Millions of us entered the new year getting poorer and with increased miserable.
One illusion after another stepped in suppress it the state of anger created by the economic crisis, which has been deepening day by day for months. They did not say in vain; “There are three kinds of lies, the simple lie, the big lie, and the statistics”. The Palace Regime is engaging in all three of them.
1.“Minimum wage concerns only 6 million people” – LIE
A total of 54 percent of registered and unregistered workers, that is, one in two people, receives wages at the minimum wage level.
2.“By increasing the minimum wage by 50 percent, we did not let the inflation crush the worker” – LIE
Palace’s TUIK announced the inflation rate as 36.08%. So they tell us, from oil to milk; from egg to meat, from potatoes to rice; a total of just 36 percent increase happened throughout the year. There is no need to explain at length what a lie this is. Anyone who buys a simit on the way to work in the morning will see the real inflation with the change they receive back. Real inflation has exceeded 100 percent. The increase in the salary has not yet reached us, but it has already melted away with the increase of prices in everything.
3.“The private sector had a hard time in the pandemic, it cannot pay wages if the minimum wage increases even more” – LIE
If anyone has difficulties in the pandemic, it is us. At times, we had to work for 39 liras a day with the short-time working allowance. 2 out of 3 people in Istanbul have become a loan or credit card debtor. While our pockets were melting, the profits announced by metal bosses announced was 800 percent, by construction bosses 123 percent and by banks 143 percent during this one year.
4.“We preserved the value of Turkish Lira with convertible deposits” – LIE
In a month or so, they deliberately increased the dollar to 18, and then, when there was no money left in the banks, they flooded the market with money. Nebati(the new minister of treasury and finance), whose eyes do not show anything other than the green dollars that go into his pocket, has more big and small lies in addition to this big lie throughout this whole process. We invite those who want to hear the truth of these lies and of course those who want to fight against the lies, to Kaldıraç Offices. In this statement, we will not talk further about this, just look at those who bought foreign currency on 16, 17 and 20 December. Just look at BOTAŞ’ debts cleared by law and the privileges granted to Qatar and the UAE, and the veil of lies will be lifted a little. All the money in the market was indexed to the dollar with convertible deposits, and a hidden interest rate increase was made between the cries of “interest is the cause, inflation the result.”
5.“The cost of electricity, natural gas etc. has increased, these are not a raises but a price update” – LIE
Before the last price hikes, 30 TL of each 100 TL invoice was the distribution fee and 20 TL was the tax. When we do not pay our bills for 2 months, our electricity is cut off. One-fifth of electricity companies did not pay any taxes in 2020. Moreover, as is done to us, these companies do not receive enforcement, their tax debts are cleared again every year.
Electricity distribution companies were privatized in all provinces of the country. With the separation of retail after the distribution services, companies make double profits, and our bills go into the pockets of the bosses. In addition to taxes, our natural gas invoices include the profits of at least two companies that import and retail natural gas. Furthermore, the cost of services such as the installation, removal, replacement and control of the meters by which the companies measure the consumption are paid by the citizens.
6.“Let’s wait, it will pass. The government wants us to take to the streets” – LIE
We do not actually intend to rank the magnitudes of the lies. Also, all of the rulers are against the people, and this order of lies repeats itself every day, so it is not possible to fit all the lies in both sides of an A5 page. Still, this lie is a bit different from the others. Because those who tell this lie claim that they are standing at a different place.
For example, they say “the problem today is a question of merit” as if those without merit were robbing the country in the 2001 crisis. For example, they are begging for help from TUSIAD as if the bosses have ever done anything for the people. They pretend as if the CHP’s Bakırköy Municipality did not offer a “0 percent raise” to its workers. They wait as if CHP ever really opposed a single tender, a single raise, a single motion. It is a beautiful saying; “It gives away its suggestion, it swallows its own bunch”[T/N: idiom meaning ‘to easily give advice to others that she herself does not believe in and does not follow’.].
In this country, there was no government was that of workers-laborers, so none of them gave their rights to workers on a golden platter. The right to a union, the right to strike, the right to collective bargaining have all been won on the streets. If those beautiful trees of Gezi, which they loved only the first 3 days while pretending to be like us, are still standing today, it is thanks to the millions of us who took to the streets.
The transforming, liberating and beautifying power of those streets scare all rulers today. For this, the lie that one tells, the other continues with another lie. All of them are from the Palace and not a single truth can come out of Palaces for the benefit of the people.
TO LEAVE THIS CRISIS;
Against all lies there is the truth. The first truth to be acknowledged is that a savior will not come. It is our own arms that will save us. As workers, women, students and peoples, we will only solve our own problems by coming together. We did not cause this crisis, and we do not have to pay its price.
Education, Health, Housing, Transportation, Communication, Electricity, Water, Natural Gas are the most basic human rights. All of these rights should be free. All these areas should be made public.
Today, the poverty line is 13 thousand TL. The lowest wage must be above the poverty line.
Wages should be updated monthly according to actual inflation. Wages should be based on purchasing power, not on a specific amount of payment.
Our meals are getting smaller and we cannot say that we are eating well. However, we are full for someone saying “our economy has taken off” or the quiet words “everything will be beautiful.”
They won’t give things to us because we asked for it.
Their lies will grow unless we come together to fight, unless we walk with banging the empty pots and pans, and unless we enlarge the resistance. It is so that we can lead a miserable life while their wealth increases with the lies that are thrown in our face every day. The best step to take towards this truth, the first step, is to organize.
Organizing is the first but great step to take our rights and to change the truths of life in favor of workers, laborers, students and women.
Organizing, struggling and enlarging the resistance is the only way out of this crisis.
