Country-report Denmark

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The political situation in Denmark

Denmark is a small country in Scandinavia with approx. 5 million inhabitants. The Danish section works inside two broad anticapitalist organizations; The Red Green Alliance and the Socialist Youth Front. The Red Green alliance is represented in the parliament, and consists of 10.000 members. The Socialist Youth Front works close together with the Red Green alliance, and acts like their youth organization, the Socialist Youth Fronts consists of 2500 members.

The parliamentarian situation:

The current Danish government is led by social democrats, but in reality acts more like the old liberal-conservative government with ‘necessary’ cuts on educational support, unemployment benefits, and poverty benefits. The welfare benefit of early retirement (from 60 years of age) has been abolished, and the age required for retirement is continuously raised. The most left-wing party of the three parties in the government (Socialist People's Party – The reformist party) has therefore left the government in January, and the two parties left forms a minority government. There might come an election this autumn, because it is uncertain if the government is able to raise enough votes in the parliament to pass the national budget. The Red Green alliance will vote in favor of national budget, if it shows improvements of the conditions of the working class and no cut backs.

The situation in the social movements:

The next year will contain two huge social movement: A students movement and a movement against the general labor agreement for the public sector. The general labor agreement is the place where the minimum in a specific sector is agreed. In Denmark, the minimum wage is not secured by law, but through negotiations between the Labor Unions and the employers’ associations. The Socialist Youth Front will in the coming weekend, start the mobilization of our activist in the Unions. We prepare us for the struggle for higher wages and better working conditions, the Unions demands are not yet clear.

This October we will see the university students demonstrating against a reform made by the government. The reform will force students quicker trough the University, and into the job market. This will raise the number of unemployed and weaken the strength of our education. This will pressure the working class and force them to accept lower wages.

Conclusion: The working class in Denmark is under attack, as the working class always has been. They are under attack from the bourgeuisie and from the social democratic government. One part of working class is looking for an alternative to the social democrats, the other part thinks the attacks on working class is necessary to restart the economy.