Communist Party of Malta

Victor Degiovanni

FOR SOCIALISM AND WORLD PEACE

The deep economic Crises that have beset the capitalist system has its roots in the notorious Chicago School, and so called economic guru Milton Friedman. Their disastrous economic experiments in Chile during the Pinochet dictatorship left thousands of Thousands of Chileans impoverished and destitute, and the effects are still being felt in Chile today.

The neo liberal economic system, with the focal point on maximum profits at all cost, at the expense of everything else, resulted from these experiments. These policies affected adversely the working class by impoverishing it, and enriched the industrial and the bourgeois propertied classes. Greed became the buzz word of this new economic policy.

Neo-liberalism made headway with the coming of the Reagan and Thatcher era. The collapse of the Soviet Union and the Socialist community in Eastern Europe at the end of the 1880’s, gave the Western Powers (that is the United States and the European Union) an impetus, and with NATO as their war machine, started a globalisation process of the world market at the expense of the nation state.

The creation of the European Union by the treaty of Rome after the second world war was the first attempt at this ploy The European bourgeois, the French and Germans were the driving force, their ambitions were to overcome the limitedness of the nation state by the creation of a European common market, to compete on an equal parity with the U.S. and Asian financial markets.

The much later introduction of a common currency “the Euro” was supposed to constitute a step in that direction. With the new conditions, where the Cold War had ended after 1989, the EU, joined up as an accomplice with the US in this globalisation process.

The triumphalism that the fall of the Soviet Union had brought about came to a grinding halt with the bankruptcy of the Lehman Brothers and of other financial institutions in the U.S. This was the point of no return for the capitalist economic crises, now the road was set for the total collapse of the capitalist system. Marx has very ably explained this:

“The role of credit under capitalism is to allow it to go beyond its normal limits. A crises of overproduction can be delayed for a time by artificially expanding demand through consumer credit. The banks actively participating in this orgy by extending credit to people who would never have been considered eligible in the past”.

This Capitalist crisis has resulted that the working population in various European Countries within the EU are facing harsh austerity measures, The attempt to have “a one system fits all” was bound to fail as it cannot compare different economies. The plan worked as long there was a boom in the economies but the slump brought about all national contradictions and antagonisms. The Euro and the European Union are facing collapse Marx continues to describe this:

“When the crises breaks, credit dries up, productive investment grinds to a halt, factories are closed and workers are laid off. The bourgeois now demands that all debt will be paid. The money lenders are merciless. Promissory notes are no longer accepted: give us hard cash! That is their implacable demand, which applies to countries and governments as well as companies and individuals”.

The economic crisis has brought about great changes. Secure regular employment became a thing of the past. The new jobs that are being offered are either under a definite contract, part-time work, or as agency workers. This has brought about new conditions of work, where regular paid holidays have disappeared, sick leave is no longer granted and the wages have become miserable.

This is resulting in a category of workers that could be described as working poor. The distinction that used to exist between the Blue, and White collar workers has vanished, as both categories are now equally facing unemployment, precarious employment, and low wages.

The white collar worker and the skilled blue collar workers have now joined along with the ranks of the proletariat. This contradiction will finally bring about the desired unity between all the categories of workers, who in turn can struggle as one united front against the Bourgeois liberal democracy, and for the introduction of a socialist democracy, where equality and freedom will be truly achieved.

Today struggles have become tougher, pensions, and cost of living increases, and other benefits are being taken away by bourgeois governments under the excuse of growing inflation, new threats are arising as privatisation is moving into areas that were always defined as social. Education, Health, and Pensions are on their privatisation agenda. However education and Health should be available to all, and Pensions should remain under state control.

The role of Communists and Workers Parties under these new conditions is to lead the struggle of the working class against the austerity measures that are being imposed by the EU, and the IMF. WE must also join in the fight back against the precarious employment that is being offered today. Here we must collaborate with Trade Unions, who are also leading the workers struggle.

The unity of all left wing forces is of paramount importance in this struggle, if we are make headway in the construction of a Socialist Society. However this is not an easy task to achieve. The Left is split in too many factions. Communists and workers parties, on principle are not dogmatic, but unfortunately for us, some leftist groups are.

Communists and Workers Parties must ally themselves with other progressive forces and try to overcome the resistance from other left wing parties to form popular fronts, in electoral campaigns, to win over right wing and conservatives parties. Without criticizing any party, some Parties are already active contesting elections in alliance with other parties. We who are not so successful must find ways to follow suite.

Another task that we Communists must continue, is the coordinating our actions on international level Days of Protests and general strikes has already been undertaken throughout the European Union. Now we must go forward and start coordinating struggles on international level. We must direct our against imperialist regional wars, against the imperialist plundering of other countries raw materials, against precarious employment, against the exploitation of emigrants and refugees, and to struggle to continue the socialist revolutionary process: for the construction of a Socialist society on a universal level, in the interest of all the working people the, and for achievement of World Peace by finally putting an end to the class system.

Long Live Socialism

Long Live Marxism Leninism.