SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 1982 TH. MILITANT PAGE WITH THE INTERNATIONAL LEFT OPPOSITIONSome Experiences of the Illinois Miner Struggle and the Policy of the Communists we sure Great Social and Revolutionary In the 18.
de temporary measure. Letter From China ers.
elect a council of representatives which tolerable for us. Every Greece day will undertake the leadership of the plunged deeper into poverty.
are solidarity with the miners.
This threat of a general strike, which workers struggles, strikes, the tight In the present crucial battle of the simultaneously on strike under the ban The bourgeoisie causes and will con the bosses and government dread, has aggravated in Greece, drawing in The economie crisis has been sharp against unemployment, for political untinue to cause all the weight of the crisis been dispelled for the moment. Con. Illinois miners one question stands out ner of the independent union, and the its trade union treedom and will head the to fall upon us; the needs of the strug sequently the ministry has been able to the American labor movement. It is the the of a officials. Our united decisive importance for the future of Illinois miners were the revolt against wake the depreciation of the drachma, working class in the counter offensive Ele demand the creation of a united front reply to the Journalists that it consider question of life or death to the last front proposal to be organized through a raising the prices of commodities and aguinst the bourgeoisie.
of city and farm workers having as itsed the convocation of the mixed com solidly organized section of the miners conference or these sections was rejected consequently the weakening of the conThese representative councils of all organ the council of delegates elected by mission useless; in addition, the coal union in the soft coal territory. But it by the official party. Now such a step sumers power.
Greece will have to elect a central or the Congress.
Since most of the public works in of the In loyalty to its principles and obliga The bosses attitude is siguificant: they is 3specially by virtue of the fact is becoming an ever more pressing duty.
Greece are controlled by foreign enter ganization for the leadership whole struggle. The councils are to cutions, the Bolshevik Leninist organization have that we are here concerned with a basic prises and due to the difficulties the their disposal the police, militia, industry, once well organized, and a un tory of developments. At the time of We can go back further into the hisGreek government has had in paying its stilute the highest form of the united will work on this basis with all its the army, the tribunals to defeat thelon. once attaining to a high degree of the Illinois miners break with the Lewis trout, in which each political fraction of powers for the realization of a workers strikers; and in addition, the leaders of militancy, composed entirely of basic pro administration, cleverly utilized by the foreign debts, the work has ceased and the working class movement will have united Sont and for the success of the the Belgian Labor Party and the syndl letarians as separate and distinct from Fishwick Walker Howatt combination, we army of the unemployed. The consequ the right to express its viewpoint on the Congress which will elect the council of calists to keep the workers of other inences of the crisis strike directly or in. of proletarian democracy and will delegates. Long live the workers uni dustries from solidarity with the miners, the skilled strata of which most of the warned against any false illusions toward directly at the workers, the poor peasant discipline and resolutions of the council they count in this way, on putting an posed. In view of the enormous retreats emphasizing the need of the Left wing com this combination but at the same time and sections of the petty bourgeoisie as adopted by the majority. For the expulsion of the bourgeois end to the miners resistance.
made by the existing trade unions on continuing the struggle within this mass offensive!
well, who can no longer accept the im But the miners are firm, in spite of the every field, both in regard to loss of movement. The official party pursued possible living conditions which have caca Congress, which will be called as The councils are to be renewed at For political and trade union rights difficult conditions under which they are wages and working conditions as well as the opposite course and isolated its all extremes.
in loss of organized strength, this forces from the movement and from the often as possible.
of the bourgeoiste and for the installation bloc of bosses, the government and the Ellinots miners battle becomes decisive unton.
To prepare for this Congress, our or of the proletarian dictatorship!
Struggles Ahead reformist leaders, united com for the future.
There was a repetition in the revolt It becomes decisive in more respects following shortly after headed by the June Greece has seen in the principlel committee from the existing trade uuslogan of workers and peasants Councils the victory: but the miners are resolved than one; but particularly by what is Edmonson forces. Once again a mass Already in the months of May and buzation proposes the creation of a The Greek Opposition is advancing the mon will not to let the miner carry of centers the upsurge and the rising or us, which will concern itself with the while silence and inertia prevail in the to continue the strike, which they do not already clearly indicated that a victory movement, though practically leaderless, organization of the Congress and other which continues to practice its regard useless and aimless, because in this strike must necessarily open up masses of workers. Unfortunately the details of the election of representatives. tactie of disintegration. Our comrades they want to prove their determination a new chapter laying the basis for an a new opportunity. The course pursued are far from being organized and led by This committee will convoke the con have been working for the establishment to end the regime of famine which was cuttrely new method and practice of uning in that movement and to point toward by the Left Oppositionists in participatthe Communist Party.
