Saturday, January 1, 2011

11th National Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam from January 12



The 11th National Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) will open at the National Convention Centre in Hanoi on January 12, 2011 and is expected to last for nine days. (January 12-19)

This is an important political event of the Vietnamese Party, State and people. It is expected to draw the participation of nearly 1,400 delegates who represent more than 3.6 million Party members in 54,000 grassroots Party organisations.Besides a strong contingent of local journalists, more than 150 foreign reporters from international news agencies will cover the event.

The congress will discuss and approve a political report by the CPV Central Committee (tenth tenure), a report reviewing the 20-year implementation of the platform on national construction in the transition to socialism, and a detailed draft report that sums up the implementation of the 2011-2010 national socio-economic development strategy.

It is also expected to give approval to the platform on national construction in the transition to socialism (revised and supplemented in 2011), the 2011-2020 national socio-economic development strategy as well as the amended Party Statute.

The congress will elect a new CPVCC for the 11th tenure of 2011-2015, the highest body of the CPV leadership between the two congresses.

The entire Party members and Vietnamese people of all strata, including those living abroad – actively contributed comments to draft documents for submission to the 11th National Party Congress.

On the basis of the high consensus and determination of the whole Party, people and army during the discussion and formulation of the Congress’s documents, the CPV defined the theme of the 11th National Party Congress as follows: “Continuing to strengthen the Party’s leadership and combative capacity, promoting the aggregate strength of the entire nation, stepping up the renewal comprehensively and creating a foundation for Vietnam to become a modern industrialised country by 2020”.

In the next five years, Vietnam strives to attain a GDP growth rate of 7-8 percent per year with a per-capita income reaching US$2,100 in 2015, 1.7 times higher than that of 2010. CPV affirms its intention to continue using Marxism-Leninism and Ho Chi Minh thoughts as its ideological foundation.

Vietnam is consistent in the path of national development towards socialism and implementing a foreign policy of independence, self-control, peace, cooperation and development; multilateralisation and diversification of relations; taking the initiative in international integration; and becoming a friend, a reliable partner and a responsible member of the international community for the interests of the nation and for a rich and powerful Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

Joint Statement of 40 Communist and Workers’ Parties of Europe

Anti-communism in Europe will not succeed!


The Communist and Workers’ Parties of Europe condemn the provocative and outrageous initiative of the Foreign ministers of Bulgaria, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Romania and the Czech Republic to demand that the European Union instigate the legal persecution of all those within the EU who do not accept the so-called reactionary campaigns of rewriting of History and criminalization of communists and communism.

This is a dangerous attempt to generalize the legal persecution and other related measures which are in force in several EU countries against all those who reject the slanders against the historical experiences of socialist construction and against all those who combat the attempts to erase the decisive contribution that the communists gave in struggle for social and labour rights and for democracy in Europe and reject the distortion of the history of the 2nd World War and the unacceptable equation of communism with fascism.

It is not by chance that this initiative is being carried out in a period when working class and popular struggles are strengthening. The expansion of the anti-worker assault goes hand in hand with the expansion of anti-communist measures. The communists are the target of these attacks because they are in the front line of the struggles not only so that the workers do not bear the burden of the capitalist crisis and also because they are the only ones who hold the real solution to capitalist barbarity. The dominant class, understanding full well the impasses of the capitalist system and its irreconcilable contradictions, intensifies its persecutions, threats and crimes. However whatever measures it takes it cannot prevent the inexorable laws of social development, and the necessity of the overthrow of capital’s power. It cannot prevent the strengthening of the organization of the working class and the development of the mass struggle for socialism and communism.

We firmly declare that the anti-communist plans of the bourgeoisie will fail. The superiority of our ideology, the just cause of the working class can break even their harshest measures. We will continue in an even more determined and uncompromising manner in order to defeat the anti-people power of big capital. Anti-communist hysteria will not deceive the working class and popular forces which experience the problems of unemployment, the overturning of social, social-security and labour rights, and capitalist barbarity itself.

We appeal to all democratic, progressive and anti imperialist forces to join us in the struggle against anti-communism, a struggle which is directly connected to the fight for labour and popular rights as well as for social justice, for a world without the exploitation of man by man.

