Portugal - new times, new left
Portugal * for human rights. Socialism is the name given to social transformation based on these principles"
The other key debate concerned the nature of the new movement. The minority within Politics XXI proposed the suppression of a certain number of articles in the
A CROWD of nearly 1,000 gathered in the main amphitheatre of the
University of Lisbon on January 29-30, 2000, to "listen, discuss, converge" and set up a new political formation - the Bloco de Esquerda, or Left Bloc. The Bloc's founding assembly proved a resounding success, adopting statutes, approving a programme and electing a leadership. Still very much a minority, the Bloc has broken the political monopoly that the Portuguese Communist Party (PCP) has exercised for half a century over the non-social democratic left.
François Vercammen*
LTHOUGH the convergence between the three political parties involved in the Bloc (UDP - the
Union for Popular Democracy, PSR -
Revolutionary Socialist Party and Politics
XXI) has been underway since 1991, only in the past year has unity become a reality, in the context of success in the European and national parliamentary elections.
Parties not dissolved
Membership of the bloc is individual, but the parties have not dissolved - they maintain their press, meetings and programme, but have no special rights in the new organisation. Public activity is carried out by the Bloc and the elected deputies are identified with the Bloc, whether or not they are members of a party. Inside the
Bloc the "Mesa" (the national "Table" or central organ) is made up on a parity basis
- the independents on the one hand, the party members on the other. But all the members of the Mesa are elected by the
Congress - the parties make proposals, but the members have the final decision. If the structure appears complicated, it flows from political conviction and a unitary internal dynamic generated by the Bloc's initial success.
Until now, there has been political agreement between the parties allowing the development of analyses, points of view and propositions, as well as 2 electoral programmes - but there had been no agreement yet on fundamental programme.
According to provisional estimates, the
Bloc already has around 1,600 members in
15 of the 20 regions of the country (and this before any systematic effort at recruitment!). The preparatory Commission proposed that a national assembly be directly convened at which those who have joined the Bloc at least a week before the congress, would have the right to speak, vote, elect the leadership and be elected - those who merely attended the congress would only have the right to speak.
Following the opening of the congress, there were four reports followed by debates - activity in the first year, statutes, a political resolution, and the election of leadership bodies.
### Reformist minority
The definition of the goals and nature of the Party dominated the debate on the statutes. A reformist minority current within Politics XXI presented a series of amendments to the main texts. Article 1, as proposed by the Commission and adopted by the Congress, states "the movement defends ... the perspective of socialism as expression of the emancipatory struggle of humanity against exploitation and oppression". The reformist current within Politics XXI proposed instead: the Bloc "considers socialism as the main historic factor in the democratisation and civilisation of capitalism", and "recognises the importance of the market, without attributing to its unconditional liberty some kind of intrinsic value... Without its subordination to the values defined by the community, democracy is impossible". The Bloc "defends and promotes a civic culture of participation and democratic political action in the framework of the state of law and respect statutes in particular the section of Article 4 which speaks of the "responsibilities of members" and obliges them to "promote [defend] the political objectives of the movement and act in a consequent fashion". The minority also opposed the very principle of the formation of "nuclei" (article 6), as well as their concrete tasks. The debate on these questions was heated and lively. The objections centred mainly on the dangers of "democratic centralism" and "manipulation" in the relations between Party and social movement. A whole series of other statutory rules were adopted by general agreement.
Programme for whole left
The Bloc's programme merits being translated and read by the whole of the militant left in Europe (and elsewhere). The innovation of language and style is striking. A few chapter headings sum it up: starting from "A new political reality" ", the Bloc identifies itself as "a universalist left based on solidarity". Its radical opposition to globalisation is summed up in the denunciation of a "civilisation of injustice". The third chapter "Left Europeanism: a new contract", which rejects the Europe of the market, is framed by a strategy of the "refoundation of Europe" essentially based on employment and the Convention on Human Rights. There follows "The road to a new left", and "A Bloc in the form of a movement".
A proposed first leadership of the Bloc was approved by 85% of voters. This first national leadership (the "Mesa") creates a unitary functional framework which should allow the expression of all opinions, with 40% women and a representative geographic spread.
