04.04.1996

International Polemic

Bob Smith - For a Permanent Party Polemic Committee

On 4th November 1995 John Bridge, on behalf of the PCC, made a call for the establishment of an ‘International Polemic Journal’. More significant than the call itself were the reasons forwarded for the initiative. These reasons should not be lost in the reams of paperwork, nor should the call itself be allowed to collect dust. So let’s re-examine the case for. It begins:

“With all the problems the world communist movement has faced during the decade since the fall of the USSR, the way forward for communists can be neither bickering nor the abandonment of communist theory and practice”. The importance of this opening statement is threefold: the recognition of the decisive break that the collapse of the Soviet Union had on all revolutionaries, no matter what particular interpretation of that political entity was held; secondly, the appreciation that there is a ‘world communist movement’ despite it being highly fragmented along ideological, political and organisational lines; and thirdly, the insistence that the abandonment of communist theory is not and cannot be the way forward.

The statement goes on to assert, “Before our movement can once again give effective leadership to the mass of working people, the sorting out of the ideas and the learning of hard lessons is of vital necessity.” This requires dialogue throughout the world communist and workers movement. The key word here is “before”. Our present communist practice is distinguished by dozens of would-be vanguards rushing headlong to the class with their own organisations, their own press and their own programme. Whatever the subjective revolutionary intentions behind their vanguardism, the objective result is to transfer our own ideological and political confusion to the class as a whole. In doing so we are unable to present any effective opposition to the ideological currents of social democracy and anarchism.

The statement then goes on to make a number of essential points: “The journal must carry open discussion of different opinions. Polemic must not be restricted. There must be no limitations placed on matters to be debated. There can be no sacred cows, no forbidden areas - no topics which cannot be discussed, no names which cannot be criticised.” This is precisely the non-sectarian principles that the Open Polemic Journal has sought to develop itself around. It should not be forgotten though that many in our movement still hanker for the old certainties and the comfort of the old demarcations, and their commitment to the process of communist open polemic can be considered little more than paper-thin. They want to exclude Trotskyists, Stalinists, state capitalists or whatever section of the communist movement they consider to be counterrevolutionary. And at the same time as they retreat from the most practical of tasks - that of theoretical assessment and elaboration, they busy themselves with all manner of activism - rushing hither and thither between each and every manifestation of the spontaneous struggles of the class.

The statement .concludes as it began:

“The International Polemic Journal can lead towards rapprochement between the different trends in the world communist movement and towards the theoretical clarity which will be necessary if communist practice and organisation are to be reforged and extended throughout the world.”

Open Polemic has long associated itself with this strategy and it is clear that the PCC and Open Polemic are natural allies in this strategic respect. This should not be forgotten, and those within and around the PCC who wish to impose their particular world view onto the polemic process do the process of rapprochement a great disservice. Such comrades are out of step with their own PCC and furthermore are out of step with what is necessary for the communist movement. In place of dogmatic certainties and programmatic particularities comes the task of constructing the common theoretical programme for communists. An International Polemic Journal can assist greatly in this international task.