THE PARTY LINE
Comrades Confer
MA URICE GENT writes :
At times it might have been a meeting of the parochial church council in a lower-middle-class suburb. There was a cosy mum with a comfort- ing West Country burr telling everybody how to be friendly and break down barriers, a recent male convert recounted how in the past few weeks by faith and works he had brought several unbelievers into active membersbip,M and a charming elderly woman in a red dress was given a bunch of flowers in recognition of her services. There was also plenty of talk about selling improving literature, and concern was ex- pressed at falling attendances. I was just waiting for someone to get up and ask whether we could afford to allocate another £100 this year to the fight against the death-watch beetle.
The spell at the twenty-ninth National Con- gress of the British Communist party, held in London this week, was broken only occasionally by a sprinkling of Chinese cads, who wanted to talk about direct revolution, the allocation of less effort to parliamentary and council elec- tions and more to the factory branches in order to force a takeover by the working class. Their numbers were pitifully small, however. Only fourteen votes were mustered against the plat- form line, which stressed the need for a broad popular front and co-operation with left-wing Labour MPs and left-wing peace organisations.
The tactic of sweet reasonableness is, however, costing the British Communist party dear. It was among the young delegates that stirrings against the current party line made it easier to understand why the Trotskyite Socialist Labour League is having its success in attracting young people, especially the very young. The Communists now have a serious challenge on their left to contend with at a time when revo- lutionary ardour is being dampened in an attempt to build bridges with left-wing Labour party supporters and trade union leaders. The party is thus in great danger of appearing luddy- duddy to revolutionary youth, while failing in its attempt to establish a 'broad popular front.'
True, this week's Congress saw a purge of top Communists on the Stalin scale. About a dozen new faces appeared on the executive (which is 'recommended' to Congress). But the purge, partly due to genuine retirements through old age and partly due to the ideological struggle. does not look like doing much good. So far the Communist party shows no signs of throw- ing up new leaders and it risks sinking into an even more minor role in our national life.
If anyone thinks the discomfiture of the Com- munist party should be a source of unalloyed joy, I would like to draw his or her attention to The Newsletter, a journalistically well-pro- produced newspaper, which is the official organ of the SLL. The November 27 issue, which was being sold by bright-eyed youths on the steps of the Communist Congress, contained an article about activity in Southall, which has a high immigration population. Mr. Gerry Healy, national secretary of the SLL, was not allowed by Ealing council, so it is reported, to speak at a local hall. His SLL wanted to hold a pro- test meeting 'against fascist attacks an members of the Young Socialists.' A leaflet on the meet- ing contained the following phrases: 'On Sep- tember 25 four Young Socialists were savagely beaten up by a mob of fascists in Southall. These fascists promised to break up all other Young Socialist meetings. This attack is a direct result of the vicious campaign against immigrant workers and against trade unionists conducted by the Tories and their newspapers,' and later in the same pamplet, 'Let the fascists feel the anger of the working class. Clear them off the streets.' Give me an orthodox British Communist any time. .1
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