German communist leader Herbert Mies died at 87 - Statement by the KKE

A leading figure of the German communist movement, Herbert Mies, died  on 14 January 2017 in his hometown of Mannheim at the age of 87. Mies joined the Communist Party of Germany in 1945. He was elected chairman of the (West) German Communist Party (DKP) in 1973. He was awarded the Lenin Peace Prize in 1985/1986. Mies resigned from his position as party chairman in October 1989.

Responding to the news of Herbert Mies' death, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) issued the following statement:

"With sadness the CC of the KKE was informed about the death of comrade Herbert Mies who was a leading figure of the international and German communist movement, being President of the German CP from 1973 to 1989.

For a whole life, until his 87 years, comrade Mies consistently served the working class of Germany, the people of his country. In his youth, he opposed fascism and faced decisively the difficult circumstances of illegality and persecution of the next period. He excelled in the International Communist Movement and was awarded the Lenin Prize.

IT'S CAPITALISM, STUPID: Just eight men own same wealth as half the world

According to the latest report published by Oxfam eight men own the same wealth as the 3.6 billion people who make up the poorest half of humanity. Oxfam's report 'An economy for the 99%', shows that the gap between rich and poor is far greater than had been feared. 

More specifically:

• Eight men now own the same amount of wealth as the poorest half of the world.

• Over the next 20 years, 500 people will hand over $2.1 trillion to their heirs – a sum larger than the GDP of India, a country of 1.3 billion people.

• The incomes of the poorest 10% of people increased by less than $3 a year between 1988 and 2011, while the incomes of the richest 1% increased 182 times as much.

• A FTSE-100 CEO earns as much in a year as 10,000 people in working in garment factories in Bangladesh.

• In the US, new research by economist Thomas Piketty shows that over the last 30 years the growth in the incomes of the bottom 50% has been zero, whereas incomes of the top 1% have grown 300%.

• In Vietnam, the country’s richest man earns more in a day than the poorest person earns in 10 years.

USA / Donald Trump government: Priority in serving the general interests of the capital

Article published on 'Rizospastis' Sunday Edition, 15 January 2017 / Translation: In Defense of Communism.

The priorities of the government of the newly-elected U.S. President, Donald Trump, who takes office on January 20th, do not differ from those of the outgoing President Barack Obama because- despite the existing differences in their declarations- their common denominator is to safeguard the general interests of the bourgeoisie. That doesn't negate a multilevel intra-bourgeois confrontation for the way through which this will be achieved more effectively, especially in a period when the inter-imperialist antagonism is exacerbated, with an estimated relative loss of U.S. leadership in the international capitalist economy and given the difficulties for a more impetuous capitalist recovery. More specifically Trump promotes a different mix of management with stronger elements of protectionism, an issue which however creates difficulties in international trade, which in turn displeases other parts of the (U.S) capital. 

Communist Party of Mexico- The class character of interstate unions in America

Class character of interstate unions in America.

By Pável Blanco Cabrera & Angel Chávez Mancilla*.

Source: International Communist Review, Issue 6, 2015.

A class approach that puts aside populist criteria is necessary, and this is done on a scientific basis, using the Marxist method of analysing reality, considering the degree of development of capitalism, the process of concentration and centralization in the imperialist phase, emphasizing what is general, without neglecting the peculiarities, and avoiding to place the part above the all. Marxist doctrine establishes the mutual connection between the phenomena of nature and society rather than analyse them in isolation. As V.S. Molodtsov noted "to deny the interdependence of phenomena goes against the possibility of knowledge as a single whole, as opposed to metaphysics Marxism-Leninism developed a truly scientific method of knowledge and transformation of reality. This method requires, first of all, considering all the phenomena of nature and society in mutual connection and interdependence"[1]. 

Nazim Hikmet Ran: The great communist poet who tried to turn darkness into light

Nazim Hikmet (Thessaloniki, 15 January 1902 - Moscow, 3 June 1963).

It was 115 years ago, on January 15, 1902, when the legendary Turkish poet Nazim Hikmet Ran was born. A consistent fighter for the ideals of Marxism-Leninism, a genuine internationalist, but also a real patriot, Hikmet remained an unbending communist until the end of his life. He was an honest friend of peace and an enemy of nationalism, war, racism and fascism.

Being just at the age of 17 he wrote in one of his early poems: "One religion, one law, one right: The labor of the worker". Hikmet deeply believed that Socialism was the only way out for humanity and he gave all his creativity and talent in order to pave the road for a socialist future. In his poetry, someone can see the expectation and optimism for a better world, without exploitation of man by man...

KKE exposes and denounces EU and Ukrainian government's new anti-communist machinations

KKE MEP Kostas Papadakis.