During the strike of the letter car less on the following platform.
of a committee of temporary councils imposed on them before strike.
ionism. It must be a final and complet Adaptation of wages to the high and are moving toward this goal through harder than ever must the miners ex. separation from corrupt.
riers, the railroad workers of Macedonia, the right direction for the future is now cost of living treacherous bearing its fruits. The Left Opposition the trade unions.
pend all their efforts, in order to spread practices of the past and from corrupt Communists has now all the prospects the tobacco workers of Patras and the workers of Cavalla, they have shown Abolition of arbitrary dismissals This temporary committee of councils their movement to other industries, de officialdom.
and rebiring of all licensed work on June 22 called an enlarged meeting spite the trade union leaders.
that the proletariat is not only disposed mere victory on the wago propost reality, fighting for a correct direction for, and is taking shape as a force in not to tolerate the bourgeoisie represers.
at which 1700 workers participated; they This is the condition that must be tion with union conditions and leader to the present gigantic movement. The Unemployment subsidies equal to voted for its resolution to undertake ac realized to win a speedy and decisive vic ship remaining as before would at best official party policy of boycott of mass sion but also that it does not fear to fight to stay the worsening of its situawagos ubolition of armaments. tion for general amnesty, etc.
tory over the bosses and government te only a short truce to be utilized for revolts not entirely controlled by it has tion and obtain better living conditions. Social insurance at the expense of It was decided to maintain the tem which, terrified by the general strike, preparation of new betrayals.
The workers have also shown that it the bosses and the government led it to its present fatal isolation from porary committee, which stands under retreated; but they are only awaiting Union Future Hangs in Balance the Illinois miners.
they remained outside of the movement rotection of women and children the leadership of the Left Oppositionists. the miners defeat to begin their attacks This strike has gone beyond the bounds workers.
against the whole mass of workers once of a mere ordinary shut down. There the official party beadership rectifying for the counter offensive to the bourThis can be repaired still; but only by geols offensive, it was because they lacked hour day without wage cuts. Belgium more.
are virtual armies arrayed with Adoption of working class legis powerful vanguard, the forces of the picketing on a scale never witnessed be its mistakes and changing its working class being divided and having lation.
The splendid miners strike is continu. Spain fore. There is adaltional Importance and policy. The course, which it must no guarantee of a unified force for sucEqual salary for workers of bothing. The reformist leaders are conin the miners being the very spearhead adopt has been very clearly indicated by cess.
sexes.
tinuing their maneuvers to destroy it. Not only was the Azana government of workers resistance against the wago the position we have taken. The correctThe Greek Bolshevik Leninists believe Abolition of indirect taxation, Our comrades, particularly in the char not ignorant of the plans for a military cut onslaughts, and in the double ob ness of this position has been fully vinit impossible that this movment will not increase of tax on capital. leroi region, continue to lead the strug coup Etat but have gigantic repercussions in other underhandedly tolerjective of their Sight to also decisively cated by the event. The logic of the 10. Annulment of the public debt. Ble in the front line. Five comrades, ated them. The abortive revolution defeat the wreckers from within. It 18 and commentary further reinforcing this branches of Industry and agriculture 11. Abolition of debts of refugees and among them Lesoil, are still imprisoned of the Spanish bourgeoisie and that this agitation will not become poor peasants.
at Nons. Nevertheless, La Voix Com. is supported by the landlords and the The future of the Illinois miners un lesson more energetic and more general. They 12. General amnesty. Abolition of muniste, the Opposition paper, now ap cadres of the old regime; it is massacr. lon now hangs in the balance. To estiThe present Tllimols miner struggle are issuing the slogan of transforming special laws of counter revolutinary pears every week and sells fire thousand ing and imprisoning the workers. The mate its prospect it will be well to note must start a new chapter in the history this movement into a general strike of suppression coples, in spite of the police persecutions. reaction of the popular masses to the some of the experience of the past, and of their organization. Only a complete a political character. 13. Political liberty (or press, The influence of our comrades is grow. hated militarists has been growing po particularly the all important question of break with the past, with the corrupt The Greek comrades of the Left Opspeech, organizations and meeting. The workers place more and more werfully. It has even reached their ac policy pursued by the revolutionists. In unlon bureaucracy. secure the vie position are preparing for struggle. But ings. confidence in them and in the leadership complices in the Azana government. this respect a comparison of the views tory they have set out to win against what is the Communist party doing. 14. Trade union freedom.
