Left bloc coordinator Katharina Martins closed the National Left bloc rally, beginning by stating that the event confirmed that “the program of the left is strong because it learns from those who fight” and “the left is strong because it has roots.” …

“The left bloc presents a program in the 2022 elections that reflects path and commitment. A path to fighting inequality and discrimination, a commitment to our people. Struggle and determination are what these demanding leftists are about, ”he stressed.

The bloc coordinator also recalled that “the left does not forget the cycle of austerity that the right and the troika have imposed on our people; the left knows that it is their strength that has made it possible to restore the dignity of those who work; and he knows that the now interrupted legislative assembly was marked by stagnation in the main spheres of life in the country. “

PS Political Turn

Katharina Martins recalled that PS in 2019 withdrew from an agreement with the left-wing bloc “that would change labor laws”, and that with this refusal “there was a political shift that, in addition to burying the device, opened the way to go to the right.”

“The country is aware of the dangers of the absolute majority, such as those who lived with Cavaco Silva or Jose Sokratis. And he knows that the transition to a formally or informally agreed central bloc can only mean a return to the privatization agenda, starting with public services, ”the bloc coordinator condemned.

“It is the strengthening of the left that stops the slide into political swamp and social stagnation,” said Katharina Martins and accused: “If the absolute majority belongs to Plan A PS, then Plan B seems to be a central bloc, formal or informal. This drift indicates that in order to stay in power and continue to block the necessary responses to the private sector’s drainage of the NHS or to stagnant wages, Antonio Costa will be available to sit down with Rui Rio or Paulo Rangel. understanding, the meaning of which in the life of people you will be able to meet only after January ”.

“If a country no longer supports always irrelevant advertising, it definitely does not need an agreement with the central bloc that prevents any change. The key to unblocking Portugal is in the power of the left, ”confirmed Catarina Martins.

four meetings

The Left Bloc coordinator also said that four very clear commitments flow from this meeting.

“First, to prevent the collapse of the National Health Service. “

Katharina Martins recalled that “the public health service is plagued by chronic underfunding under the pressure of the pandemic and the predation of private businesses,” she believed that she would not survive without professionals, and argued that “the attitude of doctors, nurses, technicians and other workers is urgent and requires a dignified career and dedication to the civil service. ”

“If we postpone this response, we will be crediting private business – business that missed the challenge at the worst moment of the pandemic – the most undeserved reward: replacing the NHS with broader social sectors in providing a wide range of services,” the Blocist coordinator recalled and defended: ” Preserving SNS, on the other hand, means adhering to the Basic Law, which Antonio Arnaut and Joao Semedo proposed to the country, and the Left bloc fully assumes this obligation. “

“The second goal is to increase wages, end the long stagnation of average wages “

“One of the most obvious consequences of the degradation of the legal protection of workers, seriously accelerated by the troika, is the stagnation of wages,” stressed Katharina Martins, noting that “the state itself contributed to this reality, freezing their (and therefore real losses) all wages. which was not covered by the renewal of the minimum wage and the promotion of outsourcing (outsourcing with workers doomed to low wages and lack of a career). “

He also stressed that there is a generation “of the youngest, those who jump from crisis to crisis, for whom instability means a future that is always postponed.”

“Look at the data released today: three out of four young people receive less than 950 euros a month, and almost a third of young people want to emigrate. Let me be very clear: a country that is giving up any prospect for its youth, a country where family income is higher than wages, is a deferred country. And Portugal cannot be postponed, ”he stressed.

The Bloc coordinator also stressed that the wage crisis “will not be overcome without the courage to resist the blockade by the bosses”, demanding an increase in the minimum wage to lift those who work out of poverty, and unfreeze wages and raise average wages. If this is not done, those who work will only have stagnation. And Portugal can, should and should be a country that respects those who work. “

“The third goal is to implement the Climate Act and respond to a climate emergency. ”

The Blocist coordinator saw the first step towards achieving this goal “expanding the public transport network and the path to free travel.”

“Where uncompromising rhetoric prevails among the world’s elites, Blok offers clear goals and steps. The climate crisis requires courage, not empty speeches. This requires effective measures in the field of energy, transport and production methods, and also requires adaptation of the territory. It is a social justice pathway for climate change, tackling income in the electricity sector, jobs for the climate and community participation in building solutions, ”he said.

“The fourth goal is to modernize the social protection system and respect the older generations “

The Block Coordinator believes that this path “starts with the elimination of fines that continue to be applied to a group of retirees through the application of resilience reduction”, goes through “modernization of social protection with the creation of a unified social benefit that absorbs and consolidates the forest of support to fight poverty and puts all victims of instability or informality above the poverty line ”.

Katharina Martins also highlighted the commitment endorsed at the meeting: “ creation of the National Care Servicewhich includes homes, day care centers, home support and other skilled care measures that are not institutionalized as the prevailing response, that respects the right of people with disabilities to an independent life and guarantees support for informal caregivers. Respect where there has been an exception until today is our commitment. “

In conclusion, Katharina Martins emphasized that “the left has a responsibility to present its transformative project, which is a condition for hope, horizons and mobilization,” and reiterated that “health, wages, pensions, climate, justice” are rooted in the past. left.