SWP's crisis deepens
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news report 
Monday March 24, 2003 12:39
by Kenneth Owende
lionheart at africa dot com
The recent leaflet issued by the SWP at the March 22 demo shows that the Party's financial and political crisis is deepening
The SWP suggested that everyone that agreed to 3 very liberal demands would be at home in the SWP. The leaflet claimed that if you 1. believed in people before profit, 2. were against the war in Iraq, and 3. Were against racism, them your home is the Marxist-Leninist SWP!
This is a clear indication that the SWP are in a financial crisis. Previous reports on Indymedia have claimed this, their recent leaflet seems to confirm that the SWP are desperate for Members Subs. The SWP have already laid-off a Full-timer, believed to be Joe Carolan.
There is also talk of a political crisis in the SWP. The crisis centres around the divide between Kieran Allen and Richard Boyd-Barrett. This well-publicised division in the Party is now coming more and more to the fore as the Anti-War movement develops. Allen is a supporter of more anti-capitalist work for the Party, Boyd-Barrett believes in appealing to the more softer elements in the IAWM and then "developing them politically within the Party". It's believed that Boyd-Barret was responsible for their recent leaflet, this causing major frictions in the Party between the Boyd-Barrett and Allen camps.
The SWP have suffered a number of set-backs since the Anti-War campaing got underway. Not recruiting the numbers they wished, they're School Student group has no active members, losing a Full-timer, splits within the leadership, have all contributed to the falling morale among SWP rank-and-file.
Comments (13 of 13)
Jump To Comment: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13Have you got anything better to do at this time of global crisis to gleefully inform us of difficulties within the SWP?
Get it together man. Focus on the Struggle. Bind together to win the media war. This is musch fu(king bigger than the SWP.
I have investigated the various different parties reaction to this time of crisi in the WOrld. The Greens seem to be loosing respect for their position on Direct Action and Kurdistan, the LAbour Party are having very serious internal difficulties with membership supporting the war and are against street demonstrations, and the SWP are having financial and political probelms as outlined above.
All parties are gaining from the Anti-War activity, the Greens and Socialist Party are gaining the most. Labour and the SWP are a bit more sluggish in terms of gains.
I am a political science student, I find this interesting- i'm sure others do too.
It is of interest.
However as we speak plans are being finalized to Invade Iran within the next 6 months.
Right now anyone who want to stop this global maddness must demonstate on the street and on the web.
We can ONLY win this this war through the media.
Kenneth, you raise some interesting points, the criticism of which I suggest may stem from some peoples' implicit racism and a refusal to see the broader picture.
I agree that Labour and others are not making the gains they could but as someone interested in political science, you should also note that the overall aim of the movement is taken from by the alleged lack of funds at the SWP. Might I suggest you write to them and offer a small contribution?
(p.s. I think we met once at a political science conference in Cairo?)
Cal I agree with you in not finding the inner workings of SWP finances all that interesting right now. But how do you think we can 'win the war' (I presume you mean 'stop the war') through the media?
We have a monumental opertunity:
World Opinion is firmly against republican administration.
By focusing this on the street and on the web we can isolate bush even further and ensure that he will not be re-elected next year.
I agree with you on your last posting on this Cal, a monumental opportunity lies ahead and must be taken.
I just hope to hell the SWP & the SP will only go from strength to strength to help in this opportunity being taken - and finally lead to the downfall of Bertie & Co. - and Bush across the water.
Kenneth misunderstands the nature of the SWP if he thinks that disagreements at the top have a direct effect on morale at the bottom. Most rank and file SWPers have no idea whatsoever about what goes on in the uppoer echelons of their party. Discussion is for the Central Committee. The peasants are kept in near total ignorance.
The rest of it is fair comment even if the stuff about financial crises is possibly a bit overblown.
That leaflet which they have been issuing is really very funny. The barefaced cheek of a revolutionary socialist organisation trying to recruit on the basis of liberal politics which wouldn't worry a member of the Green Party or Amnesty International is staggering.
I find it a bit sad that people are so concerned about who is 'gaining' from the war. Anyone who is attempting to make "gains" on the backs of dead people in Iraq should examine their conscience. Differences of opinion about how to stop this war are acceptable but this shite about the swp and labour is not.
Fair play to you Kenneth for stirring it up a bit on indymedia. All this war crap is getting boring, I love to hear about the ins-and-outs of the internal workings of the Irish Left. Indymedia- the "New Iskra" or "Gossip Page for the Left"?
Forget the gossip. Judge us by what we do on the war. And don't be put off joining a revolutionary socialist party by silly tittle tattle from cynics.
Who are the SWP, i've never seen or heard of any members of such a group, lots of people hold up their anti war placards because they give them out, I'd hold out a Sinn fein anti war placard too, if they handed them out en masse, that doesn't make me an SWP member just an anti war protestor.
theres a war going on. innocent civillians are having their heads blown off and all you can do is bitch about swp using the war to recruit people. all a bit sad in my opinion. and just for the record ssaw only got started and has got loads of active members already.
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