Union Leaders Arrested in the North

Statement from the Trade Union Platform
[Türkçe: for Turkish, please see below]

Photos

2-08-2010

The separatist political regime which was established in the north part of our island, have been continuing its economic and political pressure upon the Turkish Cypriots in order to push them to immigrate from the island. Current measurements about salary, wages and taxes which are all imposed by Turkey are trying to be put into practice by the comprador authorities these days.

Our trade unions organized a general strike as well as an existential meeting today, in order to protest the tax measurements which was on the agenda of the parliament. Our trade unionists confronted the police’s aggressive attitude. Because of the aggression between police and activists, the police used disproportional power in the meeting and arrested 7 trade unionists first, and then they arrested the trade union presidents who claimed their friends release and ended up with the probation of 24 people. Among the arrested trade unionists were Guven Varoglu - President of KTOS, Adnan Eraslan - President of KTOEOS, Ahmet Kaptan - President of KTAMS, Mehmet Özkardaş - President of KAMUSEN, Yakup Latifoglu – President of HURIS Federation, Sami Dilek – President of KAMUIS, Ersin Hurdoganoglu- CAGSEN Secretary General, Tulug Kalyoncu- ELSEN President, DEVIS President Mehmet Seyis, HAVASEN President Buran Atakan and Oguz Kose - President of Nurses and Midwives Trade Union.

The main target is, to omit the trade unions without administration and to eliminate the trade unions as a whole.

Turkey, as the guarantour, sent military troops to the island in 1974 in order to protect the territory of the Republic of Cyprus and in order to stop the conflict; so [it] divided the island and created a subordinate local administration in the north of the island. The only responsible element for what has been happening now is the Turkish Government. Moreover, the Turkish Cypriots are being forced for immigration with these pressures.

In order to protest the systematic pressure upon Turkish Cypriots by the police state which is created and in order to release the arrested trade unionists, we kindly invite you for solidarity to raise our voices even louder.

Best Regards

On behalf of Trade Union Platform,
Sener ELCİL / ŞENER ELCİL

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Editorial Statement

Our best regards, thoughts and warmest feelings of solidarity are with the arrested Union members, their loved ones, and with all the labour activists in the North.

The confrontation revolves around two parallel fronts:
o- the struggle for cultural survival and autonomy for the Turkish Cypriot community;
and,
o- the struggle for control of the economy by the workers; and for wages, benefits and taxes proportioned appropriately in order to oppose poverty and contribute to more justice and to the well-being of the whole of of society.

We embrace these two struggles and we believe that the current orientation of labour struggles led by the Turkish Cypriot Unions can be one of the foundations for a secure and lasting Peace in our country.

We also very happy to note the presence of our comrades from the radical cultural group Baraka at the protests:
http://www.baraka.cc/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=542&Itemid=596

One Big Union!
Cyprus IndyMedia Collective
http://CyprusIndyMedia.org


































































A General Strike in North Cyprus?
http://cyprusindymedia.blogspot.com/2010/07/general-strike-in-north-cyprus.html

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2-08-2010

Adamızın kuzeyinde Türkiye tarafından kurdurulan ayrılıkçı siyasi rejim, Kıbrıslı türkleri adadan göç ettirmek için ekonomik ve siyasi baskılarına devam etmektedir. Türkiye tarafından dayatılan maaş, ücret ve vergi yasalarının Türkiye’ye benzetilmesi ile ilgili çalışmalar, içinde bulunduğumuz günlerde işbirlikçi yöneticiler tarafından hayata geçirilmeye çalışılmaktadır.

Bugün meclis gündemine gelen vergi düzenlemesi ile ilgili yasa tasarısını protesto etmek için genel grev ve toplumsal varoluş mitingi düzenleyen sendikalarımız, polisin saldırgan tutumuyla karşı karşıya kalmıştır. Miting eylemi esnasında polisle göstericiler arasında cereyan eden itişmelerden dolayı, orantısız güç kullanan polis, önce 7 sendikacıyı tutuklamış, bunu protesto eden ve tutuklananların serbest bırakılmasını talep eden sendika başkanlarını da tutuklayarak 24 kişiyi gözaltına almıştır. Tutuklanan sendikacılar arasında, KTÖS Başkanı Güven Varoğlu, KTOEÖS Başkanı Adnan Eraslan, KTAMS Başkanı Ahmet Kaptan, KAMUSEN Başkanı Mehmet Özkardaş, HÜRİŞ Federasyonu Başkanı Yakup Latifoğlu, Kamuiş Başkanı Sami Dilek, ÇAĞSEN Genel Sekreteri Ersin Hürdoğanoğlu, ELSEN Başkanı Tuluğ Kalyoncu, Hemşiereler ve Ebeler Birliği Başkanı Oğuz Köse, DEVİŞ Başkanı Mehmet Seyis, HAVASEN Başkanı Buran Atakan da vardır.

Temel hedef, sendikaları yönetimsiz bırakıp sendikal yaşamı ortadan kaldırmaktır.

