Struggle for light and power

OPINION□ MASS DISMISSALS AND PRIVATISATION INMEXICO Struggle for light and power On 11 October 44,000 employees ofthe Lightand Power Company ofCentralMexico were expelled fromtheir workplaces when the companywas privatised overnight DAN LA BOTZ isan academic, journalist and regular contributor to Mexican Labor News and Analysis, accessible via the website of the US union UE at www.ueinternational.org Tens Workers lies,other of thousands Union union (SME) members, of members, Mexican peasant their Electrical organisafami Workers Union(SME) members, their families ,other unionmembers, peasantorganisationsand socialmovement activists engagedin a symbolic "taking ofMexicoCity" on 4 December. The action,modelledon the actual takingof MexicoCitybythearmiesofFrancisco 'Pancho' Villaand Emiliano Zapatain 1914,was to protest Mexican President FelipeCalderon's liquidation of theLight andPowerCompany ofCentral Mexico, thepoliceseizureofthecompany's facilities, and thefiring oftheworkforce of44,000. Thegovernment 's action wouldeliminate theSMEwhichhas been at the centreof oppositionto President Calderon'sprogramme to privatise the electrical powercompany. Particularly notablein the protest demonstrations werecontingents from theUnionofWorkers oftheNational Autonomous University ofMexico (STUNAM), from the National Coordinating Committee of the MexicanTeachersUnion (la CNTE), and fromthe streetcar workersunion. Following themainmarch andrally, thousands of unionmembers and alliesmarched to theheadquarters ofTelevisato protest bias inthatcorporation 's coverageoftheLight and Powerstruggle andcontroversy. UnionSeeks Negotiation ofIssues MartínEsparza,generalsecretary of the SME, demanded that theMexican government negotiate theliquidation ofthecompany with theunion.He proposed José Narro,rectorof the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM),as mediator. Apparently retreating from an earlierposition, Esparzacallednotfortherestoration of theold Light andPowerCompany, butrather forthecollective re-hiring ofthefired workers bytheFederal Electrical Commission (FCE),withtheSMEacting as theagentfortherehiring oftheworkers and presumably as their union.The FederalElectrical Commission workers arerepresented bytheSole Union of ElectricalWorkersof the Mexican Republic (SUTERM), a unionthat isfriendly tothe Calderon government. International Solidarity Meanwhile,on 2 Decemberthe legislators of President Calderon's National Action Party (PAN) calledfor thecomplete privatisation oftheelectric powerindustry. Onlytwodaysbeforethismost recent MexicoCity demonstration, a delegation of US and Canadianlabourunion leadersvisited Mexicotoshowtheir solidarity with fired electrical workers oftheformer Light andPowerCompany and to tellMexicanPresident FelipeCalderonit was nottoo lateto negotiate a justresolution to thiscrisis. The delegation was led byHassanYussef, secretary treasurer of the Canadian Labour Confederation (CLC),andbyStanley Gacek,associatedirector oftheInternational Department of theAFL-CIO.The groupincludedtheCanadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), the Communications,Energy and Paperworkers Union(CEP) ofCanada,theUnited SteelWorkers (USW),whichrepresents workers inbothCanada and the UnitedStates,and the Utility Workers UnionofAmerica (UWUA)and theindependent UnitedElectrical Workers (UE) whichrepresent US workers. Canadian,US UnionsCriticise Mexican Government The US-Canadian trade union delegation expressed itssolidarity with theSMEmembers and their families and criticised theMexicangovernmentforviolating itsown constitution and laws, forfailing to live up to the standards of the International LabourOrganisation (ILO), and for humanrights violations. Andrew Dinkelaker, Eastern Region President of theUnited Electrical Workers Union(UE)whoparticipated in the US-Canadian labourdelegation, said thatin meetings withrepresentatives ofthe Mexican Secretary ofLabour andinmeetings with officials oftheCanadianand US representatives, thathe and others had also expressed their concernthattheMexicangovernment had violated international labourstandards andfailed toliveup to the NorthAmerican Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) laboursideagreement. ConstantStruggle SincetheFelipeCalderon government's attack, the unionhasbeeninconstant struggle with thegovernment . Thatstruggle has now becomea protracted andmultifaceted battle. Whilemany ofthe union'smembers continue tofight, andthere has beenstrong support from telephone workers, university employees, teachers andmanyothers, this is without a doubta tremendously difficult challengefor theMexican labourmovement. Theunionnowfights on manyfronts: tomaintaintheunity of itsmembers, to findeconomic resources, to winthebattle ofpublicopinion, to gain politicalallies, to garnersolidarity from unionsabroad, toconvince Mexican legislators, to gainrelief inthecourts andfind vindication inthe eyesofinternational legalorganisations. The UnionintheStreets Expelled from their workplaces on 11October and therefore unableto strike, theMexicanElectrical Workers Unioncalledupon otherunionsto join them inmassive protests ofhundreds ofthousands INTERNATIONAL union lights Page 14 Volume 16Issue 52009 on 15October, on 11 November and inthemost recent protest on 4 December. Thesecondprotest was a national workstoppage, which, ifitdidnot bring thecountry to a halt,still foundsupport in citiesand statesthroughout the country, with especially strong support from telephone workers, university employees, andteachers. TheElectrical Workers Unionhas also received support from Andrés ManuelLópez Obradorand his so-calledLegitimate Government of Mexico, theshadowgovernment that he created after losingwhatmanybelieveto havebeen thefraudulentelection of2006that brought FelipeCalderón topower. LópezObrador hasgiven hisplatform to Martín Esparza, general secretary oftheElectrical Workers Union,and López Obrador'sdedicated supporters whonumber inthehundreds ofthousandshavethrown their weight behindtheunion, including inmassive rallies anddemonstrations in thenation's capital. Leafleting, CollectingFunds,HungerStrike With Mexico's major television networks -Televisa andTVAzteca -providing negative newscoverage...

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