SUPPORT THE PEOPLE OF THE IVORY COAST IN THEIR STRUGGLE AGAINST FRENCH IMPERIALISM AND THE GOVERNMENT OF OUATTARA

The French neo-colony of the Ivory Coast is currently experiencing an acute political and social crisis.

The rapid increase in the prices of essential goods and services, the drastic fall in the income of the peasants, the antisocial policy of the governmentin the evicting small vendors on the highways and precarious markets to make way for large shopping centers, the long-term unemployment, which prevails particularly among the youth, which increase the poverty among the laboring classes.

The Ouattara government has shown its inability to deal with the concerns of the working masses: unable to meet the social demands of the public servants; unable to resolve the inter-communal conflicts; unable to protect the people against organized crime and criminals. Since he came to power, faced with all the political and social demands, the Ouattara government can only use force as a solution.

French imperialism unreservedly supports this anti-democratic regime

French imperialism maintains the 43rd BIMA (maritime infantry battalion) on Ivorian soil, an army of occupation that undermines its sovereignty.

French imperialism continues to increase its control over the country, sending 200 paratroopers to strengthen the 43rd BIMA, when strong political tensions appear.

The International Conference of Marxist-Leninist Parties and Organisations (CIPOML):

-Condemns the intervention of French imperialism in the internal affairs of the Ivory Coast.

-Demands the absolute withdrawal by France of its military base stationed on the territory of the Ivory Coast.

-Demands the respect by the Ouattara government for liberties and democracy

-Demands the unconditional release of all political prisoners, the return of Laurent Gbagbo imprisoned in the ICC

-Supports the struggles of the peoples of the Ivory Coast ire for sovereignty, freedom, democracy and social well-being

-Supports revolutionary democracy under the leadership of the Revolutionary Communist Party of the Ivory Coast (PCRCI)

RESOLUTION ON MILITARY INTERVENTIONS IN WEST AFRICA AND THE SUB-SAHARAN REGION

-Considering the military interventions of the imperialist powers (USA, France, European Union) in the sub-Saharan zone and West Africa under the pretext of the struggle against jihadist terrorism, through operations such as Serval, Barkhane and G5,

-Considering the increase in the military bases and troops of the imperialist powers, instruments of aggression and sourcesof insecurity for the peoples, on the territories of the countries of West Africa and the sub-Saharan region,

-Considering the serious attacks on national sovereignty, territorial integrity and the looting of the mining and agricultural resources of the countries of West Africa by the imperialist powers and monopolies,

-Considering the rivalry and contradictions among the various imperialist powers for control of the sub-region of West Africa and the sub-Saharan region,

-Considering the struggle of the proletariat, the peoples and the popular youth against the military intervention and occupation of the countries of the sub-Saharan region and of West Africa, and for national sovereignty and territorial integrity,

The CIPOML, meeting in Tunis from October 31 to November 3, 2017:

– Denounces the military intervention of the imperialist powers in the sub-Saharan region and West Africa.

–Demands the withdrawal of foreign troops and military bases from the sub-Saharan region and the countries of West Africa.

– Expresses its solidarity with the struggle of the peoples for national sovereignty, territorial integrity and national and social liberation.

RESOLUTION ON THE SITUATION IN CATALONIA

The 23rd Plenary Session of the International Conference of Marxist-Leninist Parties and Organisations, in view of the situation created after the holding of a referendum on self-determination in Catalonia on October 1, states:

* It is true that sectors of the Catalan bourgeoisie have used the popular movement for self-determination in order to conceal their cases of corruption and their own responsibility for the deterioration of the social situation in Catalonia; it is also true that the Catalan petty bourgeoisie has found in nationalism the foothold that it sought,given the prolonged economic crisis, to demand a renegotiation of its status with the Spanish oligarchy, managing to drag important popular sectors along a political path whose consequences were predictable given the reactionary nature of the Spanish Government.

* However, it has been the stubbornness of the Spanish government supported by the so-called “constitutionalist” parties (PSOE and Citizens’ Party), which has created a very serious political problem whose final consequences are yet to be seen, by refusing to seek a political solution and from the beginning choosing the application of all kinds of means to prevent by force the just exercise of the right to self-determination of the Catalan people: legal (from the expired 1978 Constitution, to the new gag laws approved by the People’s Partyto quell the social protest against its cutbacks); judicial (in particular the National Court, a court of exception created to replace the Francoist Court of Public Order, which led to the imprisonment of thousands of democrats during the dictatorship); propagandistic, using the media steamroller of the “democratic dictatorship” of capital at its service; political (throwing the lap dogs of Spanish fascism into the street, using the figure of the unelected king to threaten those who questioned the limits agreed to between the different bourgeoisies with his father at the head) and police, occupying the streets, beating citizens, resulting in more than 900 injured on October 1, etc.