they give in the struggle. The infamous At Barcelona our comrades of the advanced by the Left Opposition and the the operators, against the armed state What are its perspectives, its slogans and 15. Abolition of laws for the use of slanders of the Stalinists are shattered Opposition immediately issued a leaflet Policy and practice of the official Com forces and against the official traitors.
its prepaations? What is it doing to the army against strikers, against in the face of this reality, on which which they distributed in thousands of munist party will prove illuminating. The Left Opposition is developing a force apply the methods of struggle which cor. Communists abolition of resolu erery proletarian in Belgium can lay copies, and held very successful open The Illinois miners do not stand alone in this struggle capable of constantly respond to reality?
tions for the dissolution of uniens. his hands. Immediately below is the air meetings. As soon as the authorities There are sections in rebellion against more serious intervention, and it will The organization of Bolshevik Leninists No organization which considers itsele latest bulletin on the situation, which got word of this comrades Fersen and the of administration in ev. show the way. Archio Marxists) consequent upon its proletarian can refuse to collaborate on appeared August 12 in La Voix Commun. Robles were arrested.
ery field, some having already definitely Marxist positions, after having examined this platform.
iste: Our comrades leaflet declares: The split away. The question of future unity the organizatio situation of the work These problems are faced by the work. Wednesday, August 12 Since a consigovernment has made use of the rebels of these section ers has come to the conclusion that the ers: they realize the necessity of fighting derable section of the Limbourg miners. Monarchists) as agents of repression at least a united front on minimum obworking class needs firm organs of strug for their solution because they stand at who have regathered their forces and against the proletariat, strengthening the jectives, is still a crucial one. It was We have received the following brief gle, applying the slogan of the united the basis of their existence; they are gone back into the struggle side by side former and weakening the latter. Faith therefore completely in accord with the front. This is explained in the follow questions which preoccupy them inde with the miners from the other basins, ful to its conduct. the soveroment, fundamental principles of working class message from our Chinese comrades: document, an appeal to the Greek work pendently of their political oplojons. has gone out on strike again, the strike which is not in the least embarrassed interest and proceeding from a basis of Shanghai, August 2, 1982 These councils, higher than parties, has become general throughout the by legal considerations when it is a ques revolutionary policy that we at the time Several of our comrades (all Lenin AN APPEAL TO THE COMMUNISTS higher than factions, than dissenting country. The new important develoption of imprisoning and deporting work of the Pennsylvania Ohio miners strike of students returned from Moscow) have AND TO THE WORKING CLASS groups and groupings, will be capable of ment of the week is the fact that the ors, involves the law to leave the generals last year urged a united front of these been missing for eleven days. One of The workers can neither be mobilized uniting masses of workers for common leaders of the Belgian Labor Party, of unpunished. But the working class various sections to fight for their common them is the chairman of the Organizanor can they struggle when their ranks action.
the Trade Union Commission and of will not allow this, and, forming its uni immediate objective. The Pennsylvania tion Committee of the Chinese Left Opare divided. The need for unified strug. Comrades and fellow workers: the Trade Union Federation have openly ted front, will demand the firing squad Ohlo miners struck under the banner of seen at Jesfileld Park (west of Shanghai. gle and for unity is making itselt more Each day the situation grows more pronounced themselves against the gen for the generals and the arming of the the party controlled National Miners We lost trace of them immediately after and more felt in the consciense of the and more serious. Life is growing in eral strike and also against expressing people to struggle against reaction. Union. The West Virginia miner were our last secret meeting. We believe that workers and becomes more and mornia thes have been captured by the Blue imperative. The application of the tacCoat society.
tle of the united front is the only guarThe Blue Coat Society is a new secret antee for the success of the mass strugparty. Its full name is the Blue Coat gle of the workers. Our organization has Society of the Kuo in Tang of China.
advanced the slogan that the united front The revolt against the Stalinist bu the marine workers. Wages of the sea ganizing on board the ships, propaganda a boycott and hit the Institute in its It Is of about the same type as the Nazis must embrace all workers organizations reaucracy and their wrong policies ir men have been cut down gradually to as was carried on only on South Street, on pocket book. boycott with thousands in Germany. Its Hitler is Chlaing Kalindependently of their political concepts, throwing up layer after layer of Com low as thirty dollars per month for Ashore. There are not ten functioning on the picket line.
