FREEDOM FOR ALL THE YOUNG POLITICAL PRISONERS
STRUGGLING AGAINST IMPERIALISM
In the current context of the sharpening of the contradictions of capitalism and crises, a capitalist offensive is being waged against the working class and its youth and their dignified struggles.
In this sense, this offensive manifests itself both in economic attacks, on direct and indirect wages, etc., with which the capitalists seek to defend the rate of profit in the face of the increasing difficulties of capital to increase itself. And, equally, it manifests itself ideologically to prevent the working class and its youth from articulating and uniting in the revolutionary struggle. Thus, this context opens up a scenario in which, as the working class and its youth realise that they must stand up to this exploitative and oppressive system, the attack and repression of the capitalist states against the workers', popular and youth movements can become more and more acute. That is to say, they will try to curtail the struggle of the youth, either by outlawing or restricting the organisations that oppose it, or by launching powerful campaigns through the mass media or the educational systems.
It is in this scenario that, in the last General Council of WFDY, we decided to redouble the struggle for the release of the young political prisoners. In this sense, the campaign deployed in solidarity with our Ukrainian comrades Mikhail and Aleksander Kononovich must serve as an example for us to extend this campaign of solidarity with all those who are repressed, politically persecuted, outlawed, etc. for their anti-imperialist struggle.
This campaign must fulfil a double function. On the one hand, to be able to show our solidarity and to articulate a struggle for the liberation of all young political prisoners. On the other hand, to send a message to all the militant youth that there is no reason to be afraid of repression as the capitalists try to impregnate us because, in the face of any attack, the militancy will have the support of all the anti-imperialist youth on an international level.
Therefore, when the contradictions of capitalism, the crises and the capitalist offensive sharpen, we must redouble our struggle for the revolutionary overthrow of capitalism in its imperialist stage. And in the face of its repression, we will remain united, always under the principle of leaving no comrade behind. Freedom for all the young political prisoners! Let us build a world free of exploitation and any kind of oppression!
Mikhail and Aleksander Kononovich, comrades of our member organisation in Ukraine (LKSM), were kidnapped by the Security Service of the reactionary Ukrainian regime in March 2022.
Since the very beginning, it was clear that their arrest was a farce. The accusations of being spies in the service of Russia and Belarus, orchestrating a coup d'état and other fabricated lies were only excuses to repress our comrades through a political trial which is only based on Facebook posts. This was no new, as since the coup d'état orchestrated by the USA, the EU and NATO in 2014 and the outlawing of communism in 2015, the political persecution against the anti-imperialist and communist militancy has been an everyday reality that has escalated.
Now, after more than one year of arrest, torture, lies, intimidation by fascists under the protection of the regime, and so on, the struggle for their liberation can not stop. After having been moved in the last months from the pre-trial detention centre to house arrest, their situation has not become better, but they have simply started to suffer new violence. Today, we reiterate that the responsibility for their physical integrity lies not only with the reactionary Ukrainian regime but also with the imperialist forces such as the USA, the EU and NATO that support it.
We, the anti-imperialist youth, must keep alive the struggle for their liberation and the end of the persecution of our comrades. Because we do not leave any comrade behind, neither in Ukraine nor anywhere else.
And because we know that behind the repression lies the aim of frightening us so that we stop struggling. We say this loud and clear to the ruling classes: despite repression, we will not stop struggling until we have built a world free of exploitation and any kind of oppression.
