Conference brings together activists from across Europe

Last weekend L&S members met with delegates representing groups from France, Switzerland, Norway, Denmark and Ireland (with an Italian group keen but unable to attend) to discuss how the various groups could work more closely together.  This international meeting, the second conference of European Anarkismo groups, agreed to a coordination committee being set up to structure and promoteinteraction between the groups, along with a basic platform around trade union issues:

1. Against social partnership: for an organising agenda.
2. The structure of the unions: for industrial unionism/industrial unity for struggle.
3. For the political independence of the unions, and for independent political action.
4. For an independent rank and file - a unionism of the base -  within those unions which have the largest or most militant mobilising capacity. Striking the balance between combativity and avoiding isolating ourselves from the working class.
5. How we shall win – solidarity through a rank and file movement for political independence, rank and file control, and against sectional interest/for industrial unity.
6. For developing international links between union militants.

The Anarkismo project is primarily an international website run by class-struggle anarchists and libertarian socialists from across the world, with participation from as far afield as Brazil and Canada. Over time the website has gradually developed into a political alliance around the way our groups seek to involve ourselves in broader organisations such as unions, what is often known as dual-organisationalism, Platformism or Espcifism depending on what part of the globe you hail from.

This weekend’s conference represented a great step forward for Anarkismo affiliated groups within Europe and should set up a solid basis for joint industrial work, aiming to bring workplace activists across Europe together in powerful industrial unions.