workers of the world, unite! International Communist Current in Britain September/October 2013 Nº362 £1 en.internationalism.org world revolution Syria: imperialist war or class solidarity Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, Egypt, Syria, the massacres keep spreading. The horror of capitalism accelerates, deaths pile up. A continuous carnage that no one seems able to stop. Capitalism in utter decomposition is dragging the world into gener- alised barbarism. The use of chemical weapons as in Syria today is unfortunately only one of the instruments of death among many others. But there is nothing inevitable about this perspective, which left to itself will result in the destruction of humanity. The world proletariat cannot remain indifferent in the face of all these wars and massacres. Only the proletariat, the revolutionary class of our epoch, can put an end to this nightmare. More than ever humanity is faced with one choice: communism or barbarism. The Syrian population is being men between 1962 and 1967, Egypt used mus- sacrificed on the altar of imperialism tard gas without restraint. In the Iran-Iraq war in On Monday 21 August an attack with chemical 1988, towns like Hallabja were bombarded with weapons left hundreds dead in an area close to chemical weapons, leaving over 5000 dead, un- Damascus. On the internet, on TV screens and the der the benevolent gaze of the ‘international com- newspapers there were unbearable images of men, munity’ of the US, France and all the members women and children in agony. The bourgeoisie, of the UN!But they are not just the speciality of without any scruple, has seized on this human small imperialist countries or dictators like Assad tragedy to advance its sordid interests. The regime or Saddam Hussein, as the bourgeoisie would like of Bashar al Assad, a butcher among butchers, us to believe. The most massive use of chemical has, we are told, crossed a red line: you can use weapons, alongside napalm, was carried out by any weapons to slaughter people, but not chemi- the USA during the Vietnam war. Vast amounts less directly involved in this bloody conflict. The es are increasingly ephemeral and circumstantial. cal ones. These are ‘dirty’ weapons, as opposed of herbicide contaminated with dioxin were used most powerful imperialisms in the world are also As a result conflicts are multiplying and in the end to the ‘clean’ ones like ‘conventional’ bombs and to destroy rice plantations and forests in order to defending their squalid interests. Russia, China, no bourgeoisie can control it. This is chaos, the mortars or even the atomic bombs the Ameri- reduce the population and the Vietcong to famine. France, Britain and the USA are playing their part growing decomposition of society. cans dropped on Hiroshima or Nagasaki in 1945. This scorched earth policy, this deliberate deserti- in the continuation of this war and its extension Thus the accelerating weakness of the world’s But the hypocrisy of the bourgeoisie has no lim- fication, was the work of American capital in Viet- across the region. Faced with their growing inca- leading imperialist power, the US, is an active fac- its. Since the First World War of 1914-18 where nam, the same which today, alongside supporters pacity to control the situation, they are more and tor in the whole Middle East plunging into bar- poison gas was used massively for the first time, like France, is getting ready to intervene in Syria, more just sowing death and destruction, according barism. Immediately after the chemical attack on killing several hundred thousand people, chemi- allegedly to defend the population. Since the start to the old scorched earth policy (‘if I can’t domi- the suburbs of Damascus, the British and French cal weapons have been continuously ‘perfected’ of this war in Syria, there have been over 100,000 nate this region, I will set it on fire’). Continued on page 3 and used. The superficial agreements about their deaths and at least a million refugees fleeing to During the Cold War, the period which went offi- non-utilisation, especially after the two world surrounding countries. Looking past the discourse cially from 1947 to 1991 and the fall of the USSR, Inside this issue wars and in the 1980s, were just empty declara- being poured out by the bourgeois media, the two blocs confronted each other, led by Russia Talk of recovery masks the underlying disease 2 tions, which were not meant to be applied1. And working class has to know the real causes behind and the USA respectively. These two superpow- Syria vote: impasse of British imperialism 2 many theatres of war since this time have seen this imperialist war in Syria. ers directed their ‘allies’ or ‘satellites’ with an iron Zero hours: insecurity faces the whole working these kinds of weapons being used. In North Ye- hand, forcing them to fall in line in the face of the class 3 Syria: it’s decadent capitalism which enemy ogre. This ‘world order’ was based