The National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (Numsa) has added its congratulatory voice to the re-elected Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula Da Silva for winning the presidential elections
In a statement issued by Numsa general secretary Irvin Jim, he said the election of Da Silva proved that a united working class, driving a genuine working class agenda, can defeat right-wingers and fascists.
“The Brazilian working class has endured a very dark period under the leadership of Jair Bolsanaro. Bolsanaro is an authoritarian leader whose administration is characterised by sexism, racism and homophobia. He has been brutal to the working class and the poor and no one has been spared from his brutality. Our friends at Movimento dos Trabalhadores Rurais Sem Terra (MST) the Landless Workers Movement, have really suffered as a result of his hostile policies, which resulted in them being evicted from the land which they had occupied for decades,” said Jim.
Jim said Da Silva was a former metalworker who later became a trade union leader of Central Unica dos Trablhadores (CUT) famously organising large-scale strikes against the ruling military dictatorship that governed Brazil from 1964 to 1985.
He entered the world of politics after establishing the Leftist Workers Party in 1980.
Jim said his efforts were an indication that a united working class had the power to change the balance of forces and to transform society for its own benefit.
“This victory is more than just a victory for the Brazilian electorate, it is a victory for the global working class as a whole,” he said
The Star