Speech
made
by
Prakash
Karat*
on
January
18,
2004
at
the
WSF
panel
on
Political
Parties
and
Social
Movements
1.
Talking
about
political
parties
and
social
movements,
we
must
first
note
that
there
are
different
types
of
political
parties
and
social
movements.
Just
as
there
are
parties
which
represent
the
ruling
classes
and
the
interests
of
the
established
order,
so
also
there
are
social
movements
which
play
a
socially
regressive
or
divisive
role.
There
are
political
parties
which
seek
basic
social
and
economic
transformations
just
as
there
are
social
movements
which
articulate
and
struggle
for
the
interests
of
the
oppressed
and
those
marginalized
in
society.
2.
We
are
concerned
with
those
parties
and
movements
which
strive
for
social
and
economic
transformations
to
achieve
social
justice,
democracy
and
equity.
Here
the
entire
historical
experience
shows
that
these
two
segments
play
separate
roles,
which
can
be
complementary
or
sequential.
Twentieth
century
history
shows
that
mass
democratic
and
Left
political
parties
played
the
key
role
in
delivering
socio-economic
benefits
to
the
working
people.
It
is
the
political
change
and
the
success
of
political
struggle
which
brought
about
social
and
economic
gains.
Whether
it
be
adult
franchise,
social
welfare
measures,
universal
education,
sickness
and
unemployment
benefits
or
the
eight-hour
working
day.
While
the
actual
change
and
delivery
of
social
benefits
were
accomplished
by
a
political
agency
through
political
changes,
the
raising
of
the
problem,
the
highlighting
of
the
issue
and
even
mobilisation
of
public
opinion
were
often
initiated
through
social
movements
and
organizations.
3.
We
are
talking
of
the
relationship
between
political
parties
and
social
movements.
At
this
juncture
this
would
mean
recognizing
what
is
common
between
them
and
what
differentiates
them.
Speaking
of
Left
parties,
their
primary
goal
is
to
organize
and
mobilise
support
to
fulfill
a
programme
which
involves
influencing
the
State
or
forming
a
government
to
implement
their
programme.
In
many
cases
this
would
mean
electoral
mobilization
as
part
of
the
programme
of
action.
The
parties
of
the
Left
would
therefore
be
programme
oriented
which
means
taking
up
a
whole
range
of
issues
and
mobilizing
different
sections
of
the
people.
Within
this
Left
spectrum
there
are
parties
of
a
Marxist
orientation
which
relies
on
class
strategies
as
their
basic
outlook.
At
the
present
juncture,
in
India,
the
twin
processes
of
liberalisation
and
communalism
are
being
utilized
by
the
ruling
classes
to
maintain
their
class
rule
and
system.
This
has
meant
greater
imperialist
intervention
and
support
for
the
political
and
economic
processes
at
work
in
Indian
society.
The
experience
of
the
last
one
and
a
half
decades
is
that
there
is
a
rightwing
offensive
drawing
sustenance
from
both
the
communal-sectarian
movement
and
the
neo-liberal
reforms.
This
has
had
a
devastating
effect
on
the
working
people
and
the
socially
oppressed
sections.
The
Left
has
been
subject
to
this
onslaught
as
it
has
been
politically
and
ideologically
opposed
to
both
these
trends.
The
new
social
movements,
as
against
the
social
movements
of
the
earlier
periods,
have
to
respond
to
the
impact
of
the
imperialist
driven
globalisation
and
its
social
and
economic
consequences.
Even
when
such
movements
have
focused
on
single
issues
such
as
food,
water,
conserving
community
resources
or
women
or
dalit
emancipation,
they
are
responding
and
struggling
against
the
attacks
on
the
livelihood,
rights
or
protection
of
the
resources
of
various
communities
and
groups.
There
is
hence
a
convergence
of
interests
and
activities
within
the
framework
of
a
struggle
against
imperialist-globalisation
and
the
domestic
classes
and
order
which
facilitates
its
destructive
effects
by
utilizing
reactionary
divisive
politics
based
on
religion,
caste
and
various
forms
of
social
chauvinism.
That
we
are
meeting
and
discussing
this
cooperation
between
parties
and
movements
reflects
this
mutual
realization.
There
is
another
political
and
theoretical
imperative
to
work
for
a
relationship
between
the
Left
parties
and
radical
social
movements.
Given
the
all
invasive
force
of
US
imperialism
today,
its
globalising
drive
encompasses
the
economic,
political,
social
and
cultural
spheres.
The
struggle
cannot
be
confined
or
concentrated
only
on
the
political
and
economic.
The
social
element
is
also
vital
and
it
must
be
incorporated
in
the
struggle.
A
phenomenon
of
imperialist
globalisation
is
that
its
impact
produces
uneven
effects
and
is
socially
fragmentative.
It
promotes
identities
which
atomises
rather
than
fosters
collective
solidarities.
In
such
a
situation,
the
Left
parties
with
their
primacy
for
political
goals
are
not
equipped
nor
necessarily
the
best
vehicles
to
take
up
the
social
and
cultural
struggles
in
a
sustained
manner.
The
Left
or
Marxist
parties
would
be
weakening
themselves
by
embracing
identity
politics.
At
the
same
time,
it
is
necessary
to
draw
in
the
socially
fragmented
sections
who
are
the
victims
of
both
rightwing
economic
policies
and
sectarian-identity
politics
into
the
movement
for
social
justice
and
the
common
democratic
movement.
