“The General Guidelines of the 2014-2015 EDON Action Plan”

Statements of Christos Christofias, General Secretary of EDON, at the press conference on  after the plenary of the Central Council of EDON

 Wednesday 23rd September 2015,

offices of the C.C. of EDON, Nicosia

 

On 17th September 2015 the 15th plenary of the Central Council of EDON convened to discuss the “2014-2015 Action Plan”. After a discussion on the political and organizational goals of the Organization for this year, the session of the C.C. of EDON unanimously concluded the following:

1. Today the people of Cyprus are facing many critical problems that demand their tackling and not the shifting of responsibilities. Our people, especially the young generation, are currently suffering even more intensely from the brutal effects of the global capitalist crisis. The decisions approved by the Eurogroup and the Anastasiades government in March 2013 and the anti-social policies of the current government are characterized by vicious austerity, privatizations, cuts and blind obedience to the Troika, which serve only the privileged few and that will supposedly kick-start the economy and put Cyprus on the path of growth.

2. The deadlocks to which imperialism is leading, the violation of human rights and International Law in the name of supposedly combating terrorism, the domination and immunity of the US and their NATO allies, the intensification of imperialist interventions because of the crisis, as well as the sharpening of inter-imperialist contradictions, are setting even more urgently before us the need to step up our anti-imperialist struggle and solidarity.

3. In our region upheavals are taking place that can directly be expressed through NATO military operations. The arming of extremist Islamic elements (for example, the “Islamic State” organization) by the US and its allies to overthrow regimes hostile to the US and the promotion of the plans for a “New Middle East” by any means has again led to the massacre of the peoples of Iraq, Libya, Egypt, Lebanon and Syria. These policies lead to the further destabilization of the region, exacerbating at a tragic level the plight of migrants and refugees who are drowning, by the thousands, in the Mediterranean Sea.

4. We are continuing our struggle against the machinations, both within and outside Cyprus, for Cyprus’ accession to the NATO program “Partnership for Peace” and NATO itself. Particular attention must be given this year too to the struggle against the anti-communist hysteria that is rising and which has as its principal goal the distortion of history.

5. For yet another year we have the duty to maintain and strengthen among the youth the need to fulfil our strategic goal of the liberation and reunification of our country and people on the basis of a bi-communal, bi-zonal federation with political equality, as described in the resolutions adopted by the United Nations; the goal of a solution with a united single state with a single and indivisible sovereignty, a single international personality and a single citizenship; a solution that will free Cyprus from the occupation, colonization and any foreign dependencies; a solution that will safeguard the human rights and fundamental freedoms of the Cypriot people as a whole.

6. EDON supports the negotiation procedure, without this meaning that we give a blank check and free hand to President Anastasiades. President Anastasiades’ initial insistence on resuming talks from scratch led to the bringing back of unacceptable positions by the Turkish Cypriot side during the leadership of Eroglu, which had previously been excluded with the Christofias – Talat convergences. The bringing back of most of the convergences that were reached between Christofias-Talat in the period 2008-10 by President Anastasiades and the discussion of the outstanding core issues – belatedly of course following the pressure exerted by AKEL – led to more mobility in the negotiations, something that vindicates the position which EDON had upheld from the very outset.

7. EDON categorically declares that it is not going to consent to a solution that includes Cyprus’ accession to NATO or/and deviation from the principle of demilitarization.

8. It is regrettable that today the Anastasiades Government is cancelling all the plans that had been elaborated and drawn up during the Christofias administration which aimed to exploit our natural wealth as soon as possible. This is taking place at the same time as the utilization of natural gas could represent a factor of peace and prosperity for our people, especially now that the Cypriot people are suffering under the yoke of the Memorandum.

9. We have a duty to strengthen the belief that the solution is not only necessary, but also feasible. We must maintain the channels of communication with the Turkish Cypriot community and Turkish Cypriot progressive youth movement open and contribute to the broader effort so as to ensure that the procedure of the direct talks will have the best possible chance of arriving at a successful outcome.

10. EDON, will remain a firm and steadfast opponent of nationalism – chauvinism, backwardness, fascism and right-wing ideologies that poison relations between the two communities.

11. On the domestic front, EDON will continue on the one hand the struggle against the forces of fatalism and servility to American interests, as well as against the forces of maximalist, nationalist goals and objectives on the other.

12. We express our deep concern about the activity of extreme right wing fascist organizations in Cyprus. Their rhetoric and slogans are reminiscent of the period of the treacherous activity of EOKA B. The racist and xenophobic rhetoric they profess to is promoting inhuman mentalities in Cypriot society.

13. At the same time we have to struggle against the Turkish and other imperialist machinations to promote the upgrading of the pseudo-state, which would without doubt lead to the finalization of the partition of our homeland.

14. Today, socio-economic developments in our country are determined by the implementation of the Memorandum that was agreed with the Troika by the Anastasiades Government. The philosophy of the Memorandum is founded on the devastating prescriptions of austerity which in practice lead to an even deeper recession excluding growth.

15. The implementation of the Memorandum provisions led to a deeper recession, the closure of thousands of small businesses, a sharp increase in unemployment, cuts in wages, pensions and benefits, to the impoverishment of the Cypriot people and the undermining of the welfare state.

16. The government’s anti-social socio-economic policies will be intensified through the promotion of so-called “structural reforms”. In reality these “reforms” are nothing but an all-round deregulation which does not improve the economy to the benefit of society, but completes the selling off of public wealth and assets, as well as the deregulation of labour relations.

17. EDON insists that the consequences of the systemic crisis and the problems of the banking system cannot be loaded on the backs of the poor, the unemployed, low paid, pensioners, farmers, small and medium strata, on the young generation and small and medium shopkeepers.

18. As difficult as it maybe, the struggle will be daily and fierce – in schools, universities, workplaces and where youth congregate. We will fight to offer an alternative to the problems young people are confronted with, pointing out the need for organized struggle, creating bulwarks and bastions of resistance to the social impasse of capitalism, such as the scourge of drugs and other addictions.

19. EDON will remain the leading assertive militant force among the youth, projecting with clarity our own distinct ideological – political content and character within the youth movement and society in general. Our effort will as always have be based on our own class approach in order to serve the interests of the common people, school pupils, students, working youth and the young people fulfilling their military service.

20. To combat the policy of austerity, attacks on wages, pensions and rights, to combat the danger of the sale of family homes and privatizations, we need to react strongly with the power of popular mobilization and this will only be done by taking the path of struggle, rejecting defeatism, misery and fatalism.

21. The abstention in elections and the lack of young people’s participation in social and political affairs does not create the conditions for change. On the contrary, it rewards the policies that want us slaves and obedient to the Troika and the dead-end policy of the Memorandum.

22. We believe that the young generation, especially the unemployed and those directly suffering from the consequences of the capitalist crisis, must give the most powerful response to the above-mentioned. Young people’s anger and resentment should not be channelled without having effects, but should be decisive and militant through the waging of organized mass struggles.

23. Particularly in a year when the District Conferences and the 18th Pancyprian Congress of EDON will be held, we must collectively realise in the best possible way our political and organizational goals.