23.05.1996

The end of representative entry?

Revolutionary Democratic Group (faction of the SWP) comrades were disappointed to hear that Open Polemic had stepped back from its leading position in the rapprochement process. OP had gone farther than any other organisation into a semi-fusion with the CPGB, called ‘representative entry’.

OP played an important role by putting the Provisional Central Committee’s position on internal factions to the test. Every week Bob Smith’s column openly and sometimes harshly criticised the PCC. Not only was this accepted by the PCC as a legitimate means of expressing differences, but readers of the Weekly Worker welcomed open criticism. Many comrades were encouraged to see that real democratic centralism does not mean hiding our criticisms. It should be noted therefore that neither the existence of the Bob Smith column nor its contents was anything to do with the ending of representative entry.

Rapprochement is alive and well. It is simply representative entry that has died. The RDG was invited by the PCC to join the CPGB on the basis of representative entry. We declined, believing that this was neither fish nor fowl. Our decision has been vindicated in this rather unfortunate way. Nevertheless it did serve a purpose. By leaping into the deep end, OP did make a lot of waves, before eventually drowning!

The Summer Offensive seems to have sunk representative entry. RDG comrades have also expressed some doubts about this and have some concerns about organisational and financial arrangements. But we would want to sort these matters out before joining rather than afterwards. Our approach might seem slow, but our tortoise may well reach the rapprochement winning post before the OP hare.

What now? First OP needs to recognise that there are other organisations involved in rapprochement, not just the CPGB and OP. There is the RDG and the Trotskyist Unity Group. We are not sure whether the Republican Worker Tendency considers itself to be involved. But we would urge them to join with us. The International Socialist Group is also on the fringes and we want to see them more involved.

OP is an independent organisation and free to make its own decisions. But it is a shame that they did not at least consult with the RDG and TUG. We are their partners in this process and any setbacks affect us.

We must now search for a new way forward. It must be based on greater ideological clarity. In principle we will debate and take joint action with any communists, be they Marxist-Leninists, Stalinists or Trotskyists. But rapprochement should be about the creation of a revolutionary democratic communist tendency, at present a necessary step towards the foundation of a Communist Party.

The end of representative entry is not the same as the end of rapprochement. But if one is not to become the other, OP will quickly need to redefine itself in relation to the rapprochement process. We hope that OP will take more seriously the position of the RDG in this, if Rapprochement II is to make even greater advances

Dave Craig
RDG