On 30 July, comrades of the Revolutionary Communist International assembled in 26 cities across 15 countries to demand freedom for political prisoners from the Awami Action Committee Gilgit-Baltistan (AAC-GB), held in torturous conditions on the order of the Pakistani state. This campaign now has the support of millions-strong labour organisations, and has been endorsed by hundreds of prominent politicians and activists. These efforts are paying off: all but two of the detainees have been granted bail. The lesson here is: solidarity works! Keep pushing, and we can win!
The arrested AAC-GB leaders continue to receive support from the labour movement and wider left. In the past week, the campaign was endorsed by CUPW Local 730, representing 2,700 workers in Edmonton, Canada, and Stephen Edwards, retired charter president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Local 2858 in Chicago, USA. Two weeks prior, a British comrade of the Revolutionary Communist Party passed a solidarity motion at the national policy conference of Unite, one of the biggest trade unions in the UK, representing 1.2 million workers.
We also recently received the following message of support from the party Mera25, founded by former Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis in 2018:
Yannis Xydis,
Member of the Political
Secretariat of MeRA25On behalf of the Greek party MeRA25 and its president — former minister, member of parliament, and co-founder of DiEM25 and the Progressive International — Yanis Varoufakis, I express our solidarity with the imprisoned Pakistani social and political activists from the Gilgit-Baltistan region and our support for the international campaign demanding their release. We call on the authorities of Pakistan to immediately meet their just demands.
Finally, the daily paper of the Communist Party of Britain, Morning Star, published a full-page feature on our campaign coinciding with our day of action (which can be read online here).
We thank everyone who has thus far offered support to our campaign for justice. This unified chorus of condemnation has put a global spotlight on the crimes of the generals and bureaucrats in Islamabad. And the results speak for themselves. As we approached 30 July, of the original 16 AAC-GB leaders arrested two-and-a-half months ago, only Ehsan Ali, Masood ur Rehman and Irfan Azad remained behind bars. Below, you can watch a statement by one of the former detainees, comrade Ashgar Shah from the Inqalabi Communist Party, expressing thanks for the international solidarity campaign:
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The following day, Irfan Azad was released as well, leaving just two AAC-GB leaders in captivity. Azad reportedly experienced severe torture in prison, which only underscores the need to intensify our campaign to secure a swift release for Ali and Rehman. We have made progress, but our work is far from finished.
If you have not already, please contact your local embassy, pass motions of solidarity through your trade union/student union organisations, and join our protests against the real criminals and terrorists: the cabal of capitalists and cut-throats ruling in Islamabad!
Below, we publish reports from our comrades around the world who turned out for the day of action.
Pakistan
Comrades of the RCI in Pakistan mobilised in force for the day of action, holding large protests in 13 locations across the country, including Quetta, Bahawalpur, Multan and Hyderabad, as well as in occupied Kashmir. The comrades also held an impressive rally in Old Anarkali Bazaar in Lahore, raising slogans for justice and revolution alongside sympathetic youth, workers and progressive activists.
This day of action followed months of continuous protests in Gilgit-Baltistan and throughout Pakistani territory. Supporters of the AAC-GB, and their struggle for a decent existence, have been sending a clear message that they will not be cowed by repression. Despite brutal violence and intimidation by state forces, they have remained steadfast.
See below images and videos of yesterday’s protests across Pakistan:
Britain
Comrades of the RCP mobilised in three major cities: London, Bradford and Glasgow. In the former, comrades shook the rafters of the Pakistan High Commission with chants and speeches. As on previous protests, the embassy staff refused to take our letter of concern. But until the last three AAC leaders are out of jail, we will keep coming back!
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Comrades from the Yorkshire Region of the RCP gathered outside the Pakistani Consulate in Bradford to protest the shameful detention of the leaders of the AAC in Gilgit-Baltistan. The city of Bradford has a rich history of class struggle and has a significant Pakistani community, a number of whom have expressed sympathy with our campaign.
Finally, Scottish comrades protested outside the Commission in Glasgow. Before we even entered, a passerby picking up his passport overheard us talking and asked what we were there for. When we explained our comrades’ imprisonment, he took the words right out of our mouths: the Pakistani government is a corrupt dictatorship that silences any dissent and doesn’t care about the people. We were given a cool reception by the consulate staff, but we delivered our protest letter, and we’ll be back soon to make our demands directly to the consul.
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From the Revolutionary Communist Party in Britain, we send the Pakistani state a warning – the eyes of the international working class are watching your next move!
Ireland
The Revolutionary Communists of Ireland held a demonstration in front of the Pakistani embassy in Dublin on 30 July. Comrades from all around travelled to the demonstration, chanting slogans and delivering speeches, explaining the situation in Gilgit-Baltistan and the repression comrades are facing, linking it to the need of carrying out the class struggle internationally.
We also delivered a letter to the embassy demanding the release of the arrested comrades, the dropping of charges, and the acceptance of their demands. The campaign in Ireland has already received support from prominent figures on the left, such as Paul Murphy TD, Cllr Madeleine Johansson, and from the Independent Workers’ Union. We will continue to escalate the campaign until all our comrades are released!
