Political declaration: International Meeting of the Struggling Youth – Women of Kobane

We come from 43 nations, and 4 continents. We have different cultures, life experiences and we speak different languages. Although this diversity, there is something that unites us beyond being part of the same generation: the systemic violence that we all are subjected. This condition conforms to our identity that expressed internationally in the struggle, as a form of resistance from youth to imperialism.

Gathered in the city of Maricá, Rio de Janeiro – Brazil between 21 and 25 June 2016, we young fighters over 115 organizations, conducted the International Meeting of Struggling Youth – Women Kobane. These days we reaffirm our commitment to building an international articulation of Struggling Youth, with anti-imperialist, anti-colonialist, anti-capitalist, anti-neoliberal and anti- patriarchal character.

We live in a period of multiple crises, which calls into question the capitalist system, as we know it. Witnessed the worsening of the global economic crisis, which began in 2008 in the center of the system, and now spreading globally, causing a brutal increase of unemployment, poverty, massive immigration flows. Despite the wars promoted by imperialism as a means of accelerating economic activity and expand the domination and exploitation of territories and resources, there is not a way out of perspective to this crisis. With this, the violence of capital enhances the social crisis, causing police repression, genocide of the poorest people, especially the youth.

This economic crisis impacts further our ecosystem, endangering the survival of the planet. The unbridled and unremitting exploitation by transnational companies seeking the recovery of their profits accentuate the environmental crisis.

Furthermore, we are experiencing a political crisis in that state institutions lose legitimacy in society as increasingly less answer the demands of the population. This political crisis is also evident in the state’s inability to regulate the economy. Therefore, what we see is a minimal or no participation of people in decision making about the direction of society and the dominant capital presence in the spheres of power. The combination of these dimensions affects human values, which is passing over by anti-social values such as greed, individualism, consumerism and selfishness.

Thus, as the bourgeoisie finds it difficult to build solutions to this critical situation, the popular forces cannot present an alternative project for society. However, this challenging scenario brings with it the possibility of changes, size, and the degree of system instability. It is up to us, the struggling youth, to build a project to confront imperialism and overcome the capital violence. In times of change that decides the direction of the company is the ability to do mass struggles and develop organizational processes of people.

Given the imperialist offensive more than ever it is essential to building solidarity among peoples. In this sense, the consolidation of international articulation Struggling Youth becomes imperative. If our enemy operates globally, we cannot resist locally, we need to build processes of struggle facing the system worldwide.

After share our analysis of reality, experiences of struggle and resistance, we point to the following common definitions:

Struggle Axels:

1. Against environmental degradation and the private appropriation of nature, in defense of territories and common goods.
2. Against the imperialist wars and exploitation of transnational corporations in defense of the sovereignty of peoples.
3. Against the youth extermination and the militarization of the territories, in defense of life.
4. Against the oppression of black men and women, women, LGBT’s, indigenous people, in defense of equality and equity.
5. Against the neo-liberal policies, in defense of social rights (education, culture, health, transportation, housing, etc.) and a political project built by the people.
6. Against the casualization and exploitation of youth labor force in defense of decent work, and the construction of economic alternatives.
7. Against the communication’s monopoly and cultural diffusion, in defense of the democratization of communication and appreciation of local cultures.

Political Challenges:

1. We must retake the method of the groundwork to politicize, mobilize and organize the people and the youth. We must organize the youth of the working class, which is the hub most affected by the imperialist offensive, while the most dynamic pole of the class struggle;
2. In times of crisis, it is urgent to build tools to report the enemy’s project and at the same time announce ours, through agitation and propaganda. Building new forms of communication with the people, from our creative force. It is not enough just to deny the enemy the project, it is necessary to announce a new partnership project.
3. Advance in political and ideological education of youth, understanding that only through political and ideological training will ensure greater firmness in the strategic horizon.
4. It is necessary to boost mass struggles. Are the massive mobilizations that can change the balance of forces. Our strength is in the amount of people who organize and put on the streets. If the enemy is strengthened in the concentration of capital in the media oligopoly and military apparatus, we strengthen ourselves with the people on the streets.
5. Build unity between the popular forces, both in our countries and internationally. We need to challenge ourselves to unitary construction. We cannot feed our small differences at the expense of unity. We need to organize the unit spaces that strengthen the fight against the common enemy;
6. Take advantage of the creative force of youth, to build innovative tools for organizing this social segment, through popular media, the methods of organization and struggle that dialogue with youth.

Organizational challenges:

Conform a provisional coordination collective for this process of articulation, which includes the diversity of our organizations, regional / continental representation.

Building a dynamic organization that involves three tasks:

a. Build national meetings until the end of 2016, seeking to expand the participation of more organizations that identify with this Policy Statement;

b. Build regional meetings to organize a regional meeting by the end of 2017;

c. Identify a country and their organizations who are willing to receive the next International Youth Meeting in wrestling, and has possibilities to realize it.

Struggle:

On October 8, when Che Guevara was killed -internationalist fighter who inspires our generation will convene an “International Youth Day on Fight against violence of capital”.

Viva the Struggling Youth!

Maricá-RJ-Brazil, June 24,2016