When the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) [2] and its affiliate the [email protected] [3] or comment online at http://www.pambazuka.org/ [4].
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[3] http://www.satawu.co.za]South African Transport and Allied Workers Union (SATAWU)</a> made it clear that their dockworkers would not be offloading the Johanna Russ, in palpable solidarity with the Palestinian people last week, a largely irrelevant port in the southern tip of Africa called Durban was making history across the globe once more. Of course, the Israeli goods were offloaded a few days before the scheduled docking, by virtue of scab labour thwarting the blockage and mass protests planned on Sunday. But the message was out: a new wave of civic angst towards injustice had begun. And it was the labour movement at the head of it all. </p> <p>This is a significant gesture from COSATU, not only because it is the first of its kind with regard to the Palestinian people and is a symbolic gesture to the Palestinian cause, but because the stand against Israel by these workers is but another case of the infinite possibilities presented by a unified and decisive labour movement towards tackling social injustice beyond the workplace. </p> <p>Already in 2008, SATAWU, with the support of Anglican church leaders and other community activists, prevented the An Yue Jiang – the now infamous Chinese ship filled with arms and ammunition – from reaching Zimbabwe. Through SATAWU’s linkages with the International Transport Federation (ITF) and unions organising in Mozambique and Angola, the ship was turned away by workers across the continent, finally sailing back to China. </p> <p>The actions of COSATU and its affiliate SATAWU suggest a dramatic shift back to the social movement unionism that defined the union movement at the height of the liberation struggle. It was a time when workplace bread-and-butter issues were not separated from the socio-political inequities and challenges that existed outside the workplace. COSATU, being drafted into the tripartite alliance with the South African Communist Party (SACP) and the African National Congress (ANC) at the dawn of a new democracy, became thoroughly formalised entities, often criticised as lacking the fluidity required of a movement. </p> <p>But SATAWU General Secretary Randall Howard disagrees, ‘There will always be particular struggles that seem to have brought upon resurgence in COSATU’s community ambitions, which seemed otherwise dormant. I don’t think COSATU has ever shifted away from the community issues. We always knew that our role was always going to be more than merely workplace based issues.’ </p> <p>And while this might be true in principal and in policy, COSATU’s ambivalent role in the tripartite alliance has always been fodder for the purists, convinced that COSATU’s potential will remain compromised while in the alliance. </p> <p>While COSATU has focused on their institutionalisation within the alliance, forcing them to stomach neoliberal discourse including the government’s GEAR (growth, employment and redistribution) policy and its residual products of privatisation and casualisation – products which invariably proved harsh realities for COSATU’s membership – COSATU’s level of internationalisation as a movement has never been any better.</p> <p>‘COSATU 's philosophy of internationalism is exceptional, far advanced amongst the world's working classes. We've seen great actions against oppression in Swaziland, Zimbabwe, Burma and now Palestine, says Director of the Centre for Civil Society Patrick Bond. </p> <p>But SATAWU dock workers aren’t alone. During the Gaza blockade, Greek dockworkers raised the alarm on ships carrying arms to Israel, even threatening to block them. Following SATAWU’s decision to boycott Israeli cargo, similar activities are being replicated across the world. Already, the Maritime Union in western Australia has pledged its support to the Palestinian cause and refused to offload Israeli ships or cargo. </p> <p>Meanwhile, a spate of boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) efforts are underway in a number of European countries as well as in Brazil, Malaysia and Spain, and governments in countries like Venezuela, Bolivia, Qatar and Mauritania have severed diplomatic ties with Israel following the Gaza invasion. International worker solidarity in countries still fulfilling business-as-usual diplomatic ties with Israel are essentially then seeking to rewrite foreign policy from a bottom-up perspective, the impact of which is not to be scoffed at. In the early 1960s, dock workers in Denmark refused to offload South African goods, and this was soon followed by dockworkers in the UK and Sweden. It was ultimately these boycotts that led to the harsher sanctions on South Africa in the years to come. </p> <p>‘If our Durban transport workers can prevent Israeli ships from offloading, that will be one of the greatest steps forward in the boycott, divestment [and] sanctions movement, and will really punish Israeli war crimes,’ added Bond. </p> <p>But it is a long and difficult road, especially given the multi-union environment and the reality that there are people who simply can’t afford to turn down casual work. This, indeed, is precisely what happened following COSATU’s original refusal to offload the Israeli cargo: workers from the United Transport and Allied Union (UTATU) agreed to offload the Johanna Russ ship. </p> <p>‘We tried to persuade them [UTATU] to support the solidarity action, but this didn’t work. When we found out they had agreed to offload the cargo, we chose to stick to our principles, which [were] essentially mobilising our membership in showing solidarity with the Palestine people. We didn’t want to become sidelined with other unions and we also didn’t want confrontation between workers on this issue,’ explained Howard. </p> <p>Nor is this the only obstacle blocking the fulfilment of COSATU’s mandate and objectives. Howard added that ships often come in with other country’s flags and that intelligence will play a crucial part in this campaign. But COSATU and SATAWU will not waiver, and the boycott is set to continue, if not intensify. </p> <p>* Azad Essa is a freelance journalist and researcher based at IOLS-Research.<br /> * Please send comments to <a href=
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[7] http://www.satawu.co.za]South African Transport and Allied Workers Union (SATAWU)</a> dockworkers to offload Israeli cargo, Azad Essa discusses bottom-up efforts to rewrite countries’ foreign policy in support of the people of Gaza. Considering the broader progress around opposing the Israeli government’s aggression throu<span>...<a href=
[8] http://www.satawu.co.za]South African Transport and Allied Workers Union (SATAWU)</a> dockworkers to offload Israeli cargo, Azad Essa discusses bottom-up efforts to rewrite countries’ foreign policy in support of the people of Gaza. Considering the broader progress around opposing the Israeli government’s aggression through the boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) movement, Essa highlights the ultimate economic constraints on solidarity action and difficulties presented within a multi-union environment, but stresses COSATU’s resolve and desire to continue its internationalisation against oppressive forces around the world.</p> </body></html>
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[10] http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category.php/comment/54031