| patrice on Tue, 10 Nov 2015 12:27:53 +0100 (CET) |
[Date Prev] [Date Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Date Index] [Thread Index]
| [Nettime-nl] Fwd: Self-managed VIOME (Greece) under threat: Call for international support against the auction. November 17-24 |
-------- Original Message --------Subject: FW: Self-managed VIOME (Greece) under threat: Call for international support against the auction. November 17-24
Date: 2015-11-10 11:49
From: iva ÄukiÄ <cukic.iva@GMAIL.COM>
To: INURA@YORKU.CA
_Dear friends:_
_As a result of the legal battle waged against the VIOME workers
collective, the state-appointed trustee is now organising A SERIES OF
AUCTIONS WITH THE AIM OF LIQUIDATING THE PLOT OF LAND on which the VIOME
factory is located. A possible sale of the land would create the legal
ground for EVICTING THE WORKERS from the factory._
_Although the workers and the solidarity assembly are DECIDED TO STAND
THEIR GROUND AND DEFEND THE FACTORY in all eventualities, the auction
process represents a threat and it REQUIRES MOBILISATION IN ORDER TO BE
PREVENTED. A first step is to block, through direct action, the first
such auction that is programmed for November 26th. This is why WE REACH
OUT TO YOU, TO ASK FOR HELP AND MOBILISATION to put pressure on the
government to satisfy the long-standing demands of the VIOME workers for
LEGALISATION OF THEIR ACTIVITY, BY EXPROPRIATING THE FACTORY and
granting it to the VIOME workers' cooperative, which will operate it in
a horizontal and self-managed way, as it has been doing for 3 years now.
_
_We appeal for an INTERNATIONAL WEEK OF SOLIDARITY, FROM NOVEMBER 17 TO
24. _
* _We urge you to SIGN THE ATTACHED RESOLUTION and return your details
to protbiometal@gmail.com, or even better, hand it in to the nearest
Greek embassy or consulate demanding that it is transferred to the Greek
Ministry of Labour. _
* _We welcome any INTERNATIONAL ACTS OF SOLIDARITY, especially ones
that involve non-violent direct action towards Greek embassies
worldwide._
* _We urge you to ORGANISE SCREENINGS of this 30-minute documentary by
D.Azzellini and O.Ressler, detailing the struggle of VIOME through
interviews and participation in its assemblies (English subtitles
included): https://youtu.be/2Fg2akSUvFM __You can download a good
quality version of the documentary here [1](407mb)._
* _You can send us ANNOUNCEMENTS OF YOUR EVENTS, AND/OR PHOTOS to be
uploaded to VIOMEÂs website, to protbiometal@gmail.com_
_Please READ AND CIRCULATE THE FOLLOWING APPEAL of the workers for
support:_
A CALL FOR SUPPORT OF THE STRUGGLE OF VIOME
[2]Dear solidarity supporters,
we would like to inform you about the latest developments in the
struggle of the workers of VIOME.
[3]As you know, for four years now WE HAVE BEEN FIGHTING FOR OUR LIFE
AND DIGNITY. We, the workers, have chosen to create social alliances. We
have rejected the proposals made by various political organizations to
have an "exclusive" relationship with our struggle and direct it
following narrow partisan criteria. Nevertheless, we have always all
accepted invitations to speak and communicate.
When large parts of society decided to stand by us and support us with
whatever means they had available, A LARGE NETWORK OF SOLIDARITY WAS
CREATED. Consequently we managed to build relationships of trust,
through common assemblies were the wider community can participate,
where together we make decisions on the political course of the
struggle, as well as on many other issues.
MANY POLITICAL ORGANIZATIONS AGREED WITH THE POLITICAL FRAMEWORK that
we, together with the wider community, have set. To this day they
support our effort to operate the factory with workersâ control of
production and self-management by the workersâ assembly.
[4]AMONG THE POLITICAL FORCES THAT SUPPORTED OUR STRUGGLE WAS SYRIZA,
through statements and commitments for an immediate solution to the
issue of operation of the factory, made by the current prime-minister
himself.
Of course, AFTER SYRIZA CAME TO POWER, THE STATEMENTS AND THE
COMMITMENTS BECAME MORE AND MORE VAGUE. The determination they
demonstrated when they were in opposition was replaced by timidity, and
by proposals that we make compromises in a different framework than what
we had previously agreed upon.
Their great âachievementâ after eight months in government is to
ABANDON THE STRUGGLE OF VIOME TO THE MACHINATIONS OF THE JUDICIAL
SYSTEM. The same judicial system that, despite having condemned former
owner of VIOME Christina Philippou to dozens of months in prison, allows
her to walk free, supposedly to do community service at a municipality
where she has strong "connections". To this day, she has never showed up
at the place where she is supposed to do community work.
A judicial system that allows those who have abused and destroyed the
Greek society for five years now to walk free, never taking any action
to punish them. The âfirst ever left-wing governmentâ leaves us in
the hands of this judicial system.
