Articles

Lumumba is a symbol of the Congolese people's struggle for independence. In Africa, he is put on an equal footing as all the major leaders in the fight against colonialism. But who was Patrice Lumumba and why is it so important to keep his memory alive?

Do you know any MPs who spend two days a week working on a production line in a factory? Meet Francis Dagrin, Brussels deputy of the PTB.

When I got here, I ran into a childhood friend I hadn't seen in a long time. He became a delivery boy. He was getting out of his van, a package in his hand, and he said, "I'm exhausted. I deliver Zalando, Amazon... I'm on the road all day. Little hours till late at night. With the overtime that's unpaid." I asked him how much money he made on this job. "Not even 1,400 euros. " A pittance. How can we let this happen?

"We've known this since Adam Smith, but this is a strong reminder: competition works in the public interest." This is the reaction of Johan Van Overtveldt, former Minister of Finance and now MEP for the N-VA (rightist Flemish nationalist party), to the announcement of the coronavirus vaccines from Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna. By referring to the economist known as "the father of capitalism", he clearly means that we owe the development of vaccines against Covid-19 to the capitalist free market and the benevolence of the pharmaceutical multinationals. There are at least five reasons why he's completely off the mark.

Let it be a year of life, of wonder and of hope (free from coronavirus) May the coming year be one of friendship, empathy and resistance (free from exploitation) We raise our glasses to your health, for you are not alone (Long live solidarity) Peter Mertens, chairman PTB-PVDA

The PTB-PVDA has just launched the national campaign "A winter of solidarity" under the slogan "We leave no one behind". All over Belgium, 300 local PTB groups are implementing various solidarity actions in the coming weeks.

In April, the President of the European Commission, Ursula Von der Leyen, made an unexpected but crucial promise: the future Covid-19 vaccine would be a common good. Since then, she's been back-pedaling. Bad news for everyone

Sofie Merckx is a doctor and member of the Workers' Party of Belgium (PTB-PVDA). She explains to us the action of Medicine for the People, an initiative of her party which has been offering free medical care for almost 50 years and mobilizes patients and carers in many thematic campaigns, which has long displeased the Belgian Order of Physicians. For her, the right to health is not limited to curative medicine, but implies being able to live in good health in all aspects of life, including at work. She also looks back at the management of the pandemic and the current political situation in Belgium, as a new government has just been formed.

Thierry Bodson, the president of the FGTB (socialist trade union), and sixteen other trade unionists were sentenced today for "malicious obstruction of traffic" to suspended prison sentences and fines ranging from 600 to 4,800 euros by the Liège criminal court. Thierry Bodson gets a one-month suspended sentence.

A new vaccine, developed by the US' Pfizer and Germany's BioNTech, is believed to be effective at 90 %. This rightly raises a lot of hope. Such a vaccine would be a great help in the fight against the coronavirus. The European Commission immediately concluded a costly contract with the company. However, many questions arise. Especially since it now appears that the CEO of Pfizer sold 62 % of his shares on the day of the announcement. Is it mainly a publicity stunt to boost Pfizer's share price? And will the vaccine be accesible?

On November 14th, Parti Socialiste (PS) Deputy Prime Minister Pierre-Yves Dermagne stated in an interview with the financial newspaper De Tijd that "using a megaphone to demonstrate is not going to result in a revaluation of the lowest pensions". This gentleman is the governmental leader of the main left-wing party present in the Vivaldi coalition (that, like the composer's Four Seasons, includes 4 major political families: liberals, social democrats, christian democrats and greens, Ed). Like the rest of his interview, this statement reveals both the evolution of the Belgian PS and its fundamental difference with a Marxist party like the Workers’ Party of Belgium (PTB-PVDA).

Ministers have been neglecting health care for months, aren't they ashamed? Healthcare workers are at the end of their rope, but Health Minister Frank Vandenbroucke repeats that the promised resources "cannot be released quickly". 'Today the health workers of Medicine for the People went out in their underwear in front of their health centers to denounce the government's policy that leaves the entire health care sector naked in the cold. Aren't you ashamed? We are not ashamed either!