h and South struggle to solve intersecting economic crises. The military front
and an 'anti-imperialist. champion of the Palestinian people The Zionists, in turn, are obviously enraged to dis- themselves regarded as a liability in Bush's Gulf exploits, and so publicly by-passed in the US handling of the elements Swithin the imperialist camp continue to debate dam. But whatever they decide, one alarming fact stands out above all others: the social democratic parties (and governments) affiliated to the so-called 'Socialist International are fully com- plicit in the imperialist offensive in the Gulf as well as the sanc- tions designed to starve the Iraqi people into submission to the Any internationalist fight to stem the war drive and press for withdrawal of imperialist troops from the Gulf has first to combat No better is the social democratic line on the capitalist economy. In Australia, New Zealand and Spain social democratic governments have pioneered Thatcherite policies: in opposition - their tactical view on how 5 and when to attack Sad- USA. Once more this inglorious "international" has collapsed in the face of a war drive, with each of its national parties tail ending these reformist leaders in the labour movement, who are riding on the tide of anti-Saddam hysteria in the capitalist media, and as we know all too well in Britain - their policies are becoming ever less distinguishable from those of the main capitalist par- 'anti-Zionist' Different crisis. cover The economic front Washington and their 'own' capitalist class. basking in their reactionary 'respectability They PROVOKED ME!! ISRAEL!! WHAT THE...!? like form of 'peaceful coexistence' is agreement on the need for military action and sanctions to topple Saddam Hussein, restore feudalism in Kuwait, and instal a regime in Baghdad acceptable to As this magazine goes to press, the military build-up in the Gulf continues unabated - the biggest logistical exercise of its equipped and poised for aggressive action - an invasion of involvement, looking forward to recreating the camaraderie of a useful warning of what could be in store. The Korean War The focal point of this most unholy of alliances and most war- kind since D-Day. Within weeks, the US forces will be fully Kuwait or an attack on Iraq. Thatcher and Bush, encouraged by the lack of political opposition, have stepped up their blood- cur- dling threats against Saddam Hussein as part of their preparation As British 'desert rat' troops took delivery of their armoured vehicles in Saudi Arabia, a US marines general welcomed their their last joint exploits - in the Korean War. This should serve as brought three years of mass slaughter, misery and barbarism as the USA - using the UN as a flag of convenience - tried to wipe ARABS the White House and the Arab ruling cliques. SAMBLE picking up the Nobel peace Prize S President Gorbachev ment to defend former allies or support any struggles that disturb the 'status quo' internationally - see the grim spectacle of Soviet its oil supplies and military-politi- washes his hands of any commit- for his grovelling capitulation to the US Cold War offensive - we and Chinese bureaucrats raising their hands in unison with feudal sheikhs, third world despots and imperialist leaders at the United cal dominance over the Gulf. for a shooting war. Nations.
fusion and organisational decline as a result of Gorbachevism, glasnost and the collapse of Stalinism, offer nothing better for Page 1 The old 'Communist parties, in a state of ideological con- Yet even now the sharpening economic crisis is bringing a new wave in the capitalist offensive. The crisis of the imperialist the working class. out a regime it found unacceptable and prop up a stooge regime in the South. Almost 40 years later, thousands of US troops are We can tell how seriously the imperialists are preparing for war from the sudden, uncharacteristic willingness of the USA to side with those condemning the latest massacre by Israel's SOCIALIST OUTLOOK no 28, November 1990 still stationed in South Korea.
