The Fourteenth meeting of the International Communist and Workers’
Parties (IMCWP) was held in Beirut, Lebanon’s Capital, between the 22nd
and the 25th of November 2012, under the banner :
“Strengthen the struggles against escalating imperialist
aggressiveness, for satisfying peoples’ socio-economic-democratic rights
and aspirations, for socialism”.
The meeting was attended by 84 delegates, representing 60 parties,
from 44 countries from the five continents of the world – while letters
of apology were sent by those parties unable to attend due to
circumstances beyond their control.
The meeting, follows the extraordinary meeting which was held in the
Arab region, in Syria 2009, about Palestine within a three year period,
and constitutes a new opportunity for the Communist and Workers’ Parties
to express their continued solidarity and support for the struggle of
the working class and the popular struggles and uprisings in the Arab
countries against imperialist aggressions and big capital and for
democratic change. The discussions, which took place during the meeting,
contributed to the exchange of views regarding unfolding developments
worldwide and to agreement on the development of common and convergent
actions aiming to effect a revolutionary struggle for socialism.
**
The 14th meeting of the International Communist and Workers’ Parties
(IMCWP) re-asserted its earlier statements issued during previous
meetings between 2008 and 2011 regarding the capitalist crisis of
capital overproduction and over accumulation, the root of which lies in
the sharpening of the main contradictions between capital and labour,
which continued to deepen and intensify. The different bourgeois
versions for the management of the crisis have failed to bring it under
control ; all of them have the same barbaric effects for the people’s
rights. The imperialist reaction to the crisis is being marked by a
multifaceted offensive of imperialism against the social, economic,
democratic and national rights of the peoples, an offensive that aims to
destroy the achievements won by the workers’ and people’s struggles
during the XX century and to intensive the level of exploitation and
oppression.
This fact, in combination with the increased aggression of imperialism
and the expansion of the imperialist wars, the realignments in the
international correlation of forces where the relative weakening of the
position of the USA co- exist with the growing economic and political
power of several countries raises a group of issues which indicate that
the world is, once again, at a critical and dangerous junction where the
contradictions and the competitions are intensifying, and where great
dangers coexist with real opportunities for the development of the
workers and peoples’ struggle.
In this regard, it is useful to pose the question : how does the
universal, increased, imperialist aggression manifest itself,
militarily, politically, economically and socially and what forms does
it take ?
Firstly, imperialism is pursuing an offensive that aims at large-scale
destruction of economic, social, political, cultural and national
rights, and a regression in the correlation of forces even more in favor
of capital and against labour. Massive operations are under way to
further concentrate and centralize capital. At the same time far
reaching attacks are launched against social and labour rights, with
massive cuts in salaries, massive unemployment, privatization and
destruction of social functions of States, the privatization of nearly
all the sectors of the economy and areas of social life. This
anti-social offensive is accompanied by an unprecedented offensive
against the democratic, national and ecological rights of the peoples.
In particular, the attack against the labour, economic and social rights
of women has sharpened, provoking a brutal worsening in the conditions
of life both in public and private fields. Addressing and defeating this
aggression is crucial, because the struggle for the real equality of
women is a vital part in the struggle against capitalism.
Secondly, it should be stressed that the reassertion of Barack Obama in
the UN, where he stated that his country will not “withdraw” from the
world, agrees with the program approved by NATO at its latest Chicago
summit effectively implying an increased military imperialist
intervention throughout the world under the slogan of “clever defense”.
This includes launching the first phase of “rocket shield” or “star
wars” in Europe and the global anti-missile shield program, direct
military intervention in Libya, intermittent threats against Iran and
DPR of Korea, increased military activity, aggressions and provocations
in the Middle East, the Asia Pacific zone and throughout the African
continent, intensified imperialistic militarism in Latin America and the
Caribbean. The intensification of hostility and the blockade against
Cuba continues, as well as the plots against Venezuela.
Thirdly, this campaign of military aggression is accompanied by insolent
and public political interventions in the affairs of most countries
worldwide. These interventions are manifested by the use of capital and
influence in order to distort and falsify the will of the people, in
order to manipulate, intimidate and prevent the representatives chosen
by the people from reaching power.
Imperialist forces do not hesitate from employing the worst tools in
order to reach their goals, including organizing terrorist attacks,
military coups, allying themselves with neo-fascist powers, promoting
political - religious powers, and the various counter-revolutionary
forces of different ideological backgrounds - all for the sake of
exerting imperialist control throughout the planet, by redrawing borders
and rearranging sectoral markets, especially the energy market with its
oil and gas resources and transportation routes.
Fourthly, this military aggression campaign is also accompanied by the
intensification of the aggressiveness, such as employing the full
resources of various international agencies and organizations, and in
particular the IMF, World Bank, and the European Union with a view to
safeguard the power of Big Capital. In order to guarantee its interests
and objectives, in addition to further developing its aggression and
insolent interventions in the countries of the world, the global
capitalist regime is adamant on waging war on the international working
class and their representatives, through a variety of measures
including :
· A denial of the basic human right to work, and the associated gains
achieved by the working class.
· A global ideological and media offensive aiming to restrain the
workers and people struggles and persecute all the social and political
forces that struggle against imperialism, specially the Communist and
Workers’ Parties.
