21.09.2005
Opportunity for left to rebuild
Sunday's election had only one clear winner: the newly established Linkspartei, which polled 8.7% and will have 54 MPs - by far the best result for a left party since World War II. This result is particularly impressive, says Tina Becker, when one considers that the social democratic government looked in danger of outright defeat at the hands of the conservatives. People were not intimidated by the threat of the right
It might take several weeks before a new government will be operating in Germany and, whatever the outcome, it is bound to be an incredibly unstable formation. While the outgoing SPD-Green Party coalition did not lose as many votes as predicted, neither did it poll enough to form a majority in the next parliament. The same applies to the conservatives (CDU) and their coalition partner, the liberal democrats (FDP). Without such a majority government (or a minority government, supported by another party), the German parliament will not even be able to select a new chancellor, let alone introduce new legislation. There is now talk of potentially forming an Ampelkoalition ('traffic lights coalition', so named after the symbolic colours of the parties involved), made up of the SPD, Green Party and the FDP. However, the FDP has run the whole election on the promise only to govern with the conservatives and is still sticking by this. If it now changes its mind, betrays its pledge and supports a government that is very likely to collapse within the first two years, it might well be punished for its lack of backbone at the next elections. Another possibility under serious consideration is the Jamaika-Koalition, which sounds much more fun that it actually would be: a coalition of the conservatives, the liberals and the greens. Those who think such a formation sounds impossible have not been following the Green Party's rightward path: it supports sending troops on 'peace-keeping' duties abroad, stands full square behind SPD attacks on social services and has long given up any pretence of being a party of the left. The CDU has declared the greens a "more likely coalition partner than the SPD" and they might be right. While the SPD through its strong links with the unions can still be classified as what Lenin called a "bourgeois workers' party", the Green Party is a petty bourgeois formation through and through. Still most likely is a grand coalition of the SPD and CDU, with the chancellorship changing hands after two years (similar to the Israeli arrangement) - though it is unlikely that such an unstable formation would last for two years. Holding fresh elections is a fourth possibility, but that is not easy to do under German law. The SPD is currently in coalition negotiations with all parties represented in parliament - with one exception: "There will be no discussion with the Linkspartei," declared party chairman Franz Müntefering just after the polls closed. Not surprising, as the Linkspartei (Left Party) is seen as the only one that stands totally opposed to the government's current trajectory. The red-green coalition lost a total of 2.6 million votes (4.7%), compared to the 2002 elections. This is exactly the same percentage by which the left increased its share: in 2002, the Party of Democratic Socialism (PDS) polled 4% and had only two MPs elected first past the post. Having easily achieved the 5% minimum threshold for parliamentary representation, the Left Party now has 54 MPs thanks to proportional representation. But the PDS accounts for only one half of the Linkspartei. The other component is the WASG (Electoral Alternative for Work and Social Justice), made up mainly of former SPD leftwingers - not least one-time party top Oskar Lafontaine - and trade unionists. The WASG/Linkspartei is not the biggest left break from the SPD and it is certainly not the most radical. The Independent Socialist Democratic Party (USPD), formed in 1917, had at one point over 500,000 members - as many as the SPD. In 1920 it split over the affiliation to the Third International: Kautsky, Bernstein and the minority of the USPD rejoined the SPD; the majority joined the Communist Party of Germany (KPD). But the Linkspartei is the most significant left organisation to be formed since the USPD and the KPD and with over four million votes in Sunday's election has made a serious impact in German politics. The question is: can it provide the real political alternative that many Germans are now looking for - or will it become merely a Sozialstaatspartei: a party that limits itself to the futile attempt to 'rescue' the German welfare state? Scared of reforms? Anyone following the British coverage of the election result might be excused for thinking that SPD chancellor Gerhard Schröder had stood on an election programme of more union power, higher wages and the expansion of the welfare state. "Any lingering hopes of economic reform have been terminated by the election result," comments The Times (September 20). For its part, The Daily Telegraph writes: "The German electorate yesterday failed to grasp the opportunity for reform presented by the Christian Democrats (CDU) under Angela Merkel "¦ Europe's largest country had the chance to set a bold example to a sluggish continent. Instead, it played for safety and thereby simply postponed the day of reckoning. What a mess!" (editorial, September 20). And The Guardian thinks that, "Germans may well want reform. But now paralysis looms because their nerves appear to have failed them" (September 19). This is the same Gerhard Schröder, of course, who has attacked the German welfare state like no one before him. This is the man who introduced the much-hated Hartz IV laws, which slashed unemployment benefits and established the so-called 'one-euro jobs', forcing the long-term unemployed to work for the equivalent of a 60p-an-hour top-up on their meagre benefit of just over â¬360 a month (£240). The same man who attacked employment rights and the pension system, while handing record subsidies and tax breaks to the big companies. And yes, the first post-World War II chancellor who sent German troops abroad - first to Kosova and then Afghanistan (it is now emerging that those stationed in Afghanistan have been involved in combat, not just those friendly 'peace-keeping' operations). 