WE MUST STOP THE NEW CRIME THAT IS BEING CONDUCTED THROUGH THE PRIVATIZATION OF ELECTRICITY.

NO TOLERANCE IN THE ANTIPOPULAR PLANS

WE ALL MUST TAKE THE CORRESPONDED RESPONSIBILITY

The main goal of the new government is the promotion of privatizations, the choice of the EU and of the political parties that support E.U. for the release of main strategic sectors of the economy. The list is huge and includes, among others, all the businesses of strategic importance, DEI (Electricity), ELPE (Petroleum), EYDAP (Water), OSE (Railway), etc.
The government claims that, in that way, they will resolve the problem of the debt, of the deficit, the crisis, the unemployment and that no more measures will be needed that would cause wage-cuts and reductions of pensions. THEY ARE LYING.

The only real aim of the privatizations is to satisfy the needs of the capital’s profitability. This is the reason why the privatizations, have been run long time ago, from the Maastricht treaty, long time before the manifestation of the crisis and the memoranda.

The new measures for the privatization of the Electric Power and of DEI (Electricity Company) begun on 1999, from the governments of PASOK (social democrats) and ND (conservatives), and have been moved on in a significant way.

The impacts of this policy, which served faithfully all these years the parties of the EU, are now accelerated, and are obvious to the popular strata and to workers in the industry.

• The increases in the price of electricity, makes difficult and ban its use for a big part of the working class, the unemployed, the underpaid and the pensioners.

• Serious are the impacts on workers in the industry that received major attack in wages and industrial relations.

We reject the blackmailing dilemmas that are used and the illusions:

• That in this way there will be development and therefore the workers will benefit,

• That for the current problems, we should put the blame on the state-controlled companies.

They hide diligently who is served by the state enterprises in capitalism, they hide that they were used to serve the interests of capitalists.

The popular strata have to protect themselves because they will pay the results of this policy.

The proposals and the policies of SYRIZA (leftists) are not an obstacle to privatization and will not lead to the way out from the crisis in favour of the people. Not only they move within the context of liberalization, but also they have contributed to promote this policy through the trade union movement as well from the positions they had. Today, their positions concern the nature and the price in which they will promote this policy. Mr TSIPRAS (the president of SYRIZA-leftists) while discussing programmatic statements in parliament said: “… to make use of public property … with interstate agreements and international partnerships to ensure the maximum return for the government and society..” and the parliamentary representative of SYRIZA Mr.Papadimoulis clarified by saying among other things “… that we are opposed to the sell-out as low as it gets..”.

The positions and the attitude of the majority of GENOP (employers’ trade union in energy) and of the governmental trade unions of DEI (Electricity Company) do not constitute a front of resistance to this policy.

· Because they agree to the release of the market and the entry of big capital in energy.

· Because all the previous period they have supported the privatizations in this area.

That´s why the fight that is set up between the government, the SYRIZA and the majority of GENOP, is not on the substance of privatization.

The three-parties government use their attitude because it facilitates their plans and policies.

A better understanding on what privatization will mean for the popular strata and the labour relations in the industry is required today.

WE HAVE TO ORGANIZE THE STRUGGLE

-Against the full privatization (no unit of electricity must be sold, the nets of Transport and Distribution not to be completely separated).

– 30% reduction in the price of electricity. No cut in electricity supply from debt to unemployed, pensioners. Abolition of the rate for the renewable energy sources. Abolition of the flexible forms of employment. Full-time and stable job for all.

-Ensure the energy as a social good, opposed to its commercialization. Ensure a unified exclusively state electricity agency which will be a popular property and will serve people´s needs.

Because as long as the developments in energy will be determined by the direction of EU, the profitability of monopolies operating in energy sector, the consequences for people and workers will be unbearable. The vent for the benefit of workers is the organized struggle against the strategy of the EU and of the Hellenic Federation of Enterprises (SEV) for the “liberation” of strategic sectors of the economy.

We call the workers in DEI (Electricity Company) to take the case of the struggle in their own hands, not to trust those, who serve for years, the same policy within the trade union movement, regardless of the voices they create now or the costume they change.

The workers, who under these special circumstances voted these parties that serve this policy in recent elections, should not feel complicit in this policy. They have to organize their struggle, in order for this policy not to be applied.

The privatization of electricity and energy concerns all the workers. The class-oriented trade unions must play the leading part in order for this new storm will not pass.

July 2012