Contribution to the 8th International Communist Seminar, Brussels, 2-4 May 1999
www.icsbrussels.org , ics[at]icsbrussels.org
The Peoples' Struggles against War: in India
Manik Mukherjee, Central Staff and Deputy, International Affairs,
Socialist Unity Centre of India
Comrade Members of the Presidium and Comrade Delegates,
I bring to you revolutionary greetings from our party, the Socialist Unity Centre of India, at this International Seminar for Unification of the International Communist Movement on the occasion of observance of the May Day this year. We must strive to take one more step forward towards our declared goal through unity-struggle-unity.
Being called upon to present before you an analysis of the Indian people's struggles against war we need to emphasize in the first place that any account of this matter which is short of its essential political bearings and political direction will flounder on infructuous labour, no matter the scale of militancy of the struggles it describes.
You will recall that in the wake of the dismantling of the erstwhile socialist states bourgeois philistines and confused intellectuals the world around had started claiming that with the `cold war' ending the danger of war no longer remained, implying that as if the root cause of war lies in the contradiction between the imperialist bloc and the socialist states. This propaganda simulated the argument of the Khrushchevite revisionists who, on that count, directed all effort towards reaching a detente with the USA. It is history now how this process of demobilisation at the state and mass level ultimately shaped into capitulation to the imperialist powers and what befell the international communist movement thereafter.
The reality has already assumed far more dangerous proportions than meets the eye. No amount of globalised and liberalised arrangement, trade, plan for economic integration is proving enough to root out the features of moribund capitalism inherent in the economy of all capitalist-imperialist countries. For this, on the one hand, the trade war among the imperialist powers is escalating in the face of the severe recession now gripping the capitalist world. On the other hand, economic and military blockades, sanctions, intrigues, the inflaming of fundamentalism and racialism, the fomenting of ethnic and religious conflicts, and military attacks by the imperialist powers, especially by US imperialism, resulting into local and partial warfares are continuing without relent. Intervention in Somalia, Bosnia, Nicaragua and Kosovo, the latest attacks upon Iraq, the bullying of North Korea, or the forty-year long economic blockade of Cuba are instances to show how these countries are sought to be kept under imperialist hegemony at bayonet point.
The simulated unity of the imperialist bloc should not be confused with the reality of gaping chasms between the three major powers of the bloc - the USA, Germany-led European Union and Japan. While the USA, with the UK behind it at present, is on the guard to protect its military buildup through expansion of the NATO in Europe, the European imperialist powers, especially Germany and France, nurse strong grievances against US overlordism, hegemonism and intransigence to maintain its share of the world market.
Clearly, the antagonistic contradiction between the imperialist powers, which owes its existence to the dearth of market and excess finance capital and excess productive capacity, is very much extant. Increasing militarisation of economy is accentuating this contradiction and, in turn, is enhancing the danger of outbreak of war. Lenin's prognosis, therefore, that imperialism engenders war remains fully valid today. Secondly, the cosmopolitan and global nature of capital does not diminish by an iota the aggressive and predatory character of capital, rather this specific feature of capital is the outcome of its more and more predatory ventures.
Critical analysis of the political disposition in the imperialist bloc brings out its following major features:
First, the imperialist powers are increasingly engaging in local wars and war manoeuvres against one or another of the developing countries to bully them into submission.
Second, the major imperialist powers are maintaining a facade of unity, but deep down they are divided and antagonistically positioned on issues of contention.
Third, Russia, along with the other CIS members, is trying to create a position for itself.
Fourth, The NATO has been expanded towards the Russian border by including in it some East European states.
Fifth, the UNO has been reduced to an instrument of approval for the imperialist machinations, especially of US imperialism. Sixth, the USA is nakedly bullying the developing countries to force them desist from all types of nuclear research work.
These facts lead us to conclude that what we witness today on the international plane is an unprecedented antagonistic contradiction among the imperialist power themselves on the one hand and between the developing countries and the imperialist powers on the other hand.
In this situation the imperialist manoeuvres under whatsoever name are making the world more and more war prone. This is laying the road to national jingoism and war psychosis.
In regard to the Indian national situation the point to be kept uppermost in this regard is that the Indian bourgeoisie have already acquired imperialist traits by giving birth to finance capital. The expansionist trait of the Indian ruling class is evident from its intervention in Sri Lanka under the livery of an Indian Peace Keeping Force in that country, its interference in Maldives, its domineering attitude to the weaker neighbouring countries.
That India has emerged as a regional superpower with a formidable military buildup is acknowledged by the imperialist global superpowers. The ruling bourgeoisie of this country, where people suffer from abysmal poverty, social injustice and political oppression, spend the largest chunk of the country's budget on military buildup, including nuclear arms development, sophisticated delivery systems for nuclear warheads and modern satellite based telecommunication systems. In the last four decades the Indian rulers have engaged four times in warfares - one against Portugal, once against China, twice against Pakistan. While the USA has built up a naval base on the island of Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean the Indian rulers have set up a modern naval base in the Nicobar Islands within the country's territorial waters. Indian military regularly engages in joint exercises with the US military, while Indian Government secures full benefit of military technological assistance from Russia and partly from other imperialist countries. Whereas the Indian rulers, spurred on by their class aspirations, have played the role of a junior partner in the international trust and cartel, in the Non-aligned Movement they have all along played between the imperialist bloc and the socialist states to secure maximal advantage in their class interest.
