Nicaraguan Union Leader Rejects Opposition Accusations
NSCAG News |
on: Monday, 2 May 2011
Carlos Tinoco of FETRAJUN
On the 1st of May we celebrated together with Daniel [Ortega] and the workers. From Wednesday onwards, the right wing media that belongs to oligarchic families, once more tried to defame and attack the spirit of solidarity of the working class, with the intention of ruining the celebration of Workers Day that had been called by the FNT for April 29th. They did this by spreading slander against Daniel Ortega, our President of the poor.
They said that Ortega ‘politicised’ the celebration and that he had ‘kidnapped the spirit of trade union freedom’ and they dared to say that the government forced people to go to Victory Square to demonstrate. It was a great surprise for them to see that not only public sector workers were celebrating there. There were others, workers and peasants from every corner of the country, as well as a great number of informal sector workers who had made a great communal effort to be there, as had our own FETRAJUN Legal Workers Union, which had made financial collections. On Saturday the media said with explosive rage that it was exposing the ‘debacle of the working class’. For example they said that we legal workers, who were enjoying a cool drink with music and dancing, were the same as Somoza because we offered beer to the workers… well we say to them with all politeness that these beers were bought by the legal workers after much hard work. Nor was it a drunken party as they said. They ignored the fact that we had also handed out 2000 sandwiches, 2000 water bags and 500 bottles of fruit juice.
While we were attacked by these people, the yellow unions and their leaders were celebrating with [former President Arnoldo Aleman] in a big luncheon with enough drink to split their sides, but this was not newsworthy apparently.
The important thing is that we clarify this, and that the opposition understands once and for ever that we workers are supporting Daniel [Ortega] sincerely, honestly and without asking for parliamentary seats or government posts as the yellow unions are doing. We also say that the leaders we do have in the government, like [Gustavo] Porras are there because they have earned it, because since 1990 they have been fighting with the FNT and alongside Daniel Ortega for the revolutionary transformation of the state.
Right wing oligarchs! We weren’t on some evangelical campaign! We were celebrating the 1st of May, as is our constitutional right. We are guaranteed the right to feel joy and to relish true democracy and the REAL rule of law. I address you - Sirs of the media – enough of your media campaign against the people and against Daniel Ortega. We in FETRAJUN will continue to support UNE, the FNT and above all, Daniel Ortega, the President of the Poor.
Carlos Tinoco
FETRAJUN
