Workers before Profits

Statement by the Revolutionary Socialists

Yesterday, billionaire Naguib Sawiris expressed the frustration of business owners over the lockdown and quarantine measures taken to combat the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. Today, the government decided to exempt factory workers from the lockdown so that investors can run their factories at total capacity despite the potential risks.
The picture has never been clearer: the crisis reveals the true face of capitalism without any embellishment—exploitation and the relentless pursuit of profit, even at the expense of millions of workers’ lives.
We call on the workers of Egypt to respond to this disregard for their lives by all means. We believe in the power of their collective movement to halt the fierce attack waged by capitalism, with the support and backing of the government, against workers and their safety.