A delegation of the KKE, headed by Dimitris Koutsoumpas, GS of the CC, visited Rome to participate in the 2^nd Congress of the Communist Party of Italy. The delegation of the KKE met with the Secretary of the party, Marco Rizzo, the International Relations Section of the CPI and other cadres of the party.

Speaking at an open meeting at the conclusion of the Congress, D. Koutsoumpas noted the following in his greetings message.

Dear comrades,

We feel particular joy that we are here with you at the 2^nd Congress of your party. From this podium we want to salute the communists of Italy, who have not given up on the struggle for the rights of the working class and the other popular strata, the struggle for the overthrow of the capitalist barbarity, the construction of the society without the exploitation of man by man, socialism-communism.

Dear comrades, our parties are waging this struggle together, both through the development of bilateral relations and through the new form of cooperation of communists parties in Europe, the “Communist Initiative”. Our goal is to strengthen the struggle against the imperialist EU and at the same time, through the struggle of the workers, to promote the only pro-people alternative solution, the Europe of peace, progress, Socialism.

Comrades,

Italy, the Italian working class, the popular strata, the youth need a strong communist party. A party with a revolutionary strategy, with strong bonds with the working class. They need a party based on the principles of Marxism-Leninism, which will play the leading role in the organization of the struggle of the workers and will inspire the vision of the new communist society. Socialism is not some whim of the communists, it is the only way out of the crisis and the other social impasses of capitalist society. It is the only guarantee for the development of the productive forces in favour of and with as its criterion the working class-people’s interests. Only socialism can guarantee the people’s sovereignty, the self-determined development and at the same time the mutually beneficial cooperation and solidarity of the peoples.

We know that the counterrevolution in the Soviet Union and the other socialist countries and Eurocommunism, did a lot of damage to the communist movement, not only in Italy and the rest of Europe, but also at an international level. They sowed disillusionment, demobilization amongst the workers. They fostered dead-end illusions that the solution allegedly can be found inside the “framework” of capitalism, through “left” “patriotic” governments, through a so-called better, more “just” management of capitalism.

However, today, 20 year now after the completion of the restoration of capitalism in the former socialist countries, during which period the peoples have tested both “right” and “left” solutions for the management of the system, the need is being highlighted for the revival of the socialist vision . The KKE studies the historical experience, not only its own, bit also of the international communist movement, of the construction of socialism which we knew in the previous century. We have settled on basic conclusions regarding the causes of the retreat of the communist movement, the restoration of capitalism in the socialist countries of Eastern and Central Europe. We learn both from the positive and the negative experiences, so that we can inspire the working class again, its vision of social liberation, to lend impetus to the class struggle, to the ideological-political class struggle for the new socialist society. This course of ours also constitutes the basis for drawing essential conclusions about the mistakes, weaknesses, in order to modernize and enrich our conception of socialism, its timeliness and necessity.

Today, when the opportunist forces are attempting to entrap the workers in the line for “humanizing” capitalism, it is of major, historic importance that we stably and persistently defend both the achievements of the October Revolution, the contribution of the socialist countries, despite the fact that we criticize deficiencies, deviations.  To defend the contribution of the Communist Parties, the international communist movement, the necessity of the overthrow of the rotten and corrupted capitalist system. A task, which must be instilled in a unified way in all our daily struggles for the working class-people’s interests, concerning the everyday problems of our peoples.

This task of ours, the organization of the workers’ struggles, the revival of the socialist-communist ideals in our continent and beyond, can not be advanced without the ideological-political confrontation and the exposure of the role of the so-called “European Left Party”, which has been promoted as the “left mouth-piece” of the EU, and even of its anti-communist campaign. The role of the opportunists and the formation which they have created at a European level is doubly dangerous because it fosters illusions amongst the workers that there can be a pro-people EU, as well as a similar management of the capitalist system in each country, leaving the power of the monopolies untouched, the capitalist ownership over the concentrated means of production. These views are fostered in our country by the SYRIZA party.

