A YEAR OF CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC — JOINT STATEMENT BY COMMUNIST AND WORKERS' PARTIES

A year after the outbreak of the Coronavirus Pandemic, Communist and Workers' Parties from all over the world issued a statement assessing the current situation and pledge to continue the struggle for public, free and universal healthcare services, as well as for protection of the workers-people's democratic rights. 

 

The statement, among others, underline the fact that the pandemic has highlighted the necessity of Socialism which can put the contemporary scientific and technological potential at the service of the people's needs. 

The full statement is as follows:

Communist Party of Turkey: The Coronavirus pandemic is yet another evidence of the historical collapse of capitalism

The Central Committee of the Communist Party of Turkey (TKP) has released a political report focusing on COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on Turkey's working class, examining the policies of Tayyip Erdogan's government.

"The coronavirus pandemic, which has affected the whole world since the first months of last year, not only showed once again how devastating capitalism is as a social system but also showed the extent of its desperation. From this point of view, the pandemic caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus cannot be seen as a health problem alone,” the report said. 

KKE: Capitalism is the actual and visible virus!

Coronavirus vaccine supply has become a critical issue as nations seek to stem high infection rates. Last week, AstraZeneca told the EU it was falling behind on its supply target because of production problems. U.S. pharmaceutical Pfizer/Biontech proceeded to temporary cut deliveries while cases in many European countries surge. 

 

From its side, the European Union warned it will tighten exports of Covid vaccines produced in the bloc. Competitions, delays, exports' restrictions, business profits are putting people's health into risk. 

German Communist Party: Capitalist economic crisis and the “Coronavirus” crisis

By the German Communist Party (DKP)

What is often referred to by the ruling media as the “coronavirus crisis” is in fact, regardless of the pandemic, the world’s deepest economic crisis for  at least one hundred years.

It is a cyclical crisis of overproduction combined with structural crises in various economic sectors, with the coronavirus pandemic and related government action adding a special feature to this crisis. 

It's not just Trump. IT'S CAPITALISM, STUPID!

 By Nikos Mottas.

The images of chaos from Washington DC with the pro-Trump supporters storming the U.S. Capitol are the mirror of a democracy in advanced state of decay. For decades, the facade of the much-celebrated “American Dream” and the artificial prosperity of the most powerful economy in the world was hiding the accumulated rottenness of an entire system.

The history of American Democracy, especially in the 20th century, is full of class exploitation, social and racial violence, imperialist interventions and wars, cultural values based on social Darwinism and the deification of money. Several generations of Americans were raised under the belief that there is no alternative to Capitalism, that Communism is a menace and the U.S. is the “guardian of the free world”.

Capitalist Crisis in Spain: Accelerated by the Pandemic and managed by Social Democracy

By the Communist Party of the Workers of Spain (PCTE)

 

Spain is living in 2020 the worst capitalist crisis of 121 its history. The economy is shrinking on double-digit figures; there are millions of unemployed workers, and dozens of thousands of victims dead because of the pandemic.

A superficial glance could determine that the causes of the current crisis are completely due to the effects of the pandemic and the paralysis of economy during confinement. However, the analysis we had made before the pandemic were already predicting the looming of a capitalist crisis, being the Coronavirus actually a catalyst, rather than the cause of it. One that affects the capitalist relationships worldwide and not only its national expressions.

Is the Covid vaccine a "triumph of capitalism"?

 By Nikos Mottas.

One of the many myths that have been spread by bourgeois media during this period is that the Covid-19 vaccine consists a “victory” or a “triumph” of capitalism. In fact, they are trying to convince us that the – without doubt significant - progress made by large biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies in the fight against Coronavirus is an achievement of the capitalist system. 

This is simply not true. 

Capitalism is the virus, Socialism is the vaccine!

By Nikos Mottas.

