Hurricanes Eta and Iota here ♦ protests in Guatemala here ♦
Communist Workers’ Hurricane Will Blow Capitalism into History’s Garbage Dump
Sign Reads “If there’s no bread for the people, there will be no peace for the government”
EL SALVADOR— The death and destruction left by hurricanes Eta and Iota, from Colombia to Central America and even to Southeast Mexico, once again shows the horrors of capitalism. Over 260 dead and tens of thousands affected by the hurricanes are mostly poor workers, farm workers and independent fishermen.
When these catastrophes happen, the causes and effects of the bosses’ predatory system come to light. It seems that nature is cruelest to the poorest people, but no. They are workers that the capitalists have consigned to oblivion. That’s why they are forced to live in highest-risk areas.
Working people have seen the little they have wiped off the face of the earth. “When one is poor and has nothing and loses everything, it is better to die,” said a man with a sunburned face. He saw his house crumble from the strong current of a brown river overflowing in Puerto Cabezas, Nicaragua. It is a terrible and common tragedy in Honduras and El Salvador also.
Despite the magnitude of this disaster, aid from the bosses of the most powerful countries has been minimal and laughable. Instead it is the solidarity of our working-class family that shows that, in situations like this, they are the ones that will always act to benefit our class.
“We are hungry, we are hungry,” a woman began to shout. In unison more women, men, and children joined the chorus of mud-covered human beings. They screamed their anger against the Sandinista regime.
Soldiers and members of Sandinista paramilitary groups were paralyzed, not because of the mud, which reached up to their knees, but because they feared the workers. Lifting their legs heavily, they withdrew. The workers kept shouting “Out, out, out!” celebrating it as a great victory.
Hurricanes are not new, but they are more powerful and destructive due to climate change caused by the greed of the capitalist system. Similarly, deforestation to grow palms for profitable palm oil contributes significantly to the emission of greenhouse gases, due to the drainage of carbon-rich soils and the burning of stubble. It also leaves poor peasants without arable land.
The situation in this region reminds us of a presentation that ICWP comrades made a few years ago about the proper use of land for crops and housing.
This planning is based on scientific criteria to get better results in cultivation. It locates the best spaces for families to build homes in places that may represent greater security, when natural phenomena like hurricanes Eta and Iota occur.
Natural phenomena cannot be avoided. But collateral damage can be minimized with communist planning which will put the wellbeing of the working class first. For example, not building houses on the banks of rivers and streams, and having monitoring and information centers.
We will also work collectively to reverse climate change using safer forms of energy and ending the destruction of forests.
The International Communist Workers’ Party (ICWP) stands in solidarity with all who have been affected by these hurricanes throughout the Caribbean, Central America and Mexico. We want them to know that we are organizing and fighting for a system that responds to the needs of the working class. We call on all workers to join the fight for Communism.
Our Red Flag newspaper is a powerful weapon to organize our class. Let’s distribute it and make the bosses tremble. Let’s turn factories, schools, and all workplaces into centers for the study of communist ideas.
Now is the time to break the chains and fight for a better future. The next hurricane will be to sweep away the bosses and throw them into the dustbin of history.
Protests in Guatemala
GUATEMALA, November 21—Protests erupted against the new general budget approved by the Guatemalan parliament. The crisis began when the working class repudiated cutbacks to healthcare programs. The protests of students and workers show the decisive power of the masses when it comes to confronting the politics of the state.
Resignations of presidents and chiefs of police are not enough. It’s necessary to mobilize to build the structure of the communist system.
Masses suffered police attacks, but workers and students knew how to fight back. Communist cells of our International Communist Workers’ Party should give revolutionary leadership to these struggles. We should organize political strikes for communism, which can and will meet the masses’ need for healthcare and everything else they deserve.