|
The General Council, reporting on the political and social situation of young people in the world, updated and enriched the analysis of WFDY. During the past ten months the reality has proved the accuracy of the evaluations and decisions of the 17th Assembly of WFDY.
We strongly salute the brave resistance of all the youth and people in struggle against the imperialist offensives, defending and struggling for their independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity, which greatly inspire us in our struggles such as Afghanistan, Iraq, Palestine, Lebanon, Western Sahara, DPR of Korea, Cuba, Venezuela, Iran, Syria, Zimbabwe and Belarus among others.
The volatility at the stock markets worldwide, worsened in the beginning of 2008, only comes to prove that even though capitalism has huge resources at its disposal, sophisticated tools to manage crises and a growing subordination of political power structures to its orders, the world economic situation is increasingly unstable, with imbalances and inequalities widening.
The Nobel Peace Prize award to a former vice-president of the United States of America (USA) the same that was involved in the bombing of Yugoslavia in 1999 and the United Nations (UN) Climate Change Conference in Bali, Indonesia in December 2007 highlighted the environmental issues. The profit drive and unbridled exploitation of planet's natural resources follows the logic of wastage and destruction and is the main threat to the environment. Multinational enterprises systematically destroy the environment and hypocritically promote the so-called "green economy". People and youth are those that can confront these disorientating campaigns and protect the environment from imperialist interventions. The people have an inalienable right to avail ourselves of the planet's wealth and resources and to use them in a rational way which does not harm the environment to cover the urgent needs of the three quarters of the humanity.
The recent published UN' World Youth Report 2007 deserves our attention and further study but it is already possible to observe that the alarming figures about the world youth's situation remain at the same extent by comparing it with the same report of 2005. WFDY should as well to monitor and study the action of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO's) that serve the imperialist interests. Thus we reiterate our duty to fight against the causes of these harms and save human lives by bringing closer the overthrow of imperialism.
The latest visit of the USA president to seven countries in the Middle East took place in coordination with the so-called moderated regimes in the region with the alleged "Iranian threat" in the agenda, and was welcomed in Bahrain with protests by our member-organization Al-Shabeeba Youth. In fact this visit had the goals of promoting the USA policies in the region, guarantying the countries in the gulf region as important clients of the most expensive weapons, financing the USA mobility in the region and legitimizing the occupation in Iraq (where Turkey has recently violated and invaded its borders without any dilemmas) and Palestine in which the most recent military agreement between USA and Israel is also critical to secure their imperialist rule. The Israeli aggression against the Palestinians, with special incidence in Gaza Strip, through brutal blockade and military strikes is destroying all means of life resulting that millions of people there lack food, medicaments, electricity and heating in a long term mass-killing. We condemn the Israeli's escalation of violence and reassert the right of the Palestinian youth and people in their resistant struggle against occupation for their independent state. The conference held in Annapolis discarded the real problems of the region and was mostly held to disguise the failures of the pretended peace efforts of USA in the region and cover its aggressions. In the meantime the Lebanese parliament failed to elect a president for the past four months, and the constitutionality of the government remains controversial. Imperialist interventions, regional complications and the nature of the Lebanese sectarian system cause deep divisions and tensions among the people and prepare the ground for civil clashes. We call for political reforms leading to an independent secular system protecting the economic and social rights of the Lebanese youth and people and their national sovereignty and resistance. WFDY conveys its strong support for the struggle of Palestinian, Lebanese and Syrian youth and people to return their occupied lands from Zionist Israel government and demands the immediate release of all political prisoners,
We also salute the Bolivian youth and people for their struggle for sovereignty and social justice and deplore the attempts of the reactionary forces in Bolivia that have separatist intentions to fragment the country and obstruct the progressive reforms, namely those guaranteed by the new country's constitution. The latest developments in Colombia led us to restate the condemnation of the USA interventionism in the country and the Colombian government, which act under the pretext of the war against drugs and terrorism only aiming the maintenance of the control over the country and its resources and targeting the Colombian people. We underscore the valiant people's resistance in Colombia and express our heartfelt solidarity towards our member-organization JUCO Communist Youth of Colombia against the assassination, abduction and persecutions of its members. We endorse as well our active solidarity to the revolutionary youth and people of Venezuela towards the consolidation and deepening of the Bolivarian process that faces successive attempted coups by the domestic big bourgeoisie in connection with neo-liberalism and imperialism as it was obvious during all the process of the constitutional's reform referendum, which was not ratified for a minor difference of votes. We send too a heartfelt salute to the Cuban youth and people for their valiant revolutionary ongoing struggle. We greet as well the progressive tendency and anti-hegemonic resistance, with the rise of political and social forces in several countries fight to surpass the traditional dependency and subordination to the imperialist powers.
