of which > Kostunica is president, is largely composed of lawyers, doctors, > university professors, and other professionals with a bourgeois > orientation and thoroughly anti–working-class program. > > The DOS has adopted an economic program that calls for widespread > privatization of state-run enterprises and aims at rapid > integration of Yugoslavia into the world capitalist market > system. It projects selling off the cement and tobacco > industries, the state airline, the Novi Sad oil refinery, the > electrical company, and the petrochemical industry. Their plans > count on massive international loans, and government officials > are already pursuing membership in the International Monetary > Fund and World Bank. > > In some cases, DOS leaders are trying to take over institutions > previously used by the Milosevic regime, or strike deals for > joint control with Socialist Party leaders, and use them for > their own purposes. > > In an October 24 interview at the Nezavisnost national > headquarters in Belgrade, Milan Nikolic stated, "Certain DOS > leaders have put Nezavisnost in a very difficult situation. They > have breathed life into the union federation that was tied with > Milosevic and are trying to turn it into their union -- against > our efforts to reorganize most workers into Nezavisnost. We have > not made a big deal out of this yet because we don't want to > break ranks since we share similar goals." > > At the Zastava auto plant in Kragujevac, Nezavisnost supporters > there report that DOS leaders are trying to take control of the > formerly pro-Milosevic union and keep Nezavisnost isolated from > trying to organize a bigger section of the workforce than it > currently does. > > In some cases, DOS leaders have run into some initial opposition > in trying to sweep their people into positions at the head of > universities, state-owned enterprises, and other institutions. > > Bojan Boskovic, a leader of the Students Union of Yugoslavia at > the University of Novi Sad, related one such instance. His > organization campaigned against the U.S.-NATO bombing of > Yugoslavia and opposed the brutal, chauvinist policies of the > Milosevic regime in Kosova. It was also among the main organizers > of local protests demanding the ouster of Milosevic leading up to > the October 5 revolt. > > In Novi Sad, Boskovic said, students took action to stop or slow > down the replacement of deans and heads of university > departments. He said this was because the local politicians that > won the September 24 elections were trying to replace the old > guard with individuals chosen on the basis of their rank in the > DOS, disregarding opinions of students and other faculty. > > The toppling of the secret-police Milosevic regime creates more > possibilities for workers and farmers in Yugoslavia to debate and > engage in political activity, and to be exposed to the influence > of working-class and anti-imperialist struggles around the world. > Conditions are more favorable for them to take advantage of these > openings because of the decisive role that workers and farmers > played in the events that led to the toppling of that regime. > > Activists in 'Resistance' > None of the existing political currents or organizations, > however, has a perspective, or is seeking in practice, to lead > vanguard workers in that direction. Working people will need to > go through further political experience to develop such a > leadership. > > Otpor (Resistance), for example, is by all accounts the most > widely known political organization in Serbia that emerged over > the last year. Composed mainly of college and high school > students and other youth, it was founded two years ago by > activists in the Students Union of Yugoslavia and other student > organizations. Its leaders say their membership has reached > 40,000 in recent months in some 200 cities throughout Serbia. > Large posters and stickers produced by the group are visible on > highways as well as in the five cities and the rural Kolubara > area that Militant reporters visited. > > Otpor campaigned for the resignation of Milosevic, and leading > Otpor activists opposed his chauvinist policies in Kosova as well > as the U.S.-NATO bombing. The group played a prominent role in > the protests that led to Milosevic's resignation. The group > officially espouses pacifist positions. > > Four Otpor activists who spoke to Militant reporters October 23 > said that what distinguished it from other student organizations > is they have no official leadership structure. "That's why the > police could not destroy us, even though they arrested 3,000 of > our supporters the last year," said Milos Milenkovic, an > economics student at the University of Belgrade and an Otpor > leader. > > The group appears to be politically very heterogeneous. > Milenkovic said that since the toppling of Milosevic the axis of > the organization has been shifting toward advocating "a civil and > democratic society"--a statement taken from phrases of the > petty-bourgeois opposition that won the presidential election. > Asked if he meant capitalism, Milenkovic replied that most people > in western Europe live better than those in Yugoslavia and "we > should learn from that. We are talking about a transition towards > those societies." He was also unsettled by the burning of > parliament and other "chaotic" acts during the October 5 uprising > and said Otpor is asking people to return to the parliament > building items they removed from it that day. > > Damir Eres, on the other hand, expressed different views on many > matters, views that appear to be held by a minority in Otpor. > Eres, a medical student in Belgrade, was unequivocal in his > opposition to Washington's intervention in the Balkans, not just > the NATO bombing in Serbia. He condemned proposals by politicians > in the imperialist countries to put Milosevic on trial in The > Hague, declaring that only the people of Yugoslavia can try him > for his crimes. He argued for returning autonomy to Albanians in > Kosova, pointing out that the imperialist troops now occupying > Kosova are largely responsible for sowing divisions between > Albanians and Serbs, not just Milosevic's past actions. > > Eres and Milenkovic noted that Otpor today includes youth as well > as some older members who hold a variety of political members who > hold a variety of political viewpoints. The organization includes > Socialist