Dear friends,

You are warmly invited to a discussion:

MINING IN AOTEAROA
Wednesday 5 May at 7pm
Unite Office - Level 1, Trades Hall, 126 Vivian Street

Tea/Coffee provided

We’ll have people outside to let you know where to go in the building

Come along and join an anti-capitalist discussion on mining.

All welcome.

National recently released their discussion document on mining, proposing the removal of 7000 ha of land from Schedule 4 (protected lands) so that mining can be considered on a ‘case-by-case’ basis. This has led to a bout of anti-mining sentiment; there has been a march on Parliament and more marches are planned in Nelson and Auckland. The environmental NGOs are busy gathering submissions and groups like Coromandel Watchdog are planning on-the-ground civil disobedience to stop the bulldozers.

Much of the present debate is framed around where the profit goes, yet whether it goes overseas or stays here its ultimately going to capitalists.

This discussion will look at how we oppose mining from an anti-capitalist position and narrative, rather than an anti-corporate one. How can we link this struggle with others be more effective and to have greater potential to resist capitalism than marches on Parliament and submission gathering poses? How do we resist this new round of capitalist enclosures of land previously largely untouched by capital’s hand?

What does direct action and solidarity look like in this context?

Should we be fighting mining in solidarity with the struggle against colonisation, and what does that look like?

Will there be mining in an anarchist-communist society? What does that mean for the battle now?

Should we oppose opencast mining and not underground mining? Do workers really have more power at underground mines and are they really less damaging to the environment?

What are the effects on communities from mining (both the effects of work, and dust / tailings / damns / water pollution etc) and how do we stand in solidarity with these communities?

Is this 2010 review of Schedule 4 providing a line in the sand - however arbitrary - and it’s important that we say, ‘Capitalism cannot encroach further onto these lands.’

How can an anti-mining struggle also include a growing anti-authoritarianism and anti-capitalist struggle and encourage self-organisation?

How do we stand in solidarity with our fellow workers whilst not ‘buying into’ the capitalists’ stories about ‘job creation’ and the national economic good?

Is it okay to oppose ‘new’ mining, but more complicated to oppose mines that provide continued employment for an existing workforce?

Should we be okay with anything that creates jobs that pay a ‘decent’ wage?

Is targeting coal even a strategic way to address climate change? Given that coal miners have traditionally been a strongly organised workforce, have work sites that lend themselves to this kind of organisation, and often strong communities built on solidarity, should we be targeting coal? Can climate change be tackled under capitalism, and if not, are climate change and anti-mining campaigns contributing to transforming the underlying social relations of capitalism, or perpetuating them?

You may wish to read an interesting piece here: http://www.afed.org.uk/ace/april.pdf

For more info please email info [ at ] awsm.org.nz

* * *

“It was one community, even though there’d been hundreds of scabs, it was united. And they can’t take that away. But that’s what they never understood anyway. That they could do whatever against us, whether it was taking away money, beating us up or whatever they bloody liked, they couldn’t take away what’s in here. And they’ll never win because of that. Because in the end, we’re stronger. Because we love one another like they don’t. And that’s my memory. That’s what I’ve got to give my kids. I shall never have money to give them, but they’ve got that, they’ve got my great grandfather’s watch chain done as a pit lamp, they’ve got newspaper cuttings and a drawing of my dad when he was in a staydown strike to save his pit, and that’s their heritage. And that’s why we’ll win, if we pass that on. For me anyway, it’s the only way to win.”
Jenny Whysall, UK Miners’ Strike.

A recent multi-university report highlighting bullying in the workplace should come as no surprise. The study of “1728 education, health, hospitality and travel sector workers found nearly one in five had been bullied at work. A further 75 per cent of employees said they had suffered workplace stress at some point.”

In a society underpinned by wage slavery, divided between the robbers, the capitalist class and the robbed, the vast majority of us in the working-class, bullying is not just the case of ‘incompetent managers’ but is institutionalised in the system. The drive for profit will always undermine workers health and safety. While bullying does occur between fellow workers, anyone with some workplace experience knows that it’s the boss who inflicts most of the harassment and intimidation.

If we are to seriously confront bullying we need to build a society which places the needs and priorities of workers first. We need to tackle the root cause of the problem which is the state and capitalism.

In the meantime, we need to build a workplace culture built on solidarity and self-organisation from below that challenges every form of prejudice and discrimination. A culture which takes no shit from the bosses, whether in the home, school or work.

Solidarity is Strength!

For more practical advice on confronting bullying see LibCom’s Dealing with bullying at work guide.

Wednesday 5th May, 7pm
Workers Educational Association, 59 Gloucester St

Continuing on from last month’s discussion about recent attacks on the working class, the Anarchist-Communist Discussion Group in May will look at anarcho-syndicalism, industrial networks and new forms of workplace/community organising.

Before the discussion, you should read the short article on the topic (.pdf format, 424kb). We will have copies available on the night, but reading beforehand and thinking about ideas it brings up will enable better discussion.

From the discussion article:
“The old ways of struggle have failed. Traditional trade unions, politicians and protest marches are inefective in resisting attacks on the working class. What is needed is radical forms of resistance that are accesible, constructive, and at the same time, revolutionary. Could one solution be the formation of anarcho-syndicalist networks and assemblies, both in the workplace and our communities?”

The group meets on the first Wednesday of every month and aims to provide a space for the open discussion of anarchist-communist ideas and practice. Each month there will be a short article to read or a short video to watch, that we can then discuss together.

It’s free, and tea, coffee and biscuits will be provided.

The group is a joint effort of the Christchurch branch of the Aotearoa Workers Solidarity Movement and Beyond Resistance.

In Christchurch, the 198 Free Youth Health Centre is set to close its doors on April 30th. Over 4000 10-25 year olds are registered with the service as their primary doctor, while in 2009 nearly 15,000 people walked through the doors to make use of the free GP, counselling, family planning, sexual health, alcohol and drug services and more. The centre, which has been operating for 15 years, has been an indispensable tool in ensuring the health of many of Christchurch’s young people. 198 has received comments from many of its patients to the effect that if it had not existed, they would not have sought help anywhere else. This sobering thought only further underlines how important it is that 198, and other services like it, find the funding it needs to ensure its survival.

Below is a video interview with Cody, one of the youth involved in the campaign to save 198. If you don’t see the video, click here to watch it on Youtube.

Download issue in .pdf format (650KB)

The seventh issue of Solidarity, free newssheet of the Aotearoa Workers Solidarity Movement. Download the .pdf above, or click below to read the contents online.

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