Shek. Its basic nucleus consists of stuand the largest possible masses. Because munist workers who no longer intend The two watch system has been ships delegates today. The struggle of dents recently returned from the Moscow of this, we consider that the only organ to keep silent while the party and the reestablished on many ships.
the Crewe the unemployed seamen has been waged In the excitement, all militant Sun Yat Sen University, renegades from which will assume the leadership of the industrial unions flounder in opportun have been cat about thirty percent Work solely for the purpose of making political workers present in New York were ex: the parts and students of the Wampoa struggle must arise from the heart of the tsm and adventurism. The following aways are the order of the day. Long capital in the form of headlines for the pelled from the union without a hearing. Military Academy faithful to the chiworking class. With the present trade statement issued by Johannessen, memshoremen and all other categories of party but no organizational nor beneficial Especially outrageous was the expulsion nese Hitler. One of its mediums of acunion which has so few workers and ber of the National Bure of the M1. marine have received similar treatment. results have been gained for the marine of Coster, Sood, honest, able tactie: tivity is assassination. All the intellec which predominate in the organization the corrupt Stalinist regime has pene wide spread in the industry. In New the seamen were rallied around demands all tasks assigned to him. Coster tem. many notorious politicians are flocking the one excluding or restricting the extrated. In all sections of the party and York harbor alone there are twenty peculiar to the industry. They were not per got the best of him when Mink to this group. In short, it is the rising istence of the other in the same union. its auxiliary organizations these strug thousand seamen on the beach. allowed to present them in Washington threatened to stool on an other worker Pascist movement of China. we cannot guarantee that they will lead gles against the opportunist policies and They were solely used for defense corps because he would not obey Mink. Coster The History of the Russian Revoluthe present struggle successfully bureaucratic methods are springing up.
What has our union the Only in the small number of unlons Many of these struggles are in the be done to fight these attacks. and for nothing else, the same as at pulled a gun. This was doubly wrongtion is being published in Chinese.
of the bosses other demonstrations.
but Coster should have been criticized and By the end of August or September, wo led by the Archio Marxists does prole ginning process.
on our standard of living? Has the unMink should have been immediately ex tarian democracy exist. Our organiza hope to reestablish our legal Shanghai International struggles have not been pelled. Mink admitted that he had weekly.
ion ever made any serious efforts to give Unless these comrades are able to trace honest efficient leadership to the marine utilized to get the American seamen into threatened this fellow worker.
tion proposes the convocation of a Work these surface sores to the cause, the workers? The anwser must be no. It motion. The German seamen Fraternally yours, strike en Congress in every elty where re Communist movenient and the Marxlan has not.
CH.
I, myself, was removed by a hand pickpresentatives elected by the factories and wing will not gain by the first steps history of the American marine industry factional strife within the Therefore we must examine the was sabotaged by Mink and Co. due to Industries will participate. In the branchThoed national bureau from the National es where no industries exist, representa. creased number of these workers against the Stalinist revisionist.
An ind of the last three years and also the his struggle against imperialist war Was Committee and instructed to proceed to tives of each trade can be elected.
are tory of the union. Thus we will be able taken up by staging burlesque demonstra the west coast for the simple reason Pioneer Publishers Notes The unemployed workers, organized are tracing these errors to the source and to find the reason why the union failed tions instead of organizing on the job that dared to write an article for the into districts, are to delegate their own are moving toward the Left. Opposition to carry its self appointed task of lead. The Inner life of the union is at the Daily Worker (which was not printed)
representatives. This Congress realizing that the policy of the Bolsheviking the marine workers in struggle. lowest level possible. No trade union criticizing the shortcomings of the union, LITERATURE SALES will Leninist faction is the only policy that new wave of interest in the publicahas gone to the root of the matter and The union was launched in April 1930 constructive criticism is abolished, sec came to New York and the national stands on the Marxian principles, tions of the League is sweeping over us.
MILITANT BUILDERS at a time when shipping was already retaries are removed against the wishes u. appointed a committee conOur campaign on the German situation, decline. Great enthusiasm of the membership, no convention has sisting of Johnstone, Stachel and Hudson Entirely too many of these Commud on a great on the Anti War Congress, on the expulist workers drop by the wayside. Some prevailed among the seamen and especie been called although it is a year and half was ordered immediately to return tosion of comrade Lappus, and now on the Buffalo, furthermore to have nothing to The Home Stretch take a back seat in the party and keep ally among the delegates attending the overdue do with the expelled members or those frame up charge of murder by the Stal.
Do our Militant Bullders remember silent, others drop out in dilgust, others convention. The convention, attended by The present national bureau elected it. who were still members of the unioninists has aroused new Interest in our that the comrade who stands highest in who have not assimilated the fundabona fide rank and file delegates from the the staff at the end of the month recelyes mentals of Marxism more either to the roller methods employed, killed the union was removed to Duluth and a campaign clique. The idea of that committee in steam self. When the flames of revolt grew but not considered kosher by the point of view. Orders are coming in.
