The More Workers’ Unity and Solidarity, the More Hope

Throughout history, all sultans, commanders, rulers and governments have focused on forming the people’s and societies’ perceptions and controlling their minds. Knowing that they cannot keep their rule in any other way, they have adopted methods to form the society’s mood in their interests. In modern industrial society that we live in today, with technology and media tools, these methods have advanced to an unimaginable level. The capitalist class uses these methods to the fullest to weaken the working class.

Let’s remember the time of the coronavirus pandemic: although there have been many similar epidemics in the past and still are, the rulers used the coronavirus epidemic to frighten and paralyse society. Billions of people were made to voluntarily observe curfews. But just before the pandemic, workers in many countries around the world took to the streets to fight against exploitation, injustice and inequality. The angry slogans of the workers echoed in hundreds of cities in different countries. Workers' strikes spread from country to country, from sector to sector. But with the creation of the pandemic bogeyman, the streets fell silent. The workers' determination to fight was stifled by fear. This allowed the bill for the global economic crisis to be passed on to working people. Dismissals, working from home, short-time working and similar practices were normalised. Problems with breaks, food and service in the workplace have increased. The workload of workers in many sectors, especially health and freight workers, has increased exponentially. While capital has grown unimaginably, the poverty of working people around the world has increased and life has become more difficult.

The rulers are using the same method today. They are confusing the minds of the labourers with the desire to make us, the labourers, pay for the economic destruction they have created and to increase their capital more. They aim to throw us into a well of fear, hopelessness, loneliness, and despair and to push us into inactivity. They try to prevent workers from getting united and organised and acting in solidarity. For example, let's think about the news, images and programmes that are poured on us by the media. What kind of feelings do these news and shows, in which all kinds of evil, violence, abuse, murder and immorality are displayed over and over again, arouse in workers? Is it possible for an individual worker exposed to such a bombardment not to feel fear and despair? Is it possible for them to trust people and feel a sense of responsibility for society? What if, instead of this media bombardment, the same worker was exposed to news about ongoing workers’ struggles, strikes, demonstrations, and workers’ solidarity with the Palestinian people, struggles of women and youth in Turkey and around the world? What if the media had constantly covered these matters? Would that same worker then feel despair? Wouldn’t that worker wish to be part of these movements and solidarity? Wouldn’t they take action?

It’s all clear as daylight. The rulers want to poison society, divide the working class, push them into despair, and distract them from their own agenda. But where there is exploitation and injustice, these traps cannot work forever. It is not possible to completely supress the struggle of the working class. There have always been workers who kept their hope and resistance and took the path of struggle without being afraid of difficulties. Fighting workers have led the rest of the workers, giving them confidence and courage. The same is the case today and will be the case in the future. The number of workers uniting and taking the path of struggle grows, strikes and pickets become widespread, and despite police and gendarmerie violence, struggles continue with determination, and these all are the best proofs that there must be no room for despair in our hearts. On the other hand, it is also clear that we must strengthen our struggles, we must unite in our workplaces, in our unions, in picket lines and other places of struggle, and we must stand together against the attacks of the government and the capitalist class. Because as workers, we are going through tough times in which our problems are worsening. And even more tough times await us, which we can only overcome together.

The government is carrying out its plans to make the working people pay for the economic destruction in full force without any compromises. They escalate the dosage of lies, oppression and tyranny to get over the obstacles that stand in the way. The ongoing controversy on the pay rise for the minimum wage show what kind of misery the workers will be forced to face in the coming period. By raising the minimum wage by a mere 20-25 percent, the authorities aim to bring the average wage level even lower and provide the national and international capitalists heaven on earth. Saying that the economy needs ‘new generation working models’ and ‘sectoral transformations’, the government plans to amend the labour law as part of the new Medium-Term Programme. Under the name of ‘remote, part-time and temporary work and platform work’, the government plans to eliminate job security, which it has already undermined. It is trying to expand the working models in which workers are not able to come together in workplaces, without being able to get to know each other and therefore unable to organise. It is preparing to implement projects such as raising the retirement age and the cuts for pensions, expanding child labour, and cutting severance pay as soon as possible. In the budget for 2025, all funds are transferred to capitalists, while the unemployment insurance fund continues to be plundered. The tax burden on workers is getting heavier...

The government and its allies say that all this is for the sake of ‘improving the economy’, ‘raising the income levels of the people’, and ‘ensuring social welfare’. But they unleash the police against workers fighting for a bit higher wage and they label pensioners as parasites. On the pretext of the war raging in the Middle East, they proposed a new tax on people having a credit card with a minimum limit of 100.000 liras (less than just $2900). They label people who object to this as traitors. On the one hand, they bring up the so-called ‘Kurdish peace initiative’ due to the re-shuffling of cards in the Middle East, on the other hand, they keep on denying democratic rights. This regime, which has no limits in its hostility towards the working people and puts its own survival before everything else, is also blocking the way for a real fraternity to arise among the peoples.

Our problems, the attacks we face, and the challenges awaiting us are immense. Nevertheless, remember that if the workers unite, there is no challenge that cannot be overcome. Despair is the surest and shortest road to defeat in a battle. But taking the first step is half the way to success. The cure and the power lie with us, in our united hands.We need to be alert on not falling into the traps of the rulers who make us forget about our own agendas. So, let’s start with embracing our own agendas! As workers, let’s fight to unite around our demands in our workplaces, in our unions, and in the fields of struggle. Let’s show the whole world that our solidarity and unity are the source of our strength. Remember that the hope we need grows as the unity, solidarity and struggle of the workers strengthen!