Dear comrades of AIUTUC,

PAME, a member of the WFTU, sends a greeting to your Congress on behalf of the class unions in Greece and wishes you success in your work. Unfortunately, the political developments that have been taking place in Greece lately, and the General Strike that we are preparing for mid-February in Greece will not allow us to attend your Conference.

Dear comrades, please transfer to the members of AIUTUC, to the workers and the people of India, that from our country, though far, we watch and learn about your struggles and action. We stand by your side and you have our solidarity and support against the antiworkers’ policies and oppression of the Monti Government. We have witnessed your great All India Strike on January, which was the biggest strike in history and we hope to have the opportunity with new actions and initiatives to strengthen the relations and communication with your union.

We are well aware that despite the distance that separates us, our common struggle against the aspirations of the capitalists and the governments that promote them unites us. Our common adversary is capitalist exploitation and imperialism. Especially today when developments internationally are extremely dangerous and the competitions of imperialist organizations are escalating. The workers must resist these plans, by promoting class transnational solidarity and peoples’ friendship.

In the current period in Greece, we are witnessing the intense onslaught of monopoly groups and the conservative ND government, which continues the work of its former social-democratic SYRIZA. The main goal is to defend the bosses’ profits by authoritarianism and oppression, by attacking trade unions, by arresting trade unionists, by banning strikes. It is no coincidence that in Greece they are promoting the attack for the abolition of the workers’ insurance rights, the complete privatization of insurance, the imposition of flexible work and the abolition of Collective Contracts, along with restrictions on trade union action, control to union members, ban on workers protests and strikes.

In this effort, government and employers have found loyal allies in the faces of GSEE trade unionists, a member of the ITUC in Greece. GSEE, on the one hand, accepted and initially signed the 32% reduction of the National Minimum Wage, while a few days ago it accepted the new proposal by the Government to freeze the already reduced basic salary. On the other hand, in agreement and cooperation with employers, it has transformed a number of trade unions into mechanisms of the employers, even with the participation of employers within the unions.

In the face of this situation, PAME in Greece has taken a number of initiatives against the Employers-Government’s attack. It opposed imperialist interventions and wars, with a firm front against nationalism, racism. PAME stands next to refugees and immigrants. While we are firmly focused on developing initiatives of coordination and solidarity with the peoples’ struggles.

Dear comrades

No matter how much they persist in convincing us that this situation is eternal and not reversible, we know very well that we can live differently because we have the power in our hands. We are doing our utmost to strengthen the common struggle against exploitation. Through the big, class family of the WFTU, we are fighting for the abolition of exploitation of man by man, for the best days that are to come for the working class through our struggles.

We wish you all the best in your Conference

Long live the World Federation of Trade Unions