Confederation of Revolutionary Anarcho-Syndicalists (KRAS-MAT)

The Confederation of Revolutionary Anarcho-Syndicalists was formed at the constituent congress on August 5, 1995, held in Moscow ^[2] . Its creation was the result of a long search for the development of the anarchist movement in Russia at the turn of the 1980s and 1990s on the territory of the former Soviet Union .

In the course of its development, the anarchist movement was formed in 1989-1991, primarily in the Confederation of Anarcho-Syndicalists (CAS), which, according to the members of KRAS-MAT, was a reformist, and also essentially a market-oriented anti-communist organization.

The Confederation of Anarcho-Syndicalists was an organization oriented towards a market economy, striving precisely for it, and, moreover, pacifist, evolutionist in essence, which, again, does not fit with the classical idea of ​​anarcho-syndicalism as a radical idea based on the principle of propaganda and the use of “direct action” methods (strikes, sabotage, road blocking, etc.) ^[3] .

Due to the fact that the ideological foundations of CAS did not suit all members of the organization, this led to the first separation of the Association of Anarchist Movements (ADA) from CAS in 1990. Later, on March 5, 1991, the Initiative of Revolutionary Anarchists (IREan) was created. This was the first attempt to create an anarcho-communist counterweight to a market-oriented CAS. Subsequently, it was from IREAn that the Confederation of revolutionary anarcho-syndicalists arose ^[4] .

At the Constituent Congress of KRAS-MAT, a series of resolutions were adopted defining its ideological orientation: “On the situation in Eastern Europe and North Asia and on our tasks”, “On resistance to militarism ”, “On resistance to the fascist threat”, “On attitude to other libertarian groups ”and a number of others.

At the second congress of KRAS-MAT, held in Gomel (Republic of Belarus) on August 24–25, 1996, the previously expressed intention of KRAS-MAT to join the International Association of Workers was confirmed. Delegates to the MAT Congress, which took place in December of the same 1996, were also elected.

Membership in the MAT, adopted by the congress of the anarcho-syndicalist International, was ratified at the third congress of KRAS-MAT on August 29, 1997, held in Lviv (Ukraine) ^[2] .

In its daily struggle, KRAS-MAT focuses on advocacy. The organization issues a newspaper and a theoretical journal, distributes leaflets, publishes brochures, holds graffiti campaigns and stickers.

In 1995, activists of the Moscow organization KRAS-MAT provided active support and technical assistance to striking teachers of the Moscow region , strikers at the Rostselmash plant ( Rostov-on-Don ), the strike of workers at the Yasnogorsk Machine-Building Plant (YaMZ) ^[5] , which was led by a general meeting of workers (1999), a strike of nonresident builders in Moscow (1999), etc., trying to convey to them the ideas of anarcho-syndicalism.

KRAS activists (of the Russian section of M.A.T.) provided all possible assistance and support to the striking YaMZ workers. They welcomed the self-organized speech under the direction and control of the general meeting as a vivid manifestation of the beginnings of solidarity and self-government in the struggle, - the foundations on which in the future a society of universal self-government can arise. Anarcho-syndicalists organized an international campaign of solidarity with the YaMZ collective; letters and telegrams of support and material assistance came from different countries. A leaflet of the strikers was printed, and in March at the plant, with the assistance of KRAS, the production of the YaMZ Work Sheet was launched. Thus, the information blockade established by the city administration against striking workers was interrupted ^[6] .

Members of KRAS-MAT are very active in disseminating anti-militaristic propaganda. For example, they participated in anti-war actions against the Chechen wars ^[7] , the war in South Ossetia in August 2008 ^[8] , and other anti-war actions.

In Baikalsk, the members of KRAS-MAT were at the origins of the Interprofessional Labor Union (the organization was defeated under pressure from the authorities).

On June 25–26, 2004, the members of KRAS-MAT took part in a congress held in the Rostov Region (near Azov), at which a decision was made to re-establish the Federation of Revolutionary Anarchists (FRAN), which existed earlier ^{[4] [9]} (finally ceased its existence in 2007).

