The Handala Association for Culture and Development issued a statement on International Workers’ Day, affirming the struggles of the working class and its international solidarity. The statement also highlighted the conditions of workers in Palestine and the crimes they are subjected to, including forced displacement, genocide, and continued confrontation with Zionist colonialism, as well as their adherence to their inalienable national rights and the importance of international solidarity with the Palestinian cause. The text of the statement is as follows:
“On this international day, International Workers’ Day, we extend a fervent, militant salute to all workers and toiling peoples around the world: those who carry the burden of their homelands and peoples on their shoulders, and who struggle for freedom, justice, and human dignity, and against oppression and tyranny.
On this occasion, we direct our salute first and foremost to the free workers of Palestine, from the steadfastness of Jabal al-Nar (Nablus) to the resilience of Gaza’s proud laborers, those who have tasted the bitterness of occupation and the horrors of siege, aggression, and genocidal war.
To those whose homes have been demolished, whose lands have been stolen, and who have been denied their most basic rights to work and a dignified life: to you, who perform miracles with your patience and unshakable resolve in the face of brutal colonialism and a vile apartheid regime, propped up by global forces of tyranny and injustice, we offer you all our salute and appreciation.
We also raise our fists high in solidarity with all workers and freedom fighters across the globe who have said “No” to the genocide in Gaza, those who refused to let their ports become bridges of death, or their hands conduits for weapons and logistical support to the Zionist killing machine. We salute those who stopped the ships, declared disobedience, and stood firm against oppressive regimes and the backers of massacres.
At Handala Association, as we commemorate this historic day, we call on all the free people of the world, trade unions, human rights organizations, and anti-colonial movements, to continue mobilizing in the streets, in workplaces, and on the political frontlines against systems of tyranny, against the forces backing the Zionist occupation, and against all forms of oppression and injustice.
Let this International Workers’ Day ring out as a defiant cry against imperialism, Zionism, and racism, a thunderous shout for Gaza, for Palestine, for humanity.
Long live the unity of the free!
Long live the struggle of workers everywhere!
Glory to the martyrs!… Victory to the resistance!“
Handala Association, Belgium
May 1st, 2025.