* What happened during these months has been serious in maintain a state of political exception that has silenced other very serious problems that continue to affect the Spanish laboring classes. All in all, the latest decisions and events are even more serious.

The arrest and prosecution for rebellion of the leaders of the Catalan institutions that led the process, the threats against the mayors and public officials who defended it; the hysterical mobilization of the most backward and aggressive sectors of Spanish nationalism, the attempt to use the Catalan question to call for the unity of the nation, a term that includes the laboring classes and their exploiters, who constantly see their social and political rightsreduced or denied, and the corrupt and corrupting bloc in power that dictates the laws, establishes the political priorities and deals them blows, are antidemocratic measures.

The PCE (ML) has always defended and expressed, in its political and tactical programs, the need to overcome the national problem in Spain, in the only way possible, by recognizing the right of historical nationalities to their self-determination to its ultimate consequences.

• In the same way, the PCE (ML) has always defended that its position is not to support independence, but to advance the unity of the peoples of Spain, in a Popular and Federative Republic.
• The evolution of the political situation in Spain has once again proven right the communists and democrats who have always stated that this inalienable democratic right, as well as all the social and political rights, are not going to be and have never been respected by a regime that is the heir of Francoand the political forces that sustain it.
• We support the call of the comrades of the PCE (ML),together with other forces, for the unity of all democrats against the fascist drift of the regime, against the monarchy and its government and for the Federal People’s Republic.

SOLIDARITY WITH THE UNION OF THE WORKERS OF MARUTI-SUZUKI

The CIPOML expresses its outrage at the persecution of the workers of the Manesarfactory of the Maruti-Suzuki company in March of 2017. The workers have been accused of criminal conspiracy, murder and destruction in relation to the events of 2012 in which a manager of the company died.

Thirteen workers have been sentenced to life imprisonment, four workers had their sentences commuted to five years and fourteen workers were sentenced to three years in prison. One hundred and seventeen workers, who had been under arrest for 31 months, have been cleared of all charges.

Of the 13 workers who have been convicted of murder, 12 were officials of the Maruti-Suzuki Workers’ Union. The fourteenth worker who was sentenced to life imprisonment has denounced and protested that he had been subjected to caste abuse because he was a Dalit.  Since 2011, the Maruti workers have sought to form their own union. Initially the administration agreed to recognize the union and then refused to start negotiations with the union. The persecution of the workers on July 18, 2012, was an attempt by the administration to destroy the union and its leadership and to lay off more than 2,300 workers.

The prosecution even demanded that the death penalty be imposed on 13 workers.

The pressure of imperialism is evident, seen in the opinion of the Court of Judgment that said the incidents of March 17, 2012,lowered the reputation of India in the eyes of the world. It is unlikely that foreign investors would invest in India for fear of labor unrest.

The CIPOML expresses its solidarity with the members of the Maruti.SuzukiUnion, particularly with those who have been sentenced to death. We applaud the solidarity of the one hundred thousand workers who have boycotted the factory’s restaurant in the days leading up to the trial and also the 25,000 workers who have downed their tools in all the Maruti-Suzuki factories after the sentence.

The CIPOML unites the voice of all workers throughout the world who have demonstrated their solidarity with the workers of Maruti-Suzuki.

THE CIPOML CONDEMNS THE EXPULSION OF THE ROHINGYA PEOPLE BY THE GOVERNMENT OF MYANMAR

Since 2012, more than a million Rohingya people have been forced to flee across the border of the Rakhine State of Myanmar, mainly to Bangladesh. The Rohingya people have become stateless, their settlements have been razed and they have been the targets of murder and rape. They have been denied humanitarian aid.

The national oppression of the Rohingya people was shown in the Citizenship Law of 1982 which denied them citizenship by excluding them from Myanmar’s list of “national races”. The Myanmar government claims that all Rohingyas are illegal immigrants from Bangladesh, even though they have resided in the Rakhine State of Myanmar for hundreds of years.

In 2012, with the transition from a military government to a parliamentary democracy, communal violence was unleashed against the Rohingya people and they were forced into camps, called Rohingya Communities, which they were not allowed to leave.

