India: International Solidarity for the wrongly convicted workers of Maruti-Suzuki!
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- Published: Monday, 27 March 2017 19:22
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We publish here a protest resolution, which appeared on the website www.iaar.de:
We most strongly protest against the scandalous conviction of 13 strike activists and trade union leaders among the Maruti-Suzuki workers to life imprisonment and of 18 more workers to long prison terms by Judge R.P. Goyal on the 18th of March, 2017, in Gurgaon/India!
The struggle of the Suzuki-Maruti workers in Manesar/India globally represents a successful struggle for union organising as well as the unity of permanent staff and temporary workers. In many years of protests and strikes they enforced with courage, heart and steadfastness the foundation of their Suzuki-Maruti Workers Union (MSWU) on March 1st, 2012, and also negotiations about a "charter of demands" concerning the abolition of the contract and temporary work system since April, 2012!
The management organised a series of provocations against the successful development of the trade union organisation as well as to boycott the negotiations, culminating in a fake dismissal of a worker who defended himself against discriminating insults from a superior. 200 "bouncers" (gangs of thugs) and police forces quelled the following strike of the whole staff for his reinstatement with brute force. Without any evidence the workers are being held responsible for the death of the personnel manager Awanish Kumar Dev during these struggles. 148 strike leaders were slandered as "terrorists" and spent four years in prison with no trial whatsoever! Almost all 2.500 workers have been dismissed illegally resulting in an almost complete replacement of the staff.
This criminalisation is an attack against the workers of Maruti-Suzuki and their families, against the Indian workers and trade union movement and against us, the automotive workers worldwide. Together with the fascistic Modi government the Suzuki group tries to fight union organising, but they will fail! The workers are not intimidated: On the 18th of March 30.000 workers in five Suzuki-Maruti plants went on strike for one hour immediately after the sentencing. Before that 100.000 workers of the region boycotted lunch and dinner. A national day of protest is being prepared for April 4th.
The International Automotive Workers Coordination calls to:
Organise solidarity for the convicted automotive workers of Maruti-Suzuki!
Free the convicted Suzuki-Maruti workers – Financial compensation for the workers illegally imprisoned for up to 31 months!
Become a member of the International Automotive Workers Coordination to cooperate and coordinate our transnational and group-wide struggles!
For the International Automotive Workers Coordination
Carlos Luiz Prates Mancha (Brazil), Diego Rejon Bayo (Spain) Jörn Kleffel (Germany)