AROUND THE WORLD
LCR and Democrazia Proletaria
From now on it will be necessary to reply effectively and without delay to the relaunch of the strategy of tension
ITALY joint election slate
On May 12 the Italian local, provincial and regional elections will take place. These elections will have a wider political importance especially since they will confirm or otherwise relation of forces brought about in the European elections last year. On that occasion, the Italian Communist Party (PCI) was ahead of the Christian Democracy for the first time with 33.3% of the vote, the leading party in the country an the electoral level. The elections on May 12 could seal the fate of the coalition government led by Bettino Craxi. This government is made up of the Socialist Party, the Social Democratic Party, the Republican Party and the Liberal Party and is beset by constant internal conflicts. The Revolutionary Communist League (LCR), the Italian section of the Fourth International has reached agreement on an electoral platform with the largest organisation on the Italian far left, Democrazia Proletaria (DP). This had already been the case in the 1983 legislative elections. We publish below the text of the agreement signed by the two organisations at the beginning of March.
In the run-up to the May 12 elections Democrazia Proletaria and the Revolutionary Communist League whilst maintaining their own separate analysis and political projects, recognise that there exists between them important points of agreement which can be summarised as follows.
The attack launched on the left-wing town councils constitutes an important aspect of the economic, political and ideological offensive agsinst the workers movement by the Craxi government. This attack has recently been stepped up. The dismantling of the gains of the workers movement, the reintroduction of [terrorist] assassinations and the extension of the state of emergency give some idea of the political problems which exist today; of the context in which the strategy of dismantling the left councils is taking place and of the stakes involved in the next elections.
The responsibility for the crisis of the large left-dominated councils does not only rest with the parties which placed themselves in opposition. The responsibility lies equally with the town councils themselves who have in practice accepted
26 capitalist accounting, who have failed to reject cuts in their spending imposed by financial laws, and who have acquiesced in becoming instruments of a policy of austerity. selves on popular struggles and have, on the contrary, brought about the frag mentation and dispersion of those forces. They have not attempted to satisfy the needs and expectations of the masses who support them but have submitted themselves to a short-sighted logic of constitutional
The defence and the boosting of the left town councils should absolutely not imply a re-run, at the local level, of the national unity policy which the PCI put following the crisis of Turin town council. On the contrary it is more necessary than ever to take up the struggle against the Christian Democrat dominated system and to give workers a perspective of real 'red' administrations based their demands and with their support. Such administrations should not merely to administrate the towns, but should also be instruments for mobilising against the central government and for the construction of an alternative.
The development of perspective and the political defense of the workers movement necessarily implies the defence of living standards and of the organisational strength of the workers movement. That is why it is necessary organise in unions all those opposition forces starting with the Democrazia Consiliare inside the CGIL [Democrazia Consiliare is a trade union group organised within the CGIL, and supported by members of the DP and
The CGIL, led nationally by the PCI is the most important trade union confederation in Italy.]
Finally the struggle for jobs must be placed on the order of the day, centering on the demand for a 35-hour week with no loss of pay. At the same time it is vital to lead a struggle against ecological deterioration and energy based on nuclear power and super coal-power stations, whilst experimenting, including at a local level, with alternative energy sources. Every social and political battle against the bosses' offensive and for a different society must be inspired by the same goals of independence and strengthening of the working class.
and the climate of the state of emergency by breaking the silence for which the left itself must take the responsibility. It is necessary to be courageous enough to say the truth about the assassination attempts and the threats of a coup d'etat; to lead a campaign against state secrecy; for the reopening of the trials of those responsible for these crimes and the punishment of them and their accomplices at all levels; and against all attempts to re-evaluate fascism. It is necessary to roll back the repressive development of the state of emergency and to refuse to make the tiniest concession as regards the freedoms and the democratic rights of the workers.
On the basis of these points of agreement the DP and the LCR recognise that they can and must lead a joint electoral campaign. The LCR will participate with its own candidates on the slates in the name of DP. Within the framework of this agreement the two organisations will then have adequate representation on the slates and at the top of the lists as well as enjoy full participation in all aspects of the electoral campaign.