It should be kept in mind that the much vaunted globalisation or integration of national economies, let alone eliminate the deep- rooted contradiction between the developing countries and the major imperialist powers, has failed to even touch the fringe of the problem. The ruling classes of the developing countries are engaged in fights with the imperialist powers, seeking better terms for their corporate houses. The corporate houses of these countries, being circumscribed by the present situation, are entering into collaboration with the MNCs of the imperialist countries as junior partners to jointly exploit the market at home and abroad.
There cannot be two opinions over the fact that in the absence of the erstwhile USSR, which acted till its dismantling, even as it suffered revisionist deviations, as a deterrent to imperialist interventions in other countries, the danger of imperialist interference and attack on both liberation and revolutionary struggles has increased manifold. To make revolution successful it is, therefore, incumbent on every working class party that while they will prepare for the revolutionary struggle against the ruling class of the respective country, they will give due emphasis on the task of mobilising their people and combining with all other peoples the world over against the imperialist policy of intervention and aggression.
This anti-imperialist war movement is of such nature and character that it will have to be conducted while the proletariat of different countries will engage in class battles to overthrow capitalism in their respective countries. It is for this that the genuine communists in every country should be in the core of this movement. This anti-imperialist war movement is not just an anti- war movement, nor a peace movement guided by a pacifist outlook.
Many of you may be aware of the glorious struggles of the Indian people against British imperialism during the days of Indian national independence movement. After India became independent, the Indian masses enthusiastically participated in all anti-imperialist war movements. The left parties of the country had a role in organising these movements. Today's reality is, however, that all the major left parties and those calling themselves communist parties have taken complete recourse to parliamentary politics. True to their social democratic character, they are playing a conciliatory role between labour and capital to the point of overtly defending today the crisis-ridden ruling bourgeoisie. Wherever these parties are in governmental power they are openly inviting the MNCs of the imperialist countries for open collaboration. No wonder, then, that their role in anti-imperialist war movements today is limited to gestures designed to hoodwink the people.
Certain other left parties are confusing this anti-imperialist struggle which arises from the historical necessity of creating a favourable international situation for the successful completion of revolution in different countries with the anti-imperialist struggle which stems from the task of revolution in particular countries where imperialists, or puppets of imperialists, or feudal forces wedded to imperialism are in state power and are therefore to be overthrown from power. Consequently, these left parties fail to see the real class character and power of the Indian ruling class, that this ruling class itself has already acquired imperialist traits. The role of these parties has objectively reduced to shadow fights against imperialism. Our repeated effort to forge unity with all the left and democratic parties to build united broadbased anti-imperialist war movements has failed to evoke response from these parties.
Our task in India, therefore, has had to be geared to mobilising the broader section of the people - intellectuals, middle class people, workers, peasants, youths, teachers, students, women - and rallying them under people's committees and on other forums to build and develop anti-imperialist war movements on the Indian soil. In the last decade, especially since the renewed imperialist manoeuvres began following the dismantling of the USSR and other East European socialist states for redivision of the world capitalist market through globalised arrangements in the face of the accentuated worldwide capitalist crisis, we have organised protest movements against every imperialist interference, intervention and war machination. In 1992 we organised an anti- imperialist convention in Delhi. We organised our people in support of the Cuban people in their struggle against continued US blockade. We organised protest rallies against the US onslaught and sanction against the people of Iraq. In continuity with the building of these anti-imperialist war movements, we organised in Calcutta in November, 1995, an Anti-imperialist Convention under the aegis of People's Preparatory Committee.
The Anti-imperialist Forum which grew out of it includes a former judge of the apex court of India, several former Vice-Chancellors of different Indian universities, renowned scientists, writers, lawyers, engineers, physicians, and workers, peasants, youths, teachers, students, men and women from other walks of life. This Anti-imperialist Forum organised protest rallies against US interference in Libya and Turkey. An International Meet was held with participation of delegates, including delegates from the USA, and a protest rally of thousands of people was held against US bombing of Iraq. The Forum appealed to the electorate of India at the time of election to Parliament to seek assurance from election candidates that they stood against imperialism. Protest movements have also been organised by our party and the Forum against the recent nuclear blasts by the present Governments of India and Pakistan. Our party views with great enthusiasm the anti-imperialist war movements in different countries and we are one with you in all efforts to globally coordinate these movements to build up a united struggle at the international level.
Our party firmly holds that it is the task of the working class party everywhere to prepare for the revolutionary overthrow of the exploiting ruling class in respective countries and, at the same time, join strength towards building anti-imperialist war struggles the world over, making one conducive to the other, and thus hasten the doom of world imperialism-capitalism. Seeking your attention to this analysis and account, and wishing all success to this seminar for unification of the international communist movement, we lend our full voice to raise the slogans:
Down with Imperialist War
Long Live Proletarian Internationalism
Long Live Marxism-Leninism
Long Live Revolution
Contribution to the 8th International Communist Seminar, Brussels, 2-4 May 1999
Theme: Imperialism means War