AROUND THE WORLD
International Viewpoint 27 January 1986
Political Bureaux meet A MEETING of the Political Bureaux of the European sections of the
International was held in November 1985 with delegations from Spanish state, German, Belgian, Dutch, Luxembourg, Swedish, Austrian, Swiss and Italian sections. On the agenda analysis of the economic crisis; its social and political effects;
the consequences flowing from this for the construction of revolutionary organisations.
The first report, given by comrade Ernest Mandel, dealt with the breadth of the economic depression, its effects on the different branches of producemployment situation in each sector and the different developments in manufacturing and the service industries as well as the development of workers living conditions.
Mandel also spelt out the impact industrial concentrations and on the organisation of work; the effect of this on the level of trade-union organisation, and this in line with the capinotion of the 'dual society'. He showed how capitalism used unemployment and the increase employment time work (notably amongst women) to impose divisions among the working long-lasting demoralisation amongst sections
The report finished on the responalthough different in different coun tries, had a certain defensive fragmented character. In this context the process of recomposition workers movement will be a long one during which revolutionary organisations must prove themselves capable of presenting a programme of struggle against austerity, against the ideological counter-offensive and to counteract the neo-liberal offensive which accompanies the attacks of the bosses and the bourgeoisie. An overall socialist propaganda must be developed.
This general introduction was complemented by two other, more specific, reports; one on the crisis in and the restructuring of the car industry and the responses in the trade union movement, by comrade JC Bernard; and the other on flexibility of employment, precarious employment, negotiations agreements and what our should be, given by comrade D. Raymond.
these three reports discussions, the second part of the meeting was given over to the problems of construction of revolutionorganisations. given by comrades from the Spanish state, France, Belgium, and Denmark.
There were also different commistwice to discuss the specific attacks the problems posed by the developof part-time work and give. The commission also discussed the problem of women
A 'youth' commission discussed the problems of the youth organisations preparation of International Youth Camp in summer commission on and the need for solidarity was also held.
The discussion on all these themes should be continued in preparation International Executive [IEC] of the Fourth International. Borusewicz arrested ON SATURDAY January 11, Polish announced the Solidarnose (TKK)
Bogdan Borusewicz began to be during the youth mobilisations. 1976 he was one of the founders the Committee for Workers Defence (KOR) and then he began to devote himself to the construction independent trade-union movement. In August 1980 he was a member of the central strike committee in Gdansk in which he played a leading role.
### Solidarnosc ground in December 1981 he a full part in its reconstruction. Within the TKK he tended to support the most radical positions. In particular he violently criticised the TKK for not having taken the leadership of the spontaneous strike which broke out in the naval shipyards in Gdansk in October 1982, which he believed could have been the start of a general
Havana conference THE SECOND conference of Intellectuals for the Sovereignty of Latin America November 29 to December 3, 1985. More than 300 participated. The opening Catholic priest Betto, the author of the book Fidel y la religion, of which strengthen considers fundamental for the success of a social revolution in Latin America.
Subsequently, Marquez, the well-known Colombian at previous conferences of the same nature had not had any practical implications. His view was assured a continuity of work."
For his part, of culture, Armando Hart, stressed that the meeting in Havana pointed up the fact that the Cuban revolution was open to all revolutionary progressive currents of as well as various artistic and scientific points of view.
The work of this conference was The first discussed the theme "culdemocracy, our America," the took up the problem of "science and cultural developand in the Caribbean," and the third was devoted to "the domination of information eignty of our peoples."
The Cuban daily press published extensive accounts of the discussions that took place at the conference.
### Vitale, a Chilean and member of the Fourth International, proposed in the first commisthat a history of the American foreign debt be produced before July 26, sary of the attack on the Moncada barracks in 1953). At the same time, he drew up a detailed list of all those who should
This proposal a majority of the participants in the commission and unanimously during a plenary session of the conference.