International Socialism: The Egyptian workers' movement and the 25 January Revolution - 1 views
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The mass strikes of September 2011 paralysed the government and the military council and opened up the road to the crisis of November. The independent unions and strike committees which led these strikes are part of what is now probably the biggest social movement in Egypt (with the possible exception of the Muslim Brotherhood), and certainly the biggest organised movement with real roots in the everyday struggles of the poor
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Will organised workers move into the leadership of the mass revolutionary movement? This article argues that two conditions for this happening have already been met: the workers’ movement has begun to gain enough mastery over its constituent parts to be able to use its social power in battle with the state, while the demands that are now being raised by this movement cannot be satisfied within the limits of neoliberal capitalism in the context of intensifying economic crisis at a local and global level.
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While the numbers of participants were probably lower than February, the significance of September’s strikes lay in the qualitative shift towards coordinated national and sector-wide strikes.
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Bread, Freedom, Justice, and Working Class Rights First - 0 views
Egypt: enough empty promises|17Sep11|Socialist Worker - 0 views
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On Thursday of last week the minister of labour was in marathon negotiations with textile workers’ leaders representing 22,000 workers at the giant mill in Mahalla al-Kubra. The minister bargained desperately—narrowly avoiding a strike that would have brought out most of the textile sector
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the correction of the path of the revolution”. Five feeder marches set off from the city’s working class districts to the square after prayers.
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At the same time, 40,000 teachers were gathering outside parliament. “Meet our demands or no school this year” read their banners
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