With this opportunity, allow me to say that the forces of the ELP, which in Italy present SYRIZA and an “example”, and as a force that serves the people’s interests, conceal the truth.  SYRIZA is a force for assimilation into capitalism and not for its overthrow. It seeks to become the new social-democratic vehicle of the two-pole bourgeois system in Greece, indeed incorporating the most rotten elements from the old PASOK which governed Greece for many decades and is responsible for the many problems which have accumulated as well as for the situation and degeneration of the labour movement. In reality, SYRIZA, despite the sloganeering and the certain left-wing terminology that it uses, acts in a direction which is opposed to the line of rupture with the imperialist organizations, the monopolies, capitalism.

Comrades,

The KKE recently honoured the 95 years of its history, during which it waged particularly tough battles, and has acquired blood ties with the working class and the other popular strata of our country.  It is also today in the front line of the working class-people’s struggle regarding every problem that concerns the worker, the poor farmer, the employee, the youth and the women of the popular strata. The KKE plays the leading role in the struggle against the criminal Nazi organization of Golden Dawn,  so that it is isolated in the workplaces, schools and universities, so that its stops poisoning the youth with its fascist sermons.

At our recent 19^th Congress, the Political Resolution, the new Programme and Statutes were unanimously approved, confirming the ideological-political unity of the party.

In the documents of the 19^th Congress, the KKE makes it clear that today in Greece, in the conditions of monopoly capitalism, there are objective material preconditions for the construction of a socialist-communist society. The impending revolution in Greece will be socialist. Our party assesses, as in its previous Programme, that there do not exist intermediate stages between capitalism and socialism, and that there do not exist intermediate forms of power. The class struggle, the line of revolutionary struggle will lead to working class-people’s power or otherwise with another line and intermediate stages will be defeated, will be assimilated, will give breathing space to the system for the long-life of capitalism. We propose to the working class, the poor popular strata, to the self-employed and farmers, to the youth and women from the popular families that a People’s Alliance be formed of social forces that have their interest in struggling in an anti-monopoly anti-capitalist direction, having as its basic slogans the socialization of the monopolies and the creation of agricultural producer cooperatives, the unilateral cancellation of the debt, the non-participation in military-political interventions and wars, the disengagement from the EU and NATO, with working class-people’s power.

The KKE acts in the direction of preparing the subjective factor for the perspective of the socialist revolution, even if the time frame for its manifestation is determined by objective conditions, by the revolutionary situation. We are working for the creation of a KKE with solid bases inside the working class, a KKE which will be capable of responding to every sharp turn in the class struggle, as we say an “all-weather party”. This does not at all mean that we are detached from the reality, from the struggle and demands concerning the sharpening problems of the workers, unemployed, the youth, the poor pensioners, the popular households that are suffering, can not pay for electricity, can not afford food, have no heating, can not pay for their medicines and medical examinations, are threatened with seizures by the banks. We play the leading role, through the struggles, mobilizations, with interventions in Parliament, for the satisfaction of the basic needs of our people, to relieve those who are persecuted.

At the same time we seek the regroupment of the labour movement on  a class basis and we support the All-workers’ Militant Front (PAME) and the alliance with other anti-monopoly rallies of the small businessmen (PASEVE), the poor farmers (PASY), the students (MAS), the women (OGE). We believe that the formation of the People’s Alliance, which will have a social basis (and it will not be a welding together of political “leaderships”) is what is needed today. A social alliance  which will struggle regarding every popular problem, for salaries, pensions, public health, education, social security, for the relief of the unemployed etc and will have a clear anti-monopoly and anti-capitalist character.  This social alliance, in conditions of the revolutionary situation, can be transformed into a revolutionary workers’-people’s front, will create organs of working class-people’s power, it will pose the issue of power to the people, the working class, so that they themselves become the protagonists in the developments.

Dear comrades,

In today’s conditions, the urgent need for the revolutionary regroupment of the international communist movement, which today continues to find itself in a situation of ideological, political, organizational crisis, is being highlighted.

With this assessment as its starting point, the KKE not only supports the international and regional meetings of the CPs, as well as the idea of the emergence of a “communist pole” in the international movement, comprised of CPs that remain faithful to Marxism-Leninism, proletarian internationalism, defend the positive experience of the socialism we knew, study the contemporary developments, and seek to chart a revolutionary strategy, recognizing the timeliness and necessity of socialism.

With these thoughts we wish every success to your congress!

Long live Marxism-Leninism and Proletarian Internationalism!

Long live the friendship between the KKE and the CP of Italy!

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