ITALY
LCR statement on the Red Brigades
On March 28, Ezio Tarantelli, omics professor at the university of Rome and the president of the Institute Trade Inion Studies (CISL), was murder ed by a commando squad claiming to be from the Red Brigades. The Revolutionary Communist League (ICR), section of the Fourth International issued the following statement on the event:
The murder of Ezio Tarantelli, which the Red Brigades have claimed responsibility for, brings us back with a jolt to the cimate of the 1970s which was falsely called a state of emergency. If such a state of emergency ever existed, it existed for the workers movement and not for the government.
As in March 1978 when the Aldo
Moro affair (the Christian-Democratic exprime minister was kidnapped and later murdered by the Red Brigades) combined with the entry of the Italian Communist
Party (PCI) into the government, a terrorist crime has once again shattered the normal framework of political discussion and debate. As in March 1978, the aim of the assassins - whoever they are - is
International Viewpoint 6 May 1985
also clear; in killing Tarantelli they have delivered a severe blow to the project of a referendum on the sliding scale being promoted by the PCI. For there will not be a shortage of people in government circles who will exploit this terrible and bloody event.
It is clear there was only a slim possibility that the referendum on the sliding scale would not be held and that, as a recent survey has shown, the "no' supporters are rapidly losing ground. emergence of an atmosphere of a state of emergency, which in the past has served a useful function for the bosses and the government, will now be used to intimidate, threaten and undermine the campaign of the left opposition - especially the somewhat half-hearted one of the PCI - for a 'yes' referendum. The best response, know from several years experience, not to enter into the vicious circle of intimidation and retreat, but to recom mence with even more energy the campaign around the referendum and increasing committees for a 'yes' vote.
It is also important to find new ways of taking up the problem of establishing the truth about the tragic events, of different origins, which have hit the country. It is clear that from now on we can have no confidence in mentary commissions and in the normal channels of justice. The time is ripe for the working class and the left to take up the question of setting up alternative shed light on these questions once and rights groups, the People's Union Democratic Rights (PUDR) and the People's Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL).
In its first two paragraphs, the pamph let states a very clear conclusion:
"... the attacks on members of the Sikh Community in Delhi and its suburbs during the period, far from being a spontexpression of 'madness' and of popular 'grief and anger' at Mrs. Gandhi's assassination as made out to be by the authorities, were the outcome of a wellorganized plan marked by acts of both deliberate commissions and omissions by important politicians of the Congress (T)
Stop and by authorities in the
"Experiences of the team as well as their extensive the (i) victims of the riots; (ii) police officers who were expec ted to suppress the riots; (iii) neighbours
BRITAIN
Third international miners meeting held
On April 20, Socialist Action supporters in Great Britain met for the third meeting of international solidarity, this to discuss the outcome of miners' strike. They met near Snowdown miners and their wives from the region.
The miners and miners' wives showed that they had lost none of their fighting spirit although the battle is now very hard, both for those in work who face daily management harassment and for those especially who have lost their jobs. One sacked miner, David, explained how since his sacking he has not been able to claim social security. He argued that the Labour movement should be campaigning for a general amnesty and he denounced Neil Kinnock who has said he is not in favour of an amnesty being extended to those guilty of serious crimes.
were speakers present from Denmark, the Netherlands, West Germany and Ireland and all of them said how much workers had been inspired by the example of the miners. The speaker from Denmark, where the country was nearly brought to a standstill by a general strike recently, explained that the same problem existed in Denmark as had existed during the miners' strike and that was a lack of leadership for workers in struggle.
Joe Holmes, an NUM member who building up support for the strike, explained how the campaign to defend those sacked or imprisoned during the strike was continuing in all the major towns in the country.
Kay Sutcliffe, from Kent miners' wives support group, explained how it was incorrect to talk about 'when the next struggle comes, for she believed that the fight had to continue here and now to defend the miners.