The 2008 global capitalist economic crisis, the effects of which are still visible today, was a tremendous opportunity for the big capitalists to increase their wealth. During a period of ten years, from 2008 to 2018, the number of billionaires was doubled, like their profits. It has been proved that the crisis generates more capitalists.

The Coronavirus pandemic, which has plagued the world since the beginning of 2020, comes to confirm that capitalist barbarity “feeds” from the people's death, poverty, impoverishment and exploitation. The recent report by Forbes is revealing: 

Reaganomics Exposed: Keeping tax low for the rich doesn't boost economy, new research says

The so-called Reaganomics will be remembered by the people as a set of cruel, anti-worker economic policies in favor of the big capital, associated with supply-side theories and eliminating and restrictions on the free-market economy. 

The economic policy that U.S. President Ronald Reagan advocated for pushed for lower taxes for the wealthy and less business regulation by the government. The idea was that showering the rich with even more money would - supposedly - result in a greater supply of services and goods, at lower prices, and an increase in employment.

Questo è il capitalismo: Queues form outside Milan food banks as capitalist crisis deepens

The scenes you are going to see are from Milan, the industrial, commercial and financial center of Northern Italy and one of the Europe's wealthiest cities. Hosting a significant number of large multinational groups (e.g. Amazon, Apple, Coca Cola, HP, Huawei, IBM, Microsoft, Nestle, Samsung, Siemens, Vodafone, Whirpool, etc), Milan has in terms of GDP the second-largest economy in the EU after Paris.

But behind the impressive facade of capitalist growth, there is another Milan which reflects the deepening class inequalities and the results of long-time policies by the bourgeois Italian governments and the European Union. 

Who will pay for the crisis? Lufthansa receives $10 billion state bailout and cuts 30,000 jobs

On November 14th we were writing that at least 90,000 people will lose their job by the end of December as a result of mass layoffs by major U.S. airline companies. Aviation giants, such as United Airlines and American Airlines laid off 32,000 workers last October in an attempt to blackmail the U.S. government for higher subsidies.

The COVID-19 pandemic had a serious impact on the aviation industry due to travel restrictions and a significant slump in demand among travellers. No travellers means less profits for the big airliners. In order to reduce losses, the monopolies of aviation proceed to a series of anti-labor measures, including pay cuts, furloughs and, of course, layoffs. 

Youth in Survival Against Pandemic and Capitalism: SOCIALISM or BARBARISM

Twenty European Communist Youth Organizations have gathered on the 103rd anniversary of the Great October Socialist Revolution at the “Online Meeting of European Communist Youth Organizations to Share Experiences” and exchanged their experiences about the struggle of the youth during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Since the outbreak of the pandemic, working people all around the world are envisaging numerous attacks against their rights. Their right to healthcare is getting vandalized by capitalist governments who are promoting private health industry instead of public healthcare. 

KKE MEP Nikolaou-Alavanos: "EU and bourgeois governments defend healthcare's commercialization against people's needs"

The Communist Party of Greece (KKE) MEP Lefteris Nikolaou-Alavanos addressed the plenary session of the European Parliament in the debate on the "Programme for the Union’s action in the field of Health for the period 2021-2027 - EU4Health".

This program seeks to legitimize the inadequacy of public health systems that was proved painfully in the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic and is even more dramatically confirmed in the second. It lays down, among other, the air transportation of doctors from one country with a disintegrated public health system "of one disease" to another, perpetuating the patch of gaps, opening others, while in each case the private health groups are growing richer, destroying the people's income.

Solidarity with the workers and staff in U.S. airlines — No to layoffs, pay cuts and anti-labor measures!

Employment will drop by 90,000 full-time employees by December, according to Airlines for America trade group, which represents major U.S. airlines.

The 90,000 job losses will bring U.S. airlines employment to its lowest level since the mid-1980s by year's end as a result of more than 30,000 furloughs at airlines such as United and American and thousands of other workers from Southwest, Delta Airlines and other carriers accepting buyouts, CNBC reported.

