MARXISM TODAY, AUGUST 1968 255 Have I misunderstood him? Then read on— and "integrated economies" is unrealistic and (and I summarise) without working-class participa­ impractical. tion the nationalist movement will be ineffective. And there is the crux of the matter. The most Starting at the End important thing is for the national movement to be effective. And the rest of the argument? Mere Bert Pearce's article is intended to vindicate the dissembling. policy of Welsh and Scottish Parliaments. In fact it The fact that the national idea can be used to does the opposite. If it is read carefully it damns the divide the people is no reason in itself for the Party whole concept. and working class to embrace that idea—as Bert It seems to me that Bert Pearce did not start with Pearce is well aware. the problems of Britain and work towards a solution. I challenge his statement that it is possible to He started with the solution, National Parliaments, create three viable economies in Britain (Section and attempted to prove this to be a correct policy. But on Scottish and Welsh Parliaments). Present-day because he has no solid factual basis he fails. His production methods require large-scale production. arguments are not consistent and regrettably, Britain is large enough to have a viable economy. perhaps inevitably, the article has nationalist Three separate viable economies are impossible. If undertones. And this carries its own dangers, be­ his view cannot be sustained with economic data, cause once nationalist emotions are unleashed we then his case for three Parliaments, Governments will be riding a tiger. H o n o r A r ii n del DO not feel it is really very useful to have an affairs to be separated ? If a government in West­ academic discussion as to whether or not Scotland minster insists on staying in NATO, backing Iis a nation in terms of Stalin's formulation. I America in Vietnam, selling arms to the Nigerians, doubt whether Israel would qualify either. allowing foreign bases in Britain, how can a pro­ Because at the present time a majority of Scots gramme of improved social services and education, do want some sort of self-government; they do feel etc. be put into operation? that they are a nation and according to Gallup polls The second possibility is for real political inde­ 43 per cent will vote SNP at the next election. pendence when a Scottish government could imme­ But 1 do agree with Idris Cox when he says that diately get out of NATO, remove the Polaris bases, make individual trading agreements, direct industry, if we accept Scotland's right to be a nation we nationalise the big estates and provide incentives must logically press for a truly independent govern­ for the 45,000 Scots who emigrate annually to stay ment and a separate Labour Party and Communist and work in their own country. Party. I think we must. So far the British Road to Socialism has been Both Tory and Labour are trying to use the vague and equivocal on this national question. It smear word "separatism"—as if any small country speaks of "gratifying the national aspirations" of would not have to co-operate with its nearest neigh­ Scotland and Wales. It speaks of Scottish and bours, economically, culturally and politically. A Welsh parliaments. But it does not appear to recent investigation by The Scotsman shows that envisage any real change in Westminster. If our Scotland could have a perfectly viable economy—a aim is federalism why not say so? In that case there good deal better than Eire for instance. would be three parliaments with an assembly of There are two possibilities. One is for Home delegates from all three countries to decide over-all Rule, which means in fact regional administration. policy. The omission of calling for an English Westminster would continue to make the over-all parliament may be charming humility but I very decisions. A Scottish parliament would carry them much doubt it. out. This would be a great advance on the present In my view an independent Scottish parliament system but it has little to do with national inde­ must first be elected so that the people can decide pendence. to what degree they want to be linked with the For how is it possible for home and foreign United Kingdom. PRODUCED BY UNZ.ORG ELECTRONIC REPRODUCTION PROHIBITED 256 Free Speech Olive Arnot REE speech and freedom of the press are catch the peasants, writers and scientists and for all the words that litter the pages of newspapers and peoples of those lands some of which did not even Fjournals, of letters to the press and which in have a written language before 1917. particular pour out from the pens of the "literati" But not the freedom of the press for printing such as writers, journalists and university pundits. every book or article written. Is it really to be It seems to be taken for granted at times even in expected that a Soviet publishing house will publish our own press that we have the great blessing of the sort of stuff that gets accepted abroad by freedom of speech and of the press and that the poor organisations like the NTS^? benighted inhabitants of socialist countries have yet to learn from us how to achieve these blessings. We are so inoculated with bourgeois thought from childhood on that it requires a mental revolution to Is is not time that we looked again at the meaning see the intellectual side of life as it really is under of these words ? capitalism and to realise the extent of the battle What is this free speech we understand so well? needed to clear our minds of bourgeois cant and It is free speech for Cecil King and Lord Thomson. hypocrisy. It is free speech requiring a lawyer for every publica­ tion, book, magazine, newspaper or bookseller to When the mass of writing that pours out of the see that they are not ruined by libel actions. It is Soviet presses in 89 languages with the develop­ free speech requiring vast sums of money to publish ment of 70 national literatures is compared with the newspapers and periodicals—or else deep devotion products of English, Welsh, Lallans or Gaelic, and to our cause. And free speech to publish any anti- our problems of publishing any revolutionary communist, anti-Soviet slanders. Free speech where literature, it becomes clear that it is in Britain that halls can be, and are, refused for political reasons or we need to fight for the freedom of the press. made almost unobtainable by the high rents de­ manded for them. ' "Thoughtfully, methodically Lenin bayed at the This is bourgeois free speech. In the Socialist moon—he bayed at the moon, our Ilyich ... he howled countries it is proletarian free speech (and may I say and he stopped and listened and he howled again until proletarian is an honourable adjective). That is, free he began to feel chilled and turned and ran as fast as his speech not for the tycoons, but for the workers. legs would carry him."—Sinyavsky. DOCUMENTS ON THE CZECHOSLOVAK SITUATION As we had to go to press in the first days of July, we have not been able to comment in this issue on the recent developments in the Czechoslovak situation. We shall publish our comments and some of the important statements and documents involved in the September issue. Published by the Communist Party, 26 King Street. London, W.C.2, and printed by Farleish Press Ltd. {T.U, all depts.), Watford, Berts. PRODUCED BY UNZ.ORG ELECTRONIC REPRODUCTION PROHIBITED.