Dear Comrades,
It’s a great opportunity and honor for us to attend this seminar on the historic occasion of the centenary of the Great October Revolution. We like to convey the revolutionary thanks on behalf of Workers Party of Bangladesh to the comrades of Communist Party of India for organizing the seminar. This seminar will not only commemorate the historic event, but also pave the way for new regional and international fraternity and solidarity of the working class. This is direly needed for the contemporary global situation.
Esteemed Comrades,
Hundred years elapsed after the roar of the battleship ‘Aurora’ and the emergence of a new era in human civilization, the great October Socialist Revolution. The October revolution heralded and erupted a new epoch by founding a state of the working class and the poor peasants represented by the revolutionary Soviets. The call of ‘All powers to the Soviets’ made a historic step of flourishing the concrete structure of a state of revolutionary class. The theory came into a real picture of practice. The October revolution spread a new message of hope and liberation for the toiling people all over the world and the peoples of the colonies. The new Soviet state took a determined stand against the prevailing system of international relations in which war and colonization were organic compounds. The idea of national sovereignty and equality emerged in a new dimension. The acquaintance with the scientific socialism provided a better understanding to national intelligentia about the political and social forces in their respective countries. It is the historic fact that the communist movement started in this region of South Asia under the direct impact of October revolution. The October revolution also performed crucial and principal role to unite various communist groups, parties and movements, to popularize the Marxist-Leninist theory and to discuss the debate strategies and tactics of uniting with other nationalist non-communist forces against imperialism. Third Communist International was formed in 1919, that played an immense role as the coordinating centre of revolutionaries of the world. Actually, the great October Revolution unleashed a new and parallel way of life in totality for human civilization.
Esteemed Comrades,
But we have had a great historic setback through the demise of the Soviet Union and Socialist block.
We need a Critical review of the historic experiences of building of Socialism, its achievements and mistakes to get lessons to move forward.
Starting from the historic event of the Great October revolution, throughout the last century, the capitalist contingents continued their propellant enmity against Socialism. But they never felt so victorious, what they are feeling now. The momentum of revolutionary upheaval in Asia, Africa and Latin America combated their evil efforts. We have had a long history of heroic achievements. But we also have experience of severe mistakes that led to historic defeat in building Socialism. The Capitalist forces now feel victorious due to dismantling of the system of the USSR and the East Europe. They started all out attack to wipe out the effects, contributions and positive impacts of the October revolution and Socialism on human society. They are trying to uphold their authority not only through neoliberal economic policy, but also through intellectual hegemony. Thousands of books and articles have been being published demeaning the historic contribution of the great October Revolution on human civilization. They have been striving tooth and nail to prove that the Great October Revolution was not a historical necessity and essentiality, but an accident in history. They have been trying to establish that it was not the victory of the revolutionary working class and poor peasants of Russia, but a coup of a handful of ambitious anarchic people, the Bolsheviks. They have been trying relentlessly to establish that the October Revolution was a fluke of history. They have been using in their own ways all the debates, controversies and mistakes of communist forces to build the foundation of the ‘false truths’, their intellectual hegemony to destructurize the peoples’ mind and consciousness to de-motivate and to alienate. And it’s a cruel reality that they have been successful to a certain extent. The dismantling of the Soviet Union and East Europe shattered the revolutionary zeal and urge of working class and other progressive forces a lot all over the World. Now it is a high time to rebuild the revolutionary forces through critical analyses of the past achievements and failures, correctness and mistakes, unity and disunity, hopes and disappointments to fight back. It is the historic responsibility of contemporary revolutionaries to analyze again truthfully and convincingly the historic contribution of the great October revolution and the past efforts of building socialism. The mistakes are also to be analyzed with proper concreteness and historical context. We cannot repeat the same mistakes. With this object we are to revisit all steps of the historic events and facts of the last hundred years after the October revolution. We are to critically reanalyze (1) The period of October revolution and civil war aftermath, (2) The initiatives of New Economic Policy, (3) The revolution from above from 1928 up to Second world and the steps of building the socialism (3) Second World war, role of Soviet Union and its after effect (4) Soviet Union after Stalin era. (5) Cause of dismantling of USSR and East Europe (6) Experience of building socialism in China, Vietnam and Cuba (7) Revisit the achievements and mistakes of communist movements of this region also. It’s a huge and ambitious work to revisit all the experiences, identifying the correct steps and the mistakes. It is difficult and truly speaking nearly impossible to make a unified opinion through this. But whatever may be, it is a historical and dialectical necessity. If analyses become self-critical, self evaluating and dialectical with concrete context, there may be foundation of unity of action within diversity. The object of analysis must be finding out in Lenin’s language, ‘What is to be done’ in present context. If we want to make correct strategies and tactics for the contemporary context, we are to critically and deeply research our achievements and mistakes. We are to find a way out of uniting the working class movements, movements against imperialism.
