FORTRESS EUROPE

A Candan

The topic of my presentation is “Fortress Europe”. As the topic covers issues around migration I shall start by saying a few words about migration.

Migration has existed in the world throughout history. There are few places in the world where the demography of a land has not changed through migration over the years. Nevertheless all migration has at its source economic - political and social factors. Migrating labour finds its meaning in this framework. Where does “Fortress Europe” fit in, in this equation? We should look at the need for labour of the capitalist mode of production at the stage it has reached today. This will also highlight the focal points of the struggle of the working class.

Marx says in the Manifesto that the history of society is the history of class struggles. The core at the European Union has been the free movement of capital and goods within the Union together with the free movement of labour and the freedom to sell his labour within its borders. However legislation has always limited the movement of labour, particularly of migrant labour subject to the needs of capital and the level of class struggle prevailing at the time. Therefore although it may appear paradoxical, one can find anti-racist laws, rights for migrants, and at the same time the flouting of refugee conventions, arbitrary decisions by government departments concerning migrant labour, institutionalised racism and xenophobia.

There are two features which determine the approach of the working class to migrant labour. Firstly that labour migration is a progressive thing. As Lenin says: “...hundreds of thousands of workers thus wander hundreds and thousands of versts¹. Advanced capitalism drags them forcibly into its orbit, tears them out of the backwoods in which they live, makes them participants in the world-historical movement and brings them face to face with the powerful, united, international class of factory owners…only reactionaries can shut their eyes to the progressive significance of this modern migration of nations. Emancipation from the yoke of capital is impossible without the further development of capitalism, and without the class struggle that is based on it. And it is into this struggle that capitalism is drawing the masses of the working people of the whole world, breaking down the musty, fusty habits of local life, breaking down national barriers and prejudices, uniting workers from all countries in huge factories and mines…” (Lenin CW – Progress Publishers 1977 Vol 19 p.454). Thus prejudices are smashed and the international working class is born.

Secondly besides the positive aspects mentioned above, there is also an undesirable outcome in the form of resistance to migrant labour, which lies in the competition among workers to fill vacancies and depressing wage levels. Migrant workers are willing to work for lower wages, which can and has created enmity among indigenous workers towards migrant labour, reaching xenophobia. And what better tool for capital to divide the working class?

The British know only too well the plight of the Irish workers in Britain and the suffering they endured particularly in the nineteenth Century. As Marx said: “ And most important of all! Every industrial and commercial centre in England now possesses a working class divided into two hostile camps, English proletarians and Irish proletarians. The ordinary English worker hates the Irish worker as a competitor who lowers his standard of life. In relation to the Irish worker he feels himself as a member of the ruling nation and so turns himself into a tool of aristocrats and capitalists of his country against Ireland, THUS strengthening THEIR DOMINATION OVER HIMSELF….

“…This antagonism is the secret of the impotence of the English working class, despite its organisation. It is the secret by which the capitalist class maintains its power. And that class is fully aware of it. (Marx’s letter to S Meyer and A Vogt, April 9, 1870)

After this brief introduction,

I would first like to dwell on the changing needs of capital for labour in Europe in the post Second World War period. Secondly I will look at the approach of the European Union to migrant labour. I will finally dwell on the problems faced by capital in the era of globalisation, the possibility of a looming crisis and the demands and courses of struggle for the working class.

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The second half of the 20^th Century witnessed major developments with regards capital and the movement of labour.

First, I shall mention the major migration of labour from the Southern and South eastern parts of Europe to West Germany and Northern Europe following the Aid package called Marshall Plan for the reconstruction of Europe, after the devastation caused by the Second World War. Cheap and healthy labour was the order of the day. I particularly stress the word “healthy” as it was impossible to get a visa to work in those countries unless most stringent health checks had been passed including checking one’s teeth. There was a special legal status for these people in the guise of “guest workers”. They had minimal rights and were mostly treated as sub-human. They did the most menial jobs that the indigenous people did not want to do at low wages, or worked in industries hazardous to health such as mining etc. Many millions of guest workers were encouraged to return to their home countries having worked in these countries for many years. Many were also forcefully repatriated.

