International Situation1. The present international scene is increasingly marked by the intensification of hegemonic moves by US imperialism on the one hand and the growing resistance of the world proletariat and the oppressed people and nations against imperialism, especially US imperialism, on the other hand. In spite of installing puppet Governments in Iraq and Afghanistan civil war conditions are continuing in these countries with more allies of US departing and US-led occupation forces and forces of puppet Governments coming under ever-intensifying attacks. Neither the fake trial of Saddam Hussain, nor continuing bombings and massive attacks, nor torture in concentration camps and brutal suppression of people is helping the Bush administration to achieve its goals. It is indulging in most heinous efforts to divide the people on communal, racial, ethnic basis and to foment fratricidal conflicts. Even advocates of Saddam Hussain and others are murdered to deny justice. Iraq ’s oil wealth is plundered ruthlessly. In this situation more than ever the demand for US imperialists to stop their aggression and occupation, for their immediate withdrawal from Iraq and Afghanistan, for setting free Saddam Hussain and for closing down Guantanamo like torture chambers should be raised by the progressive forces all over the world
2. In the Middle East America is hell bent upon to destroy even an iota of defiance and opposition by any Arab Nation- to bring the entire Arab world under the sway of its imperialist baton. It considers growing power of Iran and inexorable rise of Hamas in Palestine as a potential threat to its hegemonist design. Thus US imperialism has unleashed a wide spread and intensive military action on Lebanon by its watch dog in the Middle East-the Zionist regime in Israel. On the pretext of two Israeli soldiers being “abducted by the Lebanese outfit Hezbollah”, causing widespread deaths of helpless civilians and destruction of their property and infrastructure of Lebanon. That US imperialism with the compliance of other imperialist powers are aiding and abetting the Israeli aggression is becoming very clear, with Condoleeza Rice, the US secretary of state “rejecting outright the false promise of an immediate cease-fire”. It is simply allowing Israel more time to crush Lebanon. Meanwhile the Bush administration is rushing delivery of a wide range of sophisticated deadly weapons to Israel.
With Kofi Annan as its secretary general, the UNO remains a passive onlooker as is the Congress led and Left Front supported UPA Government. US imperialism has pressed into the service its watch dog, the Zionist forces in Palestine to oust the anti-US Hamas government which has come to power following a UN supervised election. The Israeli military forces have launched yet another brutal aggression against Hamas leaders and Gaza strip. The so-called peace package worked out by Bush with PLA is proved hollow. Progressive forced should demand immediate end to Israeli aggression and should rally in support of Palestinian struggle for national liberation.
3. The US imperialist efforts to force Iran to abandon its nuclear research have met with growing resistance from the Iranian people and Government. US moves to impose economic sanctions through the UN Security Council, as it did in Iraq prior to aggression and occupation have not succeeded so far due to stiff resistance from Russia and China which are compelled to protect their economic interests in Iran. US threats to impose sanctions and destroy the nuclear facilities in Iran are intensifying the crisis in West Asia. On the whole, though US is in a hurry in West Asia to extend its aggression and occupation utilizing the ‘war on terrorism’, it is facing growing opposition from the oppressed peoples and nations of this region as well as from other imperialist forces. The strengthening of Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) initiated by Russia and China and join by Central Asian Republics with Iran, Pakistan and India as observers which has refused observer status to the US is becoming a Eurasian bulwark against US imperialist’s plans for global hegemony. It is a reflection of growing inter-imperialist contradictions.
4. The election of Evo Morales as President of Bolivia, his Government’s throwing out the MNCs plundering the country’s water resources and nationalizing petroleum and natural gas sectors have given a new fillip to the growing anti-US imperialist, anti-globalization movements in Latin American countries. Along with Venezuela and Cuba , Bolivia has forged an anti-imperialist alliance, which is also supported to some extent by Brazil and Argentina . As a result the majority of the South American continent is standing in opposition to US imperialism. More and more newly elected Governments are dissociating from the globalization policies and trying to assert their national aspirations. That the US imperialists are not in a position now to subvert this rebellion as they were frequently doing in their ‘back yard’ in the past is due to their pre-occupation in west Asia and due to growing resistance in Iraq are recognized by the nationalist governments of Latin America. So they have extended full support to Iran, Syria and North Korea declared as ‘axis of evil’ by Bush administration, and the resistance struggle in Iraq and else where in West Asia. The testing of the long-range missiles by North Korea to protect its national sovereignty is supported by the progressive forces all over the world.
5. The struggle of the people of Nepal led by the Seven Party Alliance (SPA) and the CPN (Maoist) for democracy has led to a mighty people’s upsurge in April, to the restoration of the Parliament and reducing the monarchy to a mere figurehead. In the coming days the struggle is bound to develop to a mighty movement to elect a constituent assembly and to transform Nepal into a republic with a new Constitution and no monarchy. US imperialists and their British allies are trying to undermine the Nepalese people’s struggles utilizing the services of Indian Government. The CPI (M) leadership is once again exposing themselves as social democrats collaborating with the comprador ruling classes by interfering in Nepal to help the imperialist agenda. These counter revolutionary manoeuvres should be exposed and the Nepalese people should be extended all out support by the progressive forces.