PRESS RELEASE: Question of the KKE in the European Parliament on the new machinations of the EU and the Ukrainian government against the CP of Ukraine and the communists in the country.

Source: inter.kke.gr.

To KKE continues its activity, condemning anti-communism, internationally denouncing and exposing the machinations of the EU and the reactionary Ukrainian government against the Communist Party of Ukraine and the activity of the communists in the country. The European Parliamentary Delegation of the KKE submitted a new question to the European Parliament, addressed to the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, F. Mogherini, concerning the lack of a law which will allow the examination of appeals against laws which prepare and arrange anti-communist measures, bans and other measures that remove basic popular freedoms.

Obama's Legacy of War and Imperialist Crimes

When Barack Obama was elected in 2008, he had been presented by various media as a "peace pigeon", as a man whose "humanitarian spirit" would- supposedly- give an end to the bloody imperialist wars waged by the Bush administration. However, the presidency of Barack Obama proved, once more, the undoubted fact that the U.S. foreign policy isn't based on persons, but on the interests of the plutocracy, the monopoly interests of the United States. 

In his farewell speech in Chicago yesterday, President Obama praised the "values" of the United States which, as he said, "become more powerful when democracy works" and "when ordinary people participate in this". During his presidency, Barack Obama proved what kind of "values" he represents- these "values" are very well known to the people in the Middle East, in northern Africa and Ukraine where his government was involved.

A brief account of- Nobel Prize winner-Obama's foreign policy record is the following:

Shocking conditions for refugees as winter cold and snow cover settled over Greece - Question by the KKE in the Parliament asking for immediate measures

Freezing temperatures and heavy snowfall are making life even harder for thousands of refugees living in limbo across Greece. Migration Policy Minister Yiannis Mouzalas admitted that the situation on the islands due to the sub-zero temperatures is not acceptable but suggested that the main reason for this is that locals have obstructed plans to expand reception facilities so migrants can be moved out of the hotspots, where some are housed in tents. 

"The UN Refugee Agency is today reiterating its call to accelerate the moving of asylum seekers from the Aegean islands to the Greek mainland," spokesman Adrian Edwards said last Friday in Geneva. "The need for better protection will become all the more acute this weekend when temperatures on the islands are expected to drop. We are worried."

Statement of the GS of the KKE Dimitris Koutsoumbas on the developments regarding the Cyprus Issue

On Monday 9th of December, within the framework of informational meetings of Greece's Prime Minister with the Parties' leaders regarding the Cyprus negotations, the General Secretary of the CC of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) Dimitris Koutsoumbas met with Alexis Tsipras. After the meeting, the General Secretary made the following statement:

"The Cyprus Issue is an problem of invasion and occupation.

If we want to talk about a negotiation which will lead to a solution, that means first of all the immediate withdrawal of all the occupational forces. That means the abolition of the state of guarantor powers.

Solution means one state and not two states. A single, viable state, with one sovereignty, one nationality, one international personality, a common homeland of Greek-Cypriots and Turkish-Cypriots, without foreign bases, guarantors and protectors.

Today, the negotiation is actually undermined first and foremost by the Turkish leadership, as well by the Turkish-Cypriot one, with the involvement of other powers and big interests, such as the USA, as long as it is a negotiation that in fact takes place under the terms of a dichotomous solution. 

What is needed today is the biggest possible vigilance from the people of Greece and Cyprus".

Source: 902.gr / Translation: In Defense of Communism.

"Islamic State" (ISIS): A tool in the hands of Imperialism

Photo source: Bēhance.net.

The history of exploitative societies has shown that religious and ethnic differences and contradictions, either existed or fomented, were always been utilized to promote the interests of the ruling classes – many times they consisted the formation through which substantial class contradictions were manifested. 

In the history of capitalism and the imperialist system, the emerging bourgeoisies often wore the cloak of religion and many other imperialist powers have used religious conflicts in order to impose their designs against their competitors. The region of the Middle East is full of examples. 

From the late 19th century until today, we have seen many cases of religious movements which have been utilized by bourgeois forces for the creation of reactionary murderous organizations, from the “Taliban” and the “Mujahideen” in Afghanistan to the recent case of ISIS (also known as ISIL or Daesh). Of course, to some extend, in the process, these organizations may become autonomous from their creators or continue to operate in coordination with them. However, what is important is that without the support from imperialist mechanisms, without access to state mechanisms, their activity could not have such large dimensions and impact.

The notorious murderers of the “Islamic State” (ISIS/Daesh) do not consist a new phenomenon. The relation of such “organizations” and “movements” with european and american monopolies is a very old one. If we go back to 1928, we will see that the french company (Suez Canal) had supported the strengthening of the newly-founded “Muslim Brotherhood” in Egypt. 

