A SITTING of Parliament suspended. Fists raised. The low sult. Tory government denounced as 'fascists' and 'murderers'. Demonstrations against British militarism organised by the Labour Party.
The Fire Brigades Union calling for a General Strike. Resignations of government Ministers.
The enforced retirement of a Tory Prime Minister. The British Commonwealth on the brink of being torn apart. Not fantasy but Britain 40 years ago at the board. Time STer On October 29 1956 Israeli forces attacked Egypt. The following day the British and French governments called or both sides to withdraw ten miles from the Suez canal. Egypt would have to give up control of the Canal, as well as a large piece of territory. British and French troops would then occupy the Canal zone, supposedly to keep the warring armies apart.
On October 31 British planes attacked Egyptian airfields and an invasion fleet left Malta. Destruction of the Egyptian airforce allowed Israeli troops to advance through the Sinai peninsula.
On November 5 British paratroopers were dropped at Por Said and the following day the fleet arrived. Port Said was captured later that day and British and French forces prepared to advance on Suez. The Egyptians sank ships to block the Canal.
G-ALDAThe Duke of Wellington's Regiment en route to the middle east in 1956 Many Socialist Outtook readers wilfe distressed to hear On November 6 the British government ordered a ceasefire, forcing the French to folA relatively easy military victory (resistance by Egyptian soldiers and civilians was much stronger than was admateon soon became a colacal debacle for the Conservative government of Anthony Eden.
The Israeli attack and British and French intervention, named Operation Musketeer, were not spontaneous, but well prepared in advance. Plans had been drawn up in August and sched- non musketeer. uled for September, then delayed to bring the Israelis on Britain, France and Israel went to war to overthrow the radical Arab nationalist regime of Gamal Abdul Nasser. Nasser, along with Tito and Nehru, was one of the leaders of the keep an agreement. recentlv formed Non-Aligned Movement, which caller for support for national liberation struggles in the colonial world. ference's demands. Both Eden and French 'Socialist' Prime Minister Mollet believed that the landing of troops would lead to an uprising against Nasser - the exact opposite of what actually happened.
Nasser's attacks on imperialism, his support for the Algerian independence fighters and his willingness to allow Palestinian guerillas to conduct operations against Israel led to him culated being denounced (like Saddam Hussein 30 years later) as a new Hitler or Muscolin Nasser made two crucial decisions which heightened inter- cerns at the time. national concern. He bought arms from Czechoslovakia. In May 1956 he recognised the People's Republic of China. Russian tanks. The US found it This led to strained relations difficult to condemn the Russian with the United States and in invasion when its own supposed July 1956 the US government allles were brutally Invading refused a loan to build a dam at Egypt. The Anglo-French adAswan. The British government venture got in the way of the immediately followed suit. much greater American strateOn 26 July, in response, and gic Interest - containing Comin order to raise the money for munism'. the Aswan Dam, Nasser nation- Labour's opposition to Suez alised the Suez Canal, owned by was not because of any princia French company. This was the pled objection to imperialism. final straw for Britain and Opposition from the US left France. The response was to Britain and France firmly isocarry out the plans for Opera- lated within the United Nations.