Great Britain, in the same period invited labour from its colonies, particularly the West Indies and the Indian sub-continent. It was commonplace to see ads on houses barring black people from renting rooms.

The reconstruction of Europe was more or less completed by the late sixties.  The subsequent period also witnessed the acceleration of the movement of capital throughout the world. New technologies, innovations in communication and transport resulted in the shrinking of distances and brought together with it a workforce willing to work for low wages.

The last thirty years saw the acceleration of the reorganisation of capital. The 1980s saw the first major qualitative and quantitative step in the free market economy promoted by Thatcher and Reagan. This trend gained impetus after the collapse of the Soviet Union, whereas we subsequently saw the gradual integration of China to this order. The period was also fraught with crises such as the 1973 petrol crisis and more recently the crisis in South East Asia.

This development brought new employment opportunities to many countries, however it also brought together with it migration to areas where capital concentrated, such as from the Far East to the Gulf countries, to Singapore, from Turkey to the Middle East etc. The rapid movement of capital was also accompanied by the relocating of manufacturing industry to areas where labour could be exploited more heavily than in the traditional manufacturing centres of the west. Just-in-time production, modular production and rapid communication have been key to these new developments. Today many service sector jobs such as call centres for the English-speaking world are being relocated in the Far East and India. Supra-national companies find it more profitable to employ labour in their indigenous countries

I would now like to digress for a moment to convey to you something which attracted my interest. It is generally accepted the stand of the USA concerning trade has been the determining factor. For example the refusal of the United States to sign the Kyoto protocol has hampered its progress. And it is virtually impossible to apply sanctions against the USA.

The story I want to convey is this:

The United States has been subsidising the production of cotton in its Southern states for decades despite being against the rules of free trade. This situation had repercussions from Brazil to Africa, to Egypt and Asia. Many countries, led by Brazil had been protesting to the WTO. Surprisingly the WTO banned these subsidies just over a month ago. The ruling has had deep reverberations in the US and I have no doubt that they will flex their muscles to delay its implementation. Nevertheless it also goes to show that entities like the “One Market”, “World Trade” have gained a momentum of their own.

It would indeed be wrong to blame one or the other bad guy (in the guise of the USA). The working class has to recognise the new phenomenon and address the new issues raised as a result. After attacking the hypocritical free traders in Britain, Marx concluded: “…generally speaking, the protective system in these days is conservative, while the free trade system works destructively. It breaks up old nationalities and carries antagonism of the proletariat and the bourgeoisie to the uttermost point. In a word the free trade system hastens the social revolution. In this revolutionary sense alone … I am in favour of free trade.”

A conglomerate like IBM, that coined the phrase, “personal computer” –PC, first having started to manufacture its PC’s in China, lock, stock and barrel, and recently sold its entire PC business, including manufacture to China. MG-Rover of Britain, once the pride British industry alongside Jaguar (now Ford), to name but one, has to rely on Chinese capital for its survival. As is well known much Microsoft software is developed in India, and who knows which country will be next? The Chinese Government recently purchased an iron ore in Northern United States to meet the steel needs of Chinese industry. The mine is being operated by Chinese managers and American labour. A few years ago one would have believed that The United States would export steel to China, but who would have thought that China would actually purchase a mine and extract iron ore in the United States?

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I conveyed to you a moment ago the millions of migrant workers who were attracted to Western Europe, particularly W Germany, France and Britain to fill the labour gap. I also touched upon how the focal points of production have been shifting away from the traditional centres.

