RMT union condemns Israel posted by tony collins

Good to see such strong condemnation of Israel's actions from the RMT

RMT calls on transport workers’ international to condemn Israeli attack on Lebanon and to demand immediate ceasefire

TRANSPORT UNION RMT will this week call on the International Transport Workers’ Federation to condemn Israel’s continued bloody assault on the Lebanese people and the failure of the US and British governments to demand an immediate ceasefire.

An emergency motion submitted to the ITF Congress, which begins in Durban, South Africa today, also condemns the clandestine use of Prestwick airport to transport US weapons of mass destruction to Israel.

The motion pays tribute to those in the Royal Fleet Auxillary and all transport workers who have supported the humanitarian effort in Lebanon, and would commit the ITF to work alongside the United Nations to ensure that aid reaches those who need it.

“The number-one international priority is to stop the mass slaughter of innocent people,” RMT general secretary Bob Crow said today.

“The unrelenting indiscriminate bombardment of civilians is a crime against humanity, which has been given tacit approval by the shameful silence of both the British and US governments.

“Allowing the use of Prestwick or any other UK airport to airlift weapons of mass destruction to Israel in the midst of the carnage gives the lie to the pretence that the British government is somehow seeking a ‘diplomatic solution’.

“While the rest of the world has condemned the bombing of southern Lebanon, Bush is sending Israel more weapons of mass destruction and Blair is standing by in criminal complicity.

“The world is demanding an immediate and unconditional ceasfire,” Bob Crow said.

The full motion:

RMT EMERGENCY MOTION TO ITF CONGRESS

Lebanon

Congress condemns the continuing violence in the Middle East and Israel’s continued assault on the Lebanese people. Congress condemns Israel’s refusals to support a ceasefire and is appalled at the unfolding tragedy of loss of life and human suffering and the destruction of Lebanon since the start of the conflict on 12^th July.

Congress also condemns the US and UK Government for failing to support calls for an immediate ceasefire and believes that they are increasingly isolated from world opinion.

Congress further condemns the US and UK Governments for using Prestwick Airport, in Scotland, to assist US planes carrying bombs to Israel

Congress pays tribute to the members of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary and all transport workers supporting the humanitarian effort in Lebanon.

Congress agrees to work with the UN and international community to ensure immediate humanitarian aid reaches Lebanon and for the release of all prisoners seized during the conflict.

Finally Congress believes lasting peace will only be ensured in the Middle East through the implementation UN resolutions requiring Israel’s withdrawal from the territories it illegally occupied in 1967 and a two state solution for Israel and Palestine.

This is in stark contrast to the weasel words of the TUC, which simply attributes the "loss of life" to the "current conflict", without specifying who is flattening what city, and throws its weight (such as it is) behind Kofi Annan (who has promised to give Israel a really hard stare if they don't stop showing him how weak he is). The TUC statement also equally condemns Israel, HAMAS and Hizbullah. As with its total lack of action over the Iraq war, the TUC is paralysed by its need to not rock the boat too much with Labour, and its weakness in not understanding the need to marry the political to the industrial. By exposing this paralysis so often, refusing to take the lead in the anti-capitalist and anti-war movements, the TUC only shows how irrelevant it is.

The RMT's key strength over the last few years (in fact, during its entire history) has been its willingness to connect wider political issues to the industrial issues at its core. Embedded right inside the anti-war movement, it has been really natural for RMT activists to push anti-war messages alongside militant industrial action, and to organise anti-war meetings and delegations to anti-war conferences.

It's not enough, of course. No socialist should sit there simply applauding Bob Crow, however good his attacks on Blair and Bush are. It's not enough just to elect left-wing leaders - after all, Andy Gilchrist fucked over the firefighters, and he was a key member of the "awkward squad".

The key point is, in a good union, activists have the space to organise, both in the formal union structures and through informal networks. Both were utilised to good effect in building a really strong official RMT presence on the February 15 2003 demo.

But that's all it does: Give us space. The essential task for socialists, trade unionists and anti-capitalists is to organise hard inside unions, whether the leadership is sympathetic or not. Marching is one thing (a brilliant tool for building the confidence of the movement and for scaring weak politicians) - but what we need to do is take advantage of every crack that opens to radicalise every level of our unions.

It's hard, of course. And easy to get disillusioned - the RMT has had a dreadful time trying to come to terms with the idea that an apparently left-wing man is now the overall boss of London's transport network, and has got into a real mess with its industrial strategy.

But inside a union like the RMT, the breathing space means we have a head start; for other trades unionists, it's even harder. It's not perfect, even in a left-wing union like the RMT. The leadership has criticised Respect for being a "Muslim party", despite 2 candidates being RMT members and the key layers of RMT activists also being Respect activists; the RMT has its own swamp of "Decent Left" types, keen to legitimise the occupation of Iraq, keen to dismantle the anti-war movement and keen to demonise Muslims. The important battles are still being fought - moves are being made now to build a united rail unions campaign against fascism.

Even if you're not in a union like RMT you can start somewhere. Go here, download this, print it out and leave one on every desk, every noticeboard, every seat at work. If you're in a union, ask your rep to do the same; if you are a rep, ask your head office to issue statements condemning Israel and organise a contingent on the demo.

There's a current in the movement that says unions are finished, that the revolution is going to be on the streets, not in the workplaces. Well, with unions the way they are now, that's true - so wedded to reformist politics are the union leaders and the union machinery, serious struggles keep being squashed.

But that's why it's crucial for us to involve those inside the movement who are as angry as we are, to bring them and the unions together - we know there were thousands, indeed hundreds of thousands, of trades union members on the anti-war marches; but they marched with friends, families, schools, mosques - not with unions.

We have to knit together the fight against pension "reform" and the fight against Israel's war crimes; we know the two are connected, workers know they are connected - our job is to fight inside our unions, to pull them to the left, to make the unions reflect the movement, instead of trying to suffocate it.

The demo on Saturday is a start. The movement is growing still, with activity increasing. Respect is organising a conference to discuss how the union movement should move forward when the Labour Party is led by people for whom trades unions are just a cushy source of income and pliant deal-making.

Come to the conference; add your name to the list of supporters; get your union involved.

We are the movement - and we should make sure our shop stewards, convenors and general secretaries know it.