Only Australia and New ZeaSome justification for mili- land gave support. The usually tary intervention was needed. reliable governments of Canada Eden therefore organised a con- and South Africa abstained ference in London to discuss while India led the anti-British "internationalising' the Canal, campaign. The whole future of at the same time claiming in a the Commonwealth was at TV broadcast that Nasser was 'a stake. man who cannot be trusted to The Labour Party had played We all a central role in forming NATO know this is how fascist govern- and was far more 'Atlanticist' in ments behave'. Not surprisingly its world view than the Tories. the Egyptians rejected the con- Without US opposition to Suez Labour would never have opThe Canal Company then or- posed British militarism. dered all its marine pilots to Worldwide hostility to Suez leave the Canal, in the typically was naving senous economic arrogant and racist belief that consequences. Arans wollenot be able to keer Massive withdrawals of open a major seaway of world Sterling deposits took place importance - providing a con- from August onwards - includvenient excuse for intervention. ing India's deposits of £150 million. There was a serious oil However, the British gov- shortage which could only be reaction, to supply oil or allow the necesparticularly that of the United sary loans from the InternaStates. They expected US sup- tional Monetary Fund. This port, not realising this did not fit forced the British government in with US foreign policy con- to agree to pull its troops out of Egypt and encouraged Labour The invasion of Suez coin- opposition to Eden's adventure. cided with the suppression of As a result of Suez, Nasser the Hungarian revolution by emerged stronger than ever and began to extend his influence throughout the Arab world. Within two years the staunchly pro-British Iraqi monarchy had been overthrown and the Jordanian regime was tottering. Egypt and Syria had united in the United Arab Republic. Far from the invasion leading to denationalisation of the Canal it was a disaster for British and French capitalists - Nasser nationalised all British and French property. Egypt and other Arab states turned increasingly towards the Soviet Union. ence went into decline in the Arab world. Britain and France were revealed as second rate powers, no longer able to play their old role on the world stage. The process of decolonisation became inevitable after Suez. Opposition to national liberation struggles could only be continued with at least tacit American support. failure of its official leadership. leadership by a brutal Tory high command. and union rights. against fragmentation by building solidarity, in Ireland and worldwide. ing into right wing hands. not bring socialism. ies across the country. Western influI want to know more about Socialist Outlook Please send me your introductory pamphlet:
•Socialism after Stalinism'. I enclose a PO or cheque for £1.00 payable to 'Socialist hard-won public services, the working class in Britain faces a real crisis - an avoidable crisis created by the historic Socialist Outlook exists to build a new type of working class leadership, based on the class struggle and revolution. ary socialism. The capitalist class, driven by its own crisis, and politically united by its need to maximise profits at the expense of the workers, has had determined, vanguard The Tory strategy has been to shackle the unions, and to fragment and weaken the resistance, allowing them to pick off isolated sections one at a time. In response, most TUC and Labour leaders have embraced the politics of "new realism", effectively total surrender, while ditching any pretence of being a socialist alternative. Every retreat encouraged the offensive against jobs, wages, conditions New realism is the latest form of reformism, seeking only improved conditions within capitalism. We reject refor. mism, no because we are against retorms, but because we know that full employment, decent living standards, a clean environment, peace and democracy can never be achieved under capitalism. Nor, as we argued long before the collapse of Stalinism, could these demands ever be achieved under the bureaucratically deformed workers states and degenerated USSR, whose regimes survived only by repressing the working class. We are a marxist current, based not on the brutish totalitarian parodies of state marxism nor on the tame, toothless version of "marxism" beloved by armchair academics, but on the revo lutionary tradition of Marx, Engels, Lenin and Trotsky.
Our socialist alternative is not based on parliamentary elections or illusions of peaceful legislative change. We fight to mobilise and unleash the power of the working class to topple the corrupt and reactionary rule of capital and establish its own class rule. We struggle to unite the various struggles of workers, the unemployed, of women, of pensioners, of the black communities, of lesbians and gay men, of students, of youth - and of those fighting imperialism Socialist Outlook is above all an internationalist current, in solidarity with the Trotskyist Fourth International, which organises in over 40 countries. Unlike some other groups on the British left, we do not believe a mass revolutionary party can be built simply by proclaiming ourselves to be one. This degenerates into sectarian posturing and abstention from struggles in the labour movement, playNor do we believe that the demands of women, black people, lesbians and gays or the national demands of people in Scotland, Ireland and Wales should be left to await revolution. The oppressed must organise themselves and fight now for their demands, which are part of the struggle for socialism. But propaganda alone, however good, will The fight for policies which can mobilise and politically educate workers in struggle, must be taken into the unions, the Labour Party and every campaign and struggle in which workers and the oppressed fight for their rights.
To strengthen this fight we press for united front campaigns on key issues such as racism and fascism - in which various left currents can work together for common objectives while remaining free to debate differences. If you agree with what you see in Socialist Outlook, and want to join us in the struggle for socialism, readers' groups meet in citContact us now, get organised, and get active! Get organised, get active
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