In 2007-2008, KRAS-MAT activists in Moscow and the Moscow Region took an active part in protests against point buildings in Moscow, and helped the work of a number of initiative groups ^[10] . On September 16, 2007, together with activists from the Autonomous Action and a number of independent anarchists in Moscow, a picket against point building took place on Bolotnaya Square ^[11] .

KRAS-MAT members take an active part in demonstrations, pickets and other protests, promoting the experience, methods and ideas of anarcho-syndicalism. Since the end of 2008, KRAS-MAT activists have been actively participating (and conducting their own) in campaigns against rising prices ^{[12] [13]} .

As a result of the internal problems that had befell the organization in the early 2000s, by 2009 only the Moscow organization remained in KRAS-MAT, but since the end of 2008 there was a way out of the crisis, new people began to come, new KRAS-MAT supporters appeared outside the Moscow region . In addition, in September 2008, according to a referendum, the MPPS (Interprofessional Union of Workers) group was expelled from KRAS-MAT on charges of anti-syndicalist propaganda and support for ethnoanarchism ^[15] . At the same time, the expelled members of the IPTS did not recognize the decision and I refer to the organizational principles of KRAS-MAT and prove that their exclusion was illegitimate.

MPST also denies allegations of nationalism and anti-syndicalism, believing them to be libelous ^[16] . A different interpretation of the incident is due to the fact that the MPST, unlike the KRAS, does not consider the emphasis on the value of national identity a manifestation of nationalism.

In 2009, KRAS-MAT activists took part in general anarchist protests and distributed the organizational press. In autumn, members of the organization, together with other anarchists, organized and held pickets in support of the Kiev anarchists, the Movchan brothers, who are facing up to five years in prison, and the Serbian anarcho-syndicalists from the Anarcho-Syndicalist Initiative (ASI), who are facing from three to fifteen years in prison conclusions on terrorism charges ^[17] . In addition, KRAS-MAT activists took part in protests against the persecution of trade union activists, anarcho-anti-fascist demonstrations and other protest actions ^[18] . In 2009, on the day of the Russian flag, in a number of places in Moscow, members of KRAS-MAT defiantly posted red-black anarcho-syndicalist flags ^[19] . In addition, members of the Confederation provide feasible support to the sections of the MAT if necessary, carry out actions of solidarity.

In accordance with the organizational principles of the organization ^{[1], the} members of KRAS-MAT are negotiating with a number of trade union activists in order to create a full-fledged syndicalist trade union, the need for which was confirmed at the 4th Congress of KRAS-MAT ^[20] .

In early 2010, members of KRAS-MAT in Moscow and the Region carried out a series of actions against another increase in transport prices. Activists and supporters of the Confederation in different cities continued to distribute printed materials KRAS-MAT. A series of pickets was held in Moscow, in particular in solidarity with the Ukrainian anarcho-syndicalists from the student’s direct action union.

During political protests in connection with the elections in Russia in 2011 and 2012 KRAS-MAT advocated the transition from a “purely” political to social and socio-economic issues ^[21] . In the 2010s members of KRAS-MAT took part in protests against the policy of "cuts" and "optimization" in the fields of education, healthcare, etc. During protests against pension reform in 2018, KRAS-MAT promoted the slogan of a general strike until the reform was canceled ^{[ 22]} .

According to the Organizational principles approved by the constituent congress, the purpose of K.R.A. is a society of free (anarchist) communism, the means of its achievement is revolutionary syndicalism , that is, the mass movement of workers, organized on the principles of anarchism. K.R.A.S. considers the creation of revolutionary and class-independent trade unions capable of waging a struggle both for the everyday interests of working people and for the social revolution . In the future K.R.A.S. intends to transform into a confederation of such unions. K.R.A.S. adheres to the programmatic and organizational principles of the anarcho-syndicalist International M.A.T., of which she became a member in 1996. The Confederation rejects any statist, party, capitalist and "state-socialist" ideology and tactics and uses exclusively methods of self-organization and direct action (that is, people directly defending their own interests). ^[2]

Persons exploiting wage labor and members of political parties cannot be admitted to KRAS-MAT. The organization lacks formal managers and paid functionaries: all members of the organization are equal in their rights and responsibilities.

