Sanitarios Maracay: After 107 days of occupation the workers buy and receive the first shipment of raw material

Reasons to celebrate at Sanitarios Maracay. After selling their products in the local neighbourhood, the workers have managed to get a first shipment of raw materials that will enable them to continue production.

Sanitarios Maracay is an example for the struggle for socialism in Venezuela

After 107 days of struggle for the expropriation, for the nationalisation of their factory, without waiting on anyone or anything, on February 28, the workers at Sanitarios Maracay celebrated the arrival of the first shipment of feldspar [a rock-forming mineral, industrially important in glass and ceramics]. The significant thing is that they themselves bought the materials from the suppliers with the money obtained by selling bathroom suites to local communities and individuals.

Humberto López, Union Secretary, declared at the moment the shipment was received: "The purchase of raw material is important because it will allow us to raise the levels of production to 70% of the factory's capacity, which will make it possible for the workers to receive a decent salary and continue the experience of workers' control we have set up in the factory. Beyond this, it is a significant political development in the workers' struggle since it is the first time that the workers have been able to break the paradigm of private property and produce under their own responsibility, organised in several committees."

After November 14, the sale of bathroom suites started under workers' control. The workers organised themselves in different committees: finance, production, administrative, security and mobilisation. They marched in Caracas on December 18 and again on February 8 in a bigger march with the support of the whole of the UNT left.

In November they marched in Maracay and opened negotiations with the State government. Later, after a resolute struggle they achieved the suspension of payments for electricity, gas and water, and more recently a loan from the State government that allowed them to help the workers taking part in the struggle, with a payment of 900 thousand Bolivars each.

Yesterday, the workers at Sanitarios Maracay welcomed the first shipment of 380 tonnes of feldspar with cheers, applause and fire-crackers. Afterwards, gathered in an assembly, they stressed the need to forge an iron revolutionary discipline based on their awareness of the fact that the struggle for socialism can only move forward if their struggle is spread to other factories, with the building of hundreds of factory committees and taking over more factories to start producing under workers' control. In order to achieve this, they participated last Saturday, March 3, in the meeting called by FRETECO in which the creation of a body to co-ordinate nationally the occupied factories and a plan to spread the factory occupations and defend their nationalisation under workers control was discussed.

This is 21st century socialism: socialism built by the workers themselves!

For the nationalisation of Sanitarios Maracay under workers' control!

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