The recent
brutal and outrageous attack in Norway on the Scandinavian and
international workers’ movement was a huge shock, not only for those
members of the Norwegian Labour Party Youth (AUF) who were at the summer
cap at the island of Utøya, but also for the whole population of
Scandinavia.
The recent
brutal and outrageous attack in Norway on the Scandinavian and
international workers’ movement was a huge shock, not only for those
members of the Norwegian Labour Party Youth (AUF) who were at the summer
cap at the island of Utøya, but also for the whole population of
Scandinavia.
OJuly 25 protest in Oslo. Photo: Henrik Lied, NRKn
Monday of last week more than 150,000 marched in Oslo in what was the
biggest demonstration since WW2. After the massacre, international
solidarity is deeply felt across the borders of Scandinavia. But while
the bourgeois right-wingers shed crocodile-tears and denounce an “attack
against democracy”, what they are really arguing for is fundamentally
the same politics as the ones Anders Breivik tried to promote. The
attack was directed precisely at the labour movement and now it is time
for our movement to respond with more than roses and candle-lights.
The crisis sharpens all contradictions
The
worldwide capitalist slump which started in 2007/2008 and which has by
no means finished, has sharpened all the contradictions. On the surface,
the Scandinavian countries are presented as “basically healthy
economies” that do not have major problems. However, the crisis has also
affected the Scandinavian countries.
Norway’s GDP grew by 0.7% in
2008, then it fell by 1.7% in 2009, only to grow by a miserable 0.3% in
2010. The country’s economy had growth rates of between 2.3 and 3.9 per
cent in the four years that preceded the crisis; that unemployment was
low in Norway before the crisis, at around 2.4 per cent at its low
point, but is now at 3.4% per cent. In itself this is not high by
international standards but nevertheless it a significant growth which
shows the direction in which things are heading.
The fact that
discontent in Norwegian society is rising is shown also by the strike
statistics. In 2010 there was a loss of more than 500,000 working days
due to strikes, the highest figure in Norway since 1996. Around 67,000
workers were involved in 12 strikes, compared to only 10 strikes with
13,000 involved in 2008. The major part of those strikes took place
within the health, social, education and building sectors.
Thus
the crisis is sharpening all the contradictions in society also in the
Scandinavian countries that were previously known to be “quiet” and
“calm”. Trotsky explained that terrorism is an expression of a
thoroughly rotten society. The crisis is far from over and the
degeneration of society continues.
When Anders Breivik’s manifesto
was made public, it was said that he wanted a “revolution”. Something
which doubtlessly will be used against everyone who fights to change
society. However, the small detail is that Breivik did not fight for
revolution but for political reaction, diametrically the
opposite of revolution. Regardless of whether this action was the act of
one individual or part of a major conspiration, it is clearly an
expression of the deep crisis of capitalism, a system that is in decay.
That is why a Socialist transformation of society is the only true
alternative.
Defend democracy?
Stoltenberg, the Norwegian
prime minister, in his speech at the demo last Monday said the
following: “This is a demonstration for democracy, tolerance and unity.
People in the whole country stand shoulder to shoulder in this moment.
We can learn from this. We need more of this, each and everyone of us
can make the spin of democracy a little bit stronger. We see this here
[…] Your dreams will be reality. You can continue and pass on the spirit
of tonight. You can make a difference. Do it! My appeal is simple.
Dedicate yourself, join an organization.”
Following this, all
political parties have had an upsurge in membership. We must use the
resistance to the attack to strengthen organization and the struggle, as
the AUF leader Eskil Pedersen pointed out immediately after the
massacre: “He may have killed individuals, but never the ideas that they
fought for”.
The chairman of the Sosialistisk Venstreparti (The
Left Socialist Party, which has been in coalition governments since
2005) wrote on the party website: “At the same time, incredibly many
people now organize support for basic values such as equality and
solidarity. This is a great strength in Norwegian society which we have
to stand together on and take care of the future”.
The whole
workers’ movement in Scandinavia immedeatedly showed that solidarity
with the Norwegian workers’ movement has a solid ground and that
internationalism from below goes beyond the borders.
But from all
political sides, there is an attempt to direct the indignation over the
massacre into safe, controlled and “democratic” channels. Stoltenberg
continued his speech by saying: “Participate in the debate. Use your
right to vote. Free elections are the crown jewel of democracy. By
participating you say YES, loud and clear, in favour of democracy”.
Also
in Denmark, the politicians from the whole political um have joined the
chorus: “We must stand together in defence of democracy, fight what is
“anti-Norwegian” and “anti-Nordic”.
Jeppe Kofoed from the Social-Democratic Party wrote in his blog at Politiken.dk:
“On
the other hand, this episode is felt under all circumstances as an
attack on humanism, respect and tolerance for others. It is really
uncomfortable and I get discomforted just by thinking how the families
of the victims and their friends are feeling these days. Norwegian PM
Stoltenberg has tackled the tragedy with dignity which generates
respect. It is a time of shock and mourning. Defend democracy, political
activity and free society. Defend Norway against what is not Nordic. He
gets people to unite in the moment of tragedy and depression”.
