Finland and Sweden’s Turkey concessions: A win for Erdogan and the NATO war machine
We condemn the unacceptable concessions made by Finland and Sweden to Turkey in order to be inducted as NATO members at the 2022 Madrid summit.
It is a move which both empowers Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s regime in its continued suppression of freedom and rights of the Kurdish people, as well as the further expansion the NATO war machine.
Turkey had initially stood in the way of Finland and Sweden’s entry into NATO, yet that has all changed quickly as the two Nordic countries will now lift previously held restrictions on selling weapons to Ankara, which is highly ironic given that this is a move heralded by the establishment as a ‘win for peace’.
Erdogan’s regime had also accused Finland and Sweden of protecting Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militants and said they would not back their membership as a result but, again, concessions have been made which will likely be used as a blanket justification to persecute innocent Kurds.
It is a fateful day for the political establishment in Finland and Sweden as, by bowing to Erdogan’s demands, they have destroyed a tradition that their predecessors had been carefully building for decades – a tradition of defending people fighting for freedom.
Democracy, freedom and human rights are being eroded on a daily basis and, now, the alleged ‘social-democratic and progressive bloc’ is contributing to the expansion of imperialism and militarisation.
The only correct side of history is the one that opposes all imperialist wars, just as the new Non-Aligned Movement of MERA25, DiEM25 and Progressive International proposes and advocates, and does not choose between crimes against humanity by Vladimir Putin, Erdogan or NATO.
Your NHS Needs You: Comedy night on July 12 in London
‘Your NHS Needs You’ is a campaign that DiEM25 has been proudly supporting since its inception and, now, a comedy night is being hosted on July 12 in London in order to raise funds for the cause, which is to fight against the institution’s privatisation.
Some of the biggest stars in comedy including Jen Brister (MC), Frankie Boyle, Jo Brand, Marcus Brigstocke, Kerry Godliman, Markus Birdman, Rosie Jones, Malinda Mukuma and Michael Rosen are coming together for a brilliant night of entertainment to raise money for Your NHS Needs You.
Your NHS Needs You
While generations of us have been lovingly patched up by our NHS, and proud to fund it with our taxes, successive UK governments have been quietly privatising this cherished institution. Decades of academic research, and the brave campaigning of doctors and nurses, has exposed how this privatisation plot smuggled in private providers and US corporations while selling off NHS land and buildings.
Now, public health experts are sounding the alarm that the current Health and Care Bill is likely to be the nail in the coffin for our public health service. They are warning that the Bill will pave the way for the English NHS to be replaced by the profit-driven American system, in which private health providers are incentivised to cut and deny care to increase profits.
Buy tickets online
Tickets cost £12.20, while discounted £10 tickets are available for NHS Staff, Unwaged, Low-Income, Students, Disabled, OAP’s as well as Unite the Union, DiEM25 and CWU members on a first come first served basis.
Follow this link to make your online purchase, and visit www.yournhsneedsyou.com to find out more about the campaign.
We condemn Spain’s role in migrant deaths at Melilla crossing
The atrocities that were seen at the Spanish-Moroccan border are further proof of the permanent divorce between social democracy and humanitarianism
Following the death of an estimated 23 migrants in their attempt to enter Spain‘s North African enclave of Melilla, we strongly condemn the Spanish government’s actions which led to this atrocity.
The deaths and countless injuries recently witnessed on the Spanish-Moroccan border towards the Melilla enclave, one of the two Spanish enclaves on the Moroccan coast, are further proof of the permanent divorce of social democracy and humanitarianism.
The allegedly progressive Spanish prime minister Pedro Sanchez not only congratulated the combined effort of his own forces and those of Morocco, but also referred to an “attack on the territorial integrity of the country” in regards to the migrants’ attempt to enter into Spanish territory.
As we have grown accustomed to, what the European Union preaches on openness towards migration and refugees is very different in practice.
While on one hand they espouse a humanitarian façade when it comes to refugees from Ukraine, and rightly so, others are not held in the same regard. This selectiveness ultimately demonstrates that the welcoming of refugees is not purely a matter of principle but also subject to political interests and ideologies.
At the same time, it would be an appropriate moment to question exactly what right Spain has to occupy African territory and to build walls of inhumanity there, which lead to so many deaths and injuries on a frequent basis.
Read a statement by MeRA25 in Greece on this same incident here.
Join MERA25 Germany in Bremen on July 23
We invite you to Bremen, Germany on July 23, for an event-filled day with stimulating exchanges of ideas, good music and various guests from different organisations.
The theme of the meeting will be on ‘Prosperity for the many instead of wealth for the few’ and we will discuss whether this is feasible or merely utopic thinking.
Prior to the event, we are hosting a workshop day and we invite DiEM25 and MERA25 members from all over Germany to meet again.
It’s been a long while since we’ve been able to gather in person in a relaxed atmosphere, as COVID-19 made it difficult to host physical meetings. Thankfully, this is now possible again and we can’t wait to be able to host you all in Bremen.
We will work on our organisation as a movement and party, talk about our financial concept ‘Invest: Shared Prosperity for the many’ and organise a People’s Gathering for our programme in Bremen 2023. We don’t want to do all this for you – but with you!
