Germany: ‘Unity’ at the expense of the working class

Germany: ‘Unity’ at the expense of the working class

A reply to Linksruck, sister organisation of the British SWP

In recent months political and social activists in Germany have been
gripped by the widely publicised open debate in the WASG (Election
Alternative for Work and Social Justice, the anti-neo-liberal party that
developed in 2004). The debate is over its policies and the basis upon
which it should unify with the L.PDS (Left-party.PDS), the former
Stalinist ruling party in East Germany.

Robert Bechert, cwi, Berlin, Germany

As the socialist has previously reported, this debate has increasingly
centred around the question of next September’s Berlin regional
elections. Since 2001 the Berlin city government has been run by a SPD
and L.PDS coalition that has been, in many ways, the national pace setter
in carrying out cuts in living standards. After much discussion the
Berlin WASG decided not to run candidates on the L.PDS’s list but,
instead, to stand independently.

This decision provoked controversy within the WASG which came to a
head at the recent WASG national congress. Against a background of public
threats by party leaders to split if they did not get their way, the
congress voted to oppose the Berlin WASG’s decision and to take measures
against it. The congress was sharply polarised on this issue.

A resolution moved by the most left-wing members of the WASG executive
calling for a "fundamental change of course in party building" and
opposing any "administrative measures" was only defeated by 156 votes to
143, even after the WASG leader Oscar Lafontaine specially intervened in
the discussion to say that this was the most "important decision" facing
the congress.

SWP cheerleaders

The most consistent supporters of the attacks on the Berlin WASG have
been members of Linksruck, the sister organisation of the British SWP.
Every time they spoke at the congress they supported the attacks on the
Berlin WASG.

Recently a number of leading Linksruck members have been given jobs by
parliamentarians in the Left group mainly made up of L.PDS and WASG
Bundestag (Federal Parliament) members.

These jobs are only given to supporters of the L.PDS and WASG
leadership’s policies; two other parliamentary workers are losing their
jobs because they opposed some of the leaderships’ policies.

Linksruck’s role in providing a ‘left’ face for the WASG leadership is
amply illustrated for English speaking readers in an article, from the 6
May 2006 edition of Socialist Worker, the paper of the British SWP, in
which they say: "Linksruck has argued that it is necessary to have
critical but unconditional support for unity between the WASG and the PDS.
We have to walk on two legs. One of the legs has a wound, but that
doesn’t mean that we should cut the whole leg off!"

Linksruck believes a merger between the WASG and L.PDS would be such a
step forward that everything else must be subordinated to that goal.

This has led to Linksruck arguing that, as fusion is the most
important issue, it is necessary to stand in the Berlin elections in a
list headed by one of the main architects of the city government’s
neo-liberal policies. It is also the justification of their abandonment
of any serious political opposition to the WASG leadership.

Any step forward by a real workers’ movement is important but that
does not mean ignoring political issues, especially when it involves
acceptance of a neo-liberal programme of cuts in the living standards of
working-class people.

Under certain conditions it may be necessary for Marxists, after
discussion and debate within a wider formation, to accept less than a
full socialist programme. Under no circumstances does this mean agreeing
to counter-reforms.

Linksruck choose to ignore this distinction and in doing so cross the
line and join those who support and implement neo-liberal attacks against
the working class.

Berlin cuts

In Germany the SAV (Socialist Alternative, the CWI in Germany) has
argued, for over ten years now, for the need to form a new workers’ party
and joined the WASG as soon as it began to develop in spring 2004. The
SAV has not opposed a merger between the WASG and PDS but argued that
firstly it has to be on a principled basis and secondly has to involve
wider forces in a new truly democratic party.

But in Berlin, since 2001, the SPD/L.PDS city government has been in a
coalition that has carried out cuts in wages, widespread privatisations
and many other social attacks.

Here are just two concrete examples. This city coalition broke away
from national public sector wage agreements in order to cut wages. In the
Berlin transport authority, BVG, the SPD/L.PDS coalition cut pay by 10%
for existing staff and 15% for new workers.

