Wilson's well-publicised rebuke to the three Ministers who were checky enough to vote for Labour Party policy on South Africa at a recent NEC meeting underlines Labour's traditio nal servility to British imperialism and its interests, It was Britain's veto together with those of the US & France which provented the expulsion of South Africa from the United Nations and thus sought to sustain the racist regime in a period of upheavals on its borders, Neither the veto nor the fact that it was exercised by a Labour Govemment should surprise us.
IMPERIALISM Traditionally Labour's role in the third world has not been determined by the needs of the oppressed masses in Asia, Africa and Latin America, but by the global interests of British imperialism. Thus in the 1945-51 period, the Labour Government stranglehold over Black Africa, and Labour Colonial Secretaries behaved in the best Tory fashion, HE was Lapour unat parco te way for the massacres in Kenya and the creation of the Central African Federation. It was Labour that appeased white racists and allowed South Africa to dominate South-West Africa.
It was the Labour Government of 1964-70 which attempted to do a deal Mozambique has in itself started a with the white settler rogime of lan Smith in Rhodesia over the heads of harnesburg There have recently the black people of that country.
-Labour leaders lay It has been said of the Labour Party that of all political parties claiming socialism as their aim, it has always been one of the most dogmatic One thing is certain been asbolutely determined to see that the Pariamentary Labour Party and Labour Ministers remain completely out of the control of the movement which got them into office.
Here is the sorry rocord:
In the House of Commons the membership of the party decide their own policy without interference from the Executive or any outside authority - Keir Hardie, 1907.
The Parliamentary Party were not going to take their instructions from any outside body un less they agreed with them Ramsey Macdonald, 1928.
"Neither by decision of the annual party conference nor by any provision in the party consti tution in the Parliamentary Labour Party answerable to, or under the direction of, the National Execu live' - Clement Attlee, 1945.
It is not in dispute that the vast majority of Labour Members of Parliament are utterly opposed I to unilateralison and neutralism. ¡ So what do you expeet them to Sharpeville massacre of Africans, 1960 - Labour's policies ally them with the white racists responsible for this. Only Smith's obstinacy prevented the marnage from being consummated, The recent moves by the majority of member states of the UN Security Council to expel South Africa were of key importance not because the and the racist structure down, but because it would have further isolated the regime at a time when it is trying desperately to improve its image internally and externally.
The reason for this is basically the overthrow of fascism in Portugal and its consequences in Africa. The exis lence of a FRELIMO government in few tremors in Cape Town and Jo been several demonstrations of sollit on the line - not about socialism, but about the Parliamentary system, every single leader of the Labour Party has do..I do not believe that Labour Members of Parliament are prep ared to act as time-servers' Hugh Gaitskell, after the 1960 Labour Conference decided to support unilateral nuclear disarmament.
"The Parliamentary Labour
Party is not bound automatically to accept any conference decision. And when a Labour goversment is in power, it is well understood that no conference decision can be binding upon it' - Harold Ine great heroes of the Labour left have been little better when in office either: "It is quite imp ossible for a conference of 1,100 people, even if it were constitutionully proper, to determine the order in which the Parliamentary Labour Party introduces Jegistalion into the House of Commons - Aneurin BevaD, 1947 darity with FRELIMO composed almost exclusively of young blacks.
And at this time the British Labour Government, true to its role as defender of Britain's imperialist interests, kicks the black people expulsion would have brought Vorster Of South Africa in the teeth by exercising its veto. Even the Australian Labour Government voted in favour of kicking South Africa oul, as did most other countries where social democrats are in office.
PROGRAMME The Labour Party programme states : The next Labour Government will withdraw from all relationships resulting from the Simonstown "Agreements" and all military exchanges, visits and technical arranpements will be terminated. Apart from the fact that all this has been so far openly South Africa in the United Nations?
Rumour now has it that the Goverument is going to try and diplomatically wriggle out of the Simonstown agroement. If this is true, the opposition of the Labour lefts, coupled with the severe criticism by the Labour Party NBC, was undoubtedly a major factor in the Government's decision.
But this is only a very small concession and has yet to he carried out. Fear of the wrath of the left and the party rank-and-file was not enough to prevent the Government casting its vote at the UN to rescue South Africa.
It will take a great deal more to force the Government to end all military and diplomatic support for South Africa, and more still to force any decisive move against the economic support, in the form of trade and investment, furnished by British capitalisin to the South African racists, A real break with pro-imperialist policies in Alrica can only be brought about if the labour move ment displays such massive and determined opposition to the Government's actions, that it has no choice but to change course.