It should be stressed that political-institutional conditions are relatively favourable in Portugal (notably in terms of parliamentary functioning and the degree of proportionality), compared to most other European countries. But it is also true that the leading cadre of the Bloc have exploited these conditions very well. This reflects the experience of the Portuguese revolution (1974-75), where the PSR and International Viewpoint #320 April 2000 27
UDP were real actors in the process, but tive, capable of converging on the political also the experience of its defeat which level without endangering the autonomy of dealt a harsh blow to a whole generation of its specific terrains of intervention" (resomilitants. Those who did not abandon the lution 4). The Bloc also committed itself to struggle had to confront Portuguese socie- considering the objective of a big meeting ty a second time over, this time through of an electoral character, without fixing universal suffrage and the elected institu- date, agenda, conditions or objectives (resolution 4). The Bloc announced a series of
This trajectory, as well as the political big campaigns, notably against tax avoidchanges undergone by the three compo- ance and banking secrecy (resolution 6), nents of the Bloc in the last decade, for the decriminalisation of abortion and explains their capacity to create this space for convergence and their genuine social
Intervention and autonomy
The draft law proposed by the Bloc on The 10th and final resolution is on "the
"religious liberty and the secularisation of intervention and autonomy of the social
"Marxist-Leninist") groups and becomes the most influential revolutionary organi-
In a series of resolutions the Bloc pro- zation (up to 20,000 members; 1 deputy until 1979).
poses to take parliamentary and extra- 1975: Defeat of the revolution, a period of decline begins for the left.
parliamentary initiatives aimed at the 1989: Municipal elections. Unitary list of the entire left, headed by Sampaio (left recomposition of the left, in Portugal and socialist). The PSR participates in this.
1991: Parliamentary elections. One UD deputy elected in the framework of a coaliin Europe. At the international level, the
Bloc favours "meetings with the currents tion with the PCP. The PSR makes spectacular progress but misses having a deputy and formations of the new left, left socialists, communists, ecologists and democrat- 1993: Birth of Politics XXI, emerging from the convergence between ex-PCP miliic movements of national affirmation" tants and the MDP-CDE, former electoral partner of the Communists.
(resolution I), notably in the form "of an 1993: Electoral agreement for the municipal elections: PS-PC-PSR-UDP-Greens.
international seminar on this subject [fun- 1994: Politics XXI participates alone in the European elections.
damental rights in the European Union] to 1996: PSR breaks with the municipal coalition in Lisbon, after the turn to the right be organised in our country, through a
December 1997: Municipal elections: a PS-PC-Greens-UDP coalition and, in decision of the broad leadership ["Mesa"] to be held on the most appropriate date in Lisbon and Porto, a "United Left" coalition between the PSR and Politics XXl;
breakthrough of the first regroupment which will lead to the Bloc; the United Left
In the presidential elections, the Bloc obtains 3% and 1 municipal deputy in Lisbon.
January 1992: First agreement of the Bloc, concluding positively the discussions will fight against all the limits of the existing democracy and "will launch a great undertaken by the UDP, Politics XXI, the PSR and independents since summer struggle among public opinion for a profound reform of the Portuguese political June 1999: The UDP breaks with the PS-PCP majority in Lisbon. The Bloc particisystem". It will also organise a "national conference on the quality of democracy" in October 1999: Parliamentary elections. The Bloc's list has two deputies elected in
Porto (resolution 3). In parallel, the Bloc will develop "a process of Round Tables to January 2000: The Bloc's 1st national convention approves statutes and programme discuss with the societal left on an alterna-
* Portugal tions (municipal and parliamentary).
on sexual rights (resolution 8).
implantation.
the state" is exemplary from this point of movements". The Bloc does not plan to view, insisting on individual freedom of launch a youth organisation immediately, conscience and the democratic rights of the church as a private organisation, but also a
On trade unions the Bloc takes a radical break with the hold the church favourable view of work "towards a new exercises on public institutions. It has led trade union tendency". It also favours
"meetings and conferences.. which would to widespread public debate and has split the PS. The same goes for the decriminalisation of abortion (torpedoed by the PS)
and the outlawing of "private" violence
"Listen, discuss, converge" was the slogan against women. The Bloc has also reimposed the democratic rule that the programme of the government is voted on by the parliamentary assembly, which had
1973: PSR founded in clandestinity.
1974: The revolution; the PSR plays an important role in the soldiers" movement;
fallen into disuse for some years.
the UDP is founded from the fusion of various Maoist (then pro-Albanian, finally
Recomposition of left
2001" (resolution 2).
28 International Viewpoint #320 April 2000
The road to the Left Bloc elected by 200 votes.
pates in the European elections.
and elects a leadership. *
Novos tempos
Novos caminhos of the first convention of the Left Bloc - it was a valuable step towards the renewal of the left. *
*François Vercammen is a member of the United
Secretariat of the Fourth International.
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1° Convenção Nacional