In the present context, and based on the shifting of the centres of industrial production, the requirement for labour in Europe has been shifting to “Qualified labour”. Hundreds of thousands of nurses, doctors, surgeons, teachers, accountants, solicitors, engineers, electronics and computer experts from abroad are presently employed in the UK. The health service in Britain would suffer an incredible blow if only a small percentage of the health workers left. And yet it costs untold amounts of money to get these people qualified in their home countries and the services in their home countries suffer as a result of this brain drain. Care in the overwhelming majority of old people’s homes and nursing homes are provided by qualified migrant nurses and health workers etc.

According to a report by the British Chambers of Commerce the proportion of companies having difficulty finding skilled employment has risen by 50% in the past decade. In 1994, 29 percent of companies complained they were being affected by a skills shortage, but by the end of 2004 this had risen to 43 percent. (Financial Times 15/02/05).

The fall in the birth rate has been in Europe is set to continue for the foreseeable future, which also indicates a potential rising demand for immigrant labour.

And yet the spectre of racism and xenophobia condemning immigrant workers has been raising its ugly head. And now its chosen target is refugees and asylum seekers. A problem indeed for many poor countries that provide refuge for many millions, but a shame for Europe who are hosts to a miniscule percentage. The overwhelming percentage of refugees live in Africa and Asia in the most appalling circumstances numbering millions, whereas a few hundred or thousand arrivals from the same regions are enough to grab headlines throughout Europe.

I will give an example: In 1996 United Nations were processing refugee applications from Sri Lanka. Whereas the UK recognised 0.2% of the applications as genuine, the Canadian Government accepted 82% of the applicants. As the UN convention for refugees is the same and binding for all signatory countries, how can one explain this discrepancy as none other than meting out arbitrary justice. Larger numbers of asylum seekers are now being kept at detention centres Europewide. This has a dual function:

• Would be asylum seekers are being scared off and warned not to expect favourable conditions, and

• Host country citizens are being given the impression that asylum seekers are not genuine refugees, that they deserve to be kept in detention centres, and xenophobia is being heightened.

Indeed when viewed within the context of overall immigration and emigration, it quickly becomes apparent that the figures are not significant at all. To compare figures, 180,000 people including families came to the UK from outside the EU in 2003 on managed migration schemes which have nothing to do with seeking asylum, whereas 33,930 people sought asylum in 2004, most of whom will be deported. (The Guardian 7/4/05).

As internal borders within the EU disappear, the external borders are becoming more and more fortified with the enemy across the border to the south and to the east. And now there is an even bigger enemy in the form of Islam. Hardly a day passes when western media does not carry a report on the evils perpetrated by Islam. The repercussions of the recent murder of the film maker Van Gogh in Holland raised a debate in the UK with the one side claiming that decadent liberal values in the west could not coexist with Islam; and this view is gaining ground. The long standing slogans of the richness of multiculturalism, anti-racism and celebrating diversity is leaving its place to the richness of the national culture.

The EU countries signed two agreements at Trevi and Schengen to harmonize and unify border controls and policing across the EU, although Britain and Ireland did not participate in the Schengen Treaty building a fortress within a fortress.

A Sivanandan, editor of Race & Class, referring to these treaties says “… for although Trevi is meant to be addressing the problem of illegal immigrants and refugees, a common culture of European racism which defines all third world people as immigrants and refugees, and all immigrants and refugees as drug runners, will not be able to tell a citizen from a refugee, let alone one black from another. They all carry their passports on their faces.”

The home of a Pakistani friend of mine who had been settled in the UK for as long as one can remember was recently raided Police. It then transpired that he had been visited by his sister from Pakistan and they had driven to the white cliffs of Dover for a spot of sightseeing. They had also videoed the cliffs as a memento of England. And that is where they were spotted by a concerned citizen who suspected them to be terrorists and reported their car registration number to the police. Police kept him under surveillance for a month and eventually decided to make a visit and a possible arrest. They eventually told the story and left. And my poor scared friend thanked them for being vigilant in protecting the British public from potential terrorists.

