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from the Daily Doro-Chiba Jan. 22, 2005 In Solidarity H. Yamamoto Denounce this outrageous oppression in the strongest terms!(1) In the early morning of January 13, Osaka prefectural police unlawfully attacked a labor union in Kansai, Western Japan, under the “suspicion” of forcible obstruction of business and attempted intimidation. The police raided an office of KAN-NAMA union branch (Solidarity Union of Japan Construction and Transport Workers Kansai Area Branch) and houses of union members and 30 places all together. The police also arrested TAKE Ken’ichi, president of KAN-NAMA, and 3 other executive board members. KAN-NAMA is our comrade and has called many actions like Spring Labor Offensive and November Workers’ Rally together with our union. The police insisted Kan-NAMA’s rightful and legal union activities as “forcible obstruction of business” and “attempted intimidation” because they want to destroy KAN-NAMA union branch. We denounce in the strongest terms this outrageous oppression by the Osaka police. (2) KAN-NAMA union branch has built up the epoch-making fight to resist against industrial structure where big capital of cement and general contractors exploit numerous medium and small companies and workers who work for transportation and casting of wet concrete and loose cement. KAN-NAMA has called medium and small cement companies to unite under cooperative, compete against dominant cement capitalists and general contractors with the power of unity, and has actually carried out economic business and defended employment and working conditions of members. This activity has spread in Osaka, Hyogo and other prefectures in Kansai region. It has been in the spotlight all over Japan. This has been done not with “partnership with capital” but with KAN-NAMA’s principles: “Snuggling against capital and authority can bring no solution to us, and is worse than useless”, “the biggest factors of victory we have won were our appropriate politics and our mobility for industrial actions which were joined by more than 10, 000 annually.” The KAN-NAMA’s call for outsider to get together under cooperative was distorted by police as “forcible obstruction of business” and “attempted intimidation” this time. State’s authority has represented big cement companies and general contractors and executed this suppression. (3) Brutality of the attacks also showed us true color of Koizumi administration’s war and privatization politics. In order to pave the way to another war, Koizumi government needs to destroy workers’ unity and to exterminate militant labor unions. Koizumi has recently stepped up intensity of attacks as seen in arrests of eight Kokuro railway union members, arrests of activists who posted anti-war leaflets in Tachikawa city, disciplines of teachers who opposed Hinomaru (Rising Sun Flag) and Kimigayo (Song for the Japanese Emperor), and enactment of Conspiracy Act. But just as President TAKE put it in his New Year Resolution speech, no repression can stop our advancement. No suppression will destroy our unity. He said: “Militarism, raising tax, destruction of employment, attacks on small companies and farmers are all Koizumi’s politics that has actually ended up strengthening the unity of workers and nationals contrary to his intention. The condition and era has given us vast space where we can reinforce our movement”. (4) We regard the unlawful attack on KAN-NAMA union branch as an attack on our union. We have renewed our resolution to enrich solidarity movement and to smash dirty union busting. January 21, 2005 President of Doro-Chiba
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