In a move which underlines both the increasingly open move away from Marxism of the Stalinist parties and the deep rifts developing between the Western European Communist parties and Moscow, George Marchais, leader of the French Communist Party, has now formally rejected the concept of the dictatorship of the proletariat'.
Marchais said: We are in 1976. The Communist Party is not immobile. It is not dogmatic and knows how to adapt itself to the conditions of its time. Today the word "dictatorship' no longer corres ponds to what we want. It has an intolerable meaning which is contrary to our aspirations and views."
But the French Stalinists are not objecting to the word 'dictatorship' because of its associations with totalitarian rule. They are rejecting in theory what they avanconcu in practice many years ago the smashing of the bourgeois state and its replacement by a workers state. They are rejecting the replacement of the class dictatorship of the minority in society the bourgeoisie - by the class dictator ship of the majority - the working class.
sine statementis in aosounte contornity with a joint communique recently issued by the French and Italian CommFrench Communist Party leader George Marchais addresses party conference unist Parties. This document replaces the ing class and the popular masses can through struggle, and open the way to new social and democratic progress.
Labour Party in this country.
The international ruling class are licking their lips in anticipation of the CPs to social democracy. The Economist ment, wey coma cross the aviding mne notion of the 'dictatorship of the proletar- LIZE OL LIC COHLUY iat' with the following strategy: "The work....... win new gains The words may be unfamiliar, but the ideas grow ever more close to those of the eoisie final conversion of the Western European magazine drools: With suitable encouragethat separates them from being left social pressures. class. democrats. That would indeed be the What is that dividing line? It is certav not mar me bourecoise maintan.
unist Party is a revolutionary party.
Furthermore, on an international scale, both social democrats and Stalinists will capitulate to the interests or tne bourg Bou will betray ine rundamental int •But from this capitalist democracy...... Torwara develooment does not oroceed simply, directly and smoothly towards 'greater and greater democracy' as the liberal professors and petit bourgeois opportunists would have us believe. No, forward development, i.e. towards comm unism, proceeds through the dictatorship or me proletariat ana cannot do oner wise, for the resistance of the capitalist exploiters cannot be broken by anyone else or in any other way' LENIN - State and Revolution crests or ine working class - tor tne seizure of power on an international scale But they act in response to different The Communist Parties internationally reflect the pressure of the imperialist policies of the Soviet bureaucracy. They will not make a revolution, but they can act against the interests of 'their' ruling This is why the bourgeoisie looks forward to men conversion to sociar aemou Tacy, wHy I mistrusts the slammist barnes why the CIA puips money into the SP in Portugal; because the Stalinist parties represent the interests of a bureaucracy because these parties are any less counter revolutonary man men socia democra The future will see still deeper rifts between the Communist Parties of Western Europe and that of the USSR. However, one thing can be said straight away The twists and turns of these parties are a direct result of the tremendous pressure being generated by the working class intThis pressure manifests itself through tne victory or te indochinese revolution the tearing open of the contradictions in Africa by the struggle of the MPLA in Angola, and the beginning of the Western European revolution with the events in Spain and Portugal. That pressure throws up the only solution possible: the build ing of a truly internationalist party of the WOrKing Cas - the building of the Fourt International.
STEVE POTTER
Red Weekly 22 January 1976 Spain 11 TA