In Euzkadi, an Organismo Unitario (United Body) has been formed, which includes the MCE, the ORT (Organización Revolucionario de los Trabajadores - Revolufionary Workers Organization), and the ETA-V. The OU is presented as a simple body for coordinating struggles, but the reality is otherwise. In fact, the organizafions that make up the OU are either members of the workers movement (MCE, ORT) or petty bourgeois (ETAV); but they are organizations that politically tail-end the CP. Hence, the ORT and the MCE have programmatically capitulated to the CP's Democratic Assembly on two important questions: - the question of the status of the 1936 republic, which amounts to a de facto negation of the right of self-determination; - the formation after the fall of the dictatorship of a provisional government of Euzkadi along with the bourgeoisie, that is, with the PNV. We therefore rejected the invitation that was extended to us to join the OU. We presented the following alternative proposals: On the basis of united-front experiences, to develop bodies to coordinate struggles in close relation with the mobilizations that are rapidly developing on the scale of the entire state, based around three central themes: political freedom (right of association, assembly, demonstration); amnesty; response to the wage freeze (the platform of workers demands). In fact, the priority remains the centralization of the movement on the scale of the entire state for a decisive offensive against the dictatorship. The experiences in coordination that developed in Euzkadi during September and October have to be extended throughout the whole Spanish state, This perspective is contrary to the tactic of "local general strikes" developed by the CP. But for such coordination to actually take place, to makesure that this extension becomes a reality, it is important not to have such coordinating bodies adopt the political program of one organization or the orientation of one party on post-Francoism. This would amount to an ultrasectarian attitude indicating a lack of any understanding of the means by which such unity could actually come about or the dynamic that would be touched off by such unity around these objectives. Such coordinating bodies could also be the embryos of bodies of workers democracy, and then of dual power on a zonal, local, and regional scale. The examples of the general strikes in Euzkadi are full of lessons on this point. (See INPRECOR, No.34, September 25, 1975.) More and more, the centralization and self-organization of struggles, culminating in a general strike throughout the territory of the Spanish state for the overthrow of Francoism, is being seen as the essential requirement. Against the reformist bourgeois program, we propagandistically odvance the slogan of a Constituent Assembly, with the right to vote at age sixteen, and we stress transitional political tasks like dissolution of the repressive corps, abrogation of the laws and institutions of Francoism, and trials of the fascist criminals. O
Pamplona: PREPARING THE STRUGGLE
The following report from Pamplona shows how the workers movement of Navarro organizes to make its sfruggles as united and powerful as possible.
PAMPLONA, January 8, 1976 - The way the workers of Navarro prepare the struggle to defend their demands has already become a tradition. The workers commissions work out a united platform which is then discussed in general assemblies in each factory before being presented to the employers on the same day, whether or not this coincides with the date called for in the contract. That is how the extraordinary united solidarity of the Navarro proletariat has been forged. And that is how some worken commissions, which have a strong organized base in each factory and on extraordinary social influence throughout Pamplona, have been strengthened, Before the last union elections (to the official, statecontrolled trade unions - INPRECOR), the workers commissions decided to launch a campaign to take over positions of responsibility in the unions. And on the whole they succeeded. But from the beginning, all these posts appeared as complements to the action of the workers commissions and never as substitutes. In the platform put forward for the second phose of the trade-union elecfions, the workers commissions themselves raised the slogan of "the free election and revocability of trade-union officials by assemblies. On many occasions the employers and the official union. organizations have attempted to eliminate this preponderant weight of the workers commissions. For example, they tried to make the trade-union meetings that are now open to both official representatives and nonofficial representatives closed to the latter. But the result was the opposite of what the employers had hoped for. In Pamplona today there is an assembly of workers of all the factories which meets regularly in the headquarters of the trade union. About 600 workers actively participate in these meetings, about 125 of whom hold posts in the union. It is a plenary assembly of the worken commissions open to all the workers. During one of the recent meetings of this assembly a group of comrades said that it was necessary to work out a new platform of demands - different from the one already put forward by the workers commissions - for the entire province. They said that it was necessary to more closely integrate the small factories into the struggle, and that this implied reducing the demands in order to have them tally with those of the small-scale enterprises. After a discussion, the majority of the assembly decided to support the platform of the workers commissions. (If is precisely unity around this platform that represents the greatest guarantee that the workers of the 8 small factories will be able to wage their struggle along with the workers of the large factories, which makes it easier to defend their demands.) The assembly also decided to openly proclaim the role of the workers commissions in the leadership of the struggle for these demands. On this basis, the workers commissions decided to set up an "ad hoc commission" that would include, in addition to this leodership, representatives of the most important factories in order to directly coordinate the ir activity through the workers commissions as an instrument in the struggle for the platform of demands. Unlike this body, the Deliberations Committee for the metalworkers contract continues to include only trade-union representatives. We believe that the composition of this body must be broadened, that when the assembly meets in the union headquarters, a numerically larger committee should be elected that would really represent all the workers of Pamplona and would be responsible to them and under their constant control. An atmosphere of united mobilization now exists in Pamplona. An important result of this can be seen in the fact that at the Magnesitas and Asessa Factories the employers decided to give in and grant wage increases of 60,000 pesetos and 54,000 pesetas respectively. In the first case, it appears that the employers even agreed to the formation of a workers security committee to control working conditiors. But it would be dangerous to think that this will be the position of the employers in all the other factories. We are heading into very tough negotiations. The bourgeoisie wants to make the workers bear the costs of the economic crisis. Layoffs have already started in some factories. The unemployment figure is going up alarmingly. The fight has only just begun. The workers commissions approved a plan of struggle during the past several days: 1) Within the perspective of. preparing a general strike for the end of January, to Iqunch various actions - assemblies, work stoppages, etc. — in all factories as of now; 2) To set January 15 as a first day of struggle for the platform of demands, with assemblies and a one-hour work stoppage; 3) To strengthen the activity of each workers commission in its factory, while continuing and broadening the sectoral meetings and central assemblies. Concurrently, an "unemployed commission" has been formed and will coordinate with the workers commissions so that the action and demands of the unemployed can be fully integrated into the coming struggles. It is now necessary to throw ourselves into carrying out these tosks. To prepare the struggle in each factory through broad open meetings of each workers commission, which will prepare general assemblies. To get strike funds together and, like last year, to coordinate them with the neighborhoods, the peasants, and so on, in order to make sure that there will be enough money so the workers cannot be starved out. To press ahead with the activity of the assemblies, and give them the character of leadership and decision-making bodies. The struggle will be hard. And broad. We have to get ready. And organization is the best guarantee of our unity. D