Do you want to join us? Then come to Bremen on July 23. You can sign up following this link. The event starts at 12:00 CEST.
Debt for Climate: An initiative to foster a just green transition
DiEM25 is supporting ‘Debt for Climate’ – a Global South-driven grassroots initiative to turn debt into climate action and create the foundations for a just green transition through self-determination
Debt for Climate is an initiative connecting social, labour and climate justice struggles by uniting movements from the Global South and North in order to turn debt-trap diplomacy on its head. The goal is to cancel the debt of impoverished nations to pave the way for a just transition – the implementation of a global Debt for Climate initiative has the potential to leave trillions of dollars in fossil fuel reserves in the ground, while freeing countries from a strangling debt burden, often used as a tool for further extraction of natural resources. Therefore, we are organising global actions to push these demands during the G7 meeting from June 26 to 28.
Debt is not compatible with climate action. Crippling structural readjustment and repayments place indebted nations at the mercy of multinational predators pushing for fossil fuel extraction. Repaying these odious debts also prevents Global South countries from pursuing a just transition and adapting to global heating.
The G7 can show whether it is serious about climate change by cancelling these debts. The colonial setup of the IMF and World Bank places immense power at the hands of the G7. The US, France, Germany, Japan, and the UK control the largest voting shares, with the US wielding de facto veto power over all major decisions.
If the G7 are genuinely serious about leaving fossil fuels in the ground, they must address the root causes driving continued extraction, which starts by cancelling all Global South debt.
Who owes whom really?
The G7 is disproportionately responsible for climate breakdown, and this amounts to a climate debt immeasurably greater than the financial debt ‘owed’ by low-emitting countries in the Global South. However, this climate debt is just the tip of a centuries-old imperialist iceberg which conceals exploitation, colonisation, and enslavement.
Debt for Climate demands that the richest countries of the Global North begin to pay their climate debt. This encompasses the demands for reparations, loss and damage, and climate finance, which must not come in the form of loans but as interest-free payments. The unconditional cancellation of all illegitimate Global South debt is part of rectifying hundreds of years of injustices.
While we cannot yet disclose all of the information, due to strategic reasons for civil disobedience, we can tell you that direct actions are going to take place in over 25 countries globally, in the Americas, Europe, Africa, Australia and Asia. If you’d like to join or even organise one in your city, please contact [email protected].
Erik Edman: Assange decision a threat to press freedom worldwide
DiEM25’s Political Director spoke to the Greek daily newspaper Ethnos about the Assange extradition decision and its wider ramifications
The shocking decision from the UK government to extradite Julian Assange to the United States is a threat to freedom of press as a whole, according to DiEM25 political director Erik Edman.
In an interview with Greek daily newspaper Ethnos, Erik summed up his feelings about the recent ruling which he described as “the last chapter in a long-standing plot”.
Yet UK Home Secretary Priti Patel’s inhumane decision will not be accepted without a fight, as Erik reiterated that there will be a series of civil society actions pushing for the ultimate objective of freeing Assange.
The latest chapter in a decade-long plot
“This is essentially the latest chapter of a story that did not begin with the imprisonment of Julian Assange in Britain but started long before that, when he took refuge at the Ecuadorian embassy in London,” Erik told Ethnos.
“So it goes back more than a decade. At its heart lays a major plot and a character assassination attempt – if one also takes into account the accusation of the alleged rape of women in Sweden, which was dropped after his imprisonment – with the aim sending him to a Guantanamo-type prison in the US.”
Referring to the recent ruling, he notes that “it does not come as a surprise, but it is a tragedy because it is not Assange who is really being persecuted, but freedom of the press, especially at a time when the Russian crimes we see in Ukraine are condemned every day and indeed by the US and its NATO allies, while at the same time the man who exposed similar crimes by the US and its allies in Iraq and Afghanistan is being persecuted. So there is a frightening hypocrisy here, indeed at a very dangerous time”.
Hope is not lost yet
Erik, however, believes not all hope is lost yet despite the disappointing decision, with civil society still able to play a telling role in restoring justice.
“There will be an effort by the legal team of Assange to overturn the Home Secretary’s decision, although the initial indications we have are not positive,” he said.
“But at the end of the day they never were, as this course of action was predetermined.
“What has been proven to have an impact are movements and campaigns from civil society across Europe and the world, and that is why we are also currently organising a mass mailing of letters from citizens to Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
“That is, we are giving people worldwide the opportunity to demand that Julian Assange is not extradited to the US and in doing so we are calling on the UK to stand up for Freedom of Speech, not just for the British but for everyone, because this case and the way it has been handled has a huge impact worldwide, both for journalists and for all democratic citizens.”
Reclaiming Italian labour rights: DiEM25 launches ‘Lavoro se’ campaign
Co-founder Yanis Varoufakis was present in support of the new initiative which seeks to assist in reclaiming labour rights in Italy
DiEM25 was in Milan on Tuesday for the launch of our ‘Lavoro se‘ campaign, a radical new initiative to reclaim labour rights in Italy, which saw the participation of Yanis Varoufakis, Daniela Padovan, Martina Comparelli and Federico Dolce.
