PRESIDENT’S COLUMN

One of the best things about being president is being invited to speak at various events. I enjoy the RMT ones, but the ones outside the union can be more interesting because you get a different perspective on the struggle. One such meeting was the Occupy Against Murdoch. They are part of the wider Occupy movement, and were holding a week of protests outside the News Building which is next to the Shard at London Bridge. Being amongst these people made me feel really inspired, something which is becoming harder to feel the older that I get! One of the reasons for this was the diverse political views of the people in attendance. There were people from all walks of political life who were there to protest about the obscenity of the super- rich. A point brought home by the amount of homeless that were in the nearby vicinity. This is clearly WRONG, and we should feel blessed that groups like Occupy are trying to remedy these injustices. They are able to put their political differences aside to fight the common enemy and we should be able to do the same. While the left bickers about political nuances, people are suffering, not just in Britain but across the globe. We need to look at what we have in common instead of our differences and unite against our common enemy, big business and the capitalist system itself. This was brought home to me in a book that I am currently reading, called The Robin Hood Guerrillas, a story of the Tupamaros movement in Uruguay. This movement included the recent President of Uruguay, Jose Mujica, a truly great man in my opinion. If you don’t know him, please make every effort to find out about him, he will definitely inspire you. Anyway, in the book, there is a quote from the Tupamaros which says “Action unites us, words divide us”. To me that quote is something we could well do to take heed of in this country. We should be looking at what we have in common instead of what differences we have. Look at the things that have happened in Britain, privatisation, anti- trade union laws, austerity cuts, the erosion of social housing and NHS etc etc. We have to do what big companies do, work together. We have had successes in the past, most notably poll tax demonstrations, so it can be done. A lot of marches have brought us together, and we should build on those alliances and make them more permanent. Bring various groups together, such as Occupy, Peoples’ Assembly, UK Uncut, and 38 Degrees. There are more of us than “them” and by uniting, we can win. Times are very different now to what they were nearly one hundred years ago. The problems are similar but we are now dealing with them on a different kind of stage. They are no longer the same kind of Imperialists and there are different kinds of Tsars. We need to start thinking about, and looking for, new answers. Young people are quite radicalised and are looking for solutions and they want it now. They don’t want to sit in rooms and discuss things, they want to go out and do something to stop the injustices and we need to learn from them and work alongside them. The left has more in common than it has differences, let’s build on them, and all be inspired by the likes of Occupy. Action unites us, words divide us- indeed comrades, indeed! Peter Pinkney WORDS DIVIDE US President’s column RMT helpline 0800 376 3706 :: april 2015 :: RMTnews 21 T he RMT executive and officers welcomed the daughters and partner of the late Brian Munro, former EC member for the London Transport Region to the union headquarters last month. Brian's tragic death last year meant that he was unable to collect his EC medal, so Jim McDaid, Brian's replacement as branch secretary for Bakerloo Branch, requested that the presentation be made to his daughters. RMT general secretary Mick Cash, National Shipping Secretary Steve Todd and the EC members welcomed Isabel and Brenna to the boardroom along with their mum Lucy. It was a very moving moment where Mick paid tribute to the passion and commitment of Brian and recognised all the hard work that he had done for the union and the wider labour and trade union movement, a moment for Brian's family to treasure. BRIAN MUNRO REMEMBERED