Communist Party of Armenia
Communist Party of Azerbaijan
Communist Party of Belarus
Workers' Party of Belgium
Communist Party of Britain
New Communist Party of Britain
Communist Party of Bulgaria
Party of the Bulgarian Communists
Socialist Workers' Party of Croatia AKEL, Cyprus
Communist Party of Denmark
Communist Party of Estonia
Communist Party of Finland
Communist Party of Macedonia
German Communist Party (DKP)
Communist Party of Greece
Hungarian Communist Workers' Party
Communist Party of Ireland
Workers’ Party of Ireland
Party of the Italian Communists
Communist Party of Kazakhstan
Socialist Party of Latvia
Communist Party of Luxembourg
Communist Party of Malta
Communist Party of Norway
New Communist Party of the Netherlands
Communist Party of Poland
Portuguese Communist Party
Romanian Communist Party
Communist Party of Russian Federation
Communist Party of Soviet Union
Communist Workers' Party of Russia - Party of the Communists of Russia
Union of CPs-CPSU
Party of Communists, Serbia
Communist Party of Slovakia
Communist Party of Peoples of Spain
Communist Party of Sweden
Communist Party of Turkey
Communist Party of Ukraine
Union of Communists of Ukraine

Unleash More, Mightier Struggles in 2011!

EDITORIAL OF PEOPLES DEMOCRACY

PEOPLE’S DEMOCRACY wishes its readers a very Happy New Year.

Unfortunately, these greetings come with our deep sympathies with the people who are groaning under the relentless economic burdens being mounted on them. The continuous rise in the prices of all essential commodities since the return to government of the UPA has grievously eroded the living standards of the vast mass of our people. In a situation where 77 per cent of our population barely survives at subsistence levels, on Rs 20 or less in a day, this wave of cruel rises in the prices is clearly pushing many more into the conditions of dire poverty.

The year 2010 began with abnormally high prices of sugar at over Rs 50 a kg and tur dal at nearly Rs 100 a kg, apart from all other items of daily consumption becoming costlier. Now the year ends with the prices of onions shooting up to over Rs 70 a kg in almost all metros. This has had a cascading effect on the prices of other vegetables and edibles. The government’s argument that this is due to a mismatch between supply and demand is, to say the least, far from being convincing. In Delhi, the onion supply increased by over 60 per cent since 2008, yet the wholesale prices have jumped by over 300 per cent. As with sugar last year, the export of onions was liberalised this year despite indications that this could create shortages and consequently price escalations. In fact, incentives were provided to such exports. India’s onion exports have increased from 7.8 lakh metric tonnes in 2005-06 to nearly 19 lakh metric tonnes in 2009-10. The government has now banned these exports following the public uproar over this price rise. It has now allowed onion imports without any duties, i.e., it is subsidising these imports, to control their prices. Incentives for exports and subsidies for imports clearly provide a bonanza of profits for the same trading companies. As noted in these columns last week, the cumulative value of trade in agricultural commodities from April 1 to November 30 this year was Rs 8,36,605.53 crore. In the corresponding period last year, this was Rs 7,66,133.46 crore. Such a sharp rise clearly indicates that there are super profits to be made through speculative trading. Yet, the government refuses to ban or suspend such speculative trading in essential commodities. Does this not suggest yet another scam at the expense of the people’s livelihood?

Speaking about scams, 2010 has been a landmark year in independent India’s history. The mother of all scams – the 2G spectrum scam – came along with scams connected with illegal mining, land allocations, IPL cricket tournament, the Commonwealth Games, Adarsh housing society scam, etc, etc. The 2G spectrum scam alone was estimated by the CAG to have cost the exchequer more than Rs 1.76 lakh crore. These lakhs of crores of rupees, that are being looted through such large-scale corruption, are depriving our people of a better livelihood standard. If the government could collect these legitimate revenues rather than allowing them to be siphoned off, and spend them on social sector schemes, that would have positively contributed to enhancing the livelihood levels of our people – the aam admi.

This UPA-II government is, however, displaying a callous lack of concern on this score, raising strong and legitimate suspicions of its complicity in permitting such a massive loot of our resources. Its obdurate refusal to accept the demand of the entire opposition in parliament to constitute a joint parliamentary committee (JPC) into the 2G spectrum scam has led to the unprecedented ‘wasted’ winter session of parliament. After the session ended sine die, the prime minister announced that he had nothing to hide and that he was willing to face the parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC). If this very same statement was made in parliament at the very outset of the winter session, may be things would have been different. Further, if the prime minister is willing to appear before the PAC, then why not before a JPC? Both the PAC and the JPC are, after all, joint parliamentary committees. The former, however, is confined to examine, by definition, the accounts only.

What is required in the present instance, however, is to evolve a set of new regulations, and if necessary laws, to ensure that such massive manipulations of our system permitting colossal loots are prevented in the future. This would be the central agenda of the JPC. Recollect that it was only after the JPC recommendations on the Harshad Mehta stock market scam that regulations strengthening our financial sector operations were brought into effect.

All these apart, this year also stands out as one which saw a serious attack on the parliament and the institutions of parliamentary democracy. Apart from the virtual annulling of the winter session of parliament, the functioning of central government agencies like the Central Bureau of Investigation, Central Vigilance Commission etc have also come under clout. As we go to press, there are reports that raids have been conducted by some of these agencies on the prime suspects in the 2G and CWG scams. Raids after the lapse of such a long time are bound to yield very little other than to serve as a public relations exercise for the government.