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Italy
Comrades of the PCR participated in the global day of action by assembling a garrison in front of the Pakistani embassy in Rome. We raised slogans for the liberation of comrades, and against capitalism and imperialism. The Pakistani authorities tried, by putting pressure on the police, to prevent us from taking a photo with our banner in front of the embassy entrance. Faced with our determination, they decided to remove the flag of Pakistan to avoid it appearing alongside our protest on social media: a pathetic sign of weakness and a confirmation of the power of international solidarity.
Sweden
10 RKP comrades gathered outside the Pakistani embassy in Stockholm to demand the release of the activists in Gilgit-Baltistan. We shouted slogans that were heard through the whole embassy building. Two comrades demanded to talk to the ambassador but were initially denied. However, after saying that we would not stop our protest until we received an audience, embassy personnel eventually let us go inside and meet the second-in-command after the ambassador, who we have met with twice before.
We explained the new developments in the case, Ehsan Ali’s ill health and the false charges against the comrades. She tried to interject that “Pakistan has many political prisoners, but they take extra good care of specifically political prisoners, since they do not want any controversy.” This was after we had explained the reports of torture and threats to comrades’ families.
She agreed to report back to Pakistan and seemed very alarmed when we said we would protest all around the world today, and not stop until the comrades are free. She received the list of prominent names supporting the campaign and promised to send it to her superiors in Pakistan.
Spanish state
Comrades of the OCR protested both at Pakistani embassies in Madrid and Barcelona, chanting slogans for the liberation of our comrades, and managed to pass on a letter to the ambassador.
Austria
Pakistani embassy personnel in Vienna refused to answer our comrades’ demands for an audience. We nevertheless protested for almost two hours and left a letter containing our demands and the latest list of prominent supporters in their mailbox. We also discussed with and sold materials to passersby, even receiving a small donation from a woman who had an appointment at the embassy!
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Germany
Comrades in front of the Pakistani embassy in Berlin. We started the protest with a speech reflecting on the achievements of the mass movements organised by the AAC in Gilgit-Baltistan and Kashmir. It was emphasised that it is not the individual leaders of the AAC whom the Pakistani ruling class fears, but the fact that they represent the oppressed masses of the territory.
We continued with slogans demanding freedom for the three leaders still being held in custody, and speeches highlighting the achievements of our solidarity campaign. At the end, we attempted to deliver a letter of protest to the embassy; however, we were only allowed to place it in the mailbox.
USA
The US comrades organised protests and phone banking for the day of action. We had protests outside diplomatic buildings in New York City, Washington, DC, Chicago, and Los Angeles, with speeches, chanting, and signs. In New York and DC, we delivered petitions to consulate staff. In Los Angeles, comrades attempted to deliver a petition to the consulate, but were locked out of the building. They continued to protest and give speeches outside the building.
Comrades who were unable to attend the protests or were in areas without a diplomatic building were asked to call their nearest consulate/embassy to demand the release of the arrested comrades. Phone banking was organised in Seattle, Dallas, Houston, and Boston, as well as many other smaller cities.
From the reports we’ve received, comrades are determined to continue this campaign for as long as needed and understand the importance of having a strong campaign in the US: the belly of the beast of world imperialism, and one of the main benefactors of the generals in Islamabad.
Canada
Canadian comrades of the RCP organised protests in Toronto, Montreal and Ottawa demanding freedom for the AAC-GB leaders. The comrades in the capital, who rallied in front of the High Commission, managed to engage in a brief dialogue with the embassy staff. Clearly the forces of the Pakistani state are getting rattled by our campaign!
Poland
On 30 July, members of Czerwony Front from Warsaw, Kraków, Toruń, and Wrocław organised a solidarity demonstration in front of the Pakistani embassy in support of the imprisoned members of the Awami Action Committee in Gilgit-Baltistan.
During the speeches, comrades detailed the current situation of the political prisoners, spoke about the repression carried out by the authorities of Gilgit-Baltistan, and discussed the struggles of the Awami Action Committee. They emphasised international solidarity among working people and the global character of the protest.
Attention was drawn to the repressive nature of bourgeois states – regardless of whether they are located in Europe, the Middle East, or Asia. The only weapon that can resist the capitalists’ armed bodies of men is the international solidarity of the proletariat.
Switzerland
The Swiss section of the RCI organised a protest in Bern in front of the embassy of Pakistan. In addition, we gathered support from around 20 MPs/ trade unionists – amongst them three members of the national council. Some of them have also sent the letter directly to the embassy.
This time, as usual, the ambassador and his crew were hiding and watching us from behind their curtains. They can try to hide from us, but not from our message, which we delivered loudly and clearly: we will not rest until all of the AAC-GB political prisoners are returned home!
Belgium
Belgian comrades gathered in front of the Pakistani Embassy in Brussels to demand the immediate release of Ehsan Ali. In a speech delivered at the protest, we condemned the Pakistani regime for using the conflict with India as a pretext to suppress democratic rights, falsely labelling activists as “terrorists.” We say, loudly and clearly, the ruling clique of generals and capitalist politicians are the real terrorists!
Brazil
Comrades of the OCI in Brazil held militant demonstrations at Pakistani diplomatic buildings in Brasilia and Rio. The comrades have also met with particular success getting support from the wider left and labour movement, securing endorsements from dozens of trade union branches, prominent activists and politicians, including MP for the Socialism and Liberty Party (PSOL), Glauber Braga.
