One of the world's largest ever strikes began at midnight on Monday 27th Feb and will end at midnight tonight. Up to 100,000,000 Indian workers from different sectors and industries are calling for a national minimum wage, permanent jobs, and much more.
As reported by libcom blogger working class self organisation in January:
Quote:
Over a dozen of India’s largest trade unions have called for and signed up to the strike. The strike will affect many sectors, including public sector banks, ports and docks, railways, insurance, road transport, energy workers, miners, and aviation workers.
“Recent months have seen a mounting wave of militant worker struggles in India, strikes for union recognition in India’s expanding auto sector, including a two-day occupation of a Hyundai plant, a wildcat strike by Air India personnel, and walkouts by telecom workers and coal miners against the central government’s privatization plans.”
The different unions have a variety of different demands, they include gaining the same rights and protection for temporary and contract workers that permanent workers have, raising and extending the minimum wage, resisting the attacks on trade unions, stopping price rises, the creation of a national social security fund, increase in pensions, and combating corruption.
The workers are demanding a national minimum wage, permanent jobs for contract labourers, social security for informal labourers, pensions for all workers, intervention by the government to stop the rising costs of living, and to end the sell off of publicly owned companies amongst other demands.
Transport, postal services and banking have all been hit by the strike which involves around a dozen unions, with a 'complete shutdown' of banking in Mumbai being reported. Police have been deployed to try to prevent 'unlawful' picketing, with 100 arrests made this morning for obstructing traffic.
100,000,000 People Strike in India
100,000,000 People Strike in India
http://libcom.org/news/100000000-worker ... e-28022012
Men often oppose a thing merely because they have had no agency in planning it, or because it may have been planned by those whom they dislike.
-Alexander Hamilton
-Alexander Hamilton
Re: 100,000,000 People Strike in India
This is why China will always have the edge over India. Indians live in a democracy and can act in their own interest. Foreign investment doesn't like that, they like governments that can keep labor in line, with force if need be.
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Re: 100,000,000 People Strike in India
Well, at least until they become old and poor in about 30-40 years. Maybe the turtle will pull ahead.Ibrahim wrote:This is why China will always have the edge over India.
Re: 100,000,000 People Strike in India
India will retain the youth edge, demographically. Not clear why China would suddenly be poorer than India.Zack Morris wrote:Well, at least until they become old and poor in about 30-40 years. Maybe the turtle will pull ahead.Ibrahim wrote:This is why China will always have the edge over India.
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Re: 100,000,000 People Strike in India
China is still an enormously poor country and it's difficult to see how they will be able to continue growing when their labor force grows older and more expensive. Sooner or later, the authoritarian model is going to sputter. We'll see what the leadership transition in the coming year holds. Time will tell whether their anticipated reforms will amount to anything. Efforts at democratization and establishing the rule of law have been underway for a decade now and have yielded no fruits.Ibrahim wrote:India will retain the youth edge, demographically. Not clear why China would suddenly be poorer than India.Zack Morris wrote:Well, at least until they become old and poor in about 30-40 years. Maybe the turtle will pull ahead.Ibrahim wrote:This is why China will always have the edge over India.
Re: 100,000,000 People Strike in India
Not sure what you mean about "rule of law" or "anticipated reforms." The country has reformed its economic model so radically and successfully since 80's, and most of the political controls conform to the Basic Law that has been in effect for decades, so there isn't so much a failure to implement a model in China as there is the successful implementation of a model very different than our own.Zack Morris wrote:China is still an enormously poor country and it's difficult to see how they will be able to continue growing when their labor force grows older and more expensive. Sooner or later, the authoritarian model is going to sputter. We'll see what the leadership transition in the coming year holds. Time will tell whether their anticipated reforms will amount to anything. Efforts at democratization and establishing the rule of law have been underway for a decade now and have yielded no fruits.Ibrahim wrote:India will retain the youth edge, demographically. Not clear why China would suddenly be poorer than India.Zack Morris wrote:Well, at least until they become old and poor in about 30-40 years. Maybe the turtle will pull ahead.Ibrahim wrote:This is why China will always have the edge over India.
As to wealth, China is much poorer per capita than any Western nation, but of course with a much higher population, and even so their wealth per capita has steadily increased for decades. In any case the comparison I was making was with India, which is also poor with a massive population.
Re: 100,000,000 People Strike in India
To get back to the OP, labor organization is something that is good for the Indian workers in that they can defend their rights and interests. My main point was about it being a deterrent for foreign investment, and how that undermines the idea that free market capitalism is inherently allied with democracy or "freedom."
Re: 100,000,000 People Strike in India
China has 70000 protests a year.
i see this amazing strike as a fork in the eye of the 'offshores', they thought they could circumnavigate a hundred years of Industrial Revolution by going offshore and exploiting all over again from year zero, this action brings that anti-Industrial Revolution activity one step closer to demise.
i see this amazing strike as a fork in the eye of the 'offshores', they thought they could circumnavigate a hundred years of Industrial Revolution by going offshore and exploiting all over again from year zero, this action brings that anti-Industrial Revolution activity one step closer to demise.