Bureau of Transportation Statistics data that the trade group compiled show the drop from pre-COVID peak in March of 460,000 full-time jobs to 370,000 full-time jobs by year's end.

Hanna Gharib: The socialist ideology has succeeded in the battle against Covid-19, whereas capitalism failed

"The socialist ideology had succeeded in the battle against COVID-19, whereas capitalist-oriented countries had failed. This pandemic had explicitly showed the greedy side of the capitalist system", was the message conveyed by Hanna Gharib, General Secretary of the Lebanese Communist Party, during the online lecture “Socialism and Capitalism in post-COVID-19 era”, organized by the Chinese Communist Party, in partnership with Arab Leftist Parties. 

Hanna Gharib referred on how states like China, Cuba and Vietnam succeeded against the COVID-19 pandemic, in sharp contrast with the failure of most capitalist states to protect their people. (Read here his speech)

Lockdown capitalist policies! KKE slams Greek government's handling of the pandemic

Since November 7th Greece has entered a second nationwide lockdown, following a decision by the conservative New Democracy (ND) government. The lockdown is accompanied by tough penalties for violations of the quarantine and non-observance of social distancing. 

Alongside the lockdown, as the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) mentions, the government has committed crimes against the people's health and safety in order to serve the interests of the capital in a number of industry branches. 

U.S. Election 2020: Neither Trump nor Biden!

By Nikos Mottas.

On November 3rd, the people of the United States of America will vote for the new President and vice president of the country. The two major contestants, current President Donald Trump and the Democratic nominee Joe Biden, are the two sides of the same coin. It is an undeniable truth that they both express the general strategic interests of the U.S. monopoly capital.  

The differences in the political proposals between Trump and Biden reflect the sharpening of the competition between different sections of the U.S. capital. Indeed, a look at the top donors of the two presidential campaigns is indicative of the fierce rivalry that is taking place in the backstage between large monopoly groups.

European Communist Initiative: The pandemic reveals the criminal inadequacy of health systems in all capitalist states

Statement by the European Initiative of Communist and Workers' Parties on the new outbreak of the pandemic:

The new outbreak of the pandemic throughout Europe is a reality that did not come out of thin air. The claims of the bourgeois governments that they “took measures” and “shielded the public health systems” after the first wave of the pandemic, as well as that “in the course of the pandemic the EU wised up and stands in solidarity with the peoples”, are myths.

Following the new wave of the pandemic, all these claims are day by day revealed and bankrupt. The increase in deaths, cases, and intubated patients reveals the responsibility of the EU and the government directions over time, which left the public health systems destitute of staff, infrastructure, ICUs, reagents, and tests.

"Capitalism has led Russia into a 30-year depression", says Moscow City Duma deputy

Moscow City deputy for CPRF Nikolai Zubrilin.

The Lenin State Farm (Lenin Sovkhoz), a 2,000-hectare sprawl of fields growing fruits and vegetables on the outskirts of Moscow faces the danger of closing. 

In what seems to be a coordinated attack from multiple directions, Pavel Grudinin, the Farm’s director and the Communist Party’s presidential candidate in the 2018 elections, faces potential bankruptcy as the Moscow Region Arbitration Court has ordered him to pay a fine of over one million rubles ($15 million) for supposed “illegal transfer of lands”. 

From its side, the Communist Party of the Russian Federation (CPRF) has strongly denounced the “organized attack” against the Lenin State Farm, calling the accusations against Grudinin as arbitrary and lawless. 

Croatia's Socialist Workers' Party (SRP) ready to participate in July 5th parliamentary elections

Under the slogans “Consistent for Socialism” and “Capitalism is barbarism”, the Socialist Workers’ Party of Croatia (SRP) participates in the parliamentary election which will take place on July 5, 2020. 

The Socialist Worker’s Party is a member of the European Communist Initiative and a frequent participant in the International Meeting of Communist and Workers’ Parties (IMCWP).