|
Shipyard workers of Tuzla, Istanbul went on strike on June 16 "for the right of living and human working conditions" following the call of the union Limter-Is . On the anniversary of the great workers` resistance of June 15-16, 1970 the workers, who have been rebelling against slavery working conditions without any regulations and work-related accidents, as well as many groups of society supporting them went on the streets and squares for strike.
The workers and groups supporting them gathered in the early morning hours in front of the office of Limter-Is, at Icmeler and Aydintepe train stations to march to the strike post at Tuzla. The union members opened the banners read "We want human living and working conditions. We are on strike" and called on the workers to join the strike by shouting the slogans "Union and Limter-Is despite you" and "We don`t want to die anymore".
{divide} The different blocks meeting in front of Tuzla Gemi Shipyard blocked the traffic leading to the shipyards` region. Attacks of the police were fought off. When the police surrounded the strike post with tanks and special police forces, the bosses let some of the workers` transport service vans to the shipyards accompany by the police to break the strike. The bosses have continued to threaten the workers for the last weeks with dismissal or cut of their daily wage if they won't come to work on the strike day and even visited the workers at home during the days before the strike to threaten them.
Limter-Is general president Cem Dinc and DISK general president Suleyman Celebi held the first speeches from the stage starting from 10am on.
Cem Dinc once again raised the union's determination to fight against the work-related accidents to be considered as murders and reminded of the fact that the meeting with the bosses on June 14 had not taken place because the bosses did not want Limter-Is to participate. He clearly pointed out that there will be no solution at the shipyards without Limter-Is.
DISK general president Suleyman Celebi declared that the demands of the strike of February 27-28 are still valid and answered the bosses` shipyards by saying "We will turn this place into hell, if even one single colleague of us is sacked". Celebi said to GISBIR , which is the shipyard bosses` organisation: "You must sit down with Limter-Is at the table, because it is them in fact fighting for the workers` rights in comparison to those following only the bosses` line."
After the speeches, singing and dancing, Limter-Is general secretary Kanber Saygili held a speech at 3pm saying that the strike has ended: "Nothing at Tuzla will be as before. We will change the conditions here with our determination and the solidarity." Saygili continued and said: "Our strike has been a warning to GISBIR, the bosses and TOBB (Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey), and in the same way it has been the pulse of the social opposition beating at the shipyards." Responding to GISBIR and TOBB, he said: "We will not stop before you will accept our demands. We will be here and fight as long as there will be shipyard workers here. No force can force us to move away from here.." Saygili also saluted the great workers` strike of June 15-16, 1970 and thanked the unions and mass organisations who came for support.
|
