hydrarchist writes
The aim of this collective is to contact and organise logistics and actions
with all the militant movements in France and in Europe and to make this
initiative a success on the scale of the forces that commit themselves to
it.
We call on all organisations to sign this document and all individuals who
agree with it to come and take part.

Knock Out in Cannes!

For an International Festival of Social Struggles in Cannes.
We are currently experiencing an acceleration of the wrecking of social
achievements.
It is not a time to be resigned. The government is cynically and arrogantly
continuing to implement the social plan devised by MEDEF (the confederation
of French business).

In doing so, they condemn thousands of unemployed and retired people to
poverty and social exclusion, in order to make the most deplorable working
conditions acceptable, and causing an increase in occupational illnesses and
industrial accidents. The « ideal » that these people propose is an
individualistic dog-eat-dog society, a society based on fear and hatred of
others. It is they who are the real delinquents: they create social
insecurity in order to ensure the security of their profits.

We are not isolated. Everywhere, particularly in Europe, the same policies
of social regression are being criticised and opposed.

Today, if all these mobilising movements converge, they could create the
necessary force to put a stop to the anti-social policies that we are being
subjected to. In order to defeat our opponents and launch a dynamic of
social reconquest and the emergence of an alternative, we need to mobilise
on a very large scale.

We intend to follow up the recent struggles against the reform of retirement
pensions, the national education movements, and the reforms of unemployment
benefit schemes that tragically affected the unemployed and people in
insecure jobs - including the part-time/temporary workers and artists in the
entertainment industry who spearheaded the resistance to the wrecking of the
unemployment protection system in France.

The K.O. A CANNES ! [K.O. in Cannes] Collective calls on the unemployed,
the retired, public and private sector workers, trade unions, collectives
and associations to take part in days of united action by people of all
occupations, at the Cannes International Film Festival (which will take
place from 12 to 23 May).

This high-profile international festival is an opportunity to obtain
world-wide publicity for the trial of strength that we will start.

We invite all the workers and unemployed who, in France, Europe and
elsewhere, are affected by the ravages of the profit and market ideology,
which is currently eradicating two centuries of working class achievements
and social rights.

This week of action will be followed by a large united national
demonstration:

We affirm our freedom to demonstrate and to defend our rights in the streets
of Cannes. We need to join in very large numbers to have our voice heard by
the media at this international festival.

This initiative will be presented under the name of K.O. in Cannes - to
defend social solidarity and public services.

- Against the wrecking of social solidarity: retirement pensions,
unemployment benefits, social security, etc.

- Against unemployment, instability and poverty, orchestrated by bosses and
the government

- Against the wrecking and privatisation of the public services (health,
education, postal service, energy supply, public transport, and research)

- Against the WTO's GATS (General Agreement on Trade in Services)

- For Culture for all, by all.

- Against the undermining of the right to work - For social justice.

- Against the criminalisation of the working classes, trade unionists, and
social/community movements. Against the Perben and Sarkozy laws.