The nature of these actions was seen by the attacks of Buddhist militariesagainst the majority Muslim Rohingya communities. The Rohingyas were granted temporary citizenship documents, so-called ‘white letters’. In December of 2014, the United Nations adopted a resolution urging Myanmar to grant all rights of citizenship to the Rohingya, to end the violence and discrimination against them, and to promote peaceful coexistence.

On February 10, 2015, as a result of international pressure, the Myanmar parliament granted the Rohingyas ‘white cards’ that gave them the right to vote in the referendum on the constitution of Myanmar. As a result of the internal pressure that was led by Buddhist monks, this electoral right was revoked.

Why are they being expelled from the Rakhine state of Myanmar? They are being removed from there as a result of the discovery of massive deposits of natural gas and oil in the province of Rakhine.

Indian companies have invested in Rakhine, they have set up a petrochemical plant, upgraded the port of Sittwe and have established aSEZ (Special Economic Zone) in Rakhine State. Both China and India have sought drilling rights and purchase agreements with the state of Myanmar.

The CIPOML demands that the attacks on the Rohingya be stopped, that they be allowed to return to Myanmar and that they be granted full rights of citizenship in that country.

THE CIPOML REJECTS THE GROWTH OF HINDU FUNDAMENTALISM IN INDIA

Since 2014, there has been a Government of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in India, which is dominated by the RSS (National Patriotic Organization), a Hindu fascist organization.

Immediately after the formation of the NDA government, led by Narendra Mody, there began attacks against Christians and Muslims, against their institutions, churches and mosques. Dozens of Muslims have been lynched by Hindu fundamentalist mobs under various pretexts. The government has stopped the prosecution of Hindu fanatics. The fundamentalists, as well as those prosecuted in the anti-Muslim massacres in Gujarat in 2002, have gotten bail. Cases against Hindu terrorist groups are being terminated.

Measures that weaken the secular character of the Indian state have been begun. Heads of institutions are being appointed who are known for their Hindu fascist views. Changes are being made in the state textbooks that modify them along Hindu fascist lines. The curricula are being changed to include Hindu communal political views. The democratic rights of students are being repressed. Women’sstudies andDalit  studies are being cut back. The attacks have begun against democratic students, young progressive students and high school students. Payments for educational institutions are increasing.

In addition, the government has carried out new attacks against the people of Kashmir fighting for their liberation from the Indian state. New propaganda is being spread against the State of Pakistan. Closer ties are being formed with the Zionist State of Israel. The security connections between the United States and India are being strengthened as India is establishing itself as a US gendarme in Asia directed against China.

The CIPOML demands that the secular character of the Indian state be preserved and that those involved in communal attacks be prosecuted.

THE TRADE UNIONISTS IN THE PRISONS OF THE ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF IRAN SHOULD BE IMMEDIATELY AND UNCONDITIONALLY RELEASED

In the Islamic Republic of Iran the arrests, imprisonment and torture of protesting workers, prominent members of trade unions, civil rights activists, university professors and students are continuing.

Recently, Mahmoud Salehi, a well-known trade unionist, was arrested while leaving the hospital where he regularly receives dialysis and treatment for a heart condition.

Many dozens of union activists, falsely accused as “threats to national security,” live in horrible conditions in the dungeons of the capitalist regime of the Islamic Republic. Reza Shahabi, a prominent member of the board of the Union of Workers of the Bus Company of Tehran and Suburbs, was on a hunger strike for more than 50 days to protest the arrest and mistreatment of all imprisoned union activists.

SOLIDARITY WITH THE RIF OF MOROCCO

Since a fish merchant, Mouhcine Fikri, was crushed to death in the presence of the authorities on October 28, 2016, the Rif (north-central region of Morocco) has seen a wave of popular protests to demand that those responsible for this despicable crime be punished and that the basic and legitimate social, economic and cultural rights of this impoverished and marginalized region be respected.

The government of Morocco, instead of satisfying these demands, organized wide-scale repression of activists of this movement: there have been more than 400 arrests, torture, false accusations, dozens of unjust prison sentences and trials in progress.

The 23rd International Conference of Marxist-Leninist Parties and Organisations (CIPOML) expresses its solidarity with the Rif, the imprisoned activists and their families, strongly condemns this repression and demands the immediate release of these prisoners, the dropping of legal proceedings against them and the satisfaction of the legitimate demands of the inhabitants of the Rif.

Tunis, November, 2017