The duty of Communist Parties is to unite forces and mobilize workers and the peoples
Interview with the Head of the International Relations Bureau of the C.C. of AKEL Vera Polycarpou
Friday 11th November 2016, “GNOMI” weekly newspaper
– The 18th International Meeting of Communist and Workers’ Parties took place in the capital of Vietnam. What is your assessment of the positions and struggle of the international communist movement against the world capitalist system’s fierce attacks on the working people and the popular strata?
VP: The 18th International Meeting of Communist and Workers Parties had as its central theme “The tasks of Communist and Workers’ Parties to strengthen the struggle of the working class against capitalist exploitation, imperialist wars and fascism, for workers’ and peoples’ emancipation, for socialism”. This reflects the approach and analysis of the majority of the parties participating in these international meetings on the current situation worldwide.
With variations, stemming from the different concrete conditions each party faces depending on the situation in the respective country and region where it is active, the positions of the Communist and Workers Parties participating in the meeting in Vietnam were very clear with regards the systemic crisis of capitalism; a crisis which has led to the sharpening of the contradictions and competition between the powerful centres, but also to the intensification of class antagonisms between capital and labour.
As humanity had experienced it in the past with the devastating world and other wars, the monopolies are seeking a way out of the crisis through local and regional conflicts, as well as the waging of imperialist wars. In the face of a general war, indeed with the danger of this war being nuclear, the Communist Parties have the serious duty to unite forces, mobilize working people and the peoples of their countries in general at a mass level in order to form bastions of resistance to the aggression and not allow the continuation of this disastrous path.
The victims of this escalation are the working people, the poorer vulnerable strata and the peoples in their entirety who are being called upon to pay the cost of the crisis, such as, for example, the banking crisis in Cyprus. The millions of people fleeing their countries as refugees and the thousands who are sacrificing their lives in their attempts to find some safety and a future are also victims.
At the Meeting in Vietnam the determination of the parties to cooperate, share experiences and to wage struggles to put an end to this devastating trend was very evident.
– What is the position and how does the international communist movement respond to NATO’s imperialist onslaught in various countries around the world and especially in the region of Cyprus?
VP: The situation in the region of the Eastern Mediterranean and Middle East is dangerous with unpredictable consequences. I won’t analyze the situation here but will simply say that it is the plans and policies pursued by the US, NATO and the EU that are responsible for this situation.
As far as the international communist movement is concerned, the situation in the region, but also NATO’s enlargement in Eastern Europe and in Southeast Asia and the Pacific as well is extremely dangerous. Among the actions we are also called upon to take is the waging of a campaign to establish a nuclear-free zone in the Middle East, as well as a campaign to ensure the abolition of military bases in the region.
At the same time, we can organize solidarity campaigns with the Syrian people, but also with the struggle of the Palestinian people which we must not forget because of the ongoing tragedy in Syria.
– To what extent do the positions of the 18th International Meeting of Communist and Workers’ Parties on the Cyprus problem contribute towards the struggle AKEL and the Cypriot people are waging for liberation from the occupation, to prevent the perpetuation of partition and for the reunification of our country?
VP: Being in Vietnam we could not but feel a strong emotion for the heroic people of Vietnam who resisted with incredible sacrifices and expelled from their country colonizers and occupiers, even crushing the US imperialist superpower. The Vietnamese people have a history that is worth reading, studying and drawing lessons from. The struggle of the Vietnamese people generated a global anti-war movement, but also an international solidarity campaign, namely that necessary complementary weapon in the struggles of the peoples for freedom, democracy and rights.
I say this to stress how important international solidarity is for our own struggle to end the Turkish occupation, for the reunification of our people and country. Both in our intervention at the International Meeting and also in the bilateral meetings we had on the sidelines, we underlined that the status quo in Cyprus is dangerous and leads to the consolidation of faits accomplis and the partition of Cyprus.
The reply of the fraternal parties was the statement in solidarity with the Cypriot people, which gives us strength since this statement was conveyed to many countries in every continent.
Our own responsibility is to continually reciprocate this solidarity with the peoples struggling for their rights and just cause.