As the only European country where the average wage has decreased over the last 30 years, Italy needs to see drastic change in the labour market, and ‘Lavoro se’ looks to put that right with a set of radical proposals.
Thirty years of neoliberal policies have resulted in more than four million people living below the poverty line and the country continues to experience skyrocketing youth unemployment, widespread undeclared work and an asphyxiated labour market.
“To be able to defend our rights, we need to be able to attack. We need to unite movements, around a common programme, and together bring the fight to capital,” Yanis Varoufakis said.
“This campaign sounds provocative, with provocative proposals, but it only does because we live in an Orwellian world,” DiEM25 in Italy spokesperson Federico Dolce added.
“Talking about labour rights and jobs is fundamental in the fight against poverty, but it is also more than that,” DiEM25 political director Erik Edman stated.
“It is the perfect tool to address the other huge issues of our time, like the environmental transition, gender equality, migration, education, patriarchy and in essence, capitalism itself.”
The Lavoro Se campaign’s four policy proposals to end labour exploitation in Italy
- Right to disconnect and reduce working time: We work too long and we are always reachable, reduction of working time to 36 hours and right to disconnection to have more free time and more attention to the needs of the individual
- Wage increases: Wages must rise again, wage increases decided at contract renewals must be tax-free
- Universal Basic Income: A basic income that allows the freedom to choose one’s work, no longer forced to accept any job under any conditions
- Citizenship work: Everyone has the right to have a job where they live so there is a need for a comprehensive public plan linked to the needs of the community
If you live in Italy, support Lavoro se by going to the campaign website and taking five simple online actions now, and join DiEM25 to help us build a movement that will reshape Italian politics.
We congratulate Progressive International member Gustavo Petro on his election as president of Colombia
For the first time in its history, Colombia will have a left-wing government
Gustavo Petro, a council member of DiEM25’s sister organisation Progressive International, has been elected president of Colombia and Francia Márquez, an environmental and human rights activist, will become the country’s first black vice-president. The Progressive International has been at Petro‘s side throughout the election period to ensure the transparency and validity of the electoral process.
Petro was previously a member of a city guerrilla group before moving into politics. A long-time senator, he won the election by promising to reform the economic system and managing to mobilise voters who had for years been marginalised and plagued by poverty and inequality.
Facing a construction tycoon in his presidential bid, he managed to register a victory with 50.47 percent of the vote, compared to 47.27 percent for his opponent. Petro will take office in August, and will immediately have to work on alleviating public dissatisfaction over the rising cost of living and lack of employment opportunities.
After Peru, Chile and Honduras, the third largest country in Latin America is embarking on a new path, and there are many challenges that the new president will face: deforestation in the Amazon, record migration flows to the US, social polarisation and distrust of institutions. In his first statements after the victory, Petro called for unity, dialogue and understanding. and pledged that there would be no political persecution.
We congratulate Petro and Márquez for this unprecedented triumph. Though this victory belongs to the people of Colombia, it will no doubt inspire millions far beyond its borders, including DiEM25 and MERA25 members and supporters across Europe.
We too can rise up, and we too can win.
MeRA25 slams Greece, Turkey and EU for ‘embarrassing’ attitude towards refugees
Greece and Turkey are again embroiled in a heated dispute over the crossings of refugees into the European Member state, with one blaming the other over who should take responsibility, which puts innocent lives in danger.
MeRA25 has issued a statement in which it has called out the leaders of Greece and Turkey, as well as the European Union as a whole, for their role in the continuous deaths seen in the Mediterranean.
Full MeRA25 statement on the latest Greece-Turkey refugee dispute:
“It is embarrassing and humiliating for Greeks and Europeans that our governments are investing in increasing human deaths in the Mediterranean to stop the most natural of human behaviours: that of migration. It is especially hypocritical if we think about how Europeans have, for centuries, either migrated or colonised large parts of the world.
Our governments and the European Union, in collaboration with Turkey since 2015, are murdering refugees and migrants at sea, serving the worst of European far-right agendas. So-called pushbacks have become common practice as much as by Frontex as the coast guards of Europe’s peripheral nations, but our nations and the EU refuse to even acknowledge them.
European duplicity, which views authoritarian leaders like Recep Tayyip Erdogan as partners as long as it serves their interests, has been made apparent in the shift with which the EU changed its footing in its relationship with Vladimir Putin’s regime.
We cannot afford to suffer the same illusions with Turkey until it is too late, especially when Kyriakos Mitsotakis – a favourite stooge of the EU establishment – is taking Greece in the same authoritarian direction. Greece ranked 108th out of 180 nations for freedom of speech this year, by far the worst ranking of an EU member, while anyone who tries to point at this fact is met with the same treatment as those pointing to pushbacks: governmental denial and derision for anti-Greek sentiment.
The latest scandal is the heightened pressure that the Greek government has exercised on MEPs of the European Parliament’s Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE) to prevent them from signing a letter expressing concern for pushbacks in Greece’s Evros River. Greece, under the leadership of New Democracy, is devolving into a pariah state, and that should worry all Europeans.”