Greeting messages were delivered by the host USB trade union, as well as by the President of the WFTU.
The three-day Congress, which takes place under the slogan “United, we continue! For the satisfaction of our contemporary needs, against imperialist-capitalist barbarity!”, will be concluded on May 8th.
“A struggle for markets and for freedom to loot foreign countries, a striving to suppress the revolutionary movement of the proletariat and democracy in the individual countries, a desire to deceive, disunite, and slaughter the proletarians of all countries by setting the wage slaves of one nation against those of another so as to benefit the bourgeoisie; these are the only real content and significance of the war. ” - V.I. Lenin, The Tasks of Revolutionary Social-Democracy in the European War, Collected Works, Vol 26, pp 1
All the above, underscored by the leader of the October Revolution more than one century ago, are absolutely true as regards the war in Ukraine. Many articles to date have highlighted aspects of the fight over markets, raw materials, and commodity transport routes.
On Twitter, President Miguel Diaz-Canel Bermudez acknowledged Alarcón as a "great patriot and brilliant diplomat of the Cuban Revolution, whose work he defended with passion and solid arguments, making our people proud. Cuba mourns his departure".
"This year, we highlight the 1st of May in difficult conditions, amidst the severe sharpening of the contradictions within the imperialist system.
The constant escalation between the imperialist blocs of the world has as its inevitable outcome the sharpening of competition; as every monopoly needs to expand it will eventually encounter other monopolies seeking to do the same. The constant struggle for profits drive the policies of the bourgeoisie and its governments, and forces upon the people militarisation and an increase in exploitation. The fault is in the capitalist system itself.
Comrade workers! May Day is coming, the day when the workers of all lands celebrate Their awakening to a class- conscious life, their solidarity in the struggle against all coercion and oppression of man by man, the struggle to free the toiling millions from hunger, poverty, and humiliation.
Two worlds stand facing each other in this great struggle: the world of capital and the world of labour, the world of exploitation and slavery and the world of brotherhood and freedom.
The rise of fascism in Ukraine, which was boosted after the 2014 coup, isn't limited to the persecution of communists, the banning of communist symbols and the prohibition of political parties. For almost eight years now, the Ukrainian state tolerates and fosters the unacceptable and dangerous targeting of persons who are regarded as “enemies” by the right-wing establishment.
In a recent report, “Rizospastis”, the daily newspaper of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE), refers to the role of “Myrotvorets”, a Kiev-based website that published personal information, including photos and contact details, of people who are considered to be “enemies of Ukraine”.
"Long live the 18th World Trade Union Congress!
The World Trade Union Federation, on the occasion of May Day 2022, salutes workers on all continents – all those whose work continues to drive the gears of life even in difficult conditions and who continue to produce all essential goods.
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| SKP's head Andreas Sörensen. |
The 9thof May is approaching and the Russian bourgeoisie once again utilizes the red flag to take advantage of the anti-fascist and pro-Soviet sentiments of the Russian people. In areas occupied by the Russian army in Ukraine, the red flag of Victory is raised, i.e. the flag of the unit of the Red Army that occupied the Reichstag in May 1945. The CP of the Russian Federation (CPRF) went one step further. It introduced a bill to replace the current tricolour of Russia, the flag of the tsars and the traitor Vlasov, a Nazi collaborator in the Second World War, with the red flag.
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| REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes. |
Macron took 58.5% of Sunday's vote, making him the first French leader to be reelected in 20 years. He and Le Pen advanced to the runoff after finishing in first and second place, respectively, among 12 candidates who ran in the first round on April 10.
Commenting on the outcome of the election and the victory of Emmanuel Macron, the Press Office of the CC of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) points out (here in Greek):
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| PCB presidential candidate Sofia Manzano (pcb.org.br) |
Talking about the centenary of the PCB, which was celebrated on March 25th, and the current struggle of Brazil's communists, Manzano pointed out that the Communist Party emerged as a need of the working class to organize herself along the lines of the example that the 1917 Great October Socialist Revolution presented.
More specifically, Ruotsalainen points out:
"When considering NATO membership, it is worth briefly recalling the development of Finland's foreign policy after the wars. The aim of J.K. Paasikivi (President from 1946-56), who initiated this policy, was to preserve Finland's independence and to keep the country out of the disputes between the great powers.
It is difficult for me to imagine what "personal liberty" is enjoyed by an unemployed person, who goes about hungry, and cannot find employment. Real liberty can exist only where exploitation has been abolished, where there is no oppression of some by others, where there is no unemployment and poverty, where a man is not haunted by the fear of being tomorrow deprived of work, of home and of bread. Only in such a society is real, and not paper, personal and every other liberty possible.
The dismantling of the monument reportedly took place on Sunday 17 April.
Koatiantyn Nemichev, an ex-combatant of the neo-Nazi Azov Regiment and head of the Kharkov branch of the National Corps, published a video of the demolition of the monument, stating that it had been dismantled by KRAKEN special forces. The video shows the statue being taken to a landfill.
The imperialist war in Ukraine, following the unacceptable invasion of Russia, continues. The conflict between the USA, NATO, EU with capitalist Russia carries the risk of generalization and Greece is “up to the neck” on the side of Euro-Atlanticism. The government, with the support of SYRIZA and KINAL, has transformed the country into a military base. The US bases, for which all governments bear responsibility, are used. Greek military unites and armaments are sent to the “eastern front”.
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| Oscar Figuera, PCV General Secretary. |
Macron vs Le Pen and Le Pen vs Macron. Once again the French people are called to choose between “Scylla” and “Charybdis”, being entrapped in the notion of the “less evil”.
We've seen this play in the past: In 2017, when Emmanuel Macron and Marine Le Pen were again the two contestants in the second round of the presidential elections, as well as in 2002 when Jacques Chirac faced Jean-Marie Le Pen who came second leaving behind social democrat Lionel Jospin.
Following the meeting, the two leaders signed the following joint statement (in Greek and in Turkish):
Yechury, 69, is taking over the leadership of the party for a third consecutive term.
He succeeded Prakash Karat who has held the top post in India's largest left party from 2005 to 2015.