ploitation and oppression in the various countries of the world. No period has more clearly underlined the need for an interna- tional movement to link socialists in their struggles against ex- An international voice is needed for the independent demands EDITORIAL/ UPDATE economies has spilled over into the 'third world' in the form of a huge debt burden, a fall in demand for 'third world' exports, and ses of the less developed economies by imperialist agencies such the imposition of savage austerity measures on the toiling clas-
xist alternative to the reactionary cocktails of restorationism, obscurantism and monarchism served up by the imperialist and interests of the working class, to fight for solidarity, and to offer political guidance in the confrontations that will occur with In Eastern Europe, workers in struggle must be offered a mar- media, and the crass capitulations to capitalism reflected in the 'reform' programmes of communist and social democratic par- layers of the old leaderships of the labour movement. The capitalist crisis is now making itself felt in the agony of the economies of Eastern Europe. With the near-collapse of most of the bureaucratised state-owned industries, the new, regimes have been urged by Western ideologues such as Thatcher to privatise, capitalise and marketise. Yet even as they attempt to do tal, a slump in Western markets, finding even big corporate firms so, they run into a serious shortage of Western investment capi-
recognise their obligations to counter the aggression of their "own' ruling class, build solidarity with anti-imperialist struggles, democracy and fake 'anti-imperialist' demagogues. Its sections every anti-imperialist struggle. It is a leading voice defending a socialist perspective in Eastern Europe as the stalinist edifice debt crisis. Its forces are to be found in the struggles of the op- pressed in every country where it has supporters. If it did not al- In the third world, as workers are confronted by insufferable levels of exploitation and poverty, it is vital that marxists join for- ces to draw the positive and negative lessons of the struggles that have gone before, and offer support to the marxist groupings And in the imperialist countries, it is crucial that socialists and wage the class war at home against the employers' offensive. For over 50 years the Trotskyist Fourth International has been its existence, detending the perspective and programme of revolutionary politics against Stalinism, social are prominent in the fight against the Gulf war and solidarity with crumbles; and it is campaigning on the issue of the Third World ready exist, now would be the time to invent it. that are emerging from the mass movement. struggling for Left swing in SNP leadership mortgaged to the hilt and far from keen to set up new plants in Yet whether it be the latest Gorbachev or Yeltsin plans for ment and poverty for workers in what was East Germany, the moves towards "marketisation' all involve attacking workers' The story is similar in imperialist countries such as the USA, sened by the Gulf war effort, and Britain, where the much-hailed 'discipline' of the Exchange Rate Mechanism on the economy relies upon the simple threat that if employers put up their prices 'communists', patriotic flag-waving social democrat defenders of the "mixed economy, rationalising transnational corporations, or simply by capitalist governments seeking to slash welfare spending and boost profits, workers face a formidable line-up of forces. All seem agreed that the crisis of capitalism must be 'solved' (albeit reforming the Soviet economy, the grinding austerity being suf- fered in Poland and Hungary, or the prospect of mass unemploy- where a recession and rampant budget deficit can only be wor- countries with such poor and outdated infrastructure. Whether they are attacked by privatising too high, their workers could wind up redundant. living standards for the benefit of private profit. temporarily) at workers' expense. Whether they
Wayne Edgington SOCIALIST OUTLOOK no 28, November 1990 gles, much to the distrust of ing members of the group were The "79 group attempted to get involved in industrial strug SNP councillors, who were large- ly traditionalist, invariably voted many Labour Party members. came increasingly divided. Lead- Labour : threatened by new SNP leadership? Jim Sillars and Alex Salmond. with the Conservatives. bers who had joined the SNP. SNP leadership had disastrously cut themselves off from political realities. The '79 group was formed consisting of most of the youth and the ex-Labour mem- The "79 group became the Left port from around a third of SNP SNP and quickly gathered sup members. SNP conferences be- Assembly, which they saw as an attempt to When Labour failed to port in the referendum, Many felt the then block independence. deliver an Assembly from any further co- operation with Labour. despite majority sup Salmond puts Labour These tasks show prospects of 24% and Labour down from a Tories remain in third place in publicly discounting the SNP, Although we can expect a radical change in style from the During the referendum of attitude to the proposed Scottish being achieved. Latest opinion polls show the SNP up 4% at height of 55% last year. The Senior Labour figures whilst privately admit the new Salmond SNP leadership, the change from traditionalist to left nationalist leadership has not been unex- 1979, the SNP took an equivocal leadership to be a serious threat. Scotland, with 19%. on the hook Alex Salmond, a declared socialist, as their new leader at their September tive to Labour, as well as a He will seek to expose the scandalous actions of Labour over the Poll Tax, their about tum on Trident and their vacuous platitudes over Ravenscraig and dustry. At the same time he will try to transform public perception of the SNP by associating it with Labour movement struggles and rejoining the mainstream of Scot- The Scottish National Party portray the SNP as a left alterna- the future of the Scottish steel in- nationalist party.
John Harris/NUJ REAK HE TORY OLL TAX MAKE TH 3n1 collect t Worker BREAK THE TORY POLL TAX Don't collect ont pa UPDATE Don"t collect DOnT ELL TAX OLL TAX TORI HE TORY BREAK *n't collect EAK HE 10 POLL REA Set Worl E TOI ALL TA un't collec group showed the potential of a nationalist were highest in the high- lands but also in the housing schemes with Councils. The SNP was effectively a left protest vote in the cities and radical policies tended to leadership became con- cerned that the "79 group was dilating their policy of pure nationalism, so they disbanded the group and suspended its leader- programme. SNP "79 The left
pendence. Yet senior Labour Conference also voted to push for the independence option to be included in any referendum. This would make the referendum a three way choice - status quo, With this change the SNP and Salmond put Labour on the spot. The last thing Labour wish is an Assembly - and particularly not figures such as Bob Gray, the leader of Strathclyde region, have suggested local authorities should dum. Under Salmond, the SNP executive has now unanimously backed Gray's call for the local leadership a similar suggestion was defeated. Clearly changes Salmond's approach will be to try to establish the SNP as the main opposition party to Labour Scotland. This will mean developing and presenting their sues than to date. Their policies are generally to the left of Labour although still nationalist. But then pendence although only half of these support SNP - most of the remainder vote Labour.