THE conference was one of the most significant events in the history of the international working class movement. It was not only its size and representation - there were 53 delegates from 15 countries - but the fighting spirit that every single delegate showed.
In the space available we can only give a flavour of the discussion over those five momentous days.
As chairman Jimmy Nolan said in opening the proceedings there were representatives from Australia, Canada, Ireland (north and south), the United States, Belgium, New Zealand, Greece, Italy, Germany, France, Sweden, Denmark, Portugal and Spain.
Jim Donovan from Australia said he was 'amazed to find such a conference as this taking place'. They had thought they were coming just to support Liverpool. He said the trade union movement in Australia had been set up by people such as the Tolpuddle martyrs and that the monopolies were out to destroy them.
Michel Murray from Quebec pointed out that the last conference of this kind was held in Detroit in 1947. 'Fifty years is too long to wait,' he said. 'This is a sort of beginning of dockers' solidarity around the world.' He said the conference would deliver a message to the Mersey Docks and Harbour Company and all the shipping companies: 'Reinstate the sacked dockers because international dockers are going to take action, and don't do this again because international dockers will act again!'
From Canada Pat Riley echoed the sentiments of virtually every Speaker when he said that the problems of the Liverpool dockers were those faced by dockers all over the world. He spoke of the 150 oil refinery workers in St. John who had been locked out for 22 months. They had mounted picket lines when 50 were fired with no reasons given. He said the conference was timely because it was necessary to replace the corporate world of Thatcher, Reagan and Muldoon. The task was to win back into the movement those who don't formally belong to the trade union movement.
Ole Muller from Copenhagen, Denmark said that nine years ago they had faced the same situation as that in Liverpool. They were greatly interested in the conference because 'it could be us next time'.
Representative from Le Havre in France, Philippe Gaudillo said his delegation was very happy to be at the conference. It was necessary 'to build a structure in Europe and the world to fight against world capitalism'.
Nick Georgiou, docker from the port of Pireaus in Greece said that what was happening in Liverpool was being brought about throughout Europe by privatization. He said that Greek dockers had the will to take a full part in this international initiative that had been launched.
Also from Greece, seafarer, Savas Tsiboglou said that in the name of competitiveness workers throughout the world were being laid off, driven to the social periphery, having gains made over decades by the working class and working people taken away from them. He said that thousands of Greek dockers faced the sack as privatization qot under way. Society was being driven back to medieval conditions of work. It was necessary for the movement to impose its logic and politics, a logic and politics in direct opposition to that of capital.
From the port of Derry in Ireland, Gerry Quigley, a Transport and General Workers Shop Steward brought fraternal greetings to this 'historic' international conference of dockers. The dockers of Derry had been victorious in a protracted dispute lasting 13 months when the employer wanted to sack every docker or de-unionise the port despite no support from the union. He personally still had a fine fol £200,000 hangings over his head for blockading the port, boarding the vessels and staying inside the hold of a ship. 'The law is there to be obeyed, but we have a greater obligation to the working class,' he said.
John Bolger, from the Republic of Ireland and member of the Amalgamated and General Workers Union said they were amazed when all 500 Liverpool dockers were sacked. They would not allow the fight to be lost. This is the beginning. 'The Liverpool fight is the fight of the working class against the Tory governments of the world. We are here and we are going to win'. Gianni Dozza from Genoa, Italy said the conference was extremely important because it had reached dockers all over the world. He said that if they all pulled together he was sure they would 'get results'.
From Bilbao in Spain, Francisco Mellado said he had not been in an international conference for a long time but that there must be a conference like this every year. He said that privatisation was coming to Spain and that they faced the same problems as in Liverpool. 'The only difference between us is language We are all workers'
Francisco Ramos Vargos from Spain, and a docker for 26 years, said he was an old man and had gained a lot of knowledge from the fight. In 1980-86 the dockers of Tenerife had had the sort of problems that Liverpool now faced. It was not possible for dockers to fight alone; they had to unite with other workers. 'Workers of the world must know that we can organise ourselves from the base.' They would always face similar problems.
From Antwerp, Belgium, Roger Van Doninck said that every day each of the 6,700 lonely 'Tarzans' in his port had to fight for a job. The mentality of the dockers was very individualistic. He said that the Fascists were the largest party in Antwerp and had some influence among the dockers but some of them gave towards the £150 collected for the Liverpool dispute. Capitalism is inhuman', he said, and our will to fight against it is necessary.