Why this rising xenophobia?

In order to answer this question we must look at the impending crisis of capitalism.

THE CRISIS OF CAPITALISM

Despite the technological revolution and the globalized world and the penetration of capital to every corner of the world, it does not follow that the path of capitalism is a smooth one.

Firstly, the army of the proletariat is growing at an unprecedented scale throughout the world. This is also true of the developed countries. The means of production is owned by fewer and fewer people. It may be argued that much of the capital is held in pension funds whose members are the hard working public. It is indeed questionable whether the huge pension funds which hold a major stake in share ownership will be able to sustain a liveable income for people of retirement age. Gradually but surely a higher proportion of the population is being left with nothing but their labour to sell. Society is getting more proletarianised.

Secondly, the law of diminishing returns on capital is working relentlessly. Capital has to innovate and open new markets in order to survive. This, it has been able to do in recent history, for its own benefit and only for its own benefit. It has also been able to distribute the crumbs of its super-profits in order to bribe part of the proletariat, but this cannot continue for long. Cracks are already appearing in the developed countries.

To this we can also add the need to control the scarce resources of the world:

And here we have the source of the makings of xenophobia. Divide the working class at home, turn the working class at home against the enemy abroad.

Signs of the cracks of a forthcoming crisis are already everywhere. The US budget deficit and foreign debt have reached unprecedented levels. The dollar has devalued 30% against the Euro since its recent inception. Oil prices have doubled on the basis of the US dollar in just two years. Real wages have stagnated.

Turning to Europe the continuing of free health care in Western Europe has become questionable. Already many people are excluded from the provision of free health care and the outlook is very bleak indeed. Charges have been introduced for higher education in Britain and student grants abolished altogether. Decent pensions have become a thing of the past. Even employment is being replaced with contractual working.

With diminishing purchasing power and a glut of overproduction, capitalism is heading for a crisis.

Under these circumstances the target of anti-terror laws and the purpose of filing the details of every individual from iris to fingerprint are clear. The target is the working class and the working class alone. It is a sad reflection of the state of many left organisations when the slogan they can turn up with is one of “national sovereignty” instead that of proletarian internationalism.

OUR TASKS

Communists, left movements and the Trade Union movement in particular failed to come up with appropriate forms of struggle in Europe. The rejection of the European Union and consequently of one single working class throughout Europe divided the struggle of the working class and it continues to do so, whereas the integration of the political structure, non-democratic at that, continues unabated.

The rights of the working class are the outcome of centuries of struggle; however it is quite conceivable that they can be rolled back in the absence of an ongoing struggle waged by a united working class. In an epoch where capital knows no borders, it is imperative that the struggle of the working class is continuous, united across borders and under one banner.

The past few years has seen the rolling back of many of the rights of the workers. Unionisation is at the lowest level for many decades and the decline continues. Collective bargaining has become a thing of the past except in solitary instances. Contractual work is likely to become the rule of the future. Anti-terrorism laws are sowing the seeds of xenophobia.

Any worker who withdraws his support from foreign workers today must be aware that he himself will be tomorrow’s target. The focal point of our struggle will be to put an end to the competition and inequality of the working class across Europe and establish its unity with the following demands:

• Equal pay for equal work based on the highest common denominator.

• End the restrictions to foreign workers through limited residence permits.

• Equal citizenship rights to all immigrants irrespective of country of origin.

• Free movement of labour in the EU.

• End to discrimination on the basis of foreign qualifications.

• The unity of the workers in a single EU-wide union.

• EU-wide striking rights.

• EU-wide collective bargaining rights.

• One class, one union, one party.

The history of the struggle of the working class goes beyond two hundred years. Today we are living in a world that is both closer and more prepared for the socialist revolution. It is under these circumstances that we call on all workers and communists to establish the unity of the working class under one roof.

¹. verst- A Russian measurement of distance of just over 1 km.