[5]The political standpoint of the judges is evident through the
decisions they have made up to this moment: THEY HAVE GONE AS FAR AS
SAYING THAT WE HAVE NO LEGITIMATE RIGHT TO DEMAND THE MONEY OWED BY OUR
FORMER EMPLOYERS! In all our attempts to claim our money, both by
intervention of the property of Philkeram, and by demanding to operate
the factory again, we have received the same answers.
And of course, THEY DO NOT TAKE ANY ACTION TO FIND A SOLUTION for the
operation of the factory, so we, the workers who have decided to stay
on, can escape unemployment.
According to the court decisions, the unified plot of land where THE
VIOME PREMISES ARE LOCATED IS AUCTIONED ON THURSDAY NOVEMBER 26, 2015,
and for three consecutive Thursdays thereafter. If no interested buyer
is found, they will continue with the process until they achieve to sell
the land, therefore evicting us from the factory.
This land consists of fourteen separate plots, SOME OF WHICH WERE
DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY DONATED BY THE GREEK GOVERNMENT TO FORMER OWNER
PHILLIPOU in recognition of the "social contribution" of job creation.
Now they are put to auction to satisfy the creditors of VIOMEâs parent
company Philkeram: the Inland Revenue Office, the Social Insurance
Service, former workers of Philkeram, banks and suppliers.
[6]The premises of VIOME represent about 1/7 of the total land, and the
area in which it lies could easily be separated from the rest of
Philkeramâs real estate. BUT THE EMPLOYEES OF VIOME ARE NEVER
MENTIONED IN THE BANKRUPTCY PROCEEDINGS, although VIOME was a subsidiary
of Philkeram, driven to destruction by the parent companyâs
bankruptcy. VIOME is completely neglected, although the mismanagement of
the Phillipou family, who transferred funds from VIOME and OVERBURDENED
IT WITH DEBT FOR THEIR PERSONAL GAIN, was largely responsible for the
bankruptcy. This is a proven fact, since a study by consultants DELOIT
concluded there was capacity for normal operation for both companies.
THE JUDICIAL SYSTEM ONCE AGAIN SIDES WITH THE FORCES OF CAPITAL and
makes rulings against the workers who assert the right to work. And of
course, the state does not stand up to the challenge of providing
solutions.
For this reason, we, the workers of VIOME, INVITE ALL OF YOU, WHO HAVE
BEEN STANDING BESIDE US DURING ALL THIS TIME OF STRUGGLE, TO BE PRESENT
ON THURSDAY NOVEMBER 26 IN THE AUCTION of the land, to abort their plan
to evict us from the VIOME factory. A space that we have, for two years
now, managed to turn into a place of work and a place of freedom.
We invite you to stand beside us, to support every effort of the workers
to MAKE THE FORCES OF PRODUCTION AUTONOMOUS FROM THE CAPITALIST CLASS, a
class which anyway has delocalised all production abroad.
WE INVITE YOU TO SUPPORT THE OPERATION OF THE FACTORY, since we, the
workers, have declared that we are not leaving, that our lives are now
linked to this factory.
We invite you to stand beside us, so we can affirm all together that A
SOLUTION EXISTS BEYOND THE ADVICES OF THE âEXPERTSâ: this time
around, the solution lies with those who are directly involved in the
struggle, not with the luminaries.
IN SOLIDARITY,
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE WORKERS AT VIOME
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Fg2akSUvFM
--
Iva ÄukiÄ
arhitekt
Ministarstvo prostora
Mikro Art - UliÄna galerija
NuÅiÄeva 8, Beograd, Srbija
+381 66 244 035
e-mail: office@mikroart.rs
cukic.iva@gmail.com
web: issuu.com/ministarstvoprostora/docs/ministry_of_space [7]
www.mikroart.rs [8]
www.ulicnagalerija.rs [9]
Links:
------
[1]
https://www.dropbox.com/s/qxav19zv3gewn0h/Occupy%20Resist%20Produce%20-%20VIOME%20%28Eng%20Subs%29.mp4?dl=0
[2] https://www.blogger.com/null[3] http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-te7f_VwAvyA/Vh-xNo-vmfI/AAAAAAAAW10/cQrFo-jnUTw/s1600/VIOME_28.jpg [4] http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HC2Ki87di2U/Vh-w04t57ZI/AAAAAAAAW1Y/t8O6gnOzF6U/s1600/VIOME_33.jpg [5] http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-q_h4wzdqcy8/Vh-xNYSAn-I/AAAAAAAAW1s/tTzaAApMH7Q/s1600/VIOME_14.jpg [6] http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-v4PTc6W7d-E/Vh-xNrmEErI/AAAAAAAAW1w/TxnHGiz9P20/s1600/VIOME_01.jpg
[7] http://issuu.com/ministarstvoprostora/docs/ministry_of_space [8] http://www.mikroart.rs/ [9] http://www.ulicnagalerija.rs/ ______________________________________________________ * Verspreid via nettime-nl. Commercieel gebruik niet * toegestaan zonder toestemming. <nettime-nl> is een * open en ongemodereerde mailinglist over net-kritiek. * Meer info, archief & anderstalige edities: * http://www.nettime.org/. * Contact: Menno Grootveld (rabotnik@xs4all.nl).