6. During the last six months various imperialist countries witnessed significant struggles against growing exploitation and oppression by the working class and other oppressed sections. The upsurge of youth, students and workers in France against consequences of neo-liberal policies was gigantic. The movement of many millions of migrant workers in US supported by local people also took massive forms. Every imperialist country is witnessing growing opposition of working class and other oppressed sections of people to neo-liberal policies. As a consequence of imperialist globalization the contradiction between capital and labour is intensifying to unprecedented levels in these countries.
7. Thus all the major contradictions at the international level are sharpening day by day, with the struggle of the international working class, oppressed peoples and nations taking higher and higher forms against the neo-liberal policies which are intensifying neo-colonization; against the hegemonic policies, bullying, aggression and occupation by imperialists, especially US imperialists at the global level; opening new avenues for a mighty people’s upsurge against them and their compradors and puppets. Contrary to the imperialist offensive during last decade with claims like ‘socialism has become obsolete’ and ‘end of history’, with the dawn of 21st century once again more and more favourable objective conditions for revolutionary changes in the oppressed countries facing intensifying neo-colonization and in the imperialist countries are being created. The contradiction between imperialism and socialism is once again coming to the foreground.
National Situation
8. During its more than two years of rule, the UPA Government led the Congress and propped up by the CPI (M)-led Left Front has taken the country to the verge of a serious economic crisis by pursuing imperialist globalisation policies in all fields with maddening haste. While it is claiming about 7-8% growth, inflation has crossed 5%. The value of the rupee against the dollar is continuously falling and the share market, almost taken over by FIIs, is in the grip of a vicious circle of speculative ups and downs, making the small and medium investors loose billions of rupees. In the name of development tens of millions of dalits, adivasis and other down trodden sections are displaced. Lands are being wantonly grabbed and no proper rehabilitation and compensation is being provided. Industries built upon such lands are not even creating any new jobs but are only pursuing jobless growth. This path of development under imperialist globalisation, dictated by the IMF-WB-WTO triumvirate is imposing all round hegemony of the MNCs and corporate houses with only the elite classes amassing the wealth of the country.
The latest Supreme Court Order calling the tens of millions of slum dwellers as illegal encroachers and asking for their removal is yet another blatant attack on the oppresses masses. Slums are the result of imperialist dictated, comprador–led ‘development’ policies which is devastating the masses. The struggle against these anti-people development policies should be linked to the demand for universal housing, health care, education and employment for all. The struggle for a progressive slum policy for rehabilitation of all slum dwellers should be intensified.
9. In the industrial sector, this path of development is reflected in privatization being further speeded up. What is left of the PSUs is also being privatized. Though the powerful strike of NLC and NALCO workers compelled DMK to threaten withdrawal from UPA leading to reversal of their 10% disinvestments, the major struggle is called for to save the remaining PSUs. In the infrastructural field, corporate giants are taking over. The IT bubble is a mere illusion where English-speaking Indians do the work of filling out forms and answering complaints of Americans and Europeans. Traditional industries, on the other hand, have collapsed. In this same path of development to “attract” foreign investment, the working class is being deprived of whatever meagre protection the laws of our country afford. The contract labour system and the casualisation of labour is being pursued in all fields. Along with growing unemployment, the number of jobs in the formal sector and only casual “hire and fire” jobs in the informal sector are being created. Hundreds of SEZs being developed all over the country, mainly by private corporate houses epitomizes this new type of development. This measure has left it open to state Governments to remove all the protections given by the labour laws in SEZs. Integrated food zones, IT parks, apparel parks are being promoted wantonly as a haven for capital over labour.
10. In the agricultural field corporate and contract farming is promoted and thousands of acres are taken over from peasants for these and for MNCs and corporate houses. What is taking place is unprecedented land concentration in their hands. The peasantry is devastated and agricultural labourers are uprooted. The latest policies like large-scale import of wheat are making the farmers more impoverished. Land to the tiller slogan is replaced by land to the corporate houses and MNCs slogan. Whatever land reforms took place is now being reversed. Under WTO dictates food grain production is brought down destroying the food self – sufficiency. More than 1 lakh farmers committed suicide during last 5 years due to the WTO dictated policies speeded up by the central and state governments. A country wide movement is required for putting forward land to the tiller slogans according to present conditions, for ensuring economic support and lands to the poor and landless peasants and for a progressive national agrarian policy.
11. This Government has increased prices of petrol and diesel six times in the name of increase in prices in the global markets, causing sky-rocketing of prices of all essential commodities and services, refusing to cut down the huge import tariff on petroleum cornered by the Central Government and the sales tax amassed by the State Governments. Prices of essential commodities, including food-grain, pulses, edible oil, sugar, vegetable, medicine, etc. have gone up making life miserable for the vast majority of the masses.