1974 yılında Kıbrıs Cumhuriyeti’nin toprak bütünlüğünü korumak ve anayasal nizamını tekrardan tesis edip adamızda devam eden çatışmaları durdurmak için garantörlük görevi çerçevesinde adaya asker göndermiş ve adamızı ikiye bölerek kuzey tarafta kendine bağlı bir alt yönetim oluşturmuştur. Şu anda yaşanan gelişmelerin tek sorumlusu Türkiye hükümetidir. Dayatılan yasaları yapan da Türkiye ve bu baskılarla Kıbrıslı türkler göçe zorlanmaktadır.

Yaratılan polis devletinin aracılığı ile Kıbrıs türklerine uygulanan sistematik baskıların kınanması ve tutuklananların derhal serbest bırakılması için uluslararası kamuoyunun dayanışmasını ve protestosunu bekliyoruz.

Saygılarımızla,

Sendikal Platform Adına
ŞENER ELCİL

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A General Strike in North Cyprus?

There is information emerging that a General Strike has been called for Monday, July 5th by more than 35 Labour Unions in northern Cyprus, representing the vast majority of Turkish Cypriot working people.

Information is scant but it points to:

o- A politicized perception of the General Strike by its organizers going beyond plain economic demands and linking it to issues of independence from the occupation regime installed in the north by force and directed by the Armed Forces of Turkey;

o- Strikers are reportedly preparing for at least one day of action, but not limiting their options to it, remaining open for a wider and perhaps protracted struggle;

o- Already the occupation regime and its major illegal corporations are reeling from the General Strike before it even materialized. Airlines are changing their schedules (please see under "Sources /Reports", below).

o- Issues at stake for the General Strike are related to wages and benefits, of course, but also revolve around whether the Government of Turkey, as the occupying power, will continue to determine the economy (in addition to the political and military situation), or whether the economy of northern Cyprus will be allowed local, Turkish Cypriot autonomy and self-sufficiency in the fields of production and finance.


We give our warmest greetings of solidarity to the organizers and we hope the Strike materializes successfully!

Editorial Collective,
http://CyprusIndyMedia.org
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Further Sources

1. The Wider Context of the Ongoing Struggle

"This Homeland is Ours" said the masses; Turkish Cypriot Uprising of 2002-3
by Turgut Durduran
http://www.cyprusaction.org/protests/articles/durduran022003.html

Northern Cyprus: The Turkish Cypriot Revolt That Rocked The Turkish Occupation
by Steven Katsineris
http://69.16.253.89/cyprus15931.html

V.I. Lenin:
A Caricature of Marxism and Imperialist Economism
...Central to all the disquisitions of the self-determination opponents is the claim that it is generally “unachievable” under capitalism or imperialism. The word “unachievable” is frequently used in widely different and inaccurately defined meanings. That is why in our theses we insisted on what is essential in any theoretical discussion: an explanation of what is meant by “unachievable”. Nor did we confine ourselves to that. We tried to give such an explanation. All democratic demands are “unachievable” under imperialism in the sense that politically they are hard to achieve or totally unachievable without a series of revolutions.
It is fundamentally wrong, however, to maintain that self-determination is unachievable in the economic sense.
That has been our contention. It is the pivotal point of our theoretical differences, a question to which our opponents in any serious discussion should have paid due attention."
http://www.marxists.org/archive/lenin/works/1916/carimarx/3.htm#v23pp64h-040

Antonio Gramsci:
The Modern Prince
Some Theoretical and Practical Aspects of "Economism"
http://www2.cddc.vt.edu/marxists/archive/gramsci/editions/spn/modern_prince/ch07.htm


2. Rumours, Reports and Ruminations

"Earlier, Kamu-Sen President Mehmet Ozkardas accused the government of trying to reduce the income of people receiving salaries from the state. He said the Unions will continue their actions until the draft law is withdrawn by the government.
Meanwhile, three major airlines operating in North Cyprus, Cyprus Turkish Airlines, Atlas Jet and Pegasus have announced changes in their flight schedules due to tomorrow’s general strike.

Cyprus Turkish Airlines and Atlas Jet flights have rescheduled their flights to before or after the strike, expected to last between 8 am-6pm tomorrow in order to minimize any annoyances or problems passengers may face. Pegasus Airlines on the other hand has cancelled most of its flights for tomorrow, redirecting passengers to other flights."
http://www.cyprus-forum.com/cyprus18682-20.html

General Strike in north Cyprus on Monday 5th July 2010
http://www.northcyprusfreepress.com/2010/07/03/general-strike-in-north-cyprus-on-monday-5th-july-2010/

General Strike on Monday
"...information on the cessation of funds is more of a worry as if the Turkish Government stop supporting North Cyprus it truly will become bankrupt and inflation will be rampant. The Turkish Government and Turkey has been generously bankrolling the TRNC for many years. The idea of a strike is a little quaint and the effects will be temporary (although bad for some people on the day); if Turkey stops it’s support the effects will be far more severe."
http://www.cyprus44.com/forums/39656.asp

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