on the Hunger in the ‘rich world’ 3 1. The ‘Greatest Briton’ of all, Winston Churchill, discipline of the bloc. It was a historical period From the ICC congress resolution: imperialist certainly never stopped arguing for and even is responsible sanctioning their use, whether against ‘primitive Syria is currently at the heart of the imperialist that was full of danger for humanity, because if tensions in the phase of decomposition 4 tribesmen’ in rebellion against the Empire, the tensions and conflicts which are extending from the working class had not been able to resist, even Egypt: against Morsi, against the military: for revolutionary workers of Russia, or the German North Africa to Pakistan. If the Syrian bourgeoisie passively, the ideological march towards war, a class struggle! 5 proletariat during the Second World War: see, for is tearing itself apart inside a country which is now third world conflagration would have been pos- Extracts for the ICC online discussion forum 5 example, http://en.internationalism.org/wr/265_ in ruins, it has been able to rely on the insatiable sible. Since the collapse of the USSR, there are no Book review: The alternative to capitalism 6 terror1920.htm, http://www.theguardian.com/world/ appetites of a whole number of imperialist pow- longer two blocs, no more threat of a third world Life of the ICC 7 shortcuts/2013/sep/01/winston-churchill-shocking- use-chemical-weapons; http://www.ihr.org/jhr/v06/ ers. In this region, Iran, Hezbollah from Lebanon, war. The discipline of the blocs is in pieces. Each The spying game 8 v06p501b_Weber.html Saudi Arabia, Israel, Turkey… are all more or nation is playing its own card; imperialist allianc- Australia A$2.25, Canada C$1.50, Europe €1.3, India 10 rupees, Japan¥300 USA 90¢ 2 Britain Economic crisis Syria intervention vote Talk of recovery masks the Impasse of British imperialism underlying disease or several weeks there has been such a expected production to edge up slightly. The trade arliament’s rejection of the government’s use of explosive ordnance by the west, for what- torrent of unexpected good news about in goods deficit rose to £9.8 billion, considerably motion supporting military intervention in ever purpose, would have committed us to par- Fthe British economy that our rulers have larger than City traders’ forecasts of 8.15 billion. PSyria was seen by many as a reassertion of ticipation in the Syrian civil war irrevocably’.” become quite excited. It has given a shot in the The monthly gap was higher than the £7.3 bil- democracy, Labour showing a bit of backbone at (The Guardian, 31.8.2013). The historical signifi- arm to the markets, because of an expectation of lion deficit recorded in July 2012. There were also last and Cameron being cut down to size. Indeed, cance of not supporting the US was clearly stated an earlier than predicted rise in interest rates. And signs of problems in emerging markets beginning the vote in Parliament attracted a lot of attention by a former adviser to the Foreign and Defence it has helped push the IMF to a humbling re-ap- to affect British firms, with export to non-Euro- not only in the media but also amongst the popu- secretaries, Crispin Blunt, who said “he hoped the praisal of the criticisms it has previously made of pean countries plunging by almost 16%.” (from lation. Faced with the terrible slaughter in Syria vote would relieve Britain of its ‘imperial preten- the British government’s economic policy. In fact The Evening Standard) many are deeply concerned about what is going sion’ and stop it trying to punch above its weight the IMF is now praising the British government’s The fact that “problems in emerging markets” to happen in Syria and the Middle East. However, on the world stage” (ibid). approach to economic management as the light of are affecting the hopes of the bourgeoisie for a the vote in parliament was not the manifestation It was the loss of this role on the world stage that the world, replacing the old fashioned idea that broadly based recovery in the British economy of the ‘popular will’; rather it graphically illus- concerned those in favour of supporting the US’s China and the other emerging countries offered should give the International Monetary Fund trated the impasse of British imperialism. action. This was made clear by Michael Clarke, hope to us all. pause for thought. Again we can refer to an article The closeness of the vote expressed just how the director general of the Royal United Services The bourgeois media’s commentary on this al- in the FT of September 5th: deeply conflicted the British ruling class is, and Institute (one of the British imperialism’s main leged recovery has been quite informative, and “Turmoil in emerging markets this summer has not only over Syria but its whole imperialist strat- think tanks): “...there is a danger it could become we can largely let them tell the story in their own forced the IMF into a humbling series of U-turns egy.