water
Tropical waterfight: the struggle for basic services in Caracas, Venezuela
A combination of climate change and an incompetent, inefficient state bureaucracy has left basic services such as water and electricity as something of a luxury for many caraqueños, and contrary to the rhetoric of the chavista propaganda machine, it's a situation that is worsening.
Get up, check the taps, then plan your day. That's pretty much routine for the vast majority of caraqueños. In the rancho (hilltop barrio) where I live, the water goes off - on average - 2-3 days a week, and that's actually pretty good going in comparison.
Mass rebellion in South Africa
In South Africa the state is being confronted by an eruption of self organised popular protest on a scale not seen since the 1980s. This article, from the mainstream press there, gives a much better overview than the articles in the British press that miss the politics of the rebellion.
Burning message to the state in the fire of poor’s rebellion
Richard Pithouse
Scottish Water workers vote on industrial action
Scottish Water workers are being balloted on industrial action after the employer imposed a below inflation pay rise which had not been agreed.
The imposition of a 3% rise over 15 months – worth 2.4% over a year – ended six years of partnership working between the company and staff.
"This pay cut is simply not acceptable when inflation is rising – recently reaching 5.2% - energy prices are rising by anything up to 30% and food by 11%," said branch secretary Steve Scott.
Belfast anti-water charges picket forces recruitment cancellation
Campaigners claimed their protest today a victory after it was announced that Echo Managed Services, the company responsible for recovering unpaid water charges had cancelled its much publicised open recruitment day.
Echo would collect on behalf of the new water company Northern Ireland Water Ltd.
Secretary of the We Won't Pay Campaign Gary Mulcahy speaking at the protest today warned Echo that today's protest was the first of many to target it's headquarters on Upper Queen St in Belfast.
Phiri water struggles, 2004
Short article about a water struggle in 2004 in South Africa.
Water struggles in Mpumalanga
An article about struggle over water supplies Mpumalanga , South Africa.
Water struggles in South Africa
An article on struggles over water supplies in South Africa since 2000
1993-1996: The Dublin fight against water charges
A short history of the successful direct action campaign of non-payment which prevented the imposition of charges for water in Dublin, Ireland.
Winning the water war
Hydro-jihad: water conflict and the class struggle - Melancholic Troglodytes
The Iraq War underlined the significance of three main commodities in the Middle East, namely: labour power, oil and water. This text investigates the role of water in relation to the class struggle.
"To the man who refuses his surplus water, Allah will say: 'Today, I refuse thee my favor, just as thou refused the surplus of something that thou hadst not made thyself."
Water torture - Privatisation leaves us high and dry
Brighton news sheet Schnews takes an irreverent look at the privatisation of water supplies in the UK, which since 1988 has lead to huge price hikes for users and bumper profits for corporations – a situation being repeated the world over.
Corporations have to splash out billions every year to persuade us to buy unneeded crap. But no such problems exist when they have a grip on more essential, life-sustaining, natural resources, like water. You don’t need to fork out millions for flashy PR men and mount big dollar advertising splashes to flog H2O. Who has to persuade us to use water? They’ve got us over a barrel on that one.