K.R.A.S. rejects participation in elections and government bodies and does not participate in the struggle for power. Its “triple strategy” is to support and encourage social resistance against the System, during which self-organization of the working people can occur, developing into a system of universal social self-government. ^[2]

KRAS-MAT refuses to participate in blocs and coalitions with any political parties, however, it is ready to interact (and as far as possible) with various civic, social, trade union, environmental and other similar initiatives and associations that set the task of protecting socio-economic and universal human interests of workers. It is about interaction in direct protests, the goals of which do not contradict the ideological principles of KRAS-MAT.

KRAS-MAT structure

KRAS-MAT is built on a confederate principle; it includes both individual groups and individual members, retaining "full internal autonomy within the framework of common program and organizational principles."

Decisions K.R.A.S. accepted by congress, general referendum or by interviewing subjects. At the request of any of the subjects, the question may be submitted to the congress. The decision of the congress can only be challenged by referendum ^[1] .

In addition to Moscow, there are also individual supporters and members in several other regions of the country ^[20] .

The Confederation of Revolutionary Anarcho-Syndicalists publishes the Direct Action newspaper (since 1994, at one time it was published as a theoretical publication) ^[23] and the Libertarian Thought magazine (since the end of 2008) ^[24] . In addition, a number of brochures were published by KRAS-MAT: “The Positive Program of the Anarchists” by G. Hadzhiev ^[25] , “What is Anarcho-Syndicalism?” By P. Bans and E. Deschan ^[26] and several others.

Some interest in “ left-wing communist ” ideas in the late 1990s was promoted in particular by the fact that in 1999 the book by the cameraman Karl-Heinz Roth “The Return of the Proletariat” ^[27] with an appendix from several related articles was published.

From 2003 to 2008, KRAS-MAT activists published the Black Star newspaper ^[28] . In addition, for several years, starting in 1998, the non-periodical newsletter New Labor Movement was published ^[2] .

Also in the 2000s, members of KRAS-MAT took part in the publication of the newspaper of the initiative of students and science workers “Heretic” ^[29] .

• I (constituent) congress, August 5, 1995 (Moscow, Russia)
• II Congress, August 24–25, 1996 (Gomel, Belarus)
• III Congress, August 29, 1997 (Lviv, Ukraine)

From 1998 to 2008, no congresses were held.

• IV Congress, October 3-4, 2009 (Moscow, Russia) ^[20]
• V Congress, September 25-26, 2010 (Moscow, Russia) ^[30]

After 2010, the main issues in the organization are resolved by referendum.

• International Workers Association
• Anarcho-syndicalism
• Social syndicalism
• Confederation of Anarcho-Syndicalists
• Siberian Confederation of Labor
• Vadim Damier

• Official site KRAS-MAT
• News site KRAS-MAT
• International Workers Association website

In the media:

• Tarasov A. N. From the recent history of police provocation in Russia. Article two: “Krasnodar affair”
• Rublev D. Russian anarchists. Today, here, now

In the books:

• Buchenkov D.E. Anarchists in Russia at the end of the 20th century. - M.: Book House "LIBROCOM", 2009. ISBN 978-5-397-00516-6
• Tarasov A.N., Cherkasov G. Yu., Shavshukova T.V. Leftists in Russia: from moderate to extremists. - M .: Institute of Experimental Sociology, 1997 ISBN 5-87637-006-1
• Tarasov A.N. The revolution is not serious. Studies on the theory and history of quasi-revolutionary movements. - M .: Ultra. Culture, 2005 ISBN 5-9681-0067-2

On the radio:

• Anarcho-syndicalism in the 21st century: past or future of a social movement. Conversation with KRAS-MAT members on Autonomous Action Radio streetsunited.org