EMANCIPATION OF WOMEN - PERSPECTIVE OF CPI (ML)

Emancipation of Women – Perspective of CPI (ML)

(This article Published in 'CLASS STRUGGLE' Organ of CPI(ML) Central Committee.)

The Women who have been creating all the wealth, and playing an important role in reproduction

are devoid of any rights or freedoms and are being oppressed by the patriarchy. They are living as slaves of the slaves.

India, where people of different nationalities live, was a British colony for almost 200 years. During this period of British colonial rule in the 19 th century many reformist movements had come up against brutal and inhuman feudal social evils. The people of India moved in a large scale in the struggle for liberation of the country from the British colonialism that was plundering country’s natural resources. The Indian national movement had initially drawn the women and organized them in to struggles in a large scale. This activity enabled the Indian women to tear themselves away from the traditional family ties and the backwardness of dark rural lives with patriotism and awareness to participate in struggles.

In 1930s itself the then Communist Party of India had formulated the demands of the women to resolve the problems of the Indian women who were suffering under the British imperialism and the feudal enslavement. It provided leadership to their struggles. The Communist Party led the famous

Telangana armed struggle for land, food and liberty of the people against the brutal oppression

exploitation by the nawabs and feudal zamindars and against reducing the people as their bonded labor in Telangana region. The struggle against the rule of Nizam and Indian army liberated 3000

villages, established village states (Grama Rajyas) and distributed one million acres of land to the poor. The Communist Party had molded the women as fighting forces against feudal exploitation and for liberation from all sorts of oppression. In the course of the movement women on one hand

were able to face repression and the other were able to run the movement and protect the fruits of the movement. Thus they made great efforts and played valuable role.

In this movement both women and men gained a progressive awareness that was different from the then existing feudal values. The Communist party made a special effort to train the women as political organizers, cultural activists and orators during this movement. It trained them in self defense also. During this movement several women were molested and raped by the army and land lords. The women and men withstood the sufferings caused by these atrocities with the consciousness that they were the part and parcel of the oppression and learn to cohabit in the families and society without caring the so called values of chastity imposed by the feudal society. Women were able to raise their social status. The Communist party launched an extensive campaign

about the right of women to educate, to refuse the arranged marriages and to opt for marriages by consent or love. It also propagated against caste, religious and gender discriminations. The propaganda made by the Communist Party about 1917 Russian revolution and anti-Fascist war inspired numerous people.

In the contemporary period so many struggles such as the revolt of tribal peasants of Worli of Thane district of Maharashtra in 1945, the Tebhaga peasants struggle in West Bengal in 1946.

In 1947 while continuing its economic exploitation and indirect control the British imperialism had transferred the power to the land- lords and comprador bourgeoisie who had colluded with it. The exploitation and oppression had further intensified on the people in the semi-colonial and semi- feudal system. The struggle against this ruthless exploitation and brutal oppression continued in

the decades 60s and 70s. The Naxalbari and Srikakulam struggles have had their impact on the people of the country. They shook the ruling classes. Women had participated in these struggles

militantly. They led the struggles. Hundreds of women like Panchadi Nirmala, Ankamma, Saraswati, and tribals braving the cruel oppression had laid down their lives in these struggles. They

made countless sacrifices and became martyrs. The memories of their struggles and sacrifices remain in the hearts of oppressed masses forever. The women were in the forefront of the struggle of tribals of Kondamodalu in Andra Pradesh in 1969, and they played a significant role in spreading the movement. Even today the activities connected to this struggle constitute a main part of their

lives. In the struggles that are continuity in the East Godavari, West Godavari, Srikakulam and Vizianagaram districts even today against feudalism, the women continue to play a daring and

courageous role.