Nonetheless, the best known case of mercenaries who used Islam as a cover for terrorist activities towards the promotion of US monopolies, can be found in Afghanistan in the beginning of 1980s. Zbigniew Brezinski, National Security advisor of President Carter from 1977 to 1981, was one of the masterminds behind the recruitment and training of Afghanistan's Mujahideen (predecessors of Taliban and Al-Qaeda) against the Soviet Union. Among these anti-Soviet “warriors” recruited by the United States was Osama Bin Laden. In the name of anti-communism, the US imperialism with the support of its NATO allies, created the monster which later was transformed into Al-Qaeda.

After the attacks of September 11th 2001, the “war against islamic terrorism” became the pretext for imperialist invasions in Afghanistan and Iraq. The foundations for the creation of ISIS can be found in the destruction of Iraq after the 2003 imperialist invasion. The US-led war in Iraq which was followed by the total destruction of the Iraqi state and the complete dissolution of Saddam Hussein's Ba'ath Party created the seed for the rise of ISIS jihadists.

The leader of the Islamic State (formerly Islamic State of Iraq), the Iraqi sunni muslim Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, had been arrested by US Forces-Iraq on 2 February 2004 near Fallujah and detained at the Abu Ghraib and Camp Bucca detention centers under his name Ibrahim Awad Ibrahim al-Badry as a "civilian internee" until December 2004, when he was recommended for release by a Combined Review and Release Board, while in December 2004, he was released as a "low level prisoner". Right after al-Baghdadi was freed, the Islamic State emerged out of nowhere and rapidly took over important swaths of Iraq and Syria.

US Senator John McCain meeting with members of the Syrian opposition.
Who is the man in the red circle?

There is strong evidence that al-Baghdadi was recruited, trained and financed by mechanisms of the U.S. secret services and Arab governments. His participation in meetings with US Senator- and US Presidential candidate John McCain- has been captured in published photographs. What seems to be closer to reality is that al-Baghdadi was used in the beginning as a supposedly “moderate” sunni of political Islam. The rise of al-Baghdadi and ISIS came as the result of a combination of developments in the broader region of the Middle East, including the imperialist war in Libya, the events of the so-called “Arab Spring” and the US-NATO imperialist intervention in Syria.

The 2011 imperialist intervention in Syria wasn't proved as easy as the U.S government and its regional allies (Turkey, Saudi Arabia) hoped it would be. The plans for the overthrow of Bashar Al-Assad's government were proved unsuccessful. The Assad government proved much stronger than the respective authorities of Mubarak in Egypt and Qaddafi in Libya. Nonetheless, the so-called “Arab Spring” had already paved the way for the rise of reactionary forces-tools in the hands of the imperialists, like ISIS.

From 2011 onward, the US and their European and regional allies (Saudi Arabia, Turkey etc), started to supply extremists and terrorists fighting the government of Syria with billions in cash, weapons, equipment, and even vehicles. Multiple publications in the western press had admitted this. Behind the “moderate Syrian opposition” it was the ISIS and other extremist forces, trained, equipped and financed by the secret services of the US, EU member-states, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Israel and Qatar. In a few words, the savage murderers of ISIS became part of an imperialist equation in Syria which serves the interests of the monopolies of the states involved in the war.

The Independent, 6 December 1993: Osama Bin Laden, the Anti-Soviet warrior.

The multiple terrorist attacks claimed by ISIS (e.g. Paris, Nice, Istanbul, Berlin, Brussels etc) in Europe, Turkey and elsewhere have added fuel to the fire of repression and intensification of security policies. The “monster of ISIS” has been exploited by bourgeois governments in order to spread fear in societies and strengthen the repressive state mechanisms against the people and the labour movement, to foster xenophobia and racism and to escalate more imperialist interventions. Of course, nobody can reject the possibility that groups within ISIS may operate independently from their imperialist patrons; however, this does not change the nature of the jihadists as a tool of imperialist mechanisms.

The future of ISIS depends on several factors: The developments in the inter-imperialist contradictions and rivalries in the broader region (e.g. US/EU vs Russia) as well as the political and social developments in regional powers (e.g. Turkey, Iran). The people of the region, the working class in the countries affected by the imperialist wars, must organize their struggle against the jihadists and their patrons, the imperialists. For that, it is essential for the masses to understand that the source of this situation is the power of the monopolies and the exploitative system which creates poverty, despair and wars.

IN DEFENSE OF COMMUNISM ©

Elisseos Vagenas (KKE): The struggle for a united Cyprus must continue

The ongoing developments regarding the Cyprus Issue were the major subject of an interview given by Elisseos Vagenas, member of the CC of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) and responsible for the Party's International Relations department, on the Voice of Greece radio.

