1: The Aotearoa Workers Solidarity Movement is an organisation working towards a classless, stateless society: anarchist communism. That society would be run by a federation of workplace and community councils, with everyone having a say in decisions that affect them. Resources and property would be communally owned and controlled by everyone. Production would be geared to satisfying everyone’s needs, people would give voluntarily according to their ability, and produce would be distributed freely according to need.
2: Capitalism is based on the exploitation of the working class by the ruling class. The capitalist class have seized ownership and control of the vast majority of resources of society. They have forced the vast majority of the population to work for them on the condition that they receive the profit of our labour. The working class are those who are forced to sell their labour in order to survive, and those who are unwaged and do unpaid labour, on which capitalism also relies to continue. Inequality and oppression are also expressed in terms of ethnicity, gender, sexuality, health, ability, age etc. This divides the working class causing a lack of class unity in struggle that benefits the ruling class. Oppressed groups are strengthened by autonomous action which challenges social and economic power relationships. To achieve our goal we must relinquish power over each other on a personal as well as a collective level.
3: We believe that fighting all forms of oppression and exploitation is necessary. Anarchist-Communism cannot be achieved while sexism and racism still exist. In order to be effective in their struggle against their oppression both within society and within the working class, oppressed groups may at times need to organise independently. However, this should be as working class people only, as cross-class movements hide real class differences and achieve little for those in the oppressed groups. Full emancipation cannot be achieved without the abolition of capitalism.
4: We support Tino Rangatiratanga and stand in solidarity with flaxroots indigenous struggle and direct action. The state’s Treaty of Waitangi settlement process has benefited a small Maori capitalist elite, while doing little for working class Maori. While we respect tikanga Maori and te ao Maori, we believe that tino rangatiratanga is not possible for all Maori under capitalism and the state.
5: While trade unions can never be revolutionary, we recognise that the majority of collective workplace struggle today occurs within unions and therefore our members should join unions where they exist in their workplace, while being wary of any attempts by union bureauracrats to stifle rank and file struggle. Where unions do not exist we encourage our members to engage with their fellow workers to initiate collective action.
6: We recognise that the general strike is one of the working class’ most powerful weapons and oppose all restrictions on worker’s rights to take collective action, including strikes.
7: As well as exploiting and oppressing the majority of people worldwide, Capitalism threatens the planet through war and the destruction of the environment.
8: It is not possible to abolish Capitalism without a revolution, which will arise out of class conflict. The ruling class must be completely overthrown to achieve anarchist communism. Because the ruling class will not relinquish power without their use of armed force, this revolution will be a time of violence as well as liberation.
9: We believe that by working with the principles of theoretical unity, tactical unity, collective responsibility and federalism, we will be best able to move forward in promoting the aims and principles of the Aotearoa Workers Solidarity Movement.
10: We advocate a materialist analysis of capitalist society. We, the working class, can change and overthrow society through our own efforts. Worshipping an unprovable spiritual realm, or believing in a religious unity between classes, mystifies or suppresses such self-emancipation/liberation. While we respect people’s right to hold spiritual beliefs, we encourage skepticism toward any notion that people can be liberated through some kind of supernatural force.
11: The working class has no country. For a revolution based on anarchist-communist principles to succeed, it must be global, and in our exploitation by the ruling class we share a common experience with other working class people all over the planet. Internationalism is therefore crucial to our politics. While we oppose “national liberation” movements because they are cross-class in nature and harmful to worldwide working class solidarity, we support working-class resistance to colonialism and state oppression.