The semi-feudal and semi colonial mode of production that caters to the needs and interests of the imperialists and their comprador capitalist, land lord classes is still existing in India. In India, predominantly an agrarian country, the land is highly concentrated in the hands of a few. The vast masses of people remain as landless poor and agricultural labor. Majority of them are the dalits (lowest caste people). The women agricultural laborers are subjected to the atrocities, sexual

exploitation and oppression of the land-lords. The patriarchal oppression of women has been

institutionalized by the social system in the society. Both the feudal and imperialist exploitation

and feudal and imperialist cultures have forced the lives of women to a walk on the burning coals. The imperialists are exploiting and plundering the labor power and resources of the third world

countries very cheaply. Labor of the women is being exploited ruthlessly under heinous working

conditions.

The IT sector promoted by the imperialists in the name of development is imposing heavy work load on the women. It is distancing them from the society, social movements and social environment. On the other side, the feudal and comprador ruling classes stood as the main prop for the social economic system. They pursue the policies of exploitation oppression against the women as dictated by their imperialist masters. The state – an instrument of power - in the hands of rulers is also having the nature of male-hegemony and patriarchy. This gender hegemony of males over the women can easily be perceived in its use of severe oppression and suppression on the movements of the women against exploitation suppression meted to them.

So, the emancipation of women in our country means, in the main, emancipation of toiling women. The basis for the emancipation of women will only be laid in the new democratic system. Therefore the women liberation movements shall be a part and parcel of the movement having the objective of new democratic revolution and uniting all the oppressed classes to realize the same. In the course of

such a movement alone women acquires the consciousness about their rights. They will be able to fight against various forms of economic and cultural exploitation.

The women liberation movement has to be organized with the objective of freeing them from the routine family work, social bondage and limitations in order to prepare them for a fight against

various problems and society and to make them partners in the struggle of new democratic

revolution.

To realize this objective, CPI (ML) has taken up the task of fighting against the system of patriarchal oppression, patriarchal ideology and patriarchal family system. The CPI (ML) is making

special efforts to make the women actively participate and take part in the struggle against the feudal and imperialist exploitation. It will strive to awaken and organize the people against the imperialist exploitation and aggression in the third world countries. It has organized various protests and agitations against the US invasions against Afghanistan, Iraq, and Lebanon. It extended its

solidarity to the people of those countries who were attacked by the US imperialism. Ideologically

the Party fights against the imperialist culture that reduced the women into an object and commodity. At the same time the Party strives to rally and unite all these forces of women into these

struggles. One of the main objectives of these struggles of the Party is to fight against the

ruthless exploitation of the labor of toiling women and lower caste women besides fighting against

caste discrimination and oppression. The women liberation movement stands in solidarity with

all the struggles of the oppressed classes against exploitation and injustice. It will be in the forefront

of the struggles carried on against feudalism, unemployment, suicides of farmers, closure of industries and struggles for equal pay for equal work, etc..

Thus the CPI (ML) is striving to organize and build up the women liberation movement in our

country with a clear perspective, tasks and objectives.

The success of the new democratic revolution alone can liberate the people from the existing semi-feudal and semi- colonial system in India It alone can ensure the necessary basis for the emancipation of women.

The CPI (ML) is striving to achieve this objective through an appropriate activity.

An activity different from this understanding is also in the practice. There are certain reformist trends which say that women can be liberated with some reforms within the limits of the present system. Those under the influence of this trend seek to convince or pressurize the governments to enact certain laws to solve the problems of women. We know that on various occasions, the governments made some enactments owing to some movements. The movement for women franchise in other countries, the movement for right to abortion, the movement for the right to education for women in India, the movement for abolition of child marriages and for widow

remarriages have certainly influenced the women. But these reforms were unable to touch the root of the problems. They were unable even to go nearer to the issue of liberation of women. Even the rights provided in the law have not come into practice due to so many limitations. A glaring example for this can be seen in the failure of anti-dowry act. The very idea that liberation of the

women can be achieved through laws and reforms is too unrealistic. Such trend only takes the women movement far away from the task of giving politics to the toiling women.

