Even the right wing press in France was forced to admit that last Saturday's march on Besancon' in support of the striking Lip watch workers was an impressive display of unity in action. Estimates of the numbers involved ranged from 30,000 (the police) to 100,000 (the unions).
The most important feature of the march was its non exclusive character, For only the second time in its history (the first being during the anti-conscription demonstrations earlier this year), the Communist Party-led CGT union federation was forced to march alonside the orpanisations of the revolutionary left in a single, united demonstration. The CGT had carlier forbidden the revolutionaries to set up stands at the fair held before the match, and when the revolutionaries did so anyway the CCT withdrew its stand in protest. But it could hardly have extended this action to the march without very seriously damaging what credibility it still retains as a supporter of the Lip strugnic.
As one of the organisers commented, Such a demonstration would not have been possible a year ago. Thousands of workers travelled from all over France to mect at Lip and exchange their experiences of struggle-among them smelting workers from the strike at Pechiney, seamstresses from the work-in at Cerizay, and many of the immiprant workers involved in the recent anti-racist strikes. The mood was one of confidence and militancy: Lip will win, or we'll be back!' However, all the signs are that, for the CGT at least, the struggle has gone far enough. Their speuker at the rally warned that: We know that we can't ect everything at once. We may have to be satisfied with achieving less than our full demands." With the negotiations over the future of the company now at a decisive stage, such statements can only demobilise the working class and encourage the Government to stand firm.
For the CCT, the 'inarch on Besancon' was very much a final gesture of support for a struggle which has increasingly embarassed them by its advanced forms of strugele and its challenge to capitalist property relations This makes it all the more urgent that local rank-and-file militants intensify their activity in support of the Lip workors, building on the support committees which were set up all over France to mobilise for last Saturday's march. Only in this way can the resistance of the Lip workers be strengthened in face of the take it or leave it attitude which the Government negotiator is now adopting over the question of redundancies. JOHN MARSTON Red Weekly 5 October 1973 Page 7
News reports continue to come in two weeks following the coup.