In memory of Vladimir Morozov – A model Bolshevik Last night I received an email from Petersburg informing me of the death of comrade Vladimir Morozov, who passed away on August 24. This news was a terrible blow. Vladimir, or Volodya as he was known to his friends, was a key figure in the ranks of the supporters of the International Marxist Tendency in Russia.
Russian miners struggle succeeds Following the report published last week on the Russian miners’ protest, yesterday (Monday) we received the following message from a comrade in St. Petersburg.
Russian workers say: “We are tired of slavery and humiliation. Enough is enough!” An explosive situation is developing in the Kuzbass, the heart of Russia’s mining industry. 66 miners were killed in an accident at work and 24 (on some accounts more) are still unaccounted for The real figure for dead miners is more like 150. Grief turned to anger at the lying and indifference of the company and government.
Russia: The assassination of Stanislav Markelov On Monday afternoon (January 19), after leaving a press conference, Stanislav Markelov was shot dead near Kropotkinskaya metro station in Moscow. Anastasiya Baburova, who was with Stanislav at the time, was also murdered. Some activists and journalists have asked who was responsible for these disgraceful murders. It’s not possible to say at this stage, but nobody believes that the state will seriously seek to bring the perpetrators of these crimes to justice.
The upward curve of the strike movement in Russia Although still in its early stages, there is clearly a reawakening of the Russian working class taking place with a growing number of strikes taking place. Once this picks up steam at some later stage it will cut across all the confusion and demoralisation that have been dominant features in the past.
Russia: A miners’ strike in Severouralsk An example of a very militant strike in Severouralsk, one of a series in the recent period. The miners were determined but the bosses were ruthless. This experience is another indication of growing working class militancy in Russia.
Russia: An interview with striking train drivers, summing up their experience We provide an interesting interview with Moscow train drivers who were recently on strike, that reveals the terrible conditions imposed on the workers but also the militant mood of the organizers.
Russian Presidential Elections: a caricature of bourgeois democracy Officially Putin's right hand man, Medvedev, has won the Presidential elections with over 70% of the vote on a turnout of more than 70%. But no one seriously believes this. Many Russians have commented on the meaninglessness of the elections. Putin will remain the boss. However, for all the pomp that surrounds Putin there is a strong undercurrent of hatred against capitalism. The fact that the CPRF yet again showed that it is the only opposition to the Kremlin, confirms this.
Molecular changes in Russian society and the CPRF As background the Presidential elections we publish an analysis of the December parliamentary elections. These reflected political consolidation following on from economic stabilization after the financial crisis of 1998. These new relations are now in turn leading to a reaction. The modest gains of the CPRF reveal both the potential for an organized opposition to Russian capitalism and the path that this opposition will take in the mass organizations.
Russian workers begin to organize fight back against capitalism We have received a very interesting interview with A. Etmanov, the leader of the trade union of Ford (Saint Petersburg). This reveals many things, not just about the Ford strike but about the state of the Russian workers' movement, the struggle of the trade unions and their attitude towards capitalism and the political parties.
Russian Ford workers – a beacon to the working class as a whole Last year's strike at the Russian Ford plant marked an important turning point for the Russian labour movement. The Russian economy is growing and this has strengthened sections of the working class. With this growing strength comes a militant mood. At some point this will lead to a wider movement of the Russian working class and with it will come important political repercussions.
Russia: Key strike at the Ford plant in Leningrad (St. Petersburg) The strike at the Ford plant in St. Petersburg is extremely symptomatic. After the collapse of the Russian economy in the 1990s now we have an upturn. With it comes also a renewed confidence of the working class. The victory of the Russian Ford workers would strengthen enormously the whole of the Russian working class. They need your help.
50th Anniversary of the Sputnik launch: Soviet science and the advances of the planned economy 50 years ago on 4 October 1957, the Soviet Union launched the world's first artificial satellite into space - Sputnik 1. The launch came as a complete surprise, even to the US intelligence community which was caught completely unawares. The launching of the satellite not only shocked the world, it completely changed it by ushering in a new age - the Space Age.
The death of Yeltsin: the end of an epoch and the birth of a new one Yeltsin was a symbol for the capitalist system that emerged following the capitalist counter-revolution he headed. The fact that his death yesterday was met with indifference in Moscow shows just how weak support for capitalism is in the capital, a city where unlike in the provinces a layer of the population is better off than in Soviet times.
Kondopogi – past and future In the Russian political dictionary Kondopoga has emerged as a new negative concept. Over a short period we have already experienced a number of such events, and everywhere along the same lines. Mass disturbances under nationalist slogans, which stemmed from everyday conflicts, xenophobic pogroms, public calls “to clear off the blacks†– all this is Kondopoga.
