Labour Party Pakistan under attack, Help us to fight
back:
(Farooq
Tariq 15\11\2011)
Several supporters and
members of Labour Party Pakistan are locked up if
different jails of Pakistan. 9 textile workers
including Fazal Ilahi a leading member of LPP are in
Faisalabad jail. 15 activists are in Gilgit jail
including Baba Jan, en elected member of LPP Federal
Committee. They are not terrorists. They are
political activists. However, all of them are
charged with anti terrorist laws.
Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani said on 14th November
speaking at Mandi Bahuldin, that there are no
political prisoners at this time in Pakistan. He was
my university fellow, I am telling him that I know
at least 24 members and supporters of Labour Party
Pakistan are in jail for political reasons. There
are many other languishing in jails of Baluchistan
apart from those who are missing.
6 among nine political prisoners in Faisalabad are
convicted by an anti terrorist court to a shame full
490 years. There crime was to lead a strike of
textile workers in 2010. When a boss opened fire
from a factory, workers retaliated in anger. The
boss is free and workers are convicted to 490 years.
In Gilgit, when police opened fire and killed two,
son and father for demanding a just compensation for
all the effecties of Atta Abad Lake victims, people
retaliated and occupied the area. The police
officers involved in killing of two are free,
however, Baba Jan, a former member of district
council Gilgit, and a leading political activists of
the region along 14 more are in jail. Where is the
justice?
In Faisalabad, it is Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz
that is after us including the provincial law
minister Rana Sanaullah, who wants to teach us a
lesson for building a movement of the textile
workers in the city, never seen before. In Gilgit,
it is Pakistan People’s Party including the chief
minister Mehdi Shah who wants to teach us a lesson
for siding with revolting masses of Gilgit Baltistan
against injustices and malpractices.
We are not going to give up and are going to fight
back by building a movement for the release of these
political activists. We need your moral, financial
and political support.
A Track Record of building movements
Labour Party Pakistan, established in 1997, is a
small left wing political party that is helping to
build the social and political movements in
Pakistan. In 2000/2001, we initiated to build
support for Anjaman Mozareen Punjab in Okara. The
peasant movement went on to set best examples of
Pakistan peasant’s history. They fought back against
the military farms administration, took over 68000
acre of land and are still defiant.
In 2003/2004, we played an important role in
building the power looms workers movement in the
third largest city of Pakistan. Labour Qaumi
Movement, whose leadership is member of LPP, led
thousands of workers for better wages and labour
conditions. They are now under attack.
In 2007/2008, we played a role in building the
lawyers movement. All of us went to jail again and
again. We were there every week with lawyer’s
demonstrations and rallies, we were part of the long
march and we led the famous GPO Chouck rebellion in
Lahore with police.
We were one of those who opposed the military
takeover of general Musharaf from day one unlike
many of those who are now claiming to be champions
against military establishment. Almost all LPP
leadership was arrested several times during
Musharaf period. For example, I was arrested 12
times during the General Musharaf dictatorship.
Building alternative media
LPP had been busy to build an alternative media to
counter the influence of commercial media. LPP
printed a weekly paper Mazdoor Jeddojuhd from 1997
to 2010 without any advertisement. It is now printed
as a monthly magazine because of financial
constraints.
Socialist Pakistan News (SPN) started in 2004, is
now the largest political email list with over 7500
members. Activists of LPP work every day for over an
hour to moderate this list on volunteer basis.
We are also part of the team that is producing View
Point On line, one of the best read on line
magazine.
Solidarity and Relief Work
LPP supporters and members have been active in 2005
earth quack and 2010 devastating rains and floods to
raise funds and help those in difficult times.
We did all this to build mass workers political
party to
build socialist, democratic, feminist,
environmentalist campaigns and movements in
Pakistan, in particular, and globally, in general.
Send your donation now
We want to raise at least five hundred thousand
(500,000) Rupees before 26th November
2011. On 26th November,
LQM plan a protest public meeting in Faisalabad. We
are expecting thousands to attend. We need your
financial assistance to build this rally and support
for the victim families who have no other mean to
live on.