“It is our duty to take politics to reach every toiling woman”

- Lenin

In the recent years, certain trends have come to the fore. The important among them are:

- The problems of women must be seen from the angle of women alone;

- Patriarchy shall not be considered as the question of ideology, but as the question of base;

- The contradiction between man and woman is antagonistic contradiction;

- They talk about the right of reproduction without going into the relations of production

- They demand the freedom of sexuality to women questioning the control on women’s sexuality;

June - 20- They opine that women are a class since they are subjected to male domination;

- They conveniently ignore class exploitation as the main problem of majority of the women.

If one examines these opinions with the outlook of dialectical and historical materialism one can easily understand that the first division of labor was done between woman and man on the natural basis. In the work division that stipulates domestic work to women and outside work of hunting for men, there was no domination or dependency of one gender in the other. The home (a home of the primitive society) was the center of production and distribution. The women, who conducted the domestic duties, had enjoyed certain status too. But due to the limitations to the production at home and due to the wider scope to the production outside the house, the labor outside the home has developed and a surplus in the production was accumulated. Men aspiring to give their property only to their children had, with his financial might, subjugated the women forcibly. They withdrew the freedom of women. They reduced women into instruments that give birth to their children, as entities that satisfy their sexual urges and as domestic servants.

This transformation based on personal property led to patriarchal ideology. The objective of this

transformation is that the women have to handover the pious heirs. If this has to happen, women shall be pure. This very idea is the main objective of patriarchal control over women. Since it is impossible to control women with physical might alone, various patriarchal ideas of male dominance were propagated through religious beliefs and social customs. In this way the idea that women are dependent and males are dominant has been spread for generations and crystallized.

Ultimately a stage has come where women themselves accept as inferior to males and they

themselves propagate the same idea.

The personal property, when reached to the stage of capitalism through various stages, the

capitalist pays the worker a part of his labor power as wages, but not the total value of the entire

labor. A worker, who spends all his labor power of that day in the industry, has to recoup his labor power through the domestic services and go to work the next day. So the capitalist has to pay wages to the worker to the extent of domestic activity the wife of the worker who conducts the domestic activity and to tend the future generations of workers whom the wife conceives and tends the total amount needed to this activity. But in the capitalist system of production where profit alone is the objective the capitalist pays only the wages that keep the worker alive loots the surplus value. Due to competition, value of labor is being decreased while the necessity of domestic service activities increases proportionately. Thus the capitalist is looting even the labor of the worker ’s wife directly. The payment for the domestic services done by her has to be paid by the capitalist who employed her husband. But since the domestic services were enjoyed by the male of the house, the opinion that he himself is exploiting her has come into prevalence. This protects the real exploiter and safe guards him.

The women working in various sectors are not only being exploited along with males but are also being exploited more than their male counterparts of their sections by way of low wages. The

rulers and exploiting classes have evaded bothering about the family welfare related issues as their

responsibility and are considering them as the personal matters of workers. Due to this reason

conceiving, child-birth, rearing children and the looking after family welfare became a burden

to the women. The real reason for this extra burden to women is the exploiting classes only. But the

opinion viewing the male of the house as the cause for the exploitation of women will keep the

toiling woman in the opposition to the toiling man. Such a view will ignore that the toiling male and

female shall jointly oppose the exploiting classes. Finally it hinders the liberation of woman. Instead of resolving the contradictions between men and women it confuses the contradictions. In the society even the toiling men have no rights and freedom of any sort. Majority of women are sharing their lives with such men. The contradiction between the exploited women and men on one side, and the exploiting classes on the other side is only an antagonistic contradiction. So the men and

women having a non-antagonistic contradiction between them have to fight against their foe. In the

course of such a struggle and as a part of it the woman and man shall find out ways to resolve the

contradiction among them. Only by participating in the wider struggles women can attain

awareness about their rights and equality.