· Concerted efforts and actions in violation of all that is included in
the UN charter and in the “Universal declaration of human rights”, which
have been formed in conditions of a different correlation of forces
thanks to the presence of the Soviet Union and the other socialist
countries.
Fifthly, in the context of this over reaching, global imperialistic
aggression, attention must be paid to the manner in which it is
manifesting itself in the Middle East through the project of “the New
Middle East” which aims at re-dividing the region and its people into
ethnic and religious groups, constantly fighting each other. This in
turn allows the appropriation of the natural resources found in this
region and particularly the oil and gas resources. The military wars and
occupation of Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya, and of the Israeli
aggressions on Lebanon and against the people of Palestine are an
inseparable part of the imperialistic "Big Middle East’ project. In
addition, it is within the context of this project that recent
developments should be analyzed including
1.The escalation in the
rate of the USA and European Union imperialist threats of military
intervention in Iran, and against Syria, taking advantage of both
violence acts being perpetuated against civilians and relying on the
forces which are supported by the imperialists,
2. the continued
efforts to control the path of the uprisings which have occurred over
the past two years in several of the Arab countries and, in particular,
Egypt and Tunisia, through the use of sectarianism, racism and prejudice
as well as the forever-obliging petro-dollars of all Arabian Gulf
regimes.
These developments, and their potential consequences, exert pressure on
the working class and communist and Workers’ parties to carry out their
historic responsibilities of confronting the capitalist system and
imperialist aggression. This confrontation, which must take place in
different countries separately, and on the international level, is
necessary in order to conquer anti-monopolist and anti-imperialist
ruptures and achievements and, succeed in building socialism, as
specified by the thirteenth International Meeting of Communist and
Workers’ Parties, held in December 2011 in Athens.
The confrontation with imperialism dictates the strengthening of the
cooperation and solidarity of our Parties and the definition of our
common goals and guidelines of struggle on the one hand, and the
convergent action with the various anti-imperialist forces and mass
movements, including Unions, Women, Youth and Intellectual
organizations, on the other hand.
In Latin America, the anti-imperialist forces, the trade union and other
social movements continue their struggles for people’s rights and
against imperialism. These struggles, that are the target of a
counter-offensive of imperialism, led, in some cases, to the emergence
of governments that declare themselves programmatically in defense of
national sovereignty and of social rights, for the development and
protection of their natural resources and biodiversity, considering that
they give new impetus to anti imperialistic struggle.
This universal confrontation also dictates the organization of the
working people in the workplace and the trade unions, the strengthening
of the class oriented movement the promotion of the alliance of the
working class with the oppressed popular strata, the intensification of
the struggle of the international working class and the peoples of the
world. In order to impede the anti- people measures and promote goals
of struggle that meet the contemporary people’s needs, demands a counter
attack for anti- monopoly and anti- imperialist ruptures for the
overthrow of capitalism.
The ideological struggle of the communist movement is of vital
importance in order to defend and develop scientific socialism, to
repulse contemporary anti- communism, to confront bourgeois ideology,
and all alien tendencies, anti- scientific theories and opportunist
currents which reject the class struggle ; and combat the role of social
democratic forces that defend and implement anti- people and pro-
imperialist policies by supporting the strategy of capital and
imperialism. The understanding of the unified character of the duties of
the struggle for social, national and class emancipation, for the
distinct promotion of the socialist alternative requires the ideological
counteroffensive of the communist movement.
Considering the capitalist crisis and its consequences the international
experiences from the socialist construction prove the superiority of
socialism. We underline our solidarity with the peoples who struggle for
socialism and are involved in the construction of socialism.
Based on all the above, we stress the need to focus on the following joint actions :
1 . Struggling to confront the new plans of imperialism on the military,
political, economic and social levels in order to prevent it from
controlling the world and destroying it.
2 . Rallying for the removal of NATO military bases and the right of withdrawal from the imperialist alliances.
3 . Expressing class solidarity with and providing support to strengthen
the working class and popular struggles in the capitalist countries
against the policies that put further burdens on people and for winning
benefits for improving the livelihoods of the workers and peoples
effecting revolutionary change.
4 . Reasserting international solidarity with democratic popular
movements and uprisings in the face of occupation and oppressive
regimes ; and the adamant rejection of imperialist intervention in these
countries.
5 . Confronting anti-communist laws, measures and persecution ; waging
an ideological struggle against the revision of history, for reasserting
the contribution of the communist and labour movement in human history.
6 . Condemning the US blockade of Cuba and supporting Cuba’s struggle
for its immediate lifting. Strengthening the campaigns for the release
and return of the five Cuban patriots to Cuba.
7 . Condemning the ongoing atrocities perpetuated by the Israeli
occupying forces against the Palestinian people, supporting their right
in resisting occupation, and building their independent state, Jerusalem
as a capital, and strengthening the campaign for the immediate lifting
of the blockade against Gaza and for the Right of Return.
8 . Promoting the international front against imperialism and the
support for the international anti-imperialist mass organizations, the
World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU), the World Peace Council (WPC),
the World Federation of Democratic Youth (WFDY), and the Women’s
International Democratic Federation (WIDF), in the specific framework of
every country.
Beirut, 25th of November 2012