This
can
be
attempted
by
radical
social
movements
who
have
the
vision
of
linking
up
the
issue,
the
local,
to
a
wider
democratic
and
political
movement.
4.In
order
to
bring
such
a
cooperation
to
realizable
action
and
a
common
platform,
it
is
necessary
to
recognise
some
hurdles
and
problems.
They
may
be
categorized
as
follows:
a)
The
role
of
the
State:
Left
political
parties
are
fighting
to
ensure
that
the
State
remains
accountable
for
fulfilling
minimum
needs
of
citizens
and
plays
a
role
in
redistributive
justice
and
regulation
of
both
international
and
domestic
capital.
A
section
of
NGOs
and
social
movements
tend
to
negate
this
role
of
the
State
with
an
anti-statist
outlook.
The
World
Bank
and
big
corporate
foundations
promote
development
in
the
developing
countries
with
a
philosophy
of
cutting
off
the
State
from
its
developmental
and
welfare
responsibilities.
In
India
this
issue
is
being
increasingly
resolved
through
practice.
b)
Alienation
from
the
political:
There
is
widespread
distrust
of
politics
and
politicians,
especially
among
the
middle
classes
in
India
–
from
which
are
drawn
a
large
section
of
the
activists
in
social
movements.
This
distrust
extends
to
Left
parties
which
are
also
partly
a
result
of
ideological
and
philosophical
differences.
In
India,
the
Left
is
predominantly
of
a
Marxist
character.
Their
programmatic
outlook
based
on
class
and
their
organizational
concepts
are
looked
upon
with
suspicion
or
hostility.
The
argument
is
not
about
programme
and
organization
per
se.
Because
many
social
movements
have
veered
to
multi
issue
based
programmes
and
coalitions
and
do
not
rely
only
on
spontaneity
from
below.
It
goes
deeper
in
the
inability
to
comprehend
that
an
anti-political
stance
is
precisely
what
the
forces
of
globalisation
that
they
are
ranged
against,
would
wish
them
to
adopt.
c)
Foreign
funded
socio-political
activities:
There
has
been
an
old
debate
in
India
about
the
role
of
foreign
funded
voluntary
efforts
which
graduated
from
developmental
activities
to
“empowerment”
politics.
Why
did
imperialism,
the
World
Bank
and
Western
government
initiate
this
process
in
the
late
seventies
and
early
eighties?
This
debate
has
helped
clarify
many
issues.
The
positive
development
is
that
there
is
apart
from
the
NGO
sector
which
acts
within
the
framework
of
the
World
Bank-Indian
government
funding
philosophy,
a
new
sector
which
has
emerged
which
disavows
such
funding.
They
are
the
ones
who
are
working
in
some
of
the
new
social
movements
amongst
different
sections
of
people.
Foreign-funded
NGOs
in
the
development-empowerment
business
are
in
fact
facilitators
of
the
neo-liberal
reforms
and
the
imperialist
strategy.
At
present,
over
40
billion
rupees
(Rs.
4000
crore)
every
year,
flows
into
India
to
NGOs
for
a
whole
range
of
activities.
Greater
differentiation
and
demarcation
from
the
World
Bank
concept
of
NGO/civil
society
development
will
help
push
the
efforts
for
united
action.
d)
The
Left
parties
on
their
part,
have
still
to
catch
up
with
some
of
the
new
realities
and
challenges.
Their
struggle
for
alternative
policies,
their
conception
of
a
left
and
democratic
platform
to
challenge
the
imperialist-liberalisation-communalisation
challenge
is
mainly
centred
on
the
daily
economic
struggles
and
the
electoral-political
battles.
There
is
an
insufficiency
in
both
the
conceptualization
of
and
the
struggles
in
the
social
and
cultural
spheres.
Neither
has
the
Left
been
able
to
fully
deal
with
the
complexities
of
technology-driven
social
trends
and
the
social
impact
of
the
new
economics.
This
gap,
apart
from
other
organizational
constraints,
makes
it
difficult
for
the
Left
to
respond
in
a
timely
fashion
to
the
issues
raised
by
some
of
the
social
movements.
5.
The
Left
parties
in
Latin
America
have
taken
important
strides
in
building
platforms
which
embrace
parties,
movements
and
groups
based
on
fighting
neo-liberal
policies
and
imperialism.
The
Sao
Paulo
Forum
which
began
more
than
a
decade
ago
was
an
important
landmark.
The
WSF
at
Porte
Allegre
followed.
The
Left
political
parties
in
India,
are
in
one
sense
fortunate
that
they
have
not
suffered
any
significant
erosion
in
their
mass
base
after
the
profound
changes
on
the
world
scene
after
the
collapse
of
the
Soviet
Union.
Those
who
call
themselves
Communists
number
over
1.5
million
in
various
parties.
There
is
a
broader
Left
which
involves
another
few
million
adherents.
The
last
decade
has
been
difficult
for
the
Left
in
India
as
it
has
been
engaged
in
mainly
a
holding
action.
But
then
if
we
look
around,
this
Left
is
the
only
Left
that
exists.
And
if
we
look
further,
there
are
small
but
vital
social
movements
challenging
the
attacks
on
the
livelihood
of
the
poor,
the
tribal
peoples
and
fighting
caste
and
gender
oppression.
They
can
find
a
meeting
ground.
*
Prakash
Karat
is
a
Member
of
the
Polit
Bureau
of
the
Communist
Party
of
India
(Marxist)