In this society based on personal property where the exploiting ruling classes refuse to take any responsibility about the toiling men and women and their children, the family system alone is working as their welfare system. In the degraded living conditions family alone is keeping them alive.

The system of male hegemony and dominance viewed women as a machine that satisfies sexual urges and reproduction. Woman is not only an entity of reproduction but is also a human being that has been striving for the development of society as a part of the society has been highly neglected. Only due to the male hegemonic ideology women are being viewed as only the instruments of sex.

Every human society is controlling sexual relations according to its stage of transformation. The joint sexual relations have been developed into individual sexual relations in the system of the monogamous marriage.

But this system of marriage of pairs came into existence with the system of personal property,

had controlled the sexual relations of women in the family. In order to continue the system of male

luxury and sexual enjoyment a parallel system of ‘prostitution’ came in to existence to that of

monogamous family. Those women in prostitution are purely and totally are the objects of sex.

A simple pairing of a woman and a man alone is the salvation for this existing contradiction.

When we state that the control of sexuality of women has started with the individual property

system, a question arises whether the freedom of women can be achieved only after the individual

property is abolished? To such a question the answer has been provided by Engels in his famous

book “Origin of Family, Individual Property and State”…

“If there shall be a total freedom in the marriage, the capitalist system and the property relations that came into existence as a result of that system shall be abolished. Then only in the matter of selection of husband wife giving importance to the financial (monetary) matters will be removed

(ended). Then there would be no other reason for marriage than mutual love.” “The love between

man and woman naturally prohibits plurality. Today this prohibition is made to be followed only by the women. So the marriage depending on the natural love of man and woman will be as the marriage of a pair only. When equality between man and woman is established then the women do not happen the liveness of many men on the contrary the experience of the previous period explains us that the man really becomes the husband of only one women.”

In any society the freedom in sexual relations cannot be absolute. Coming into contact with

opposite sex will lead more mutual understanding. In any society, by controlling the women, the man is losing her partnership is a fact without any doubt. In the present society all the immediate burdens of the freedom of sex is borne by the women alone.

The burning urge to achieve liberty from the control and oppression alone is not sufficient. Activities based on a proper ideological understanding are needed.

The main flaw in the demand for the right to reproduction is the view that the process of reproduction belongs to the bodies of the women, and ignoring the societal angle of the issue.

The male hegemonic society considers the childbirth as an animal activity even today. On the

other hand, it created the ideology that motherhood creates a higher status to the woman. The objective of this ideology is to hand over pious heirs to the male. Even today the system of exploitation is having the reproduction activity. Toiling man and woman are a matter of no importance in these activities. Exploiting class itself decides as to how many children have to give

birth in future by the workers and decides the future labor power to be given birth according to its profit making requirements. At the individual level the decision is doubtlessly taken by the male.

Under such conditions, to talk about the freedom of reproduction is meaningless.

In the background of the inequalities between women and men in India, people are divided in

society on the lines of classes, castes and nationalities. Without talking about these inequalities,

talking only about the equalities of men and women cannot be scientific. Even in the women

there are varied in their classes with varied class interests. There is no ground of reality to the

independent women movement that intends to collect all the women under one umbrella. There

is no economic and social basis to take forward such a movement and, in the end, it only limits to the interests of the women of the elite classes.

These sorts of trends are being propagated in India mainly by NGO organizations. These

organizations are debating only about the forms of patriarchal oppression widely, but not

expressing or propagating the fact that individual property is the basis for patriarchal ideology. Their silence about the liberation of toiling women, who are oppressed under the semi -feudal and semi - colonial system, will ultimately lead to protecting the interests of the exploiting classes.

Therefore the liberation of women is linked with the liberation of majority of toiling masses

without any doubt. So the movements of the toiling women shall be inter- linked and

intertwined with the movements for the change of society.

While fighting against wrong tendencies on a proper basis, the CPI (M-L) is striving to build the

movement for the liberation of women from the system of exploitation and oppression.