As Vagenas pointed out, the bazaars for the "solution" plan move towards the creation of a new Annan Plan, which conditions the creation of two constituent states and, in fact, consists a dichotomοus solution, with occupational forces, foreign bases and guarantor powers remaining in the island.

He underlined that the actual basis of the bazaars is the dangerous developments in south eastern Mediterranean and in the Middle East and that the promoted solution in Cyprus could become the "pattern" for the occupation of other lands in Syria or Iraq.

Primitive anti-communism in Indonesia: Russian citizen detained for wearing a t-shirt with sickle and hammer

It seems that the spirit of the mass murderer, dictator of Indonesia between 1967 to 1998, Suharto, still lives on in the country- and so the anticommunist legislation in the country continues to exist. According to Sputnik International a russian citizen was confronted and briefly detained in Indonesia for wearing a t-shirt emblazoned with a hammer and sickle!

According to sputniknews.com, Igor Riabchuk, a Russian national, was accosted by a group of local people in Batam, Indonesia, December 31, for wearing a t-shirt with the communist symbol.

The people turned out to be members of an organization that calls itself Children of the Red Beret Command (AKBM); the group tried to explain to Riabchuk that he was violating Indonesian law by wearing a communist symbol, but could not overcome the language barrier. Unable to communicate with Riabchuk, who can only speak Russian, not English or Indonesian, the locals took him to a police station by force, where he was detained. According to Riau Islands Police spokesman Saptono Erlangga, the police decided to detain Riabchuk "for his own safety."

Internationalist solidarity by the WFTU and PAME to the Workers and the People of Turkey

On the occasion of the recent deadly attack in Istanbul, the World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU) issued the following statement of solidarity to the working class of Turkey:

Dear Colleagues,

On behalf of the WFTU which represents 92 million members in 126 countries of the world, we convey our condolences to the families of the victims in Reina Club in Istanbul.

We express our internationalist solidarity and our support to the militant trade union movement in Turkey and to the Turkish workers. The murder of the 39 people reveals the responsibility of the principals that are killing civilians, innocent and ordinary people. For this situation in Turkey and in Middle East abettors also exist; these are the governments which take advantage of the fundamentalism in order to put in action their plans and their anti-labor policies.

Capitalism Unmasked: Numbers reveal the expansion of social inequalities in the 21st century

The poorest half of the world's population shares a bit under the 1% of the global wealth, while the richest 10% owns the 88% of the total global wealth. The 0.7% of the world's population owns 116.6 trillion dollars!

1. The richest 1% of the world's population controls half of the global wealth. Despite the economic crisis, the number of millionaires in a worldwide scale was increased during the last 12 months of 2016.

2. According to a survey by Credit Suisse, 3.4 billion people- the 71% of the world's population- share only 7.4 trillion dollars, less than the wealth of the 2,473 billionaires around the world. 

3. The total number of billionaires grew by 81% since 2009, a year after the collapse of Lehman Brothers, while their wealth was more than doubled. According to data provided by Wealth-X and UBS, 16.6 million people (0.334% of the global population) own 77 trillion dollars, which is almost the annual global GDP.

4. Approximately 211,275 millionaires (0.004% of the global population) own the 12.8% (29.7 trillion dollars) of the global wealth, while 2,325 billionaires own 7.3 trillion dollars.

Vladimir Ilyich Lenin- "Left Wing" Communism, an Infantile Disorder (1920) Part I

"Left-Wing" Communism, an Infantile Disorder.

By Vladimir Ilyich Lenin.

First Published in 1920.

Source: 

V. I. Lenin, Selected Works, English edition, Foreign Languages Publishing House, Moscow, 1952, Vol. II, Part 2.

PART I.

IN WHAT SENSE CAN WE SPEAK 

OF THE INTERNATIONAL SIGNIFICANCE OF THE RUSSIAN REVOLUTION ?

    In the first months following the conquest of political power by the proletariat in Russia (October 25 [November 7], 1917), it might have seemed that the tremendous difference between backward Russia and the advanced countries of Western Europe would cause the proletarian revolution in these latter countries to have very little resemblance to ours. Now we already have very considerable international experience which most definitely shows that certain fundamental features of our revolution have a significance which is not local, not peculiarly national, not Russian only, but international. I speak here of international significance not in the broad sense of the term: not some, but all the fundamental and many of the secondary features of our revolution are of international significance in the sense that the revolution influences all countries. No, taking it in the narrowest sense, i.e., understanding international signifcance to mean the international validity or the historical inevitability of a repetition on an international scale of what has taken place in our country, it must be admitted that certain fundamental features of our revolution do possess such a significance.