I found the following text on the Worker-communist Party of Iraq's website (go to Web Links page for a link to the site). It's a riposte to those such as the SWP who boost the position of Islamism, represented by such as the Muslim Association of Britain, within the anti-war movement and wider society.
In the anti-war demonstration in Hyde Park, London turns into Kabul!
Nadia Mahmood
Hundreds of thousands of protesters joined in the demonstrations organized by Coalition to Stop War in Hyde Park, London. In this short article, I want to highlight some issues thousands of protesters wondered about.
The appearance and the number of Islamite speakers attracted the attention of many. Speeches begin with Islamic greeting, god glorification, and recitation verses from Quran to end with cheering " Allah akber".
It is obviously clear that the Islamite raise their slogans, invite their speakers, generously pay, are politically active as any political party launching propaganda for its beliefs and make use of political freedom to present their agenda clearly and loudly.
But the question is why the so-called socialist and worker parties in Britain such as Socialist Worker Party do not do their turn in this coalition. Why do not they propagate for their socialism? Why do not they raise their worker slogan, if any, in this anti-war movement side by side with the Islamite their "route comrades"?
More importantly, why do they pave the road for the most reactionary and the right wing not only in the Middle East but also all over the world? Why do they provide so much space for the Islamite to prevail in the anti-war movement and decide who to speak, what slogan to be raised, what decision to be made and what kind of speeches to be delivered?
Do worker socialists realize that when they bend before the Islamic movements, they are strengthening political Islam worldwide? In doing so, do they know the essence of the message the Islamite has for our societies? Veiling and stoning women, marrying nine-year adolescents, hand and foot amputation as penalty for thieves, execution to the homosexual, issuing Fatwas to assassinate the apostate and critics of Islam and torture and execution to political opponents.
Does their European worker socialism motivate them to strengthen the most hostile powers to humanity in the Far and Middle East? It is maximally ridiculous when those worker socialists who feel ashamed because of "their" governments, they are obliged to state their innocence by reiterating the cry of " allahu akber" disregarding what political, social and economic message this cry bear!
Do they realize that worker and left movements are reviving worldwide nowadays with the emergence of the gory new world order*, the exposure of the falsehood of democracy, the end of fooling and the falsehood of capitalism promises to humanity after eliminating "the danger of communism"? Do they know that millions who took to the streets of Europe, America, Canada and Australia are the anti-war and capitalism socialist forces and trade unions demanding justice, equality and freedom for humanity and these same forces have started to corner the advocates of "democracy" and " human rights" in historical trials?
Do they know that the anti-war movement in the "post-September 11th world", " the new world order" and "the new American project for this century" is in need of social pole whose political scope and speech are clear and whose program and activity blueprint are clear?
Political Islam is taking advantage of this international movement. It is after this wave of protest to allege that this war is waged against Islam which even Bush has not alleged in his war propaganda. They allege that this is a "Christian war against Muslims". It is using religion as a factor motivating events. It is after regaining respect after September 11th by hijacking this anti-war movement to control it and manipulate it for the advantage of their movement as speaker for Islam.
We have reiterated that one of the hazardous consequences of this war is that it will revive the dying two movements; Arab nationalism and political Islam. These two movements will feed from anti-Islamism and anti-Arab Nationalism to recruit the youth resenting American policies. The anti-war movement is not the battle of political Islam against the American and British right wing. The low and high tide battle between these two sides surfaced on September 11th.
Now, working class entered the arena. Working class has serious issues and struggle against governments. The firefighters' struggle in Britain is the working class struggle against the ruling capitalism. They went on strike protesting against the war and their government that endorses blanche cheques to defense ministry but does not pay their wage raises.
The anti-war movement is a great humanitarian movement whose heroes and vanguards are workers and socialists against the American barbarism and its hegemony. It is definitely not the movement of political capitalist pole against another right capitalist pole. This is not the movement of Jack Cherac against Tony Blair and George Bush. It is the movement of the millions of the French against the war. It is not the movement of Shreuder in Germany. It is the movement of millions of masses who say no to war either Cherac or Shreuder refuses or accepts war. As is the case in Britain, people have said no to war in spite of Tony Blair, Charles Kennedy* and Cleare short*. The anti-war movement does not represent political Islam against the American policies. Political Islam is a political pole that seeks its own interests and the interests of its capitalist political class the same as anti-war Cherac who is after his class interests not for the sake of people in Iraq.
Those who opened the door wide for the Islamite are none but those parties who mistakenly put workers' or socialists' banners on their doorways. In this article I demand that the Worker socialist Party change its name to reach an end of ambiguity and nausea resulting from positions of a worker socialism which copes with the interests of capitalism, reactionary and the right wings. They should step aside.
Their allegation such as that they do not want to prevent any anti-war voice is irrelevant. We should know who stand against the war and why. Saddam stands against the war. Osama bin laden stands against the war. Putin stands against the war. We, The leaders of this anti-war movement, should check the teeth of everyone. We should reveal and read thoroughly the agenda of He who hides it in his coat. And we should decide about that. Millions would demonstrate either this pole or that one accepted or refused. It is the movement of masses. It is its response in the face of its rulers.
The Islamite in Europe want to take advantage of the anti-war movement as in Britain as is the case with the nationalist who try to alienate the powers of the left in Far and Middle East. That what happened in Pakistan where they beat student and youth organizations to get them out of the arena two weeks ago, not to mention the desperate threat to aimed at preventing me from delivering my speech in Bern, Switzerland on February 15th if I should mention terrorist Islamic groups in my speech. This Islamic movement wants to revive to suppress the left in our countries. The members of the anti-war coalition and we should learn this lesson everywhere in Europe.
Socialism and Workerism have their own class, party and spokespersons. We have again raised Marx' pictures in the heart of the anti-war demonstrations in Hyde Park where people saluted his return by standing next to his picture to pose for memory.
Worker-Communism is the alternative
23/3/2003
· a title of an article written by Mansoor Hekmat in 1991 under the same title.
· Charles Kennedy, liberal Democratic Party leader, headed February 15th anti-war demonstration but he voted for war in the second parliament election.
· Clare Short, minister of development in Britain, threatened to resign if there would be no UN mandate for war. She changed her mind. She was deliberately absent in the last vote in the parliament and supported Blair in his war.