Party members and some supporters or former members of > Vojislav Seselj's Serbian Radical Party--which many people in > Belgrade describe as fascist. > > The leadership of the Students Union of Yugoslavia, another major > youth group, has increasingly moved in a social democratic > direction. One of its main activities is maintaining a web site > called "Free Serbia," an operation that now has its own offices > in Belgrade and several dozen employees and volunteers whose > efforts are funded from "donors from abroad, mainly in the > European Union and North America," as one of its leaders put it. > > Since Milosevic's downfall, the Nezavisnost union leadership has > also made more explicit a similar social democratic orientation. > One of its main pieces of literature states that Nezavisnost > seeks "the establishment of the rule of law; genuine multiparty > parliamentary democracy; comprehensive and radical economic > reforms based on privatization, economic efficiency and social > justice; [and] integration of Yugoslavia into the international > community." Leaders of this union who in interviews with the > Militant during the NATO assault made remarks supporting > self-determination for Albanians in Kosova have since retracted > or distanced themselves from those positions. > > 'We've given them a deadline' > Given the lack of politically organized working-class leadership, > working people pressing for their rights face continuous > obstacles and efforts to push them back. Workers at the Ikarbus > bus manufacturing plant in Zemun, on the outskirts of Belgrade, > told the Militant how a majority of workers in the factory had > successfully fought to organize into Nezavisnost and that the > company had been forced to recognize the union by October 25. > > At the entrance of the plant, two notices were posted next to > each other. One was signed by Zoran Gojkovic, president of > Samostalni (Autonomy), the formerly pro-Milosevic trade union. > That notice reported that 304 of the 1,022 workers had left that > union, announced Gojkovic's resignation, and called a meeting to > elect new officers open only to current members. Next to this was > a notice by the in-plant Nezavisnost organizing committee, > calling a meeting to discuss the situation in the plant and > workers' demands for better wages and working conditions. This > meeting was open to all workers in the plant, regardless of union > affiliation. > > Inside the factory, the company manager acknowledged the > formation of a new union, which he claimed not to oppose. He also > said he would collaborate with whatever union had majority > support, and then declared, "But this hasn't been determined by > the courts yet." So the fight to establish the union continues. > > Despite these hurdles, working people in Yugoslavia have gained > greater self-confidence and are using the new atmosphere of > political freedom since October 5 to press their demands. > > At Kolubara, a region 60 miles south of Belgrade where most of > Serbia's coal for generation of electrical energy is mined at > four surface pits, miners told the Militant they had not yet > disbanded the strike committee set up when they walked out > September 29. That nine-day political strike by 7,500 miners and > the solidarity movement built around it were central to toppling > the bureaucratic regime. > > Since the fall of Milosevic, the miners have demanded better > wages and working conditions, after having gone three years > without a contract. They pressed successfully for the resignation > of the mine management and all the officials of the energy > ministry who tried to use the police to break their strike. They > are now trying to maintain their pressure on the Kostunica regime > to meet the rest of their demands. > > "I hope this new government will be better," said miner Jubisalav > Perisic, during an interview at the entrance of the Field D mine > October 27. "But we've given them a deadline--a few months. We > will not wait for five, eight, or 10 years as we waited for > Milosevic, to get a living wage and decent working conditions." > > His comment captured the determination of the miners to press > their demands and to seek greater control over their conditions > on the job. > > EU road of capitalist penetration > Their comments also indicated that foreign investors and the new > government will not have an easy time convincing them to accept > the privatization of the mines. > > Given the continuing depth of popular opposition to the U.S.-led > assault on Yugoslavia, Kostunica and those who share the > political program of the DOS have sought to distance themselves > somewhat from Washington, and are trying to convince working > people that the road to solving the acute economic and social > problems is through rapid integration into the European Union. > Large placards with the multistar symbol of the EU and the slogan > "Together Again!"--referring to the European Union and > Yugoslavia--could be seen everywhere Militant reporters traveled. > > In an October 29 statement, Kostunica rejected the call by U.S. > president William Clinton to accept results of local elections in > Kosova, organized under NATO occupation, as legitimate. Kostunica > has maintained much of the nationalist stance of Milosevic toward > Kosova, and his support for the chauvinist leaders of the > so-called Bosnian Serb republic in Bosnia. > > The European Union is being utilized increasingly by the > imperialist powers in their goal of capitalist penetration of the > workers states in Eastern and Central Europe--including > Yugoslavia--and the former Soviet Union. > > The French government of President Jacques Chirac and EU > officials announced October 27 the imminent signing of an > agreement with Moscow to purchase large amounts of oil, natural g > > The recent actions by working people in Yugoslavia are one more > reason to make finance capital more nervous. > > Argiris Malapanis is a meat packer in Miami. Bobbis Misailidis is > an airport worker in Athens, Greece. Catharina Tirsén, a member > of the Metalworkers union in Stockholm, Sweden, and George > Skoric, a student in Belgrade, contributed to this article. > > _______________________________________________ Leninist-International mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] To change your options or unsubscribe go to: http://lists.wwpublish.com/mailman/listinfo/leninist-international
