Reports Despite the hesitation, and even outright hostsily, of the retornist bureaucracies, the planned songs of struggle and senions of the Lip March on Besancon" in solidarity with the Lip watch factory workers' fight against redundancies is going ahead for 29 September.
The Sucialist Party mayor of Bensarcon, had orginaily come out apainst the proposed dem onstration. He bassince withdrawn her oppositcon after having received assurances from the Irade union federations the CGT and the CFDT - that the whole affair would be under 'strict trade union control, and that there was no geestion of a march un Besancon" Such assurances are of little signEicance however, since the planning of the march is safely out of the hands of the trade union bureaucrats. Originally called by the Lip workers themselves, the demonstration is co-ordinated by the Lip workers' own organIsations (their union branches and the Lip Action CommitteeJand is heine built across the country by grassroots committees (comites de base) set up by the various groups of the revolutionary left, Already plans have been made for three trains und a cavalcade of cars to take demonstrators trom Paris to Besancon for the 29th. The Lip wurkers have launched a massive pubLeity campaign for the march chat includes the pubushing of two special numbers of their bulletin Lin Unite" The distr bution of a film about the occupation, a gramaphune record of workers peneral assembly un tapo casscite record of migor events in the struggle, printed dossier of information, and special stickers and postcards. in many areas local workers support commitfees have sprung up, often around the showing uf the film or a collective session listening to the tape cassette record Special committees have been established by the Lip warkers to arrange for food, accumodution and entertainment for thea visitors. The restaurant committee has already arranged to lay on 100,000 meals for the 29th. An invitattoo has heen sent our made to singers, artists and actors to turn up and provide ontertainment for the cvening.
Arrangements are also being made for discussion sessions to take place around apecific topics and between particular groups of workers, so that they can look at their mutual experiences and problems and dehate way of linking up their struggles.
It is clear that the "March on Besancon" will be not only'a big boost to the workers at Lip hut a major event in the life of the French working class multants, It che French povernment thinks it has headaches now, wait until the day after Beaancon!