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Author Topic: Venezuela's PSUV: a new party in the making
M. Spector
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Babbler # 8273

posted 29 January 2008 02:08 PM      Profile for M. Spector   Author's Homepage     Send New Private Message      Edit/Delete Post  Reply With Quote 
In December 2006 Venezuela's President Hugo Chávez called for the creation of a new Bolvarian socialist party that would unify the country's revolutionary forces.

The founding congress of that new party, provisionally named the PSUV (United Socialist Party of Venezuela), convened on January 12, 2008. For the next two months, the 1,676 congress delegates (elected from almost 15,000 local units) will discuss and debate the draft program, principles and statutes of the new party. Between congress sessions, they will return to their local regions and battalions to ensure the widest possible discussion of those documents among the ranks of the new party.

Here is an English translation of the draft program and principles of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela, which is sometimes referred to therein as the "Bolivarian Party for the Socialist Revolution". I don't know whether that name has been dropped or is still under consideration; everyone just calls it the PSUV for now.

The document is a fascinating look at the ideology and political analysis of the leadership of the party. It's of great historical interest because it emerges not from a small, inchoate leftist grouplet, as so many of these kinds of manifestos do, but from a large socialist movement that has mass popular support and actually has its hands on the levers of the state apparatus in Venezuela. As a result, this is not long-term, pie-in-the-sky theorizing and daydreaming, but an actual, practical plan for the transformation of a capitalist society in the near future.

The entire document is not huge, and it is worth reading in full. Here are a few excerpts as a teaser:

quote:
Basing itself on the Bolivarian tradition, the program of the PSUV champions internationalism and takes as its starting point the belief that the grand objectives of the revolution will have only been obtained when the Latin American and Caribbean people obtain unity and national and social emancipation, and together with the people of all the world we have buried capitalism in order to open the door to a new era in the history of humanity.

But the concept of internationalism that the Party holds is not one of simple “international fraternisation between peoples”, nor one of simply exhortations for “tolerance”. The Party fights to create a truly international united front of the peoples that is anti-imperialist and confronts the aberrations that imperialism pretends to universalise where they appear.

The PSUV will work tiresomely to:

* Favour all activities that favour the unity of the people based, more than just on a simple exchange, but on the principle of “doing things together”, so that the people get to know each other and feel a commitment to each other.

* Diversify international relations and create new alliances in order to construct new axes, different to those favoured by the interests of the international market, transnationals and neoliberalism.

* Favour a solidarity-based exchange of resources with other countries, particularly with Latin America and the Caribbean, where the solidarity-based and humanist dimension prevails over merely commercial interests.
....

The PSUV will carry out a constant struggle to:

* Promote democracy and a assembly-based culture within the Party, and in all spheres where it is present (communities, work fronts, areas of study, activity etc.)

* Struggle to make self-government a reality, with cities, communal councils and communes as the basic political units.

* Promote, where necessary, the creation of new territories and/or municipalities in areas of human settlements, that, for historic, geo-political, cultural, productive or strategic reasons require the overcoming of fragmentation, along with the creation of their respective self-governments.

* Struggle for the transference of the largest amount possible of the planning, execution and control over public policies to these city governments, communes and community councils by the constituent powers and its institutions.

* Promote direct and constant participation. That the largest amount of men and women possible be involved in the resolution of all the problems posed by the struggle in its different phases and levels: from the socialist cities to the commune and the communal councils in different areas (popular power, social missions, water committees, sports committees, cultural committees, housing committees etc) up to the military reserves. In regards to the specific area of industrial workers, two fundamental axes for the implementation of this task should be the concepts of popular control and self-management.
....

The PSUV fights for:

* The non-proliferation of highly contaminating industries that are not of a highly strategic interests for all the nation.

* The development of technologies in accordance with the socialist and humanist model of society.

* Respecting for popular, traditional and millenarian technologies which produce in harmony with human beings and nature.

* The preservation of water basins and sources of water.

* Raising consciousness about the preservation of nature and against the consumerist model of society that leads to the production of useless objects at the cost of exhausting natural resources.

* The promotion of consumption of ecological products.

* The promotion of collective and public transport use.

* The promotion of developing alternative sources of energy.

* Raising consciousness about saving energy usage.
....

Capitalism contradicts the human condition and goes against the survival of the species. The planet is being destroyed. The irrational imperative for growth is provoking the destruction of ecosystems and threats to extinguish the sources of life on Earth. This catastrophic dynamic is caused by the irrationality of a socioeconomic system that omits the necessities of humanity and acts under the obligation of its own logic, compelled towards constant growth in the pursuit of profit. In this crazy race, capitalism provokes periodic moments of crisis where, again in the pursuit of profit, it is necessary to destroy massive amounts of human lives and material goods.

Ever since human society was divided into classes, there has been resistance and struggle against oppression and exploitation. But with the victory of capitalism over feudalism and the dominance of the capitalist mode of production at the world scale, the social struggles of the industrial workers' movement fused with the most advanced thought of its time and gave rise to the struggle for a socialism based on science and the most deeply felt sentiments of human beings.