Re: 100,000,000 People Strike in India
The Indian strike is more impressive because of the massive coordination and also because these skilled trades unions appear to have legal standing that doesn't exist in China.Carbizene wrote:China has 70000 protests a year.
Re: 100,000,000 People Strike in India
True, this ability to allow open dispute may well be what see's India to overtake China as China may well be riven with structural rigidity that restricts appropriate responsiveness. China's 5000 year old dream of unity at any cost may create a ethos that has no place in the new flat Earth.
Last edited by Carbizene on Fri Mar 02, 2012 2:35 am, edited 1 time in total.
Re: 100,000,000 People Strike in India
That's what'll be interesting to see. In both cases responsiveness is also hampered by endemic corruption.Carbizene wrote:True, this ability to allow open dispute may well be what see's India to overtake China as China may well be riven with structural rigidity to allow appropriate responsiveness.
Re: 100,000,000 People Strike in India
Corruption is endemic on all, one only needs to see the US as the largest Arms dealer on the Planet to see how deep that rabbit hole goes.
The breadth of the Indian strike suggests a unity in Industrial parties indicative of a society less corrupt than so called first world entities.
The breadth of the Indian strike suggests a unity in Industrial parties indicative of a society less corrupt than so called first world entities.
- Zack Morris
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Re: 100,000,000 People Strike in India
"Rule of law" means exactly what it normally does: that the country is governed by known, transparent legal rules. It implies order, predictability, and accountability for all. China lacks this.Ibrahim wrote: Not sure what you mean about "rule of law" or "anticipated reforms."
The model is rule by corruption and selective enforcement. If Beijing's vague, tiresome, and sometimes hopeless convoluted proclamations are anything to go by, there is no coherent "model" being put into place. The "Beijing Model" is something Western authoritarian apologists have imagined.The country has reformed its economic model so radically and successfully since 80's, and most of the political controls conform to the Basic Law that has been in effect for decades, so there isn't so much a failure to implement a model in China as there is the successful implementation of a model very different than our own.
An interesting book is hitting the shelves this month and the New York Times ran an interesting piece on it today, in the context of Russia. China can broadly be described as an "extractive" rather than "inclusive" society, from the government down to the fundamental culture, which is conformist/exclusive (I don't like the term "collectivist" because I don't think it accurately captures the way Chinese interact with those outside of their immediate circle of concern).
Re: 100,000,000 People Strike in India
It does not. Rather, it has laws very different than our own. Corruption, while problematic, is not any different than it is anywhere. India and China suffer the same consequences from corruption, even though they have different political systems, and the repressive nature of Chinese law actually keeps it slightly more under control in China than it is in India (but barely).Zack Morris wrote:"Rule of law" means exactly what it normally does: that the country is governed by known, transparent legal rules. It implies order, predictability, and accountability for all. China lacks this.Ibrahim wrote: Not sure what you mean about "rule of law" or "anticipated reforms."
What does recognizing that the Chinese government functions have to do with apologism? I really don't understand what you're saying here. It doesn't conform to any of my experiences.The model is rule by corruption and selective enforcement. If Beijing's vague, tiresome, and sometimes hopeless convoluted proclamations are anything to go by, there is no coherent "model" being put into place. The "Beijing Model" is something Western authoritarian apologists have imagined.The country has reformed its economic model so radically and successfully since 80's, and most of the political controls conform to the Basic Law that has been in effect for decades, so there isn't so much a failure to implement a model in China as there is the successful implementation of a model very different than our own.
Re: 100,000,000 People Strike in India
As compared to US corruption which is codified in that members of Congress and Senate can inside trade and be paid in options.Zack Morris wrote:
"Rule of law" means exactly what it normally does: that the country is governed by known, transparent legal rules. It implies order, predictability, and accountability for all. China lacks this.
I love how people bitch about China and conveniently overlook violent US Imperialism, New Rome apologists.
No doubt Chinese Authoritarianism sucks but at least they keep it largely in-house and it is their own business unlike New Rome.
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Re: 100,000,000 People Strike in India
Carbizene wrote:As compared to US corruption which is codified in that members of Congress and Senate can inside trade and be paid in options.Zack Morris wrote:
"Rule of law" means exactly what it normally does: that the country is governed by known, transparent legal rules. It implies order, predictability, and accountability for all. China lacks this.
I love how people bitch about China and conveniently overlook violent US Imperialism, New Rome apologists.
No doubt Chinese Authoritarianism sucks but at least they keep it largely in-house and it is their own business unlike New Rome.
.
wholeheartedly seconded , Pfui
The most corrupt nation on earth neither India nor Pakistan, but USA
Bill (clinton) was pennyless B4 elected president .. now, he worth (@least) $ 100+ million (last number I read), where did he get his money ? ?
come on, come on
Capitalism corrupted to the bone, by you know who
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