Speech at the XXI IMCWP, Izmir, October 2019

Dear Comrades:

On behalf of the Brazilian Communist Party, I greet all the Communist and Workers' parties present at this XXI IMCWP, in particular the Communist Parties of Turkey and Greece, which, in addition to their example of struggle, ideological firmness and political coherence, have taken over the organization of this meeting. We also especially greet the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China.

The global conjuncture reveals uncertainties about the development of capitalism in the near future, with the possibility that low growth rates in the United States and Europe are kept or the onset of recession. In the political sphere, the opening of impeachment proceedings against President Trump may lead to a reduction in US strength internationally, what, among other effects, tends to ease the pressure on Venezuela and reinforces the Democratic presidential bid that, If victorious, will not alter the imperialistic nature of the American state, but may open more room for a stronger organization and more struggles of the working class in that country.

In Europe, the Communist Movement faces an ideological offensive of the far right, materialized with the recent approval, in the European Parliament, of a resolution that criminalizes communism. The recent electoral defeats of the right in Spain, Portugal and other countries did not mean the victory of the socialist and communist forces, but the erosion of neoliberal policies and the resumption of popular movements in defense of workers' rights, what has led sectors of the ruling class to seek new arrangements of political power that may “soften” the effects of liberalism without giving it up, in essence, by offering economic growth, new compensatory policies, and localized concessions for the recovery of some rights.

This scenario is repeated in Latin America, especially in Argentina, where the imminent victory of Peronism, with Fernandez and Cristina, represents the defeat of Macri's ultra-liberalism, which led the country to a deep economic and social crisis. This change reinforces the  isolation of the Brazilian right-wing government of Bolsonaro and strengthens the support for the achievements of the Bolivarian process in Venezuela.

In Ecuador, the adoption of a “package” of liberal measures aimed at removing fuel subsidies and workers' rights led to a strong mobilization of organized workers, leftist and progressive political forces, Ecuadorian communists, indigenous communities. and people in general against the government of Lenin Moreno, elected under the same progressive program as his predecessor, President Rafael Correa. The measures taken by Moreno were perceived as a great betrayal, and the highly repressive actions taken by the government against the protesters generated a huge revolt, which made the government back off and strengthened peoples’ power. The example of the victorious popular struggle in Puerto Rico which succeeded in overthrowing a governor and in reinforcing the call for independence and social justice follows the same course of mass struggle as the main axis to be strengthened in the perspective of the conquest of rights, democratic freedoms. and social justice.

In Colombia, the Duque Government's attitude of not fully complying with the peace accords has led some of the former members of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia to decide to take up arms again, while pointing to the need to strengthen the mass movement for peace as the main way forward for building a democratic state with social justice in that country. New challenges emerge at the electoral level in Uruguay and Bolivia, where the current progressive governments face ballot box tests and threats from the right.

For the Communist Movement, it is essential to strengthen the confrontation against right-wing and far-right governments in the region and to support the progressive processes of change without any illusion that these reformista processes alone will naturally lead to the conquest of socialism. It is necessary to consolidate the popular struggles in the democratic and social fields, in the resistance and in the fight against imperialism, reinforcing the organization of the working class for the anti-capitalist struggle and for the construction of Popular Power and Socialism.

In Brazil, the liberal offensive is radicalizing, with more rights being removed from the workers and more privatization of public assets and the dismantling of the economy operated by the Bolsonaro Government, which has a large majority in Congress on this issue. Bolsonaro and most of his team, however, have been accumulating more and more internal wear and tear each day, with majority disapproval rates reflecting the effects of ultra-liberal and pro-imperialist policies, racist, homophobic, misogynistic, anti -Science and anti-education attitudes, violent police repression against organized movements and the poorest populations, with growing isolation on the international level on account of the recent burnings in the Amazon, the use of banned pesticides in agriculture, the subservient posture to the United States that leads to the delivery of wealth and public assets to that country, such as the Alcantara rocket launching base, without any relevant political or economic compensation. On the contrary, this street-dog posture led to a humiliation:  Brazil was not nominated to join the OECD – what wouldn’t help Brazilian workers –, as promised by Trump, to the detriment of other countries. Bolsonaro attempts to increase control of the state apparatus by his closest group and attacks his opponents with violence.

In opposition to Bolsonaro are the organized sectors of workers and youth, which has been promoting important popular demonstrations, although a significant part of the population has not yet awakened to the fight against neoliberal reforms and the handing over of public assets to national and international private capital. Liberal sectors have also opposed attacks on democratic freedoms and civil rights, and even some bourgeois minority sectors have restrictions on certain aspects of Bolsonaro's international policy because these have been hurting their business, although they are all united in attacking the workers’ rights. It is also noteworthy that sectors of the Brazilian left despize the streets and prioritizing the electoral struggle of next year, as a way of accumulating forces for the presidential elections of 2022. That is a serious illusion, because without the working people organized in the streets, the land devastating policy that the government has been conducting can’t be defeated.

The PCB understands that the moment calls for mobilization and struggle in the streets, accumulating forces to confront the Bolsonaro government. We call for the strengthening of the union and popular fronts for the better organization and awareness of the working class. The PCB mainly supports the strengthening of the Trade Union, People's and Youth Forum for Democratic Rights and Freedoms and continues to participate in the Fearless People Front. In Brazil and throughout the world, it is necessary, more than ever, the reasumption of a  counter-hegemonic offensive of socialist and communist ideals.

We advocate the strengthening of the IMCWP in its plurality to better operate joint actions of the communists on regional and global levels. In particular, we understand that we must strengthen the newly created Forum of South American Communist Parties and to expand it to the whole Latin America.

Thank you very much

Long live the International Communist Movement