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Independent Unions And Human Rights Groups Reject Army’s Attack On Suez Steel Workers

Tuesday, 13 August,2013

We Reject the Army’s Attack on Suez Steel Workers and Demand the Immediate Release of those Detained *

It has been almost one and a half months since the removal of [former Egyptian President Mohamed] Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) from power by popular pressure from the masses who did not see a difference between the MB’s politics and those of [deposed President Hosni] Mubarak in their hostility towards people’s demands of “bread, freedom, and social justice.”

After the toppling of Mubarak, Tantawi, and Morsi in successive revolutionary waves, from 25 January 2011 to 30 June 2013, neither [current Commander in Chief of the Egyptian Armed Forces Abdel Fattah el-Sisi], nor [interim President Adly] Mansour or his Prime Minister Hazem al-Beblawi seem to have learned the lesson. They continue to deceive the masses, neglecting the demand of social justice in the transitional phase, under the pretext of the war against terror.

The new Mansour-Sisi government is using the old methods against striking workers, who were in the forefront of the people’s struggle, since the Mahalla strike of 2006, which overthrew Mubarak, then Tantawi, then Morsi, whose terms witnessed the greatest wave of workers striking for their rights.

Now, two leaders of the Suez Steel Company workers’ strike, Amr Yousef and Abdel-Raouf Abdel-Khaleq, have been arrested, under the watchful eyes of the police, and army forces are laying siege on the factory.

The problem goes back to February 2012, when the protesting workers succeeded in drawing up a collective contract, which contained a number of basic demands, mainly related to profits, career structure, healthcare, and incentives. A disagreement broke out concerning the implementation of some of the demands, especially those connected with company profits.

The company’s owner claimed that the establishment is losing and indebted to several banks. However, as an alternative to a share of the profits, the workers suggested the disbursement of an incentive during a Ramadan iftar attended by the company’s Chairman of the Board of Directors and the workers.

The chairman repeated that the company was losing. However, the workers confronted him with data showing that the company’s factory units have been raised to 4 and that it managed to donate 3 million Egyptian Pounds (LE) [around US$430,000] for the reconstruction of Egypt and payment of its debts.

The next day, the workers were shocked to find out that 12 of their colleagues were dismissed. The debate and negotiations took a new turn. The workers called for their demands in full, but the management rejected them one by one and ordered them to go back to work first, before any discussion on demands.

The workers rejected this categorically and the strike continued until today. Police forces have arrested two of them and the army is surrounding the factory.

The escalating wave of workers’ protests and strikes recently shows that the Egyptian revolution is not over yet and that the working class struggle continues until the goals of the revolution are achieved.

The undersigned groups reaffirm their support for all workers’ strikes and their adoption of the workers’ legitimate demands.

They call on all workers’, political, and union leaders in other positions to show solidarity with their colleagues in Suez Steel Company and stand by them facing the regime’s assaults against workers, which tomorrow might move to 10th of Ramadan City or Alexandria or Port Said.

The undersigned condemn the army siege on the protest and the arrest of workers. It calls on the Labor Force Minister Kamal Abu Eita to handle the situation without delay, release the detained workers immediately, send the army away from the factory walls, and fulfill the demands of the workers.

*Update : At 4 Pm, Tuesday, Aug 13th, 2014 , the two Workers detained by the Army were released on a 500 L.E. bail.