Our stocks are dropping. Some numbers a copy of Max Eastman biography of camp of the socialists or the syndicalists at its Mrth. The steam roller methods was was launched against all those who trled vestigating the union 18 the same as are out. Germany the is completely The Revolution in Spain is comrade Trotsky, Portrait of Youth? The methods of Stalinism in the In. used to fost upon the marine workers to lead the union toward a course in Tammany Hall investigating itself out of print.
Very little time is left. last spurt, dustrial Unions play in the hands of the the bureaucratic regime of Mink and accordance with the most fundamental Furthermore, refused to go to Buffalo pretty nearly out. There are only some comrades, to go over the top with a Syndicalist, while their generale political Co. who, through various grand stand principles of the class struggle. The na because the purpose or sending me there twenty copies of the Real situation in bang as they say in the sporting columns strategy has rearmed the Social Dem. plays, constantly corered up their poli tional committee of the u. and is to isolate me from the membership. Russia left. And so it goes. Now is of the capitalist press oorats.
tical bankruptcy. No real program of the party press was bombarded by us believe that by remaining on the New the time to order.
NEW BUNDLE ORDERS For the past period the policies and work was laid down but the union with articles and protests. Mlok and Co. York water front will be better able TROTSKY COMPLETE WRITINGS For some time now we have been action of the stalinist in the Marine Launched out on an adventurous polley desperate and for the purpopport the prevent mark from carrying out mor orders for bound volumes of Trotsky watching the Chicago branch send in workers have played into the hands of led by adventurers.
new bundle orders. New York occasion. the syndicalists. Many of the most acIn 1x0 the union hnd membership unist campalin ostensibly for Immediate to cover up the political bankruptcy or complete writing. We did not an.
ally adds one or two. But in Chicago tive syndicalists on the waterfront are relief of the unemployed, nationalistic Mink and Co.
nounce the Bound Volumes as his com they go at it hammer and tongs. we former members of the who of 000 today there is less than 100 unemployed councils were launched plete writings. We could not. It is our Fellow senmen! We must organize and understanding that comrade Trotsky have an idea that it is principally due left or were driven out by the Stalinist there were ever active wore driven out clonality has different demands. They fight for the four watch system, for a complete writings which have not yet to the driving force of that unparalleled policies which the workers have confused or are expelled, for the simple reasonald not organize as yet a Jim Crowloon sufficient manning scale and we must een collected would fill some sixtyor literature agent out there that bears the with Communism, with Marxism.
name, Sacharow. Readers of this column that they opposed the putschist tactics in New York as was done when Jim immediately boycott the revenue bearing seventy volumes. Some day we The main danger that the present of Mink and Co. Philadelphia, Houston, Crow local was organized in Galveston departments of the Institute for the de bring them out in a uniform edition.
ton top of every drive or contest we starine order thedustrial on the New Orleans and Boston speak for them, but that is only being inconsistent. Then mand that all reller funds be under the number of new orders are coming in Guard against is the relapse into the solves. Several times the union came when they set the whole sale expulsions control of a committee of three seamentise the Bound Volumes as a collection of nitre of his recent writings: all of camp of syndicalism. That is not the dangerously near the point of playing the of their own accord, so to speak. This solution to Stalinism. The policies of role of strike breakers (Boston longshore. class conscious rank and sle raid was to counteract the resentment of the and one official of the Institute.
them dealing with the current struggle is a good sign. But It Indicates that But, before we can wage any success in the Communist movement in relation polwe are not reallxing all that can be done the left Opposition, the Marxian the international men strike, Grace line) due to the staged on the Seamen Institute. The ful struggles we must rid ourselves of to the problems of in this direction. From which we draw ry, is the only remedy.
utter misunderstanding of the united man that was supposed to have baggaga the bureaucrats who will not even shrink proletarian revolution. And may we re the conclusion to work. All those in favor get busy and send in new bundle front tactic and the Inexperience of the there actually had none. One man was from stooling in order to enforce their mind our readers ouce more that these Bound Volumes contain four orders: or go around to the stand that FELLOW SEAMEN: leadership plus their irresponsibility. No shot, others wounded and what did it arbitrary will. On the waterfront there that are out of print and unobtainable already carry the Militant and increase The ship owners shifted the burden of attempt what ever was made to fight the get the seamen? Nothing. To force the is no place for these reptiles.
otherwise; and that the Bound Volumes their orders.
the present erlais on to the shoulders of wage cuts of the seamen. Instead of or Institute to come across we must launch JOHANNESSEN. are going The New York Marine Workers in Revolt Against the Stalinist Bureaucrats will