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YOUTH AND STUDENTS SHOULD UNITE UNDER THE POLITICAL BANNER OF THE WORKING CLASS.

Youth and Students should Unite under the Political Banner of the Working Class.

( Published in ‘CLASS STRUGGLE’, Organ of the Central Committee of CPI(ML) )

India is a semi-feudal, semi-colonial state. What is the principal contradiction in this state? It is the contradiction between the alliance of imperialism, feudalism and comprador bourgeoisie on the one hand and the people on the other. The people, the exploited classes are the workers, peasants, small traders, national bourgeoisie and the petty-bourgeoisie. The petty- bourgeoisie comprises the

intelligentsia that is, teachers, students, office employees, engineers, doctors and so on. They are all exploited and constitute the masses. The only solution of the principal contradiction in Indian society is a people’s democratic revolution, which will be completed when under the leadership of the communist party a people’s democratic state will be founded by means of people’s armed struggle. A revolutionary front has to be formed by uniting all exploited people in the country opposed to imperialism and feudalism. This front will destroy feudalism and comprador capitalism and will root out imperialism from the country.

Revolutionary Front and the Intelligentsia

So, the first and foremost task is the formation of a revolutionary front under the leadership of the proletariat and its political party, the communist party, the main force being the peasantry. Other classes and people ruthlessly oppressed by the ruling clique will be in the front as potential allies. Among them a big section is the petty- bourgeoisie, intelligentsia and the student community. So it is essential to bring them into the revolutionary front. Every member of the intelligentsia, who is honest and patriotic, has to be brought into within the front. The reason is, “The young people are the most active and vital force in society. They are the most eager to learn and the least conservative in their thinking.” Students are the biggest section among youth, therefore the importance of students in a people’s democratic revolution can’t be minimized. Because of various social factors they have had the opportunity for learning unlike workers and peasants. To organise workers and peasants and to propagate revolutionary thoughts among them, the help of the intelligentsia is needed. But it is not enough to get them inside the party. Their class character has to be changed and they have to be imbued with the thought of the working class. The ultimate aim is to transform them into workers as well, and with their help create intellectuals from among the working class. The ruling class always tries to purchase the intelligentsia to suit their requirements. The task of the revolutionaries will be to frustrate their game.

Intelligentsia: A Force in the Revolutionary United Front

It is true that the intelligentsia and the students are a powerful force in the anti feudal anti imperialist front. But can revolutions be completed by relying only on them? No, because they are not the main force in the revolutionary struggle. Why not? Why can’t they give leadership in the revolutionary struggle? They know so much, they have learn so much! The reasons can be divided into three categories.

First, the most progressive section in a capitalist society is the working class. They are related to the most advanced productive system. This class is the most organized, the most united. This class is the most selfless because they have nothing to lose but chains. Therefore, they can throw themselves in the struggle without any hesitation and suffer any amount of sacrifice. At the same time, they are modest, unlike the intelligentsia who are proud of their learning. For this reason, the working class alone can give revolutionary leadership. The intelligentsia and the student community lack these distinctions of the working class. Therefore, they cannot be leaders in the revolutionary struggle.

Secondly, the intelligentsia mainly belongs to the petty bourgeoisie. The petty-bourgeoisie are parasites. Even when they do not directly exploit they partake the fruits of exploitation. They are exploiters and the exploited at the same time. Society advances on the basis of the development of productive forces, when a particular productive relation becomes an impediment in the development of productive forces, the advancement of society is hampered unless that relation is altered. When feudal productive relations had been hampering the growth of productive forces, the new capitalist productive relations were created. Its driving power was the new born bourgeoisie. Feudalism was replaced by capitalism. Today, capitalist relations cannot carry society forward. New relations have to be brought in. The new relations will be socialistic and its driving force will be the working class. This new society will be built on the basis of friendship with broad peasant masses. In the place of capitalism there will be socialism, the petty bourgeoisie, partners in the old rotten productive system of capitalism cannot be the main force behind this social change, cannot give leadership in this process.

