the Voice of
The Communist League of Revolutionary Workers–Internationalist
“The emancipation of the working class will only be achieved by the working class itself.”
— Karl Marx
the Voice of
The Communist League of Revolutionary Workers–Internationalist
“The emancipation of the working class will only be achieved by the working class itself.”
— Karl Marx
Jan 7, 2019
The following article was translated from the December 5 edition of Lutte Ouvrière, the newspaper of the revolutionary workers group of that name active in France.
Workers began a labor struggle in May at Jasic Technology, a factory in Shenzhen, China producing industrial robots. The workers tried to set up an independent union.
Since then, they have been attacked, along with other workers and student militants who support them. Some 30 workers were fired on 27 July, attacked by thugs, and arrested.
Dozens of students went to Shenzhen in August to express their support. Many of them were literally kidnaped and thrown in jail. In November, 13 new arrests were carried out across China.
Several Jasic labor activists had been detained for more than 130 days by late December. In addition, according to China Labor Bulletin, a Hong Kong-based organization supporting workers’ struggles in China, two Shenzhen union officials and a lawyer representing the Jasic workers were recently arrested. So about 30 people are currently detained for supporting the right of workers to have their own union.
This gives an idea of the combativeness that exists inside the capitalist “workshop of the world”—and of the fear the working class inspires among capitalists and government officials in their service.