The people’s anger must be directed to the real way out

Aleka Papariga, GS of the CC of the KKE, in answer to the question of a journalist from the ANTENNA TV Channel concerning the mass demonstrations taking place every afternoon in the centre of Athens without political party banners and flags, said the following:

“What we have been saying for years now is that the people must take matters into their own hands. A movement will always contain the element of popular initiative, spontaneity; will combine the conscious with the spontaneous, because we are talking about masses. We pose the following question: to start with the people who are in Syntagma have made political choices in the past and indeed we believe that they are people who have for many years in the main supported the two major parties and feel betrayed. We do not feel betrayed, no one betrayed us because we never believed them. They feel betrayed, they are not stupid, and they are not people who do not think. Secondly, I believe that they have political views even if they may not feel aligned to any political party. And even the issue of a demonstration to stop something is a political choice.

What is the issue that we have highlighted? We are saying the following: the 11,000,000 people in Greece cannot possibly have 11,000,000 proposals. Nor do they have 1,000 proposals. Consequently, the movement which says “down with the memorandum and the government must leave” must have an alternative proposal. As we have, even if they say that we don’t. They say that we have no proposal because they do not agree with it. How will the proposal of the movement be created in general? It will be created through the struggles of those who are not ready to take on board the various proposals on offer.

Let’s say that the government falls. So? There will be another one. First they must be clear concerning the political line they want in relation to capital, the monopolies, Maastricht, the Euro-treaty. They must be clear what political line they want from now on whatever party they vote for. Secondly, let’s say that the memorandum is abolished. I tell you that things will be much worse if this happens on its own. You must replace what you intend to abolish. For the moment this is not being discussed.

Extracts from the speech of the GS of the CC of the KKE in Eleusina, 31/5/2011

“At the moment the squares of Greece are full with people of all ages, young people etc who are mobilising. This did not catch us by surprise or unprepared. If the workers reread, and I would also suggest this to the members and friends of our party, our documents, leaflets and articles, they would see that we say that we could see major social outbreaks of protest and a combination of the conscious with the spontaneous.

This happened many years ago. In the 1960s, May 1968, the so-called revolutionary student movement of Marcuse, as well as if you like the flower children, the hippies. These were significant mobilizations which took place in the USA and other countries, which were movements without a clear ideological orientation, but wanted something to change in society. Such movements will exist in the future. When, for example, you have a dynamic labour movement, even if it is insufficient today, it is clear that it will have an effect on society as a whole. The squares full of people do not frighten us at all.

But we must state one thing very clearly. Now is not the time for investigations concerning theory and practice. Now is the time for clarity.

For example, they say that they want to overthrow the political system; others say the system must change and be modernised, other say that the political parties must go. This of course reflects the justifiable unhappiness- in our opinion- with the parties of power above all. Of course, it could also reflect the following: the other parties have not convinced them. Even if some of them are too young to be convinced by one speech, a demonstration, even more so to be convinced by the few political ideas which appear in the mass media etc

We say the following: it is not enough, and we would say that is extremely misleading, to talk about changing the political system in a vague way. Even to say that you want to overthrow the political system. And this slogan does not frighten the power of capital. It may not be to the government’s liking or to the liking of the plutocracy and many others what we say. But they think that it is better for the people to say that they want to change the political system, rather than saying that they are fighting for working class-popular power. We do not want to change the political system in the sense of changing the parties. Because we have a political system which is not only reactionary and conservative. Because the political system is not only composed of PASOK, ND and their fellow-traveller parties.

This political system, in reality the power, is in the hands of the bourgeois class, the monopolies, and the capitalists. They do not exercise their power directly – outside the sphere of the economy- but indirectly through their political parties. They have no problem if they are in danger from a really revolutionary movement to dissolve their parties, to sideline and change politicians.

In any case, the history of the 20^th century in our country has shown us that bourgeois parties have disappeared and new ones have emerged. ERE which existed before the dictatorship later became ND. The Centre Union became PASOK. Also they have no problem in sidelining leaders, even with the nepotism which exists. They have no problem in presenting radically new parties, which do not appear as parties, but as initiatives or committees, As long as their power is not questioned in the sphere of the economy.

So while today talk of overthrowing the political system might sound revolutionary, in reality it is not. We do not underestimate the opponent- the opponent possesses a great deal of experience in changing his appearance, being very flexible, making concessions and even retreating, as long as the dominance of the monopolies itself is not affected”.

The people’s struggle continues

It should be noted that PAME, PASEVE, PASY, MAS, and OGE are continuing their multi-facetted militant mobilizations. Last Saturday (28/5) many demonstrations and marches were held in several Greek cities During the week there took place many visits to workplaces, protests at hospitals over the commercialisation of healthcare, and a 24 hour strike on 2/6 of two class-oriented sectoral union federations (The Federation of unions in Dairy- Food- Drinks and the Federation in the Print and Paper industry) which belong to PAME, in the struggle for collective bargaining agreements.

Friday 3/6 has been named by PAME as a day of all-workers’ activity against the plutocracy and there will be new mass demonstrations in dozens of Greek cities nationwide. PAME has proposed a general strike on the day when the government will table the new anti-worker measure for approval by parliament.

Video of the demonstrations of PAME on 28/5