12. Under various pretexts like ‘war on terrorism’ or suppression of ‘Maoists’ the state machinery is more and more centralized. Even the courts are issuing orders to help globalization. The latest orders of the Supreme Court depicting slum dwellers as illegal encroachers, permitting keeping workers as casual for decades and permitting raising Narmada dam height without waiting for rehabilitation of already displaced lakhs of families reveal the extent of the fascisation. In the name of suppressing ‘Maoists’ ext. more and more black laws are imposed as in Chhattisgarh and military, para-military, commando and police forces are unleashed in more and more areas with the license kill and suppress.
13. By spreading red carpet to Bush the number one terrorist of the world, and signing numerous deals including the disastrous nuke deal with him, Manmohan Singh government has made the country more subservient to US imperialism. Its foreign ministry is rescheduled to serve US interests better. As pointed out by the revolutionary forces and many nuclear scientists, the Bush Manmohan Nuke Deal has become a neo-colonial tool in the hands of US imperialist to dictate terms to India and to destroy its nuclear capabilities. Surreptitiously the UPA government is serving US imperialists by interfering in Nepal with malicious aims. The CPI (M) leadership has degenerated as ambassadors to serve US imperialists and Indian ruling class interests as reflected in their repeated missions to Katmandu .
14. Thus under UPA government the neo-colonization of the country is taken to unprecedented levels. It is enriching to compradors and elite classes and making them happy while vast majority are impoverished and devastated. In this situation, as revealed by latest anti-reservation stir the casteist oppression and intolerance has reached dangerous levels. Communal frenzy is growing. Calls for banning art works, films, books etc. by various communal groups are increasing. Along with economic devastation, cultural degradation also has become the order of the day. Thus the people are facing a dangerous slide back while whatever sovereignty and secular, democratic values the country has is eroded away very fast. In this situation all the major contradictions have become sharper. The people and the country are in a disastrous situation.
15. As far as the ruling classes are ruling class parties are concerned there is collaboration and consensus among them more than ever in spite of contention for riches and seats of power. But all of them are one in their abject surrender before imperialist globalization. Thus during the last 15 years all the governments at the centre be it of Congress alone or Congress and Left supported United Front of Deva gowda or I.K. Gujral, or the BJP led NDA or the present Congress led and Left Front supported UPA have in the main one thing in common — implementation of economic reforms with thrust and speed on the dotted lines of IMF, World Bank and WTO.
In the context the less said about the CPI (M)-led Left Front, particularly the CPI (M), the better. The CPI (M) which has degenerated to a social democratic party is pursuing the policy of class collaboration with the ruling class parties. And they have been adopting and implementing pro-capitalist and pro-rich policies and programmes in states where they are in the government at the cost of the different sections of the toiling masses of our country. As a result there is no real and effective opposition to the all-out onslaught against the people and the country.
All of them have become true followers of imperialist globalization. The CPI (M) led Left Front which is propping up the UPA government still and is in power in three states have degenerated irrevocably to ruling class positions. As a result, the country is left with not even namesake opposition of the ruling class policies with the compradors and social democrats serving imperialism, especially US imperialism more and more nakedly.
16. But the people are resenting .They are restive. They are for a change. And this was reflected (not withstanding the outcome of West Bengal polls) in the results of the recently held state assembly elections. Thus in Kerala the Congress-led UDF and in Tamil Nadu the ruling Jayalalita led AIADMK governments received a deserving thrash by the people. In Assam and Pondichery too due to the people’s resentment and anger the ruling Congress lost its majority and are forced to enter into coalitions.
In West Bengal, however, the CPI (M)-led Left Front could manage to retain their rural support base. This along with factors like the “well projection” of their “development plans”, the support of the partisan media — both print and electronics — helped CPI (M) and for that matter the Left Front to return to power with a big margin.
Tasks ahead
17. This situation calls for revolutionary initiative by the communist revolutionary forces to forge unity of the proletarian vanguard forces both internationally and nationally. At the international level, in the near absence of an active genuine platform of Marxist Leninist Parties and Organizations, which are fighting both right and left deviations uncompromisingly, our party has to take initiative to bring together these forces to express solidarity with the growing struggles of world proletariat and oppressed peoples and nations and to organize solidarity actions.
18. At national level during the campaign against Hong Kong Conference of WTO and during Anti-Bush campaign out party had taken initiative to call for all India action and could effectively mobilize our strength for them. During recent elections to W. Bengal , Kerala and TN assemblies also our party had mobilized its forces to fight the ruling class combinations led by Congress and BJP and the social democratic forces led by CPI (M) and to fight the elections based on a manifesto of people’s alternative. These were significant steps and our party has to continue its efforts to strengthen itself and the class/mass organizations led by it to launch powerful movements based on our own strength in coming days for the people’s cause. At the same time, irrespective of the failure to forge unity of revolutionary left, patriotic and democratic forces to launch country wide movements in the past in spite of our best efforts, such steps also should be continued so that a powerful nationwide movement can be built up against imperialist globalization and anti-people policies of central and state governments.
04 July, 2006 Central Committee, CPI (ML)
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