While celebrating the 60 years since the end of the British imperialist rule in India the ceaseless and aggressive joint military exercises lead by USA and its armed build up on the Korean peninsula and in the surrounding region are the main factors threatening peace and security of the north-east Asia and the world. We welcome the historical summit of the north and the south of Korea that took place in October 2007 in Pyongyang, DPR of Korea, and the adoption of the Declaration for Development of North-South Relations and Peace and Prosperity, expecting from this declaration an action program to thoroughly implement the June 15th North-South Joint Declaration which clarified to reunify the country by Korean nation itself. We point the finger at the nuclear USA-India nuclear agreement, which could lead to many dangers in the region and the world over. We denounce and express deep concerns with the external meddling in East-Timor, which culminated in a coup that excluded the progressive forces (FRETILIN) from the Timorese government. We reaffirm our call for the end of the military intervention in the country hence it is not motivated by any caring cause but only to defend the imperialist interests in the region. We are concerned and strongly denounce the ongoing repression in Burma. Despite the Burmese military junta's intention to create complete chaos and crackdown the resistance with troops poured into streets killing, injuring and detaining many people tens of thousands demonstrators have taken heroic marches in the streets. We demand the Burmese military junta to reinstate democracy in the country and release all the political prisoners and express our solidarity towards the youth and people's movements in Burma in their struggle to further democratize the political, economic and social life of the country. The assassination of Benazir Bhutto on December 2007 leaving also many other people dead , supplied as well an evidence of the root causes behind military overwhelming in general and military regime in particular. We stand by and do believe that the youth and students of Pakistan will strengthen their role to mount the struggle for democracy, civil rights and social justice joining hand in hand with people of every section in Pakistan. We endorse support for Sri Lanka's progressive movements struggle for national unity and against separatist attempts of imperialism at dividing the country and destabilizing the region. We congratulate the Nepalese youth and people for their victorious struggle to implement a republican system against the monarchic dictatorial government chasing now a further step to prepare the coming general elections and new constitution.
Both the European Union (EU)-Africa Summit and the Africa-Europe Youth Summit, which took place in December 2007 in Portugal, were presented as historical milestones in the relations between the two continents. In fact these events endeavor mainly to distort the effects of the imperialist aggression, particularly in the region but also the world over, under the well-known pretexts of conflicts' prevention, democracy, human wrights, good governance, humanitarian aid, failed states, right to protection, etc, while all the possible tactics to re-colonize the African countries were tried, namely the signing of unjust EU-Africa trade deals seeking the control of the rich natural resources, and squelch the people's resistance. These events were also used to target countries that have challenged the neo-colonialist rule of Britain and other European countries, particularly Zimbabwe. Our attendance to the Youth Summit allows us to denounce its control and manipulation by structures such as the European Commission, which aimed to present youth as an ally of the imperialist strategy. We reiterate our solidarity towards the youth and people of Zimbabwe in their struggle to economically emancipate themselves assuming full control of their own economy, against imperialist sanctions and interventions. We reaffirm as well our salute to the youth and people of Sudan for their efforts for peace and human rights within the current peace process in a moment when the UN and African Union would have a presence in the country, namely to Darfur through an hybrid operation (UNAMID). We observe as well the recent post-electoral Kenya quarrels with apprehension. We vehemently denounce and condemn the new steps done to install a USA military command in Africa (called USAFRICOM or AFRICOM) by September 2008. We consider that the solution for the African people's problems and the achievement of social progress, democracy and peace demands the immediate end of the imperialist's exploitation and interferences and the right of each people to build their own future.
