The World Federation of Trade Unions representing 105 million workers in 132 countries around the globe commemorates the World Health Day by calling its affiliates and friends to intensify their struggle for free and public healthcare for all. Especially in this period of time this standing demand has great importance for the peoples.
The manufacture of many safe vaccines in a short time period proved the capabilities of the scientific revolution and the human factor. We congratulate the scientists who worked and achieved the manufacture of the vaccines and at the same time we condemn the inhuman tactics of the international monopolies to speculate on the vaccines.
The fact that mass production and sale by large pharmaceutical companies is necessary for a vaccine to be put into circulation in the capitalist states, only creates suffering for the workers and the poor popular strata throughout the world. People cannot forget the negative consequences of the pursuit of profit in the pharmaceutical sector, as have shown the examples of the USA and EU countries, in which large business groups refused to sell millions of doses of vaccines produced by them to governments, requesting that the states fully assume responsibility in cases of adverse effects and at the same time blackmailing in order to get high sale prices.
On the other side of this, there is the selfless spirit of the heroes of the working class, of the medical personnel who are waging the battle against the pandemic on a daily basis across the planet.
There is the socialist Cuba with the highest expression of humanity and internationalist solidarity the contribution made with selflessness by the Cuban medical brigades that for 60 years have been providing services in almost the whole world with a selfless, solidary and humanitarian work; in particular the Henry Reeve Contingent, founded by Fidel, with the purpose of saving lives in times of disasters, epidemics, pandemics and other events that require Cuban medical and paramedical assistance.
The pandemic proved once again that the only “cure” is the working class to take the keys of the economy and organize its own society without exploitation of man by man, with the economy oriented to the well-being of the mankind.
This path is difficult, but the benefits are greater. The militant trade unions have to take this path, the working class and its allies in every country must pave the way for the new era of humankind, the rotten capitalism once again show its true face, now it’s time for us to show our true power.
Under the current conditions of the deep economic crisis of capitalism and intense competition among various imperialist centers to control new markets, our most powerful weapons are INTERNATIONALISM and SOLIDARITY. No worker must feel alone. All together, we must move on with Solidarity and Internationalism, building the Unity of the working class to give practical effect to Karl Marx’s slogan “proletarians of all countries unite”.
The Secretariat