European Communist Meeting Held in Athens

The proceedings of the Meeting of the European Communist and Workers’ Parties of Europe, organised by the KKE, were conducted on the 11^th and 12^th of April, on the following subject “Social and political processes in Europe and the response of the communists”. 38 parties from 31 European countries participated in the meeting.

Aleka Papariga, GS of the CC of the KKE, Giorgios Marinos, member of the PB of the CC of the KKE, Elisseos Vagenas, member of the CC and responsible for the International Relations Department, and Kostas Papadakis, member of the Secretariat of the CC of the KKE and the International Relations Department, participated on behalf of the KKE in the Meeting.

The proceedings of the Meeting were opened by Aleka Papariga, who stressed in the opening speech, amongst other things that “Today there is a historic opportunity on the basis of the unrelenting class struggle: the thoughts and activities of the peoples in struggle – with the working class in the leading position- to be directed towards working class power.

It must be understood that even if in a particular country a pro-people majority in parliament is elected by the people and a government is formed on the basis of this, it will not be able to overcome the limits of the basic laws of capitalism if it does not resolve the central issue of the socialisation of the basic means of production, withdrawal from the EU and NATO, nationwide planning and workers’ control from the bottom up.”

Representatives of the following parties participated in the meeting: Communist Party of Styria [Austria],Communist Party of Belarus, Workers' Party of Belgium, New Communist Party of Britain, Communist Party of Britain, Party of the Bulgarian Communists, AKEL-Cyprus, Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia, Communist Party in Denmark, Communist Party of Denmark, Communist Party of Estonia, Finland Communist Workers’ Party for Peace and Socialism, Pole of Rebirth of Communists in France, Union of Revolutionary Communists of France URCF, German Communist Party(DKP), Communist Party of Greece, Hungarian Workers' Communist Party, The Workers' Party of Ireland, Communist Party of Ireland, Communist Peoples' Left, Italy, Socialist Party of Latvia, Communist Party of Luxembourg, Movement of People's Resistance, Moldavia, New Communist Party of the Netherlands, Communist Party of Norway, Communist Party of Poland, Portuguese Communist Party, Communist Party of Russian Federation, Communist Workers' Party of Russia - Revolutionary Party of Communists, Communist Party of Soviet Union, New Communist Party of Yugoslavia, Communist Party of Slovakia, Communist Party of Peoples of Spain, Communist Party of Sweden, Party of Labour, Switzerland, Communist Party of Turkey, (EMEP), Turkey, Union of Communists of Ukraine

Mirta Castro, head of the Cuban delegation to the European parliament, ambassador to Belgium and Luxemburg and representative of the CP of Cuba, was present at the Meeting.

It should be noted that the Socialist People’s Front of Lithuania, which had stated its intention to participate in the meeting and was to be represented by its Chairman A. Paleckis, was not able to attend. And this was because- as E. Vagenas mentioned when he opened the proceedings of the meeting- “The Lithuanian authorities will bring A. Paleckis to trial tomorrow on the basis of the anti-soviet anti-communist law concerning the “Soviet occupation”, because he challenged the official version of the bloody events which occurred in Vilnius in January 1991. Today there is substantial evidence, both from the forensic investigation and witnesses who took an active part, which demonstrates that these events were organised by anti-soviet forces, which acted as agent provocateurs, creating victims, in order to burden the soviet army with the responsibility for these things. Comrade Paleckis mentioned these facts in an interview and is being tried for this reason. We express our solidarity with the Lithuanian comrades, with all comrades who come face to face with anti-communist machinations in European countries and with cde Paleckis personally.”