The seriousness of Wilson's "ell' critics within the Cahinet and in Transport House can be tested by whether or not they assist in the organisation of mass action that can force the GovernLILLELL LU *Scrap the Simonslown agreement and end all military aid to South Alrica. * End all diplomatic support for South Africa. * End all British trade with, and investment in, the white racist TARIO ALI democracy of Labour's National Executive has already raised a storm of protest inside the working class movement.
another cynical hetrayal of the decisions of the worken move ment.
the Labour Party Parliamentary Labour Party and the Government.
position on Parliament.
over the capitalist state. * control of their representatives. These representative are in no * working class.
* class is united and organised, but on an arbitrary geographical hasis.
* thousand times more democratic than Parliament, This is why the has gone far beyond Parliamentary democracy. The sovicts in * the beginning of a real, workers democracy.
Parliamentaty Labour Party should be bound by Labour Party force in this country constituted a more totmidanie menace to real workers" democracy?
* get into office, to betray all the promises they have made to the calamitous consequences for the ruling class.
* Parliamentary responsibility" la vital for the working class.
movement - including Govemment ministent the decisions and interests of the working class.
* useless simply relying on them not to break their promises for five rary to the whole system of Parliamentary democracy.
democratic orginisations of the working class movement on the * Council of Action or Soviet model are necessary.
c melcants should be unequivocally for the supremacy of the Party cocracy of the working class organisations * the Parliamentary system, and taking up the struggle for workers councils.
* with the democracy of workers councils. And that involves a fight for revolurionary policies, not left" Labour waffling.
Harold Wilson's decision to 'carper" three Labour Ministers for attacking Government policy on South Africa at the recent meeting The policy of the Labour Goverment on South Africa is yot It raises once again the age-old question of who is supreme in - the NEC and the National Conference or the The Labour left has protested against Wilson's act, but they cannot stand up effectively to Wilson because of their totally useless According to the ruling class, Parliament is the most wonderful democratic institution which has ever existed. The reality, of course, is completely dil'ferent. Parlianient is organised in such a way as to prevent the working class exercising any sort of political control Parliamentary clections are too infrequent for workers to exercise way accountable if they go against the interests and decisions of the Elections are not based around places of work, where the working The result is, in Lenin's words, that the main purpose of Parliamen* tary en sinor in to decide who willaminele us for the next five guars.
Even an ordinary trade union branch or shop stewards' committee, let alone a democratic strike committee or similar organisation, is a working class, whenever it has moved to take up decisive questions, * Russia, the Councils of Action in the 1926 General Strike in Britain, and the cordones in Chile are all examples of this. Such bodies are One of the most important ways in which the Parliamentary * system stops the working class from exercising its political power is through the doclrine that MP's, once elected, are no longer responsible to the working class that elects them, or to the organisations of the This principle is fiercely defended by all members of the ruling example, has hysterically denounced the simple proposal that the * Conference decisions. Never since the days of Cromwell has a single * political liberty was his comment. What would he have to say about * class might gin even a semblance of control over its representatives. Capitalist politicians are terrified by the prospect that the working The ruling cliss relies heavily on the Wilsons of this world, once they of the workers" movement. Any change in this situation would have For the same reasons, a break with this whole insidious system of Any and every MP elected through the power of the workers" must be responsible to the movement. It is the duty of every MP to violate decisions of the Parliamentary Labour Party or the Goveroment which go against This rises a whole series of issues witich go far beyond the question * of the relation of the Labour Party conference and NEC to the Part:
Tamentary Party and the Government. How, for example, is responsibility and accountability of Labour MP's to be ensured. Obviously, it is years. There must be a system whereby they can be recalled and replaced if they po against working class decisions. But that is contSimilarly, who is to take the decisions on what policies MPs should * be carrying out? Obviously, the Labour Party conference is far me democratic than the Parliameutary Labour Party. But neither the Labour Party, nor even the unions, extend to the whole of the work ing class. To develop really democratic working class decisions, local In the dispute over who makes decisions in the Labour Party conference and the NEC over the Parliamentary Party and the Gorernment. You can't have it both ways. Either you are for the Parl*lamentary system, with all that this entails, or you are for the dem-which means going beyond The only people who can really light for workers" democracy - both inside and outside the Labour Party - are those who are prepared to light for the replacement of the Parliamentary system Red Weekly 7 November 1974 Page 3
IL SMATA (KA-RENRULI
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* working class that make their election possible. violated, how does it justify keeping * class. Leading Tory politician, Lord Hailsham, to take just one
* ********* and workers'