Meeting of European Marxist-Leninist Parties and Organizations in Madrid

In June representatives of the Marxist-Leninist Parties and Organizations of Europe met in Madrid: the Communist Party of Spain (M-L), Communist Party of the Workers of France (PCOF), Revolutionary Communist Party of Turkey (TDKP), Communist Platform (Italy) and the Revolutionary Organization of Norway, to deal with questions of the work of communists in the trade union movement.

In the first place the meeting analyzed the present political and economic context, characterized by a deepening of the aggressive policies of imperialism. The term “neo-liberalism” refers to the policies of imperialism today, at the exclusive service of the oligarchy, directed at guaranteeing maximum profit to the monopolies at the expense of the workers and their rights, and against the peoples. This policy could be summarized in the following terms: "Less State to defend and more State to attack the workers and the peoples."

Faced with the illusions that social-democrats and reformists preach, a so-called “protective” capitalism is not possible. This is the true face of imperialism whose attacks are being aggravated as a result of the growing crisis and the growing inter-imperialist contradictions in their fights for markets and areas of influence.

The consequences of this policy in Europe are: attacks on the social and labor gains, degradation and privatization of public utilities, an increase in police measures and militarism and armed aggression against the peoples. The European Union is trying to reinforce its role as an imperialist power in the international context of the politics of aggression of the United States. In this new conjuncture, a revival of the workers movement is taking place, the social mobilization is growing and the trade union struggle is acquiring a greater importance. For that reason the discussion centered particularly on the question of the work of the communists in the trade union movement. The trade union movement should propose its demands on the offensive, in accordance with the concrete situation and to develop the struggle for the trade union unity of class.

We communists believe in the need to work within the large mass trade unions that group the organized sectors of the proletariat and to politicize the trade union struggles to orient them in a revolutionary sense. We M-L Parties and Organizations call for the defense of the rights of workers and particularly of immigrants to unionize; to advance in the coordination of the struggles on a European level, for support and solidarity with the concrete struggles and the reinforcement of unitary actions, and the calls for coordination meetings among the class struggle trade unions.

SOLIDARITY WITH THE WORKERS OF THE AUTOMOBILE INDUSTRY AND OF SEAT. The Parties participating in the European Meeting of M-L Parties and Organizations show their support and solidarity with the mobilizations taking place against the Employment Regulation Procedure [which allows a company to solicit the labor authority to cancel a contract providing workers with their labor rights – translator’s note] proposed by the bosses of SEAT, which affects 8,800 workers at the plant, and other enterprises of the automobile sector in Spain, with the excuse of the recent strike of transport workers.

The present crisis of capitalism is striking with particularly intensity at the workers sectors (fisher folk, peasants, transport workers, etc.), at the working class in general, on whose backs it wants to place its consequences and on the popular sectors that are suffering from the scarcity of basic products, the housing crisis and the attacks on their social rights. Given the aggressiveness of the bosses and the connivance of the Governments there can be no other response than unity and struggle.

Madrid, June of 2008