The Revolutionary Marxist Group

Were is an aMeodote oy the Tasos Mussa saith toy which Lenin liked to rece x that it may belp our readers ureder whol all the “indighting’ on the Jef : ke The story is ae follows: There once was ima who st on the footpath, At pamer-by saw him waving and peeticilating md natursly presumed-ihal he was insane But when they come closer they caw that ke sharpening a knife Aw The mor) of bo the Ths Story a pple When you are al a distinc ¥ou think that we have all gone mad; you are unable to sre any Benae inthe faction fights and splite- But if wou get closer you will realize that im fact we amt sharpening a weapon, namely our under: Sanding, Withoul this sharpening we can Hever grasp whal the real needs and aspirafons of the working class are Wella loi of knife sharpening hes gone on sithin the Young Socialists lately Phe ques Het Wider discussion were very important athe international and national question md the problem of lesderstip, Two major factions. the Left apposition and the Ledfibe inf a Workers Repahl book shape aroun Cater paves while a section he or Tid ed ne. ifr ATERRATIONAL QUESTION Bs By We in Lhe HL Opperei leon airl he ree LWR on Our international. Ad Martiste we recognise that in the epoch of Srsiional imperiolisi aggression thai fia Sere | lor d fevoditponary group bo deve!

Pesiher politically « oP CPT PEL IE Tai! Gh foe. Seach development cal only come Lhrough Berreationgal collabotalicn. Aso first shop in ie eect we adviculed support forthe eeeetp faternstionn | ithe World Party for Sani i Rev lution)

fe ae aticmpt to block this internation the LOWE cotdemned the FI. wa Bid Gihed for cooperaihon with etl th tos wich reinsnied (rie | the “ay i Trotekyrem. |t was Atimated thet 1 mid al Pkinl yy iy Phe ene PRE POUR TAINTERNA FiONAL called Intemational Conmitiee, a small se larinn splinter prop which split from che FL. od Whe in Cunt, has sell divided! The perlitics of this org eaniz mare particularly scandalous. Their refusal to solidarise with distanec the Vietnamese. Cu Hn, OF Algerian Rlevolubons Tuns directly counter fo ther mach rauAited internationalism. Im Ireland for ff | mple, thew re] se to 5) Ppa > VEHALT On atid dincunced the |KA. an middbe class terrors! They counlerpos to the straggie of the [RA the struggle against the Pores in Bintan!

On the other hand, pot only does the PF. 1, Sippott all colonial revolaipons bul actrvely purlicipates in them; often with great losses. Only recently, in Bolives 40 menbers of the Kewolutioitary Workers Party (Rolin sec lian ofthe F. 1.) were massacred ina phiwing coup? On the Irish question they whole learled|y support the national meyolution ard hive organised many demons olions arcamel the world in solidarity with the PBLA, For intermationalists ond revelutionaries the Chace is wncob vious ane, Eamuisateon THE NATIONAL QUESTION Again we disapreed with the LWE on the fundamental importance of the national aitigele, The LWRosees the national question ao hindrance to pure class struggle, while we = oe par cep ie cL us struggle.

Bootie the national quceton was nol solved, Britieh imprtiotem hindered the economic atop men of irelnd, wath the teawlt that Fenerations of tra worken hare been cub pected To untmployment, cmigration, and w eneral meagre exiience. lo reality, the national Muggle therélore ic clase struggle That is why Ireland's greatest Marxist, Jones Connelly eed The irish Working chive diene remains asthe incorruptible inberitar of the fight for freedom. in ireland”, (Needless jo yo PUD CInON of the international Committec hat denounced Conmoily ae a ‘hour pects nationalist” and a “Racist*') From the LWR's incorrect attitude to the natponal question flows them childish appeos united frei noe or et Porta fet solder wale tac | pu Fite 5 has.

One ol! the mar set of vapue demands, We meat a ie haha Unit anyway! strugele on! brinch in fhe VS will be the orpin of the R.M.LG.