Urgent Finance appeal for “Faisalabad 6”
As you all are aware, six labor leaders from
Faisalabad have been handed jail sentences of 490
years in total. Their only crime was to lead a
peaceful strike for an increase in minimum wages as
announced by the government. They
are Akbar Ali Kamboh, Babar Shafiq Randhawa, Fazal
Elahi, Rana Riaz Ahmed Muhammad Aslam Malik and
Asghar Ali Ansari. Four of them were arrested in
July 2010 while the other two were arrested in July
2011 on the same charges.
There are three more workers in jail waiting for
trial to begin.
All of them are leaders of a power looms works
organization called, Labour Qaumi Movement (LQM) in
Faisalabad, the third largest city of Pakistan. LQM
is a community based labour organization fighting
for the rights of the textile workers since 2004.
An anti-terrorist court judge on November 1, 2011,
sentenced six leaders under terrorism charges in
Faisalabad. As is frequently observed that
Terrorists are set free by these courts and workers
leaders are charged under terrorist laws in Pakistan
They were accused of burning down a factory during
the strike. This is a fabricated charge. The facts
are that on the day of strike, July 20, 2010,
gangsters in the pay of the factory owner started
shooting at the workers who were leaving the factory
to demand better wages. Some workers dared to go
inside the factory and forced the gangsters to stop
firing. Some of them were beaten up by the angry
workers.
During the trial, the workers' advocate asked if the
factory had been burned down then how was it able to
be operating again three days later.
More than 100,000 power loom workers in Faisalabad
district went on strike on July 20, 2010, for an
increase of wages that had been announced by the
government during the presentation of budget
2010-11. The government announced 17 percent rise in
the minimum wage for the private sector workers. The
LQM in Faisalabad, Jhang and other districts had
been in negotiations with power loom owners for
three weeks before the strike.
The long term jail sentences of these workers
leaders has been a devastating blow to the workers
movement in Faisalabad, and indeed across the
country. That the court could hand out such a
draconian anti-labor judgment was beyond anyone's
expectations, especially since this judiciary itself
had been restored through the support of a powerful
people's movement. Yet, the anti-terrorist court
chose to give a verdict with the sole aim of
damaging the power loom workers movement which was
slowly becoming a symbol of working class militancy
all over the country.
One of the principal methods of disciplining labor
under capitalism is to push them to the point where
they are only left with an option of negotiating
with the bosses on the latter's terms. This is done
either through brute state force or by financially
crushing the working class so that they only have
the option of compromising in order to survive
within the system.
The bosses have used the latter tactic to ensure
that these labor leaders become examples for anyone
who dares to raise his/her voice against the
injustices meted out to the workers. All of our
jailed comrades are married and were the primary
breadwinners of their families. Their families have
been pushed to the brink of a financial catastrophe.
The families are contemplating removing children
from the schools since they are unable to even buy
enough groceries.
Knowing that this is part of the political strategy
of the bosses to subjugate the workers, and that it
is having severe consequences for the families of
the jailed leaders, the Labour Party Pakistan, the
Labour Qaumi Movement, the National Trade Union
Federation and the Labour Education Foundation are
launching a finance appeal to support the families
of our jailed comrades.
These families deserve our generous support not only
because these comrades are suffering due to their
involvement with a working class movement. But also,
because the outcome of this movement, and our
ability to extend solidarity and support to our
comrades in difficult conditions, will dictate
whether this particular event will deter working
class militancy (as wished by the bosses) or act as
a shining example of working class solidarity
against the hideous tactics of the ruling classes.
On behalf of the LQM, NTUF,the LPP and the LEF, we
urge you to donate generously for the families of
these victims of state-terrorism. These families are
in dire need of financial support and we can only
sustain them with a collective effort. The bank
details are as follows,
A/C Title:
Labour Education Foundation
A/C Number:
01801876
Route:
Please advise and pay to Citi Bank, New York, USA
Swift CITI US 33 for onward transfer to BANK ALFALAH
LTD., KARACHI, PAKISTAN A/C No. 36087144 and for
final transfer to BANK ALFALAH LTD., LDA PLAZA,
KASHMIR ROAD, LAHORE, PAKISTAN Swift: ALFHPKKALDA
for A/C No. 01801876 OF LABOUR EDUCATION FOUNDATION.
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