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Greece

We won’t pay your poll taxes! We shall bring about your downfall

Monday 17 October 2011, by Antarsya

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The poll tax that the PASOK government pushed through Parliament, with its notorious “special tax on real estate,” represents the summit of the taxation raid and of social barbarism at the expense of the workers and the masses of the people, who already live on the brink of ruin. Even before this there was tremendous anger about the imposition of the “special tax” and the “special business tax” which had been levied in the medium-term program last June. It is estimated that the total burden for an average family will be considerably more than €1000—and this in a phase where wages and pensions have been brutally cut, unemployment is rising sharply, hundreds of thousands of layoffs are being prepared in the public sector by jobs being “left vacant.”

The brazenness of the government is beyond all measure, and once again the majority of society is its victim. While the government starts talking to the owners of the shipping companies asking them how they could “contribute to the national efforts” (!), it reduces the tax rate on corporate profits to 20%, continues its unlimited exemptions and tax breaks for capital in the name of “growth,” delivers €110 billion to the banks, sells off the accumulated public wealth for a mess of pottage, and mercilessly ruins the unemployed and pensioners, the workers, freelancers, and small farmers. Two years after the introduction of the memorandum policy, the government refers to “empty coffers” in order to hunt and to collect taxes. Thus it shows that its own policy is completely bankrupt. It is facing total collapse!

We call on the workers and the entire Greek population—with support from the mass movement—to engage in mass disobedience against the previous and the new poll tax. Nobody, no worker, no unemployed, no self-employed person should pay the “special contributions” and the “special tax.” In addition, retroactive surcharges on already-taxed income are unconstitutional and repesent a mockery of any notion of tax fairness.

This fight is not an individual struggle but a collective one that should be organized. It is part of the general struggle of the people to overthrow the wretched PASOK government and its partners: the right ND (New Democracy) and the radical right-wing LAOS—the troika. The Medium Term Program and the policy of capital, which aims at abolishing all rights of working people and at imposing all of the consequences of the capitalist crisis on the masses, must be abolished. We can bring about its downfall! The potential is revealed by the massive and angry demonstration during the international fair in Thessaloniki on September 10. The conditions for a further escalation are taking shape, which will be much stronger than the nearly insurgent strikes and mobilizations during the public-square occupations of June.

We call on all unions, scientific associations and professional associations, students at the University of occupations, the movement of civil disobedience to declare “WE WILL NOT PAY!” The popular assemblies of the cities and neighborhoods should refuse the new poll tax through collective decisions, leading to continuous mobilizations. They should actively support their members in the refusal to pay. For the development of a broad campaign of strikes and movements with the aim of overthrowing the government, together with all the other butchers, EU, IMF and their lackeys!
ANTARSYA will participate with all its forces in this fight!

ANTARSYA - Anti-Capitalist Left alliance for the overthrow, Sep 15, 2011