Dick Withecombe from Lancashire, explained that the Bold miners who had attended previous Socialist Action events International Viewpoint 6 May 1985 could not be present because of a very important area meeting of the union that day. He announced that Dennis Pennington, a miner well known to Socialist Action supporters and Fourth Internationalists, had now been released from prison and was to spend his first day out attending the meeting in order to put a motion of no confidence in the president of the region who had done nothing during the strike. He explained that the Lancashire Miner, of which Dennis is the editor, and which was established to rally support for the strike, will continue to be produced because there is still a job to be done.
The highlight of the day came when Fergus O'Hare, Belfast city councillor, began his speech by presenting a plaque of James Connolly, the Irish socialist, to Phil Sutcliffe on behalf of the Snow-
Sutcliffe accepted the plaque saying that 'as long as there is a Snowdown colliery and men and women who will fight for socialism and the working class then this plaque will be in a prominent position and James Connolly will have a place here'.
Fergus O'Hare explained that the Irish people had an inability to give up the fight and had been grateful to the and their supporters struggle they had put up.
the platform, he ended by addressing the meeting in Irish with words: "Tiocfaidh ar La' (our day will
Report on anti-Sikh pogroms banned
Rajiv Gandhi's government has banned the pamphlet entitled "Who Are the Guilty?" which reports the results of an investigation of the anti-Sikh riots in New Delhi following the assassination of Indira Gandhi. The study was done by two civil of the victims who tried to protect them (iv) army personnel; and (v) politica leaders, suggest that the attacks on the
La common pattern whether they took place in Munirka in the south, or Mangolpuri in the west, or Trilokpuri in the east. The uniformity in the sequence of events at every spot in such far flung places proves beyond doubt that the attacks were master-minded by some powerful organised groups _ Newspaper reports suggest that this pat tern is similar in all Congress (1) ruled
The riots followed a classic pogrom pattern of two phases. The first was the spreading of rumors. There were exactl three stories: (1) that Sikhs were distrib uting sweets and lighting lamps to cele brate the assassination; (2) train loads of Hindu dead bodies had arrived from Sikh homeland of Punjab; (3) the Sikh had poisoned the water supply.
The pamphlet notes: across evidence of policemen in touring certain localities and announcing through loudspeakers the arrival of the train and the poisoning of water. certain areas, we heard that police off icials had rung up residents advising them not to drink water." arrival of groups of armed youths in vans and trucks, on scooters and motortold by local eye-witnesses in all the areas we visited that well known Congress (I) leaders and workers (their names are to be found in Annexure-I) led and directed the arsonists and that local cadres of the Congress (I) identified the Sikh houses and shops."
The pamphlet also analyzes in detail the role of the administration, the army, and the Congress (I) party, and the sociological composition of the pogrombe contacted either through Gobinda Mukhoty; President PUDR; 213, Jor Bagh; New Delhi - 11003; India, or through Rajni Kot-
the picket lines; 11,000 were the urgent defence of the victims of that struggle.
arrested by the police; over 700 miners have been sacked as a The goal of the British state and the coal employers is not result of their participation in the strike and nearly solely to victimise militant miners. If this campaign of vengehundred miners are serving prison sentences. ance is not prevented the political result will be intimidation before the courts in the next of workers in Britain and internationally from fighting in a
Already severe jail sentences of up to five years determined way to save their jobs.
have been inflicted such as that of Terry French of the Kent of victimisation would help in a significant way to roll back
Even harsher punishment awaits some strikers. management's attacks against the National Union of Mine-
However, those found guilty face not only jail sentences but also a life time of unemployment. Those sentenced in The miners' strike was a strike for the whole international
The defence of those victimised is a fight to
They are also denied state benefits on defend all workers, including those millions who will, in the years to come, emulate the British miners courage, combathave been rejected and instead, the sackings are ivity and determination.
being made part of a campaign to weaken the organisation of ashire) colliery.
Dennis has just been released after three months in prison. He is well known to many supporters of the
Fourth International for the work he did