The Berlin L.PDS ignored the L.PDS’s national policies and forced
unemployed workers to take the so-called "one euro jobs", something that
the WASG nationally also opposes. Now in Berlin over 35,000 unemployed
only receive state benefit, if they agree to work as cheap labour for the
‘bonus’ payment of one euro per hour worked.

In this situation the Berlin WASG decided that it was impossible to
stand with the L.PDS unless it fundamentally changed its position not
just in words, but in deeds.

In addition, SAV members called for the L.PDS to end the coalition it
has with the SPD in Berlin.

The Berlin WASG tried to discuss these issues with the L.PDS. It sent
the L.PDS a letter in April asking for discussions, but they did not even
reply. Then, after much debate, the Berlin WASG confirmed that it would
run its own list next September, arguing that it was impossible to ask
workers to vote for a list that included a party carrying out social
cuts.

Linksruck accept, on paper, many of these criticisms of the Berlin
L.PDS. In Socialist Worker they write that the Berlin city government has
"driven through New Labour style policies of cuts and privatisations".
But, as the Berlin L.PDS has over four times more members then the local
WASG, its "New Labour" policies would dominate an election alliance at
this time.

However, Linksruck ignore this simple fact and de facto argue that
Berlin workers should vote for a party implementing "New Labour style
policies" in the interests of ‘left unity’.

Linksruck leaders have endorsed a joint statement recently produced by
the WASG national leadership and the Berlin L.PDS leadership. This
statement is presented as a basis for a joint election campaign and on
the basis of it, Linksruck has demanded that the Berlin WASG does not
stand independently in the regional elections.

Linksruck present this joint statement as a shift to the left by the
L.PDS in Berlin. In fact it is nothing of the kind. The L.PDS in Berlin
say that it is a continuation of their previous policies. This is shown
by the fact that there is no commitment within the statement to abolish
the "one euro jobs".

While this statement says hospitals and council housing in Berlin
should remain under public control, it leaves open the possibility of
their part-privatisation.

Linksruck are right about the widespread desire for "left unity" but
silent about how the WASG leadership misuse it. More significantly
Linksruck do not pass comment about the attempts to blackmail the WASG
congress.

The SWP article states that "before the conference, WASG was on the
brink. What changed the mood was that the national leadership, especially
Lafontaine, made it clear that the party would break apart unless there
was a clear statement of unity."

Lafontaine’s role

This is a shameful cover-up of Lafontaine’s key supporters’ blackmail
tactics. The issue was not that the "party would break apart", rather it
was a public threat by the right wing to split away if the congress
rejected their positions.

Obviously Linksruck do not want to criticise the split threats by
Oscar Lafontaine’s supporters. (In Berlin, Linksruck members walked out
of the last regional WASG congress as soon as they were defeated on the
issue of September’s election.)

In contrast, the SAV argued that delegates at the WASG national
conference should resist this blackmail and 47% did so.

Yet Linksruck ignored all this. At no time during the WASG congress
did Linksruck supporters put forward any criticisms of either Lafontaine
or the L.PDS. Indeed the Linksruck leader sitting on the WASG national
executive has consistently supported Lafontaine’s position and threats
against the Berlin WASG.

When the WASG congress voted on whether or not to expel SAV members
from the the WASG most Linksruck delegates abstained.

Linksruck’s collapse into an organisation applauding Lafontaine and
securing well-paid jobs for its own top members has deeply alienated many
of the best activists in Germany. Linksruck may think that they are
gaining influence, but influence won on the basis of supporting
neo-liberal policies and keeping your mouth shut is completely
unprincipled.

The SWP article mentions a bloc between the right and unnamed
"sectarians" which is clearly a reference to the SAV who have won
significant support within the best activists in the WASG and the wider
workers’ movement, as demonstrated by the massive publicity for Lucy
Redler, one of its leading national spokespersons, who has been elected
as the Berlin’s WASG’s top candidate in September’s election.

These fighting elements increasingly see the SAV as containing some of
the most consistent and determined campaigners against the attacks on
living standards and to build a new alternative, a new workers’ party
that can fight capitalism.

In this struggle the SAV, unlike Linksruck, is widening the support
for the ideas of socialism by combining struggles on immediate issues
with arguments on why and how capitalism can be overthrown.