A discussion on another thread made me think of starting on about what the term 'intervention' actually means in concrete terms.
Now SeaSol's just one example, and i'm not without my criticisms either. Nor is this approach without problems and pitfalls of its own. But i think the difference in approach stems from the basic assumption about the role of revolutionaries - whether it is to organise or to intervene. While there isn't a strict dichotomy, there are clear organisational and practical consequences to this which tend to be self-reinforcing (i.e. if you set yourself up for interventions you focus on building a tight political organisation with detailed positions and are less oriented to everyday organising, if you focus on everyday organising you tend not to develop detailed positions on things and so interventions are of a different nature to those of political groups etc).
I'd like to know what you think of our interventions in the TEKEL struggle. Unfortunately the leaflets aren't on-line in English at the moment. I will try to post some of the leaflets and a summary of what we did on a different thread in the nest week or so.
i'll have a read when english documents are available. i'd imagine they're politically astute and well-written, but my argument (as above) is even the best-executed interventions are structurally limited by the nature of intervention itself (i mean i'm proud of Tea Break, but without any prexisting networks/contacts, formal or otherwise it had no discernable impact). i mean i'm sure it's possible to build up a relationship with workers during a big public struggle, and thus for them to have time for your arguments, and i'd be interested to read your TEKEL stuff. now i'm not against interventions, i'm against making them a strategic orientation for revolutionary organisation.
I don't have the documents to hand yet, my computer died recently, and I lost everything. There is a pamphlet on it available in Turkish, and German. The translations were done via English so the English versions of everything must exist somewhere. I will try to find them soon.
The contents of the pamphlet, which was produced after the struggle had virtually ended (all links are to English versions):
1) Introduction
2) Turkey: Solidarity with TEKEL workers' resistance against government and unions!
A detailed article from our paper discussing events in the first half of the struggle.
3) [url=Tekel strike: How to organise outside the unions?]TEKEL strike: How to organise outside the unions?[/url]
A detailed article from our paper discussing events in the second half of the struggle.
4) Thoughts on the Ankara experience: Lessons of the TEKEL struggle.
5) General Strike or Mass strike?
ICC leaflet
6) What happened in the TEKEL struggle 2 March to 2nd April: A balance sheet, why do the unions exist? Published in English as "If the unions are on our side, why are there 15,000 riot police between us and them?"
Article from our paper written by a TEKEL worker
7) Hand in Hand
ICC leaflet
8)What happens tomorrow?
ICC leaflet
9) Letter from Hanover in Germany to the TEKEL workers
I don't think the letter from the workers in Hanover exists in English, but the three leaflets and the other article from our paper do. As I said I will try to find them soon. The three articles linked to now explain the history of the struggle more than our actual interventions.
So what did we do.
* We produced three leaflets.
* We covered the struggle in our press
* We organised (with FAU/IWA)a speaking tour for a striker to speak in Germany
* We produced a pamphlet after the struggle (Also available in German)
* We had a virtually continual presence at the protests constantly discussing with workers and their supporters
* We distributed information internationally about the struggle, and collected money abroad for a group of militant workers
* We hosted many TEKEL workers in our homes on numerous occasions (reading the articles about the struggle will explain why this was necessary.
* We set up a website for a group of militant workers from the struggle
Other things might come to me later.
Anyway, I will look for copies of the other articles, but maybe this can set a basis for a discussion.
Devrim
I messed up the link on one point, and you can't edit the opening post on this forum.
It should be:
3) TEKEL strike: How to organise outside the unions?
Devrim