Jorg Wessels from Hamburg said he was pleased to attend and had known some comrades present for many years. He said that 2,700dm had been raised for Liverpool. They were shocked when the British dockers' National Dock Labour Scheme was abolished. It had been held up as an example for German dockers' wages and conditions. Hamburg was a busy port but over the recent past cargo had increased by 7 per cent but the labour force had fallen by the same figure.
From New Zealand, Terry Ryan said that until two hours before he got on the plane he did not know that he was coming to Liverpool. The 1991 Employment Contract in New Zealand contained some of the most repressive legislation in the world. The union had been virtually removed. Anyone can now tender for any job - this is the free market. They had had a successful strike against the employers' plans for an outside company to unload a cargo of bananas. But this was only because the police had informed the company that they couldn't guarantee that there would be no violence after a police-picket clash. But there are now only 1,200 watersiders in New Zealand and there used to be 6,000. 'We know exactly what we face - a fight for survival. If we don't win we're dead. It's the same position here. We have to win.'
Seafarer, Pat Lumber, from New Zealand said that today he represented only 1,500 members, whereas prior to containerisation the numbers were 3,000-4,000. Although they were proud that their conditions were among the best in the world, it had led to the demise of New Zealand shipping because they could not compete with rice-bowl economy.
Antonio Mariano from Portugal said they were pleased to be at this most important conference. Dockers in Lisbon faced the same struggle against casual labour. The labour force in the country had fallen from 10,000 to 1,000. They now had a 'socialist' government in Portugal but it had been impossible to talk to this government. 'We cannot wait for our defence strategies to bring us results. We have to use this Liverpool fight to unite. This is a great city. you don't deserve what is happening here. We will try to help as much as we can.'
Jack Heyman of the International Longshoremen and Warehousemen's Union, San Francisco said it was difficult coming from the United States because by the time your turn came everybody had said everything! The solution could be to become the American Workers' Republic! 'There is now the beginning of the process of the development of workers who know that class struggle can win for the working class. This is just the beginning. . . there is class consciousness among the delegates. This is where we must begin. There must be an open and frank discussion. It is important to connect the conference discussion to a programme based on action. Words are not enough. There have been conferences before - great platitudes, but platitudes are insufficient to deal with the power of the employers and the state which backs them'.
Terry Teague, Merseyside Port Shop Stewards' Committee, said that this was the 22nd week of the dispute. In the early days many people, including many friends, thought that it would go like many others over the last 20 years but after 'a well-organised and historical campaign we are still here!' he declared and 'We believe that we are on the verge of victory.' Above all the greatest support had come from the international. It was this tremendous support that had made the sacked Liverpool dockers believe that it is possible to win the dispute.
Arturo DeRosa, Salerno, invited all present to be united to confront and resolve the problem with the of same hard-headedness of those who perpetuate this problem. 'It is our responsibility and duty to bring to the attention of all present to not waste even a word at this conference so that even the words construct an alternative road that can bring us to reconquer the dignity of the honest worker and that respect which all must have for that worker.'
Peter Shaw from Sweden, reported that his union had very good relations with the Unofficial - Port Shop Stewards Committee in Britain, but after the 1989 strike 'the 'phone stopped ringing.' Now he could see that the Mersey Shop Stewards were still alive.
Bjorn Borg from the same union explained that this union was only 20 years old and had been formed after 800 dockers where expelled from the TGWU when they refused to accept the union-negotiated contracts. The Swedish dockers were already taking action in support of Liverpool.
For the last session of the conference the delegates joined the sacked Liverpool dockers at their mass meeting, and there were farewell speechesfrom each delegation. There is not space enough for these. Jim Donovan seemed to speak for everybody when he said:
'On behalf of all our members I want to say that this is one of the most remarkable weeks of my life. This will go down as one of the greatest weeks of my life.'
'When Thatcher and the Mersey Docks and Harbour Company started this they did not know what would evolve. They started something and we're going to finish it. When your delegates turned up in Australia, I asked myself why? We've sent messages of support, we've sent money, what else do they want?'
'Those two magnificent ambassadors of yours never left a stone unturned. From an ordinary dispute it became a worldwide political dispute. It has become the starting stone of what we must do - coming back and fighting back.'
'Humour is your weapon and you know how to fight. There is dignity up there (pointing to the shop stewards on the platform) and that's why we will win.'
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