'Weak economy' myth No question, there have been many so-called 'reforms' under Schröder - very painful ones at that. And what have they achieved? It all depends on who you ask. The German working class has suffered record unemployment under this social democratic government. Almost 12% are now without a job (an average of 20% in the east) - the highest for 75 years. Wages have been falling for years - directly as a result of wage cuts; indirectly through increases below the rate of inflation. Job security has been eroded - companies can now hire and fire almost at will. But have a closer look at German companies and you might be surprised. Not so "sluggish" as some commentators make out. In fact, average profit figures have risen dramatically and have not been as high for over 35 years. Not a few companies are returning record profits - while at the same time they are using the myth of the weak economy to enforce cuts in wages and working conditions. Why then does Germany have such low economic growth? It is quite obvious, really: "German companies have increased their profits at the expense of consumer spending. In the first half of this year, household incomes have fallen in real terms by 1.4% compared to last year," the European hedge-fund provider, Alliance Capital Management, rather gloatingly informs its clients (Economic Perspectives September 20). In other words, many Germans simply do not have enough money to buy what their labour has produced. The latest government figures show that in 2002, the average German household had 1% less income compared even to 1991 - and that was before Schröder's attacks had taken effect. But German capital does not necessarily need strong 'indigenous' consumer spending. After all, Germany is still the world's biggest and most profitable exporter. Anglo-Saxon model Contrary to the media hype, Germany clearly can "afford the welfare state" - and much more - as can all the advanced capitalist countries. However, the welfare state cannot be 'saved' on a permanent basis in one country in isolation. By definition, this would require purely national solutions to give a particular section of the global working class an advantage over workers in other countries. But, while capital is still based nationally (benefiting from and often being dependent on national protectionist measures and laws), it clearly functions as an exploitative metabolism on a global level. 'Outsourcing' of work to cheaper countries in and outside the European Union has not happened as quickly as predicted. But it is expected to rise dramatically as tax concessions and heavy subsidies for companies investing in the new EU states start to bring results. There is no effective cooperation between workers and their unions in the different EU countries that could coordinate an effective fight for the levelling up of wages and working conditions. As long as this remains the case, the threat of outsourcing production to Hungary, the Czech Republic and Poland remains very real. The attacks on the German welfare state are part of a Europe-wide (if not worldwide) attempt to bring to an end the settlement enforced after World War II. Germany, with its historically strong working class, experience of Nazi capitalism and its geographical position on the front line of the cold war, was rebuilt into an industrial giant - thanks to US Marshall aid, Keynesian pump-priming and significant social concessions. The disintegration of the USSR, however, meant that since the 1990s German capital has not only had the burden of the former GDR to carry, but the opportunity to systematically roll back the welfare state put in place after World War II. Indeed the bourgeoisie is attempting to shift from industrial production to the banking and finance capital characteristic of the US and Britain. Quite clearly, in historical terms the welfare state and quasi-democracy experienced in western Europe were a blip, not an inevitable by-product of inexorable capitalist progress and its growing maturity. Capitalism is anti-democratic, thoroughly anti-human and would, if it could, make us work 24 hours a day for nothing. With her campaign against British trade unions Margaret Thatcher has so far been the most successful in imposing such 'reforms' in Europe. But the German working class has not had its 1984-85 moment. Of course, it is subject to increasing attacks and setbacks - but it has not experienced the strategic defeat suffered by workers in Britain The working class in Germany is still strong enough to resist the full 'Anglo-Saxon model'. Sunday's vote will also have strong repercussions across Europe, where similar attempts have been underway to 'reform' away the welfare state and workers' rights. Naturally, the Telegraph paints a bleak picture: "Old obdurate leftists can argue about which system is 'better', but at a certain point it becomes irrelevant: by 2050, there will be more and wealthier Americans, and fewer and poorer Europeans" (September 20). Such a ludicrous comment would be quite funny - if it was not for the sad reality of life in the US, which produces anything but wealth for the majority. The dramatic effects of hurricane Katrina have clearly highlighted the reality of the 'American way of life': millions of people having to juggle two or three badly paid jobs to get by, with the trailer park becoming the permanent home to an increasing number of poor people and hundreds of thousands unable to afford health insurance. No wonder the German working class is keen to resist 'reforms' which would bring it closer to such a standard of living. The Guardian is correct to point out that the Linkspartei is "the real winner" of this election (September 20). Success for the left The 8.7% achieved by the Linkspartei is impressive by any reckoning. But it is truly astounding if one considers that the SPD looked certain to lose power. Imagine a similar situation in Britain: the Tories revive to the point where they seem poised to form the next government. Would the left stand its ground in opposition to Tony Blair's neoliberal policies? Would the SWP and Respect risk 'letting the Tories in'? Would the Alliance for Workers' Liberty and Workers Power fight for 'working class independence' at the polls? Or would they fall in once more behind New Labour - just as they did in 1997? Had the CDU been in as poor a state as the Tories in Britain, the Linkspartei could have easily doubled its vote. Naturally, there was a dramatic difference in the number of votes received in the east and the west. In the east, where