The Real Irish The Real Irish Peace Process available (E6 plus l 70p p&p) from London N4'2UU conditions and chronic insecurity - to keep prices low enough to secure increased market share. This contradiction between partnership and competition raises a potential problem even for the most diehard of class colinborators. With so many power. ful bosses to form partnerships with, what happens waen locy fall out among themselves? Where the interests of "British" employers clash with those of "foreign" employers, it would appear that the trade union and labour morement - which has defeat Jaguar workers and their American Ford owners? The very question shows how absurd is Blair's idea of partnership. The only people to gain from this notion are the employers, who are able to push home the advantage and pocket the profits untroubled by even the vaguest threat of resistance from union leaders The confusion of this approach is bad enough when it comes to the day to day economic struggles over jobs, pay and conditions in but it becomes more dramatic when it comes to forces to alter.
Whatever the rhetoric, they fight wars - whether against dan Milosevic - not to liberate the oppressed but to strengthen their own control, extend their markets, preserve their access to oil and other raw materials, and improve the conditions for exploitation. T broughout most of this century Labour politicians bave essence shared Blair's view that their job is to act as the most loyal recruiting sergeants for the armed adventures of the British ruling class.
Labour and trade union leaders not only slavishly supported their "own" imperialists wars against "foreign" imperialists in two world wars, but in government tacy naye snamciessty usco armed force to repress colonial liberation struggles. extreme right wing Foreign Secretary, former TGWU leader Ernest Bevin, was a key architect of the Cold War NATO alliance, now to be presided over by the equally right wing Lord Robertson of Kosovo.
Many would assume that this has always been the politics of social democracy - a political curwhich throughout living memory has limited itself to secking piecemeal reforms through parliamentary action within the framework of capitalism, and opposed any notion of class struggle or the overthrow of the system.
But that would be a mistake. Today's social democracy - and the laughable "Socialist Interna tional" which includes not only Blair's imperialist Labour Party but also the vicious Zionists of the Israeli Labour Party - is a bastard offspring of what was originally a Marxist movement, Second International, founded in 1889 by Friederich Engels, and committed to internationalist, class struggle Right up to the eve of the First World War, the Second Internafional remained formally in sup Dort of programme of internationalism and revolution,
enshrined in 1912 in the Basle Manitesto. reprinted opposite Within the International at that stage were revolutionaries including Lenin and the Kussian Bolsheviks, who in their efforts to stem the degeneration of into nationalism and patriotism referred back to the formulations of Basle and urged for them to be upheld.
As Lenin pointed out:
*The Basle Manifesto says (1) that war will create an economic and military crisis: (2) that the workers will regard their partici pation in the war as a crime, and criminal any shooting cach other down for the profit of the capitalists, for the sake of dynasand of diplomatic secret and war in the workers; (3) that it is the duty of socialists to take advantage of this crisis and of the workpeople and hasten the downfall of (4) that all governments' without exception peril'; (5) that governments 'are afraid of a proletarian revolution'; (6) that governments 'should remember' the Paris Commune (i.c. civil war), the 1905 Revolution in Russia, etc.".
The capitulation of the major European social democratic par ties to their "own" imperialist ruling classes came with the shameful vote in the Reichstag and in parliaments elsewhere in 1914 for war credits to finance the slaughter of what became the first World War.
This abandonment of the policies and principles of internationalism on which the Second International nad been based became the key dividing line in the workers' movement.
cain and tae cvolutionaries recognised the need to fight on develon Third International. This would seck to guard against the opportunist and nationalist degeneration which had effecdestroved the Second International, various leading parties cach endorsing a war citort in which Incit Working supporters wound up shooting cach other.
The Third (Communist) International, formed in the aftermath tion fell victim to a different type of degeneration, with the emergence of a cynical and ruthless burcaucracy the Kremlin which turned its back on the idea of internationalism and revolution in order to preserve its cari"socialism in country".
Today, while Blair and his social democratic in Europe Coaca shamelessly do the bidding of the US and imperialist ruling classes, only one organisation fights to keep alive the spirit of internationalism which was once the preserve of social democracy. national may be small and appear isolated. But the Fl continues a fight for principics which can unite the working class internationally against its real enemies. In May 1917 Lenin in "A Lec. tere ca War" pointed out the importance of principles:
"We are told: "hings seem to be asleep in a number of coun tries. In Germany all the Socialists are unanimously in favour of the war; only Liebknecht opposed to it.' "To this I reply: This one Russian infantry on parade before the Cear on the coe of toar, 1914; Lenin's anti-war stance roas key to revolution Liebknecht represents the working class, in aiml alone. in his adherents, in the German proletariat, lie the hopes of all.' 85 years after the historic split and collapse of the Second International there are again people in the Labour Party and elsewhere who believe themselves to be internationalists and who reiect the wretched class collaboration, chauvinism and pro-imperialism of Tony Blair.
The Basle Manifesto serves to which represents the real strengths of that International.
They must fight today alongside the left throughout the labour movement for a rebuilding of socialism and internationalism.