From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Date: Tue, 1 May 2001 12:08:38 EDT To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Support theatre workers on hunger strike! RUSSIA INFO-LIST from International Solidarity with Workers in Russia - [EMAIL PROTECTED] ISWoR web-site - http://members.aol.com/ISWoR/english/index.html **************************************************************************** ** *** Russian Theatre-Workers Commence Hunger Strike To all theatre lovers, workers and friends, This is an emergency! There are 37 theatre workers right now on hunger strike. They belong to the 105 members of the Theatre Workers Collective who are fighting now to save their director from being sacked and to save their theatre, the Astrakhan State Dramatic Theatre, in southwest Russia. The authorities want to break up the theatre Workers' Collective - whose statement is below. Astrakhan, in this period of steep economic decline in Russia, is the one region that is resisting the complete demoralisation of working class people. The Astrakhan region has voted for a very effective workers' organiser in Russia, Oleg Shein, as their deputy to the Duma. Many times over recent years, his trade union, Zaschita, has won better conditions, higher wages, respect of contracts, better housing, and so on, against the authorities. Today in Russia there is a massive decline in living standards, health and job security for the average worker as a result of privatisation.( See the ISWoR website for more information on this). The constant opposition to the corruption of the new capitalist class and their supporters by Zaschita union has already led to one union activist in Astrakhan, Shein's friend and colleague Oleg Maksakov, being shot in the back, murdered by hired gangsters. Oleg Shein has asked ISWoR to help publicise the international appeal. We urge all artists and workers and friends world-wide to support the right of the theatre workers to their own collective organisation and their right to choose their director. Below is the appeal by the Theatre Workers' Collective, and below that is a model letter for people to sign as both solidarity letter and protest letter, which Oleg Shein will pass on to the authorities, to the Collective, and also make available to the theatre audiences. In solidarity, Steve Myers For International Solidarity with Workers in Russia - ISWoR >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> The appeal from the workers collective of Astrakhan State Dramatic Theatre "Once again in our country a talented person is victimised. This is occurring using, from the human angle, the most inadmissible methods.. We appeal to all sane people: Do not allow this triumph of evil! Our situation is as follows. Five years ago, when our Astrakhan state Dramatic Theatre was functioning at an extremely low artistic standard and was in full economic decline, a talented new director arrived. It was Nikita Andreevich Shiryaev, well-known in Russia and on par with top European artists, a former pupil of the officially decorated People's Artist of the Soviet Union, G.A.Tovstonogov. On becoming head of our theatre, he rolled up his sleeves and got down to business, working without holidays or days off, 18-20 hours per day without leaving the building. For five years the theatre was among the top three theatres in Russia. Our theatre became well known in the country and abroad as a result of many positive reviews in the mass media. During the time Shiryaev was director, the spectator in Astrakhan got used to the 436 seat-hall being filled to capacity ... ( before that the average audience was 30-40 people). The conditions for creativity and improvement of well-being of all those who worked at the theatre were created. But the personal ambitions of ten individuals, supported by the City and Area authorities, using their personal connections with top people, sealed the fate of the artist and head, and of all the collective. They wrote a slanderous denunciation, which was kept secret from the collective, and using this dirty paper as evidence, the authorities have dismissed N.A.Shirjaev, despite a letter presented in defense of the artist, signed by 105 members of the collective. An initiative group made up of 80 people unsuccessfully tried to get through to the governor for whom we voted. The chief of the Department of Culture, N. S. Tereshchenko, received part of the collective and, not listening to our views, declared that any actions on the part of collective would not affect his decision, and besides if it is required, he is ready "to destroy the collective", which threw us into shock as we now understood that the decision had already been made. But we are not going to give in. We shall defend our demands to the end. It is time to stop this severe and inhuman practice which destroys, every 4-5 years, the management of our theatre in order to please the former party organisers. We demand that this fine artist, expert, director and human being be returned to our theatre and our town ��..We ask for your help!�" (ISWoR thanks Mark Harris for assistance with translation.) >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>. Union leader Oleg Shein reports: "37 workers of the Astrakhan drama theatre have begun a hunger-strike [on Saturday 28 April). Today 400 spectators who have come to the performance, received on entrance an appropriate leaflet. Workers are going to remain at the theatre through the night. " The militant union Zaschita (Defence), has seen an influx of theatre-workers, while the management continues to refuse negotiations." Please send protests on behalf of the theatre collective to Oleg Shein, co-chairman of Zaschita union and Duma deputy [EMAIL PROTECTED] And to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Your protest letters will be passed also to the workers and theatre audiences. Model Letter: ----------------- Mr. N. S. Tereschenko, Dept. of Culture Astrakhan Dear Mr. Tereschenko, I am writing to protest the fact that the talented and popular Director of the Astrakhan State Dramatic Theatre, Nikita Andreevich Shiryaev, has been summarily dismissed, despite the wishes of the members of the theatre collective. These artists and workers are so dismayed by your decision that they have commenced a hunger-strike in protest. There has been no evidence that Mr. Shiryaev has been guilty of any wrongdoing, other then a slanderous letter circulated by those who have a vested interest in seeing his dismissal. The workers of the collective are the ones who give life to the theatre, who give pleasure and raise the cultural standard of the city. Yet you appear to have totally discounted the opinion of these workers. Surely the devotion of the theatre staff to their Director, as well as the appreciation shown by Astrakhan people who regularly fill the hall, is proof enough that this decision should be reversed. Yours faithfully NAME ORGANISATION TOWN, COUNTRY **************************************************************************** ** *** The RUSSIA INFO-LIST puts out information and analysis from a wide range of sources. If you want to help in our practical solidarity work, contact: >[EMAIL PROTECTED]< Box R, 46 Denmark Hill, London, SE5 8RZ, England **************************************************************************** ** _________________________________________________ KOMINFORM P.O. 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