Villy Søvndal (chairman of the Danish Socialist Peoples’ Party) also wrote a blog at Politiken.dk:
“The
only ‘crime’ of those young people apparently was that they worked and
organized – but always peacefully – in defence of social justice,
democracy, equal rights and international solidarity. They were part of a
movement, which has not only influenced Norway but the whole of
Northern Europe in more than one hundred years: The long and tiring work
of extending and strengthening freedom, liberty equality and unity.“It
is unbelievable that anyone who has been raised with all those
privileges, which is a predominant feature of Norwegian as well as
Swedish and Danish societies, can turn his back on it in such a cowardly
and hateful way”.
And even Per Clausen, leader of
the parliamentary group of Enhedslisten (Unity-list, Red-Green Alliance)
follows in the same line:
“We condemn the crime which
is behind so many killings. Regardless of the motive behind such an
atrocious crime, which everyone must reject, such criminals must not be
allowed to destroy our democracy. That is why we must defend the
openness, which caracterizes the Nordic Countries and our democracies.
Should we abandon this, the criminals will win.”
we repeat the slogan of rejecting anything “un-Nordic”, in reality we
would be repeating like parrots the rhethoric used by Anders Breivik and
which has been adopted by the right-wing Danish Peoples’ Party and the
Norwegian Progress Party, to which Breivik belonged in the past. The
fight of the right wing against the workers’ movement does not have
anything to do with questions of nationality; it is about classes and
accordingly must be treated as a class question.
Anders Breivik
outlined how he was against multi-culturalism, fundamentally expressing
the same policy that Sarkozy in France, Merkel in Germany, Cameron in
Britain and the Danish government has been carrying out for years.
In
Denmark the youth organizations of the Social-Democratic Party (DSU)
and of the Socialist Peoples’ Party (SFU) have voted in favour of a
resolution condemning the attack together with all the right-wing youth
organizations. Instead of joint “unity” resolutions, they should be
explaining how the right-wing parties are defending the attacks of the
capitalists on the working class and on the welfare state and that is
reason enough why they should be fought, not worked together with.
Because
in reality, our “democracy” is not genuine democracy. Everyone can say
whatever they please and vote for whoever they want every four years,
but they cannot decide on the fundamental lever which decides everything
else, the economy. As hundreds of thousands have expressed on the
streets of Spain and Greece, what we have is not a genuine democracy.
The most important decisions are taken in the corridors of the big
companies. We do not decide how many should be unemployed and how many
employed, whether we should lower wages or work harder. Nor do we decide
whether there should be cuts in education, hospitals and nurseries, nor
whether it is necessary to bomb Libya or Afghanistan.
The attack
on the Utøya island was a fascist attack. The labour movement has had
many historic experiences with fascism and nazism in the past. It is
necessary to fight the fascists, not with passivity nor with the
individual methods of the anarchists. The battle must be conducted with
the methods of the labour movement.
In the 1930’s the Danish Young
Social-Democrats organized their own armed elf-defence squads against
the Nazis. In Britain it was possible to halt all the marches of the
Fascist gangs with mass resistance and barricades on the streets. But
also recently, we saw how mass struggle can defeat these gangs. In
Denmark in the 1990’s, we had big mobilizations that undermined every
attempt of the Nazis tried to organize rallies in the provinces, notably
in Roskilde where they were kicked out of the city by the whole
population who attacked them physically.
Unfortunately, instead of
adopting these methods, the reaction of the left parties in Denmark to
the fascist assault in Norway has been to demand the constitution of a
committee to investigate legislation on hateful internet propaganda.
This will not solve anything and it is clear that the law and the police
did not help the youth at Utøya. Fascism and racism cannot be defeated
by more “openness” and “debate”. Such a strategy has been adopted in the
past and has led nowhere. This is completely insufficient! What is
needed is firm action! Fascism cannot be silenced away; weakness invites
aggression.
The workers’ movement must fight back
Anders
Breivik’s attack was not any casual attack on “democracy”. It was not
the right-wing parties that were attacked. It was clearly an assault
against the workers’ movement. And it is a matter of fact that Breivik’s
ideas are but the logical extension and continuation of the position
held by the bourgeois parties, including the “respectable” right-wingers
throughout Scandinavia. Faced with the crisis, those politicians have
advocated “national unity” and told us that we are “all in the same
boat”, that “everyone has to pay for the crisis”.
However, what
this means in reality is that the workers ought to accept wage cuts,
unemployment and more pressure at work, while companies register record
profits. Some people find it “harsh” and “tactless” to speak of the need
for a 24-hour general strike in Scandinavia and argue that such a step
would be “taking advantage” of the present political crisis.
