COMMUNISM IN AUSTRALIA

Dominion, Volume 16, Issue 157, 21 March 1923, Page 8

COMMUNISM IN AUSTRALIA

TAIL THAT WAGS THE DOG 1000 DIRECTING 400,000 AUSTRALIAN DELEGATE TO MOSCOW BOASTS i As a delegate to the recent conference of the Third International at Moscow, Mr. Carden, the secretary of the Cydr.ur; Trades and Labour Council, made a speech which has been reported by the International Press Bureau to Labour organisations In Australia. Mr. Carden referred <o the weakness of tho Communist Party in Anglo-Saxon countries, and then went on t& say: the Australian Communist Party is a small .party, I believe it has found the keynote to organisation so far as the Anglo-Saxon movement is concerned. The com munist Party in Australia has a membership of just close on ona thousand, and yet it is able to direct just close cn 400,080 workers—that is, Including 237,000 in the State of Nev; South Wales, all organised workers. It also directs 110.000 organised workers in Brisbane and Queensland.

“The Communist Party in Australia,” ho said, “is based on the nuclei system. Every union has its nuclei from 20 down io two, but every union has its nuclei. AH nuclei leaders must meet once a week, an<j these nuclei leaders from the unions discuss the problems of their organisations, the problems of tho working class of Australia. In every discussion of problems they formulate their tactics, and out to their various unions, factories, and workshops and mines and carry out tho policy as directed. “The Communist Party, along with the leaders of the nuclei, formulates that poli»y. On every burning question that affects tho working class you will find that the nuclei leaders are the first in the field to give direction to the working class how to meet tho situation.

“The Labour Counril of New South Wales constitutes 120 unions. Yet the Communist Party has full control of the executive. Out of the 12 members of the executive. 11 are members of the Communist Party, and they direct these! 120 unions and the policy of each union..

“It will al,so demonstrate to tho workers that the Labour Partv cannot bring about any lasting betterment to the workers by legislative action within the capitalist State. Tho Methods Adopted.

“We have the same ftasis of organisation in tho Labour Party of Australia. as in the English Labour Party that is, the party is based on tho trade union movement—and we have tho same difficulties confronting us as the English party has. When we quarrelled with the Australian Labour Party in 1919. when we were beaten by six votes at the conference, we isolated ourselves, took no part in. politics whatsoever, and directed all our energies to the industrial field. Everybody set out for the organisation of the workers to break down craft carriers, and make one union in every industry, linking up all our forces into one union having six divisions—all tb« workers being linked up in that direction ; that is, all the transport workers together, all the miners together, al l the agricultural workers: and in six departments we have linked np all the workers of Australia. We found also that, by directing our energy inoido. we were able to liiiu'dato the 1.W.W.. which was the militant organisation in Australia. The T.AV.W. changed their tactics. They came inside with us. and started To operate inside the craft unions for the formation of industrial unionism, and working within tho union to break down the craft barriers and link un all their forces in six great industrial dortn.rtments throughout Australia. . . . “As far as the Labour Party was concerned —-w° found that •we could n.lso direct the policy ’of tho Labour Party, the party that was full of opportunism, that was directed bv reformists —wo found that the militant section of the working plass could even direct the policy of that rn.rtv. In June, 1921, the Labour Party nut out a signal of distress. It cnlM upon'the workers to give all their aid. ami we decided that we wow'd attend this conference called by the Labour Partv. Tn Melbourne in June, 1921, the largest conference that has over been held in Australia assembled, and there wore present delegates reprosontbig 7G0.000 workers. AA'hat did wo find? We found that we were able +o change the policv of tho Labour P'H-tv'. The Labour Party believed in'the maintenance of n White Anstaalin : believed in nationalisation. We changed the objective fmm nationolisnt.inn to soo.inlis"<m’> of inrbm+rv bv revolutionary political and industrial action. Put the Labow- P?rtv w-_); not satisfied—it went aside from the conference and called n conference of its own in October. 1921. It deleted the words “bv revolutionary nolit:c'll and industrial action.” and inserted the words “by constitutional meahs.” Another congress was he’d in June of this re, n .-. n nj flm t>-’do union movement, along with the Communist Party, said to the Labour Party that it. would only endorse the policy of the Juno Conference of 1021. . Tim 1922 conference endorsed the policy of June, 1921, and went further; it instiucted the Labour Pai'tv to throw open its doors for tho affiliation of the Communist Party, with freedom for tho Communist Party for propaganda and organisation. That the Labour Party would not agree to in 1921. So you see that in one year of operation in the trade unions tho units were able to accomplish something that we could not accomplish previously. “Tho result of this militant activity has been tlm linking up of these foicos into one big union, which is breaking clown all craft barriers. One other thing. This is what wo are giving to our nuclei which meet weekly. When a. policy is decided upon, the details are printed and we give it- to the leaders of the nuclei to give directions to tlm union how to act.

Tho [<oy to the Movement. “I will close by giving the direction to support tho Labour Party tnat has been issued by the Labour Council. Here it is: “(1) Tho Labour Council recognises the class struggle, and bases its or-

I ganisational plans and its propaganda on this fact. “The council further recognises that this struggle cf the classes in capitalistic society is a. political struggle —i.e., a struggle fur political power — and the council can no more be neutral (toward political parties engaged in this struggle than to the struggle itself. Therefore, this council declares the following to he the bas.s of its attitude to the existing political parties: “(2) The . trade union movement in Australia combines a mild : ccogmtbn of tlm class struggle with tho recognition and support of a reform party —the Australian Labour Party. Full support of this party, its methods and its objectives, means that tlm awakening revolutionary consciousness of the workers, together with their desire to wago a class war against the capitalist system, is transferred by the jnacrinerv of the courgeois political State into tlm hands of the Labour politicians, into social peace, which is the negation of the class struggle. “(3) The Labour Council holds that tlm Labour Party is a part cf the working class movement, and serves the interests of the workers from time to time by its organisation and propaganda in the defence of the everyday struggle of the workers when they arc engaged in fighting such questions as the maintenance of a basic wage, the 44-hour week, etc. “At times the Labour Council will support the Labour Party in so far as support of the everyday demands of the workers necessitates this action. Also the council holds that in the face .«f the., organised attacks being made by the%apitalist class upon the workers of this country, it is in the interests of the workintr class that the Labour Party at this juncture should be returned to power, (a) Because it will offer a more effective resistance to the onslaught by the capitalist class on the basic wage than the Nationalist Party. (b) Because there will be given greater facilities for working clnss pnonaganda, and organisation. “(d) This council, while fighting in fhe everyday struggle for an improvement m tho standard of living for the wording 'class, realises that it is impossible to obtain economic security for the workers under capitalism. Therefore this council attemps to direct this everyddy struggle of tho workers into a struggle for the abolition of capitalism and the establishment of a working class political State. Such a struggle can only be adequately organis n d and carried through in the interest of tho workers as a whole when the trade unions will act in perfect unity with the revolutionary political party of the working class ” Fantastic Claims. Tlm statements by Mr. Garden were brought under the notice of the Premier of Queensland. (Mr. Theodore). Mr. Theodore said that he thought Mr. Garden’s statement was a considerable draw on his imagination. At any rate it was fantastic and absurd to say that 1000 Communists controlled the Labour movement in Australia} and directed tho organised workers in Queensland