4 por fihe fie Communcte, french Section of the I VTh fternaicnat COniAgent ate Peery Drier he Pera rire mist levdershipod the Republican Movement to da, REVOLUTIONARY LEADERSHIP jor stumbling Glocks of all areVics Few utionary ered has: been their failure to develop a scientific prograinime, By 1 pugtamme we donot mean of course, a SEM analysis al (he experience and history of labour and cipital, the basis of which certain temands which correspond to the overall need of the working class are pul forward. oy Trotsky. The Leftopposition stresa the need for work Ing Out Such a programme us a guide to all ur activity fut the LW saw this as an ex feet that they Themselves are very tnvolved In opposition toour view they brought for watd the idea that the revolutionary progmime existe objectively in the class struggle and can be articulated only through involvemeat in the class strugels. Thus, they wished the Young secialists to concinue alone the sim old road which it had journeyed for the fael three years without making @ single contnibution to the revolutionary scugele ane which only succeeded in iseliting ws from that After more than nine months debate on all These ies the second annual conference took place. Going to the conference che Lett Opposition realised thatowhile we were the largest single faction in the WS,a simple ma parity vole would solve nothing and though we Intended to make one last stand, we had elrendy decided in leave, The continuation of the faclinn fight which wee being dragged dean hy the LW would serve only in wreck the Young Socialists, Wot wishing to have hand. act of Part in doing such damage we had no alterpulive but do optout, Thor the three Dublin branches ond the Belfsst brinch walked out Waking the majority of the organisation. with them. Later, the Limerick and Galway branches, which had remained newtral daring the faction fight aiso disaffilinted. leaving only.

Since then. the lefteppasition has decded to seek recognition as the official section of the FL, in Ireland and has reorganised teelf under the title. Revolutionary Marat Group. From now Pe Mong which was previoualy the jonmal of the Dublin-area Young Saclist the Fourth Intemational is. This we are happy The roots of the Fourth International pe back lo che Latter half of the 1920's, The Russian Revolution was in the process of depeneration and Cwoomajot wites inetged within the Hal shiewik Party. On the one had there wasp Tire calc cant whose interests were Te pre= sented by the Stalin fection and on the other he Revolilionary workers whose interests were represented by the Lett Oppasitian lead Dhoisdivisun wes repeated Lhntughout the whole intemational communist movement. Phe Stalin dacoen wished to bum (he ome munist Third International into a diplomatic pressurre-ereiip whieh weoaukl serve as a alk watk againat capitalist intervention in Soviet iilnirsaiaeaine! this the international Left Opposition wahed the Third International te hen Revolutionary force to its.own tight because they saw the sercad-of socialist revolubine lo the abwanoed capitalist counties as the only real uarantes of soviet power. lt should be eroplesivect that this dilference of opinion wis net accidental, Bureanecracy thrives on backwardness, Ireland for txarmpk, which his a backward eaxiomy has a a0 000 slrong civil service whose noe is a byword Tor incompetence, jobbery and corruption Likewise, (he backwardness of Boussia aas the mainstay of the Sovlet bureaucracy and this buréimctacy feared that if the Revolution enuplted in more advanced countries that rhe ubjaclive basin of iis existence would he eh mingted—thusa its attempt to emasculate the loternational.

The struggle between these bvo wings-continuwed into the 30's. The stormy events of tlds decade proved the tinal tasting grounds for the Revolutionary potential of bath factions, The Stalinists embarked on & simullanedus policy of class collaboration and persecution of the Left Opposition, Asa result the fascists marched former feaders of the rele Tg to power almost unopposed, while in Russia the tically Geecuited.

This signalised 0 complete achiem with tho Revolutionary tradinion of Marsium and the [ntermational Left Qppomtion decided to make 2a chan break with the so-called commu: nists of the Third Intemational Eventually, in [O48 after several years of preparation the fearie faferniaiione! was launched,