All these developments have only strengthened the direction of drift of this UPA-II government further. This, in turn, is feeding speculation of political uncertainties in the year to come. Our experience this year shows that if a government has to function effectively, it is not only a question of numbers for a majority in Lok Sabha; to a far greater extent it is the question of a clear agenda based on a vision of improving the quality of life of our people and, thus, creating a better India. On this score, this government is found to be singularly wanting despite the fact that it has been rubbing shoulders at the ‘high table’ with the G-20, or despite the propaganda associated with having the leaders of all P-5 countries paying state visits to India.

These developments define the agenda for our people in the year to come. Unless strong popular pressure is mounted on the government through popular struggles, the desire of building a better India cannot be achieved. We, as a people and as a country, have, in us, the potential to scale greater heights --- both in economic development and social equity. This, however, can be only achieved if the government policies are based on a vision of creating a better India for our people and in preventing the loot of our country’s resources. The government must be made to do so.

Greetings for mightier struggles in 2011 to create a better India for our people!

CPIM protest against the enforcement of Private Forest Conservation Act.



The police arrested 750 activists of Communist Party of India (Marxists) including State secretary G.Ramakrishnan, MLAs R.Leema Rose of Thiruvattar Assembly segment,. G.John Joseph of Vilavancode Assembly segment, state executive member S.Noor Mohammed while they staged road roko in front of Nagercoil collectorate on Friday to protest against the enforcement of Private Forest Conservation Act.

Speaking to The Hindu over telephone, the State secretary of CPI (M) said that this act would adversely affect small and marginal farmers and hence the Government should withdraw the Act immediately. If not the CPI (M) would conduct a series of agitations in the district with the co-operation of like-minded parties including All India Anna Dravida Munnetta Kazagham, Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetta Kazagham and Community Party of India.

When the Government least bothered about deforestation and illegal quarrying in different parts of the district, they implemented the Private Forest Conservation Act by giving hardship to small and marginal farmers. Moreover as told by M.S.Swaminathan, chairman of National Commission for Farmers, 45 percent of farmers wanted to quit farming in the country owing to price raise in agriculture inputs, Mr.Ramakrishnan urged the Government to ensure the welfare of farmers by withdrawing the implementation of such act.

The CPI (M) wanted to ensure the rights and welfare of farming community, he said.

(Courtesy : the Hindu)

Left Front holds rally at Lalgarh




The alleged links between the Trinamool Congress and the Maoists were reiterated at a Left Front rally in Lalgarh in Paschim Medinipur district on Friday.

This is significant, as it is the first public meeting held by the Left there since the area became an epicentre of Maoist activities and the Maoist-backed Police Santrash Birodhi Janasadharaner Committee (PSBJC) two years ago. “Trinamool chief Mamata Banerjee was unsuccessful in ousting the Communist Party of India (Marxist) from this region so she asked Maoist leader Kishenji to do this task for them,” said Sushanta Ghosh, the State's Minister for Paschimanchal Unnayan Affairs.

Kishenji is now repeatedly saying that he wants to see Ms. Banerjee as the next Chief Minister, he added. Ghosh said "she is a dictator who demands withdrawal of joint forces to give Maoists a free run in the West Midnapore district to create lawlessness."

"But, people will resist with all their might," he said.

Claiming that peace had returned to Lalgarh with the return of CPI(M) after driving away Maoists, Ghosh said "but Mamata won't allow peace to return. She is also intentionally not allowing the Jindal group to set up industry here."

He said that Mamata wanted to dislodge the Left Front government, which represented the poor and the landless.

Dipak Sarkar, secretary, District Committee of the CPI(M), attended the rally.

The rally was held less than two months after a large number of CPI (M) supporters, evicted from their homes in the face of Maoist onslaught, returned. Bearing the party flag, an estimated 12,000 people marched from Dharampur to Lalgarh and reopened the CPI (M) local committee office there, closed since June 16, 2009.

Commenting on the rally, Biman Bose, Chairman of the State Left Front Committee, told journalists that it is not fair to compare it with Trinamool's August 9 rally addressed by Ms. Banerjee.

“Supporters of the Trinamool from other districts had also gone to the rally in August, but this rally was only limited to one block of the district.”

Asked to comment on the ongoing controversy over the exchange of letters between Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram and West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, Mr. Bose said the language of Mr. Chidambaram's letter resembled that of the deputation submitted to him by the Trinamool.

“We are only asking Mr. Chidambaram not to act in a partisan manner,” he said.

(Source : The Hindu)