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Revolution and
Compromise
Netrabikram
Chand 'Biplap'
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Here is a top Maoist leader and thinker defending some of the
compromises we have been witnessing in Nepal. We present this
article for educative purposes as the Sikh community leaders
have often used the slur of a “compromise” to tarnish fellow
co-journeymen in any struggle. The WSN holds no brief about the
position and positing of the problem by the author of this
article. |
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 Our revolution is in the stage of negotiation and our party sees
compromise as another aspect of the class struggle. The question
has not yet been finalized whether the revolution will be
accomplished through compromise or it will be pushed towards
counter-revolution. There is an incessant and fierce struggle
between two different world outlooks that is attracting attention
nationally and internationally.
Marxism accepts the possibility of making compromises; however, it
considers impossible to accomplish a revolution through too many
compromises. Compromise can be useful at a point in the revolution
to obtain state power, but it is impossible to secure state power
for the proletarian class only through compromise. On the contrary,
opportunist and reformist tendencies not only consider compromise as
necessary, but consider compromise as everything. They believe that
society and state power can be changed and transformed through
compromise rather than through revolution, through 'negotiationism'.
These two tendencies are gradually coming to a head in our country.
Our party, the CPN (Maoist), and the Nepali Congress (NC) are at
logger heads over the issue of negotiation. From the point of view
of class struggle, the NC doesn't see or believe in the necessity of
a revolution in
Nepal. The NC, according to its viewpoint, wants negotiation with
the CPN (M), the CPN (UML) and other parties by dividing the
ministries. According to the NC's outlook, it is enough to progress
economically. Political revolution is not necessary.
According to the NC's outlook, the logical debate and planning of
revolution is an activity of extremists. They suggest that the CPN
(Maoist) should not do the revolution and be satisfied with a share
in the government. But the ultimate goal of the CPN (M) is
Communism through a People's Republic and through the stage of
socialism. For that, the state must be under the leadership of a
Communist party. Therefore, we, the Maoist, should oppose 'negotiationism',
though we are not against making particular compromises per se.
Due to the impact of class struggle, different views on compromise
and 'negotiationism' are surfacing within the party; this should not
be a surprise. Frankly speaking, the tendency of 'negotiationism'
is spreading like a viral disease within our party. This type of
tendency developing within the party is hundred times more dangerous
than the 'negotiationism' of the NC. This tendency, through the
so-called economic 'revolution' and power sharing, seeks to end the
political revolution here. We would consider that it is an
extremity of 'negotiationism' to depend upon hostile elements by
neglecting the compulsory foundations for securing state power.
 The NC wants to push the country into counter-revolution. The NC
desires that a scientific communist party and the proletarian
revolution should sink down into status-quo establishment and into
the stagnant pool of the old state. Therefore, it has put forward a
seven-point demand that includes the dissolution of the YCL, the PLA
and a rollback of all the gains made during the Peoples War.
If
CPN (M) accepts these preconditions, it can be in the government, if
it doesn't, then it cannot. The purpose of these preconditions is
to push the country towards counter-revolution. To accept these
conditions is to end the revolution.
We, Maoists, desire to change this compromise into revolution and
strengthen the revolution against the counter-revolution. For this,
we should expand the means and the foundations of the revolution.
Let us consolidate the party, the PLA and the United Front and take
them to a new level. Let us establish a clear political and
economic outlook and take state power.
We
have already dissolved our local people's power centres. We
dissolved the people's courts and the peoples' militia. Our
co-operatives, communes, health posts and educational institutions,
established during the war, are now becoming weaker. In this
situation, if we accept the seven-point demand of NC, directly or
indirectly, we would declare that the revolution is over. A big
debate has not taken place on it, but a tendency considers that it
will make no difference if we accept the seven-point demand of the
NC. The tendency to be liberal towards these demands is not a
revolutionary tendency; it helps the interests of the NC.
Compromise is an unusual condition for revolution. Things seem
peaceful in the period of agreement and negotiation but it is just
an illusion. Two rival thoughts, tendencies and forces are fighting
terribly behind a thin curtain. They both are trying to win under
the cover of compromise. Each wants to destroy the other; one
becomes bigger than the other, and a process of swallowing begins.
When the one about to be swallowed isn't safe, then it breaches the
norms of accord and begins to protect itself through struggle. If
protecting itself becomes impossible by defending itself, it is
obliged to start the confrontation between revolution and
counter-revolution. Then the compromise will end and the balance of
two opposed forces breaks down. This has happened previously in our
country.
Until now, the NC and the imperialists thought that they would be
able to destroy the CPN (M) before the election. The masses and the
fraternal parties and organizations of the world had thought that at
some point the CPN (M) would be swallowed! But in the election, the
people protected the CPN (M) like their own children, and the NC and
the imperialists failed in their mission. As a result, the NC has
now put forward its seven point demand. We have defeated the NC in
the election, but if we cannot protect the revolution, we will be
ruined in no time. This conflict, indeed, is related to the series
of compromises we have made. Now, we should direct our attention
towards the defense of the revolution by ending the situation of
compromise.
The issue of compromise is a common issue related to the world
revolution, if we accept that the Nepalese revolution is a part of
the world revolution. If we want to learn the lessons from
communist states of the past century, the issue of compromise must
be a common topic for all the revolutionaries of the world. It
means that we should think deeply and develop a new ideology and
knowledge to solve the problems before us and for the protection of
the Nepalese revolution. Even though it has not been enough to
tackle the present necessities and possibilities to this date, we
have been encouraged by the suggestions and participation of the RIM
committee, the RCP and the CPI (Maoist).
In
short, compromise is possible in a revolution, but revolution is not
possible only through compromise. The imperialists and
reactionaries want to push the revolution towards
counter-revolution, but revolutionary communists want to change the
compromise into revolution. The conspiracy to change compromise
into counter-revolution is vigorously going on in
Nepal. We should make this conspiracy fail by uniting the
revolutionary forces of the world. Fighting against the reactionary
forces, we should defeat them. Any revolution in any part of the
world is a part of the world revolution. Likewise, any compromise
is also a part of the world revolution. Therefore, the
revolutionaries of the world should make a joint effort to change
the compromise into revolution. Revolution is compulsory but the 'negotiationism'
is impossible.
(Biplap
is a member of secretariat, Central Committee, CPN (Maoist). This
article first appeared in The Red Star (19-30 June 2008).
16
July, 2008
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