Viktor, who was frightened of loud noises, the smell of gunpowder, and certain types of spiders felt no fear as he climbed up to the podium in the Local 302 union hall. Below him was a mass of people; the crowd spilled out the doors. Some had faces covered in black soot. These were the coal miners. A few of them had developed Black Lung disease, and had difficulty breathing. Viktor could hear them caughing as he shuffled his notes.
Others worked in the far smaller copper mine that serviced Macao; they seemed healthier, and didn't bend at the waist every forty seconds. Viktor glanced at the windows, half expecting Special Ops units from the government to burst through at any second. Evidentally, Salah thought so too. She was sitting in the front row between Aram and Lin, and couldn't keep her eyes off the exit to the left of the stage.
Some of the coal miners bore faces that spoke of tiredness, of frustration. They had fought in the strike five months ago, where the union had met with defeat at the hands of the military, which at that time was controlled by the Liberal ministry. These people were perfect, Lin and Feng had judged, to mobilize for the Revolution. But it was up to Viktor to do it. The crowd finally quieted down, until Viktor knew this was a close to silence as he would ever hope to get.
"Greetings," he began, his voice almost a whisper. The union members strained to hear him speak. He had gotten their attention. His voice slowly began to rise. "Some of you bore witness to the visciousness of the Strike of 2006, the fabled Uprising of twenty-thousand, the supposed beginning of the revolution." He was on shaky ground here. The Call, the newspaper put out by the Party, had indeed given those labels, but few others had paid much attention to the strike until it had spelled doom for the Liberal ministry. "Some of you saw the brutal use of our fellow working men and women to crush our hopes and aspirations, as the iron fist of 'freedom' was brought down upon you, to make you bend to its will. All of you bear witness to the consequences. All of you saw as a new government took power, by fraudulent electioneering and through backroom deals. All of you see that our new masters are quite as bad as the old. All of you see that they, too, are willing to use troops to quell an uprising, and uprising of silence.
"They have almost succeeded.
"Uprisings of silence are doomed to failure, because the revolutionaries do not speak even to defend themselves. A few brave souls are fighting a losing battle for Corfu, but there is no hope for that city. The forces of destruction, of tyrrany, of bourgeois freedom, have razed the land as they once razed Macao. I see men and women here who have gone through the same thing, and I ask you, is there solidarity?
"Is there solidarity enough left in the Gallipoli-Chinese people, that when workers see their own being shot in the streets, they will do something about it? Is there solidarity enough to resist this fate? I believe there is.
"You show me that their is with faces that still express hope. You tell me with glances that want to resist, and you make me believe that there is hope for the workers of the world. You make me believe this.
"I did not come here to evangelize you with the gospel of socialism. The gospel of socialism is present within you already; I do no more than articulate what you feel. And what you have shown me that you feel, by your courageous resistance to Government troops, by your refusal to submit to the demands of capital, by your adamant refusal to go softly into that good night, is that you are ready for a fight.
"I move that this Local, this National, this Union declare a general strike of the mine workers of Gallipoli-China." At this, there was cheering, clapping of hands. Somebody began singing Solidarity Forever. From the gallery, Viktor heard numerous seconds, and the strike was approved almost unanimously. Certian members rushed out of the hall to telephone the other Locals, to get them to introduce the motion.
"I also urge you to learn how to fight. A strike is an expression of power, and always invites violent reprisals. Both our current and former governments used violence against dissenters. We must be prepared to strike back. Any who wish to take part in defending this city, or who wish to teach other cities where you Miners have organized to resist their masters, may see my Comrade Feng Hu at the front. I wish you all the very best of luck." The applause was euphoric. Viktor stepped down from the stage, and stood with the little knot of leaders. He left the many volunteers to Feng and Aram; he had no stomach for such things.