In recognizing that increased USA aggression abroad currently translates to increased attacks on domestic civil liberties at home, WFDY salutes the efforts of young people in the USA who mobilized for regional actions to end the USA occupation of Iraq on October 2007, and the nation-wide students walking out to protest the racist detention of black youth in Louisiana. We also acknowledge the increasing youth participation in the 2008 primary election races in some cases tripling from 2004. WFDY also supports Canadian youth struggling against increased surveillance in schools as well as the unjust detention of Toronto students' accused of terrorism.
In the EU, whereas continues the imposition of the Stability and Growth Pact, the Lisbon Strategy, the Bolkestein Directive and the Bologna Declaration against the youth, workers and people's rights there is at present an operation that aims to impose at any cost, preferably without a ratifying referendum in each of the EU member states, the "Reform-Treaty" that, among other goals, wants to deep furthermore an imperialist EU that run counter to the national sovereignty, youth, workers and people's interests. The First Forum of the Alliance of Civilizations (AoC), mainly promoted by the Spanish and Turkish governments and held in January 2008 in Spain, aims nothing but the conciliation between exploiters and exploited. Meanwhile the right-wing forces won the French and Turkish elections while in Great Britain a face-lift took place with the replacement of Blair by Gordon and Putin's party got the majority of the seats in State Duma in Russia. Within this context we underline the relevance of the general strike of May 2007 and the massive and powerful workers' demonstration in October 2007, in Portugal, on the occasion of the informal summit of heads of state and of government of EU, as well as the noteworthy workers' strikes and struggles in Cyprus, France, Greece and Italy. We also salute our member-organization KNE for the electoral strengthening of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) in the recent elections in the country, which comprises a relevant element in Western Europe.
Presently the people of Eastern Europe are particularly affected by the imperialist's aggression and exploitation against their most elementary rights. The rivalry for the control of pipelines that go through this area transferring oil and natural gas from Middle East and Caspian Sea to the Western Europe is on full development. The relations among the imperialist centers USA, EU and Japan and the expanding Russia are portrayed by permanent alliances and contradictions that have amplified amid various issues like the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe and the USA anti-missile shield with new military bases in Czech Republic and Poland a step further for the strategic deployment of imperialist military forces in Central and Eastern Europe, namely in former socialist countries. The constant attempt of the USA and its allies to push the UN on the status of Kosovo, aiming its separation from Serbia, clearly reveals the imperialist objectives in the region. Simultaneously the denial of NATO to define concrete borders between the Former Yugoslavian Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) and Kosovo is creating more dangers, aggravated with the controversy between Greece and the FYROM on the FYROM's Constitutional name increasing nationalist aims in both sides. In April 2008 the summit of NATO in Romania, which will expand it in Balkans whilst USA will officially start to run their military bases in Romania and Bulgaria will boost the militarism in Europe. Likewise topical occurrences like the trial against the leadership of the Hungarian Communist Workers Party and Left Front, the dishonor of the Js Kr's grave and the founding of an organization that trains people that act against the Cuban people and its sovereignty in Hungary, and the growing anti-communist actions in the Baltic countries intending to blank, revise and rewrite the history are clear evidences of the fierce imperialist attack against democratic rights and liberties, which has instigated after the ban of our member-organization KSM in Czech Republic.
Despite this offense the progressive and peace loving forces have been resisting, confronting, conquering important victories and growing stronger. As long as injustice and exploitation will rule the world, as long as people are being oppressed there will be always resistance. Even though we are going through a period of resistance and gathering strength, the transformation's potential is rising. We are optimistic and also youth and people can be also optimistic. The role of masses is the big obstacle to imperialism despite the differences in the balance of forces. The struggle of the anti-imperialist, progressive and democratic youth movement, all over the world, will not let the imperialist forces stop the fight for peace, social progress and youth rights hand in hand with workers for a new society, more fraternal and fair, without exploitation of man by man. We call on youth to join this struggle confident that the victory will be ours!
Youth Unite! Forward For Lasting Peace! |