What
they forget is that this tragedy is a political tragedy. It was imposed
by a right-wing extremist against the workers’ movement, aiming to
achieve specifically political objectives. They also forget that the
atrocity was based on a clear political programme, the same as the
agenda carried out in the Scandinavian parliaments and in the media with
the racist campaign against immigrants. If one tries to depoliticize
the event, one will be playing into the hands of the right wing who
speak of “unity” and class-collaboration.
Immediately after the
attack, we proposed a 24-hour general strike should be called in Norway
as a first reply to the attack. In 1936, when two trade unionists from
the dockers’ union in Belgium were killed by fascists in the port of
Antwerp, their funeral was converted into the largest anti-fascist
demonstration in the city and the dockers went on a spontaneous 24-hour
general strike. Also in Norway in 2010 the train drivers held a two
minute strike against the Israeli occupation of Gaza and during WWII the
teachers held a month-long strike against the German occupation.
It
is necessary to cut through all the talk of “national unity” and
class-collaboration and bring the working class and the labour movement
back into the struggle. Joint action, such as a general strike, would
show that the antagonism is not between races or religious beliefs, but
between classes. It would also show the enormous strength that the
working class possesses. On the contrary, if we limit ourselves to a few
minutes of silence, roses and candle-lights, we will open up room for
the right wing who will strengthen itself and carry out new attacks in
the future.
It is time to wake up
In many ways, the
leaders of the Scandinavian labour movement are living in the past. In
the past we could “build the welfare-society”, there was room for
reforms, peaceful negotiations were on the order of the day. But those
times have long passed. That period represented a historical exception,
marked by the post-war boom.
The situation now is completely
different. Capitalism finds itself in a deep crisis and class struggle
is at the top of the agenda on a world scale. The working class and the
youth will be forced into struggle again and again and for that purpose
we need organizations that can lead the battle.
The attack on the
largest youth organization of Norway’s labour movement has made it
perfectly clear that the workers’ movement cannot rely on the state for
protection. In Sweden we saw how the police fired against protesters in
Gothenburg in 2001 and wounded one of them. It is time for the labour
movement to begin to adopt serious measures to defend itself and build
defensive picket-lines for meetings, demonstrations, summer camps, etc.
The
leader of Sosialistisk Ungdom (Socialist Youth, the Norwegian Socialist
Left-party’s youth), shortly before the attack raised the need for
greater attention to the struggle against racism. The subsequent events
proved him to be absolutely right. Racism can only be fought as part of
the class struggle by fighting against the root causes of racism. The
fight against racism should be linked to the struggle for Socialism in a
concrete manner.
More and more people are beginning not only to
question capitalism, but also to move into revolutionary action, as was
shown by the events in the Middle East and more recently in Spain and
Greece. Society is polarised to the left and to the right. It is an
inevitable consequence of the crisis of capitalism. The masses are
forced to fight for their very means of subsistence. And they are being
pushed more in the direction of socialist ideas.
The bourgeoisie
will follow up Anders Breivik’s attack with further attacks against the
labour movement, beginning with those who are furthest to the left.
Immediately after the attack it was revealed that the assault had not
been committed by islamic fundamentalists, as all the established media
immediately thought, but by the extreme right wing. At that time the
press pointed out that society had to be wary of both right and
left-wing extremism.
However, it is a point of fact that it was a
-winger who attacked a meeting of the labour movement. That, however,
will not prevent the state from using it as a pretext for stepping up
the surveillance of the left wing and pass new and even stricter
anti-terror legislation, enabling them, not to stop terror, but to
repress peaceful demonstrations and striking workers.
After the
fascist attack in Norway, the mood has been one of mourning, with
flowers, candle-lights and crying in the streets. This is obviously a
normal and natural reaction. It is understandable that people are
shocked. Olav Magnus Linge, Sosialistisk Ungdom leader, writes in a
letter to the members: “We owe our comrades in the AUF and all those
killed more than tears and words of memorial. We owe them that we get on
with the task of organizing the youth for justice and freedom with even
more dedication than before”. This is true, but we need even more.
The
best way to honour those who died is to destroy the right wing which
stands behind such acts, that right wing which functions as a tool of
the capitalist class, and which is used to harass the workers’ movement
and for whom even the killing of young people and the use of terror is
something they will not stop at. Candle-lights and tears will not stop
them! Weakness invites agression.
The fascist psychopaths behave
in a cowardly manner. The assault in Norway was a clear proof of this.
The great nationalist “Knight Templar” shot at unarmed youth, a
“non-dangerous” target. That is why the only response that the labour
movement can come up with is to face hard with hard by setting up
self-defence groups in the trade unions and workers’ parties and
physically repelling these right-wing violent psychopaths. This
massacre of the labor movement’s youth must not go unanswered.
Source: Socialistisk Standpunkt (Denmark)
