A liberating rupture This split between the United Left and its Catalan partner Initiativa per Catalunya is the final act of a relationship marked by numerous quarrels, and a widening divergence in the political projects of the two organisations. Reconciliation was impossible. Diosdado Toledano The rupture with the United Left has caused a crisis within Initiativa, and in its alliance with the Greens and the Catalan Communist Party (PCC), a 'traditionalist' split from the Communist Party during its Eurocommunist phase.
The corridor discussions and manoeuvres of the United Left leadership, in fixing the exact moment of the rupture, have been discussed in minute, sensationalist detail in the media. But the real issue is the growing divergence of the project, objectives and internal life of the Catalan organisation from the United Left project. Rightward drift
The recent declarations of Initiativa leader Rafael Ribó in favour of Spanish compliance with the Maastricht Treaty are the latest step in what has been a long evolution towards the right. Initiativa is now even to the right of classic social democratic positions. Not as a result of "tactical" or superficial adaptations to deal with the neoliberal offensive, but as the result of a shift in the convictions of Initiativa's leadership. These repeated concessions to the neoliberal dynamic have led to the terminal crisis in which Initiativa found itself even before the split with United Left.
How could Initiativa build a left opposition when it openly supported the European Union project, making every effort to
Гprove its sincerity, and pledging collaboration in the transition towards the single currency? The leadership of Initiativa has tried to calm every single social conflict in recent years. It opposed the broad movement of community and neighbourhood groups (led to a large extent by Initiativa militants) against the increase in water prices (in preparation of privatisation). It has opposed the industrial action of Barcelona metro workers in defence of their early retirement agreement. And, unlike the United Left, Initiativa's deputies in the
Spanish parliament have supported the counter-reform of pension rights, and the labour market reforms that cut redundancy payments to make dismissal cheaper.
The social movements which carried Initiativa into the institutions now find the organisation to be part of the institutional straightjacket. Initiativa is dominated by professional politicians, in a tight alliance with the party nomenklatura, secure in the Catalan and Spanish institutions. There are fewer and fewer activists, and less and less motivation to project the organisation outward. Lack of democracy
This is partly because of the lack of pluralısm in Initiativa. Unlike the United Left, Initiativa expects groups which join to abandon all aspects of organisational autonomy. This is why, for instance, most Fourth International supporters in Catalunia remained outside Initiativa, while their co-thinkers elsewhere participated actively in the United Left. The Ribó leadership preferred not to see Initiativa grow, if this meant the entry of other groups, particularly the PCC.
Ribó and his supporters have maintained the 'official' Communist Party (PSUC) in suspended animation. This has atomised Initiativa's main contingent of militants, and blocked the reorganisation of Catalunia's Communists, or their federation with the rest of the Spanish Communist Party (PCE).
The Ribó group has demoralised large half price until 31 December!
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layers of the Initiativa militant base, without winning any compensation on the legal or institutional front. The relative weakness of the left inside Initiativa (corresponding to the majority in United Left is a direct consequence of the success of the organisation's success in pulling Initiativa to the right. Even so, the militant wing gathered about 1/3 of delegate votes at Initiativa's recent Sth Assembly.
While demanding full autonomy from the United Left in the name of Catalunia's sovereignty, Initiativa's leadership has always had an active pan-Spanish and European strategy. Before freezing the PSUC, the Ribó group were those who imported the Italian Communists' successive transformations into the Spanish CP. Ribó is today a fervent supporter of a Catalan and Spanish equivalent of Italy's Olive Tree centre-left bloc. Disloyal and dishonest
Ribó has negotiated with co-thinkers across the Spanish state in a kind of parallel leadership to the United Left federal council. While no-one in the United Left would deny Initiativa's leaders the right to spread their ideas, there has been a justified anger at the dishonest and disloyal way the Ribó group has behaved towards United Left: supposedly a sister party. In the Basque country, the Canary Islands and most recently in Galicia, the Initiativa leadership openly built and supported currents and organisations which opposed the national United Left project.
The surprising thing is not that the United Left leadership reacted with confrontation, but that it waited so long before doing so. Though this was only partly the result of the weakness of the leadership of the United Left: it also reflected the absence of a solid left opposition inside Initiativa.
Since its electoral defeat in May 1996, and facing investigations for corruption and state terrorism [abduction, torture and murder of suspected ETA supporters] the Socialist Party (PSOE) has been desperately seeking to broaden its support. Unable to win votes in the centre ground,
PSOE leaders are enviously regarding the
United Left's electoral base, votes. Not surprisingly, the PSOE seized the offer of Ribó and United Left leaders in Galicia to begin building local Olive
Tree-type coalitions. Particularly since the
*left' partner was not demanding that the
PSOE change its economic policies, deal with corruption allegations, or reform its
'anti-terrorist' policies.
Such PSOE-United Left alliances are a real threat for the future of the Spanish left as a whole. They open the way for the absorption of a part of the United Left into the
Socialist Party, and counteract all the work that has been done in recent years to build the United Left as an alternative to Socialist
Party 'management' of the system.
Everybody knew that once an Olive
Tree coalition was in place in one of the 17
Autonomous regions, it would generalise
'MONEDAS DE TODA
EUROPA, UNTOS!
Currencies of Europe, unite! across the Spanish state. What else could the leadership of the United Left do, except defend itself with the means at its disposal?
With elections to the Generalitat de Catalunya (autonomous parliament) planned for early next year, the Olive Tree project was ready to roll. It would have been suicide for the United Left leadership to wait until this month's (December) congress. To adopt decisions which everybody knows the leadership of Initiativa would never respect. Nor could the United Left leadership wait for the left minority in Initiativa to gain the upper hand.
Acting effectively meant presenting publicly the differences in policy and
Floods and refugees