the PDS evolved out of the 'official communist' party (SED) of the GDR, the Linkspartei polled an average of 23.5% - and was either the second or third strongest party everywhere. In the west, the party received an average of 4.1% - with the notable exception of the federal state of Saarland, where it won 17.3%. Not so surprising perhaps when you consider that the Saarland used to be run by Oskar Lafontaine, when he was still a high-ranking member of the SPD. Despite the strong variation in the votes received, there will actually be a similar number of MPs from both of the Left Party's component parts: out of the 54 elected, 29 are from the east, 25 the west. This is explained by the complicated electoral regulations in Germany, the size of the federal states, etc. While in Bremen, for example, the Linkspartei's 7% represented one of the best results in the west of the country, the state is so small that this share of the vote did not translate into an MP. Lafontaine's decision to join the Linkspartei has helped to make the party a serious player - though it brings its own problems. Lafontaine and Gregor Gysi (the most prominent member of the PDS) have declared that they will be joint leaders of the new parliamentary fraction. But they come from completely different political backgrounds and traditions, so their joint leadership could be a recipe for division. Add to that the leaders of the WASG (at least two of whom are extremely ambitious) and you get the potential for a bureaucratic tussle for space and influence within the new formation. And there are other tensions. The formal unification of the PDS and WASG is supposed to be completed within the next two years, but the reality of working together in parliament is likely to speed this up. However, there is a huge lack of clarity about what exactly this new party stands for and how it will operate. Rebirth of German left For example, is it enough to put forward a national Keynesian programme that is supposed to "rescue the welfare state"? The PDS has arrived at this conclusion after a number of years (and now accepts that "the market economy does not necessarily need to be overcome"), the WASG takes it as its starting point. However, there is strong opposition in both organisations to limiting the new party to such a narrow programme, which clearly does not get to the heart of the problem. If we accept that in conditions of a declining global capitalism the welfare state cannot be 'saved' on a permanent basis, then surely the left needs to provide answers that go beyond trying to preserve the status quo. Another bone of contention is the question of government participation. The PDS, of course, has been involved in a number of regional governments with the SPD and has overseen draconian cuts in social services, the implementation of Hartz IV, the cancellation of wage agreements etc. And the first reaction of Gysi to the election result was to point out that there was now a "left majority" in parliament - he was clearly implying that there ought to be an SPD-Green-Linkspartei administration. However, when it became clear that the SPD was not prepared to enter a coalition with the Linkspartei on a national level, most leaders of the PDS, and the WASG too, announced that this time around they would not participate - but who knows what would happen in 2009, by the time the next elections take place "¦ The leaderships of both parties certainly have no problem in principle when it comes to participation in a pro-capitalist government. In fact four Linkspartei MPs have declared that they would be prepared to support a red-green minority government right now - ie, they are for Gerhard Schröder remaining as chancellor and would undertake to vote for a number of SDP bills. Hüseyin-Kenan Aydin (WASG), for example, declared that he "could very well imagine such a constellation - in fact I hope it comes into being" (Der Spiegel September 21). From our point of view, it is unprincipled for socialists to participate in capitalist governments. Managing capitalism inevitably means betraying working class interests - history provides enough examples. For this reason, we urge the Linkspartei comrades to concentrate on working out a principled fighting programme - in opposition to whatever capitalist hotchpotch comes into being. The Left Party must demand the complete reversal of the whole raft of anti-worker legislation (passed and proposed). It must use its parliamentary presence to help mobilise that opposition where it really counts - amongst the class itself. While the PDS has the character of a real Volkspartei in the east, the left in the west of the country is still incredibly unconnected to the working class. Sections of the WASG membership agree with such a perspective, but they are as yet an unorganised minority. When it comes to deciding the character and programme of the new merged party, this internal left opposition will hopefully be able to cohere its forces and demand a change of direction away from capitalist welfarism and towards socialism. The PDS opposition, too, could be revitalised through the merger process and new membership intake. The demand to withdraw Linkspartei support from all regional anti-worker governments must be a central plank of the left's platform. Quite clearly, the unification of the two parties opens up the potential for a real and honest debate about a number of important questions. So far, such an overdue development has been sidelined by the urgency of preparing for the elections. Of course, nobody expects the Linkspartei (or whatever it will be called) to immediately emerge as a beautiful Bolshevik butterfly from the swamp of German politics. But it would be a tragedy if this historic opportunity to build a strong socialist force in the land of Marx and Engels were to be squandered. We urge all revolutionary socialists and communists in Germany to get involved in this process of shaping the rebirth of a strong socialist left l Congratulations from the CPGB Dear comrades, On behalf of the Communist Party of Great Britain I would like to congratulate the Linkspartei on your successes in the September 18 general election. Germany is the key battleground in the struggle of the entire working class of Europe against neoliberal attacks. Your strong showing strikes a blow for us all. For international socialism! Mark Fischer national organiser, Communist Party of Great Britain
Worker