Simultaneously, in our continent, Simon Bolivar was laying the foundations for national and social emancipation with his liberatory struggle and his humanist and revolutionary vision, affirming words that today are fundamental for the union of our peoples and the social transformation of our time.




From: One millihelen: The amount of beauty required to launch one ship. | Registered: Feb 2005  |  IP: Logged
M. Spector
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Babbler # 8273

posted 30 January 2008 02:19 PM      Profile for M. Spector   Author's Homepage     Send New Private Message      Edit/Delete Post  Reply With Quote 
quote:
The Bolivarian revolution’s Achilles heel is the lack of a political instrument capable of confronting the challenges faced in the struggle to construct a new, socially just, Venezuela.

For a popular movement to shift from simply opposing the established order to constructing a new political power to create a new system, it requires a political instrument — a party — capable of leading the process….

Such a party might have been able to overcome the twin problems that led to the referendum defeat: the undermining of the confidence of the people due to a range of problems with government programs, and the serious political weaknesses within the Chavista camp….

It is in this context that the 1676 delegates elected to the PSUV’s founding congress are meeting to debate the program, principles and statutes of this new political instrument….

Fifty roundtables have been established in which delegates from across the country are debating these proposed objectives and program.

The congress convenes on weekends, with delegates reporting back to their socialist circumscriptions (districts) that unite between 7 to 12 socialist battalions (local branches) during the week. Before final decisions are taken, scheduled for March, a discussion of the issues from the congress will take place at all levels of the party-in-formation….

When Chavez first announced the formation of the PSUV in December 2006 he made clear that the party “needs new faces”. He went on to describe how the new party should be built from the bottom up and how the party should build revolutionary consciousness. “In this new party the bases will elect the leaders. This will allow real leaders to emerge.”

The formation of the first technical committee charged with coordinating the development of the party until its founding congress also echoed this sentiment and to a large extent by-passed the traditional bureaucracies that dominated the major parties in the pro-Chavez camp….

5.7 million people registered to become members of the PSUV between April and June, a massive display of the deeply felt sentiment for political unity.

Yet, the actual numbers who turned up to meetings of the local battalions (a requirement of membership) was much lower. While PSUV spokespeople claimed 1.5 million people were participating in the battalions, most local activists agree that the real figure was less than half that number….

Problems also arose because already existing local leaderships formed through years of community work were overlooked as promoters were imposed from above. Many feared the PSUV would become one more space to fight it out for positions in the bureaucracy, leading many activists to devote their efforts elsewhere.

Problems were compounded with the establishment of a disciplinary committee in July — making the PSUV perhaps the first party in history to have a disciplinary committee before it had even decided on a constitution.

As evidence began to emerge of competing power blocs and left and right factions, PSUV officials went on a concerted campaign to deny this reality, arguing that no factions existed or were allowed — creating the image of a monolithic party where no debate was to be tolerated.

Cases of battalions being “kidnapped” by “aspiring leaders” linked to the old power blocs came to light as elections for spokespeople and delegates began to occur in October. In some cases this led to violent clashes….

Despite the best attempts by the emerging power elites to kidnap the PSUV in order to advance their interests, many agree that grassroots leaders and left currents are well represented at the founding congress, or at least well enough to make their presence felt.

The thoroughly revolutionary content of the draft program and statement of principles are another positive sign. Of course, these are simply words on paper, but these documents can provide a basis to fight for a genuinely revolutionary party — in practice.

The “rebellion of the battalions” against the provisional leadership of the PSUV in the aftermath of the referendum was another example that the bureaucrats haven’t been able to get it all their own way.

Delegates have already voted to reopen discussion on the way the congress functions, as they feel the methodology set out by the organising committee is not the most conducive to ensuring wide ranging democratic discussions in the battalions….

Acknowledging some of the errors, Chavez has withdrawn his call for all Chavista parties to dissolve, instead calling for an alliance of all “patriotic and revolutionary” forces to fight the elections. He has also publicly stated that tendencies and currents are part of the new party.

There is now a proposal to call this the Revolutionary Bolivarian Party for Socialism, recognition that full unity is yet to be achieved.

What will be crucial over the next few weeks is that the battalions organise themselves in such a way as to guarantee full discussions and to ensure delegates represent their views and not that of various bureaucrats. One important issue will be that of the selection of membership to the new party.

It seems unlikely that either the right or left wing of Chavismo will be able to win a complete victory, however the struggle at the congress will go a long way to determining which forces get the upper hand. Some compromise may be necessary; however democratic elections and structuring of the party around a good program in order to win back those that have drifted away is a task that cannot be postponed.


Excerpted from Venezuela: The Struggle For A Mass Revolutionary Party by Federico Fuentes.

From: One millihelen: The amount of beauty required to launch one ship. | Registered: Feb 2005  |  IP: Logged

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