Esteemed comrades,
Along with the Imperialist tyranny, the world is now facing a new phenomenon of ultra rightist religious fundamentalism and terrorism. Although this force was created, organized and patronized by Imperialist forces and their comprador allies all over the world to fight against Socialism and all kinds of progressive forces, are being fake anti-imperialist sometimes misguiding people from the truest sense of anti-imperialist struggle. The religious rightist forces are being tools and ideological weapon of the ruling class to divert people from progressive and revolutionary struggle. It has been found through decades at least in this region of the globe that this two forces are so integrated and interrelated that presently it has become urgent political agenda to understand this two issues jointly and simultaneously to set our political strategies and tactics.
Dear Comrades,
If we look regionally, it is evident that South Asia ( SAARC countries) is being more and more important in relation to geo-political and economic interests for the Imperialist forces i.e. the United States and its European allies. The US policy for South Asia is a part of its pivotal strategy for Asia-Pacific region. From the stand point of geo-political and economic interest, South Asia may be treated in three predominate zones: Western zone that includes Pakistan-Afghanistan, Central zone that is India and the Eastern and peripheral zone that includes Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan etc. Sri Lanka and Maldives are also important regional bases for the Imperialist forces for different other interests to make influence over Indian Ocean. Myanmar is being treated as immediate Hinterland of Eastern zone. US imperialist and their European partners have long cherished desire to enter into internal politics of Myanmar and to put hold on its mineral resources, gas and oil reserves. The Myanmar ruling class is making rooms for their foreign allies through their repressive atrocities on people and on religious minorities using narrow communal attitudes. The contemporary Rohingya issue is not an isolated one.
Dear Comrades,
We will try to shed some light on the emergence of religious fundamentalism in Bangladesh, with a special attention to its relation and conflict with the imperialist interest.
The Liberation war of Bangladesh in 1971 is a historic pivotal political incident in South Asia. The emergence of Bangladesh unleashed the way for a new geo- political and regional economic polarization. Through the defeat and surrendering of Pakistan Army, the US influence in the Eastern zone of South Asia faced a serious set-back for a while. But they started regrouping and re-planning to recover the loss. To regain its grip, the imperialist forces, especially the US started to intervene. Assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and almost all of his family members by a group of military officers and Jawans on 15 August, 1975 was a starting point of swing back. As a matter of fact, the rehabilitation and the process of re-emergence of rightist anti-liberation fundamentalist forces and deep intervention of imperialist powers started with the process.
Dear Comrades,
With this concrete contextual condition, we are to consider following things carefully:
In context to global situation of brutal neoliberal exploitation and war mongering atrocities of Imperialism lead by the United States in different regions especially in middle East and many other ugly plots of undue intervention in different countries of Asia, Africa and Latin America.
In relation to the regional context, we are to consider,
(1) The rise of Religious Fundamentalism (which is always backed by the US Imperialism) in Bangladesh and different other countries of South Asia, which is a crucial aspect of zonal politics.
(2) The US special Economic, military and political interest and policy for Pakistan and Afghanistan, in fact which is culminated in acute upheaval of the militant Fundamentalism in this region.
(3) The relation between US and Indian ruling class and emergence of the non-secular communal fundamentalist forces in India which is the threat not only for the people of India, but also alarming for destabilizing the internal and regional political interests of the people of the smaller neighbors.
It is specially to be noted that India is the largest member of this region and emerging as a strong economic power. That must have some intraregional impact on other relatively smaller countries. But it has its internal crises also. Its economic disparity, dual picture of development and poverty, losing political influence of the progressive forces on common people, rise of non-secular religious forces all over India are not only the cause of headache of Indian people, but also it is equally concerning for the common people of neighboring members of South Asia. The past experience tells us that the fundamentalist forces will be always pampered by the Imperialist forces. So, a simultaneous upcoming of Imperialist force and fundamentalist forces in power may create political Tsunami in this region.
Dear Comrades,
We like to put forward the subject matter in discussion to find a strategic and tactical way out to fight the imperialist intervention and rising fundamentalist forces in this region. To combat the principal enemies, we are to take the initiatives for the following steps: (1) All the progressive, democratic, secular and anti-imperialist forces of the respective countries in South Asia will have to be united in their concrete situation. A common ground will have to be founded to make a momentum of rising regional peoples’ force. (2) We need an integral tie within the left and progressive forces of this region. (3) We are to build peoples’ alternate organ of power through their own class struggle and mass struggle to combine it with the struggle against Imperialism and religious fundamentalism. No steps can be ignored.
Long live the memoir of October revolution,
Long live Peoples Force
Unite the workers of all countries of the World.
Thank you all.
2017, Kolkata Seminar.