THESSALONIKI DECLARATION

June 2017

With The Workers Of All Countries For A World Without Exploitation, Wars, Refugees

On June 24, 2017, a large demonstration of thousands of workers against NATO was held in Thessaloniki, Greece, against the imperialist wars and interventions that destroy people and create millions of refugees. On June 25, trade unions from various countries of the region met and discussed the position of the workers, of the trade union movement, against the dangerous developments and the competitions of monopolies and imperialist organizations that victimize the peoples.

The international, anti-imperialist, anti-war, trade union meeting estimated that the Working Class must be on alert, prepared, and fight against both the anti-workers’ policies of the Capital and its governments, and against the competitions of the imperialists. The focus of their competitions is:

• How to share the damages of the crisis and how they will benefit from the capitalist development, which all agree that is weak, with big problems.

• Which monopolies will take the lead in the course of the competition

• Who is going to take control of the markets, the energy sources of gas, oil and even water, the energy pipes and commercial transport routes.

In all countries, capitalist governments, participate in imperialist competitions, interventions and wars, with one or another imperialist group. Their main concern is to defend the interests of the ruling class of their own country, their business groups in the international chessboard. Their declarations of peace and security are rapidly increasing as far as their war budget is growing.

Workers of the world are witnessing the spread of war in more and more areas, especially in our region. The Balkan peoples pay for the consequences of border change, state dismemberment and the continued cultivation of nationalist hatred, the boot of USA-NATO-EU in the region in the context of their capitalist competition with Russia and China, the interests of the bourgeoisie in the countries of the region.

At the same time, the EU is strengthening its militarization. It establishes a European Army, European Headquarters, emergency forces (the Eurocorps), and promotes the European Defense Union as well as the European Defense Fund.

NATO and the EU are transnational imperialist unions, of which the peoples can only wait for exploitation and poverty, war and refuge for the many and immense wealth for the very few and in our country it is our duty to strengthen our struggle against them.

At the same time, the working class at international level is experiencing the continuation of a brutal attack against its rights. For the profits of business groups, the European Union and governments of each country, legislate anti-labor measures. They cut wages or give rise to very small increases that are evaporated by all the anti-people measures while the monopolies are getting wealthier. An important attack is against the rights of workers to trade union action, the right to organize in trade unions and the right to strike.

The all-out attack that condemns the working class in each country to unemployment, poverty, and impoverishment is one aspect of the of class policies.

The other side is the unjust imperialist war that unfolds for the interests of the big financial groups.

Faced with the possibility of a generalized warfare in our region, we are now building a wall of protection for the working class of our countries, our peoples, in joint action and solidarity with each other and with our trade unions at the forefront of this struggle.

We consider it our task, we consider a first-line issue for the trade unions of each country, on the one hand, to strengthen the struggle for workers’ rights, and on the other hand, to increase the vigilance of the working class against nationalism, xenophobia, racism and fascism. Against the hate incitements that our exploiters cultivate to keep us divided and to exploit us. In this direction, it is necessary for the trade unions, that along with the struggle for salary, social security, free healthcare and education, they integrate the struggle against the imperialist plans. They must strengthen their struggle against imperialist organizations, NATO and the EU to strengthen their struggles against the anti-workers governments in each country, against business groups.

We have nothing to divide among the working class of other countries, with other peoples. On the contrary, the common interest of struggle for a life without rich and poor, without bosses, unites us- that is the life that we own. Our struggle will be effective as long as it links the defence of the borders and sovereign rights, the struggle for the peoples to live peacefully, with the struggle to overthrow the barbarous exploitative system that has been proven to cause and nourish poverty, unemployment, wars and refugees.

That’s why we fight for:

• No involvement in the imperialist interventions and wars outside the borders. No involvement in NATO and EU slaughterhouses.

• Closure of all foreign military bases. NATO out of the Aegean and the Balkans.

• No involvement in the political- military alliance of the capitalists.

• Struggle against the change of borders.

• Struggle against the abolition of trade union rights and other freedoms.

• We say no to the war expenditure for military action outside the borders, we demand funding to satisfy the needs of the working class, of workers’ family.

• Struggle against nationalism, racism, chauvinism

• Solidarity with the refugees, the immigrants, solidarity to all peoples.

We do not stand behind the foreign and hostile to us flag of the capitalists and their allies. We raise the flag of the interests of the working class against the calls for class collaboration and national consensus. We are fighting against the unjust wars, to eliminate what causes them. Solidarity is the weapon of peoples.

The trade unions that sign this document call on the unions of our region to participate in:

• A pan-European meeting in Brussels on the role of the EU And NATO, 19-20 October, Brussels

• Trade union action day against the imperialist war, solidarity with the peoples of Palestine, Syria, Cuba

• Campaign for Solidarity with Refugees – Immigrants that includes a joint poster, joint announcement, events in all countries.

The Trade Union Organizations

PAME, Greece – GFTU, Syria – Sloga, Serbia – USB, Italy – Nakliyat Is, Turkey – Labor Coalition, Palestine – KTOEOS, Cyprus