Socialist Resistence Forum – A New Anti-Capitalist Party in France – the NPA

Speaker – Fred Leplat

Tuesday 19th May 7.30pm at Bennetts Bar, Bennetts Hill, Birmingham City Centre.

In early February, the 3,000 strong LCR (Revolutionary Communist League) dissolved itself and launched the NPA (New Anti-Capitalist Party) with 10,000 members and 450 branches across France. One of its best known members is Olivier Besancenot, a 32 year old postal worker and twice candidate in the Presidential elections.

The creation of the NPA is linked to the global economical crisis: capitalism is sinking into a very deep and historical crisis which is not just a  financial crisis or a simple failure of the neoliberal regulation. Ordinary people are threatened to be the victims of a crisis caused by the banks and the corporations. Mass redundancies, high cost of living, and the destruction of public services are the first steps of this attack. A fight-back has started with a one-day general strike in France on the 29 January with 2million in the street, followed by an even bigger turn-out on the 19 March.

Despite the threat of redundancies, there is a growing mood to resist. Company bosses threatening closures and job losses risk being locked up in their offices by workers such as at 3M/Post-it. This is not unpopular as only 7% condemn this action while 40% believe it to be entirely justified!! And the broadly victorious six-week general strike against the high cost of living the French Caribbean island of Martinique has provided ideas about how to win.

The NPA will be on the frontline of mobilisations, strikes and demonstrations and for the regrouping of the Left. The NPA proposes an emergency program to stop workers from being made to pay for the crisis which includes the nationalisation of companies creating redundancies , a 300 Euro increase in all wages and pensions, a minimum wage of 1500 Euro a month, the abolition of the VAT and a rent freeze.

In order to encourage the resistance and promote such this anti-capitalist program, the NPA makes it clear that there needs to be a political perspective that is not linked to the Socialist Party, which is a similar party to New Labour. The NPA has proposed a common front to the Communist Party and the Party de Gauche (Left Party – a recent split from the SP) to fight together the forthcoming European and French regional elections, as well as to promote the resistance to the neo-liberal attacks.

The creation of the New Anti-capitalist Party is a significant stage in a long process that began with an appeal in August 2007 by the former LCR for the regrouping of all anti-capitalist activists whatever their past political traditions. For French revolutionary and anti-capitalist activists, building the NPA as a broad party is a genuine challenge. Of course, the NPA is in no sense a model for other countries, but it is an experience which is of great interest to socialists in Britain and which deserves our support.

Part 1

Part 1

Socialist Resistance Forum – A Workers Alternative to the Crisis

Speaker – Jerry Hicks – UNITE and RESPECT member

Tuesday 21st April 7.30pm at Bennetts Bar, Bennetts Hill, Birmingham City Centre.

The election campaign for the General Secretary of UNITE was able to reach out and touch and win the hearts and minds of tens thousands of union members who returned a magnificent vote. It was absolutely a left campaign calling for people before profit, public ownership not privatisation, and a green campaign. As a grassroots rank and file member with no access to the union’s resources, and pressing the case single-handed for an election to take place, coming second with nearly 40,000 votes, well ahead of the other two candidates, both full time officials, was a magnificent achievement. Jerry’s message was clearly and proudly taken into workplaces and homes, across every industry and in every part of the country and inspired, motivated and gave hope to the many thousands who heard it and responded to it. The result is a clear vindication of the relevance of the election and appeal of left policies.

New Labour

Amongst the many questions during the election, one that kept being screamed out was “Why does UNITE keep throwing tens of £millions at the Labour Party?”.

Lindsey

During the election the rumbling volcano of anger in the construction industry erupted, with the unofficial strikes at the Lindsey oil refinery; a very clear example of the frustration within the membership. As the construction workers ratcheted up their demands for action, the inadequacy of the union leaders became even more obvious. The Lindsey strike was unofficial – because after three terms of a Labour government the Tory anti-union laws are still in place: but within five days, the members achieved more than they had in five months of delaying tactics from national leaders.

Cowley

And at Cowley’s BMW plant, the management sacked four shifts, 850 temporary staff – at an hour’s notice, with no redundancy pay. When the management left the building after making the announcement, furious members pelted the union reps with tomatoes, seeing the union as part of the problem instead of the solution. How could it get to this? How is it that after three terms of a Labour government, workers, some who had worked for BMW for 4 years, can still be treated like that? Everyone who was a part of this campaign got something positive from it. We were all so close to making history. It has given us a glimpse of what is possible. Apart from the disappointment of not actually winning the election, a great disappointment has been the failure of sections of the left to recognise and grasp this opportunity for what undoubtedly would have been an historic breakthrough.

Fighting Unions Needed

Now, more than ever before, we don’t just need a “campaigning union” we need a fighting union, one that instils a confidence in members to resist employers’ attacks. The bureaucracy will hang on in there until we build a movement strong enough to move them. But if you fight hard enough, with enough confidence, all things are possible.

A Workers’ Alternative

Jerry’s campaign has highlighted the need for a trade union movement that breaks from the priorities of big business, so beloved by New Labour and the other main parties. Policies championed by RESPECT, and now the “People’s Charter” offer a different way forwards. Socialist Resistance would put it more succinctly; we need a complete break from capitalism itself and start pioneering a similar road as that chosen by several Latin American countries; a move towards socialism.

The video of the meeting:

Part 1:

Part 2: