Our Goal is the
Victory of Socialism
Sitaram Yechury
135 fraternal
delegates from 91 fraternal parties
attended the 15th Congress of the Communist Party of Russian
Federation (CPRF),
held on February 23-24. It began amidst great enthusiasm and
a high level of
optimism markedly different from that seen in the recent
past. The
significantly improved showing of the CPRF in the last
elections in the Duma
(parliament), and its growing role in giving meaningful
inputs to issues on
national agenda, are to a large extent responsible for this
justifiable feel of
a sense of pride in being a communist in today's Russia.
During the last two
decades, the Communists in Russia
have gone through many trials and tribulations. Against all
odds and
repression, they managed to reorganise themselves initially
as an underground
force and fought the way to acquire the status of a
legitimate political party
in post Soviet Russia. Since then, they have seen many an
ebb and tide in their
activities and acceptance by the people. Over the years,
through sheer hard
work and a public display of steadfast commitment to the
Russian nation and
increased prosperity of its people, they have today emerged
as the second
largest political force and a recognised parliamentary
opposition in the
country.
While battling through
the immediate conditions in the
country, the CPRF has been increasingly rallying a large
number of people
around its agenda of building a better Russia,
which they never hesitate
to add, is the prerequisite for the re-emergence of
socialism in their country.
This effort of the CPRF, it must be noted, has come in the
background of a
severe anti-communist propaganda that is sweeping across
Europe, particularly
in the countries of former socialist Eastern
Europe.
In many of these countries there are efforts to ban the
communist parties,
their affiliate organisations and deny them the universal
and basic human
rights and liberties. All across Europe,
the
effort is to legitimise the equation of communism with
fascism, decrying both
as being anti-human. In contrast, in Russia
today, Joseph Stalin and the
leadership that he provided to the Soviet Red Army and the
Soviet people in the
mighty victory against fascism is recollected with immense
pride and accomplishment.
Stalin today has emerged as one of the most powerful and
popular figure in the
country's history. To carry a portrait or a badge of Stalin
in Moscow
today has become synonymous with supreme patriotism and the
commitment for the
creation of a better Russia.
The discussions during
the Congress reflected this
national milieu. The accompanied high level of enthusiasm
and optimism was all
the more refreshing as a large number of youth not only
participated in the
discussion but were elected to the central committee and
more importantly to
the highest authority of the CPRF, it Presidium. The 15th
Congress elected 180
members to the CC and 116 alternate members to the CC
through a secret ballot.
The CPRF can no longer be called a party of the retired or
of the nostalgic. It
has now assumed the character of the party of the future.
However, how this
will be translated into reality was the issue on which a
large part of the
discussions concentrated upon.
The Congress adopted a
rather longish report presented
by the Chairman of the Central committee Gennady Zyuganov
who has been
subsequently re-elected as the Chairman by the 15th
Congress. For the first
time after the dismantling of the USSR
and the formation of the CPRF,
this report was subjected to a pre-Congress party discussion
in all party units
and was thoroughly discussed in the Congress. In that sense
the CPRF has now
emerged as a truly organised communist party with grassroot
level units and
intermediate level committees leading up to the central
committee and the party
Congress. Following the demolition of the Soviet Union,
in an atmosphere of widespread disillusionment and
repression unleashed against
communists, a band of committed communists around Comrade
Zyuganov worked
tireless braving all attacks to re-build the communist
party. This 15th
Congress, in a sense signalled a fair degree of success in
achieving this as a
consequence of the work done by this committed group of
communists.
For the first time
since the demise of the Soviet Union,
the Russian communists received not
inconsiderable media attention. The CPRF's programme for the
rejuvenation of Russia as a
powerful industrial nation is receiving largescale support.
It must be noted
that in the last two decades since the Soviet
Union
ceased to exist, there has not been a single megawatt of
power generation that
has been added. Likewise, the entire infrastructure from
public transport to
heating, so necessary for Russian winter, etc, remains the
same as it was
during the last days of the Soviet
Union. This
in itself is a telling testimony of the superiority of
socialism. The CPRF's
members of parliament today head many parliamentary
committees that are
mandated to lay down plans and proposals for the industrial
resurgence of Russia. All
in
all, this 15th Congress marked a qualitatively positive
shift in the position
and role of the communists in contemporary Russia.
In the immediate Russian
context, the Congress put out a programme for the
rejuvenation of the country
under the slogan 'Russia
demands a change'.
The Congress discussed
various possibilities that
currently Russia
is pregnant with. Comrade Zyuganov's report describes this
in the following: “There
may be different outcomes to the current
crisis for Russia.
Below are some of the scenarios:
-
the
establishment of a repressive, openly dictatorial regime
by oligarchic capital
and still greater oppression of the masses;
-
accelerated
processes of disintegration of Russia
with the participation of external forces;
-
left-wing-patriotic
forces coming to power by peaceful means through
bourgeois-democratic
procedures;
-
a
social revolution as a result of a nationwide crisis
that breaks out regardless
of the wishes of social classes, parties and leaders.
Our party will do
everything to make our programme one for
the salvation of the country so that Russia’s
pivot to the left be
consolidated by the formation of a government of popular
trust.” The Congress drew up
specific plans for the
transformation of Russia through accelerated development
into economic growth;
for Russia, that will put an end to poverty and social
degradation through a
change in State priorities; for a cultural upsurge that will
be an
indispensable condition for the revival of Russia and for a
Russia with
strengthened national security that will have a new foreign
and defence policy.
Reiterating its
commitment to proletarian
internationalism based on its commitment to revolutionary
ideology of
Marxism-Leninism, the report concludes by stating: “World development is
dialectical. With the
strengthening of the forces of progress and socialism
new threats to the modern
world are growing. Another aspect of dialectics is that
the counter-offensive
of imperialism is fraught with colossal danger, but at
the same time it reveals
its true nature and thus contributes to the growth of
revolutionary struggles.
The
world is experiencing massive
economic, social, political and cultural changes. These
changes will have
far-reaching consequences. Their outcome would depend on
the actions of the
entire front of the forces that oppose imperialism.
Individual states and their
ability to unite in pursuit of common goals will play a
part. The degree of
mobilisation of peoples to struggle for their sovereignty
and independence will
be important. The struggle of the working class and other
proletarian strata
for their rights will be highly significant. The balance
of forces that will
take shape as a result of all this will determine the
future of mankind.
New
vistas are opening up for the
champions of socialism. The complex and contradictory
situation demands from
us, Communists, a profound theoretical analysis, energetic
practical actions
and an unerring approach to choosing the forms and methods
of struggle.
The CPRF
has developed and presented to society
a comprehensive programme for taking Russia
out of the crisis. It
reflects the interests of the absolute majority of
citizens. Increased support
for the party in elections held in recent years means that
the voters trust our
position. The future activities of the CPRF will be
connected with propaganda
and popularisation of our programme in attempting to rally
the broad masses to
support it. The masses must take a conscious, persistent
and creative role in
the building of a new society. Following that rule, the
CPRF is helping the
country’s workers to understand the need for replacing
capitalism and
encourages them to self-organise and join class struggle.
Capitalism
is dangerous. Humanity’s need to
get rid of it is becoming ever more urgent. “Socialism or
barbarism” – this is
an increasingly stark choice.
We
Communists have no right to lose that
battle. Our policy is the policy of the majority. Our goal is the victory of
Socialism.