Thirdly, many people think that the members of the intelligentsia are well-read and they know everything. But it is not true. Whatever they may learn, their knowledge is partial, incomplete, because it is derived from bookish study. Real knowledge can be had only through work, through application of knowledge to social practice. Unless one participates in the productive-processes, and join the class struggle, no knowledge can be complete. If anyone wants to acquire correct knowledge about any subject, he must get in direct touch with it. He must get his hands into it. Otherwise his knowledge will remain imperfect.

Therefore it is important to take part in social practice, in any productive process. It is because of this that despite lack of formal knowledge, a worker and a peasant knows more than a member of the intelligentsia. Being a participant in the production process, being instrumental in social change, he carries forward the task of revolution and hence historical development. A member of the

intelligentsia, in the absence of this experience, can have only a partial understanding. Therefore, he can not belong to the leadership of revolutionary struggle.

The educational system in India was created by the colonial power in the interest of having a comprador class in this country. The system today supplies the manpower needed to preserve the imperialist mode of exploitation and feudal pattern of relations. Its use is to produce robot-like men to aid exploitation. The new liberal policies being implemented at the behest of imperialist financial

institutions are shaping the education system into a profit making sector. At the same time, it is being designed to turn the Indian youth into tools who apply technology, but never able to gain the scientific knowledge needed to develop our own appropriate technologies. This perpetuates our dependency on the imperialist countries. Those who cannot give up illusions about this system

meant only to help exploiter class, are unable grasp the working class politics.

Exploited Petty-bourgeoisie

The petty-bourgeois intelligentsia is also the exploited. How? Most of them are employees dependent on salaries. Their emoluments do not increase corresponding to the price rise of commodities. As a result, their condition is getting worse day by day, particularly so since they have to preserve the trappings of gentlemanliness. Unemployment, the inevitable outcome of an all

round crisis, has assumed monstrous proportions, students cannot look forward any more to getting jobs. At this stage of economic crisis, these sections cannot keep their identity and are bound to get DE-classed. They are ground by the giant exploitative machine, the common victims of capitalism.

The much-trumpeted free enterprise is a cover to hide the hideous fight of big fish gobbling small fry!

The petty bourgeois have no roots. To belong to the bourgeoisie is beyond their power, but they feel humiliated at the same time to be one with the proletariat. Of course, in the end in their own interest, they will join the PDF. The liberation of the laboring masses is their liberation too. They are also exploited, the difference being, the workers and peasants are more directly exploited. They have to come to the united front of revolutionary classes. There is no other way.

Students are the exploited section, not only in an economic sense of the term, but also in the sphere of education. The education they receive, unfit to serve the masses, only make them adept in exploiting the people. The bookish knowledge they get, unrelated to reality, they realise later, have made them cogs in a vast machine. They find themselves on the opposite side of the barricade, arrayed against the people. This perverted system has produced only weaklings, whose lives are centered round pay- packets.

A student has no choice before him in the matter of subject he wants to learn, chances of getting a job is the criterion. One who wants to learn English literature goes in for Economics. In this system the talk of free development of personality is humbug. Extracurricular activities are discouraged. Their talents are wasted. Their youthful vigor is lost in the welter of economic, social

and political taboos. Students have no say in making the syllabus or in the mode of instruction. On the other hand, the authorities enjoy absolute liberty of actions, of serving the interest of the exploiters. They sow the seeds of reaction at the behest of the ruling class and its mentor, US imperialism and propagate the virtues of Yankee culture.

Liberation of the student community is impossible unless this system is resolutely fought and crushed. To achieve this student must join the ranks of people’s democratic forces, the workers and peasants.

Come Forward Young Intellectuals, Students & Youths

The intellectuals and the students have to mix thoroughly with the working class and the peasantry. They have to be one with them. They have to serve the people. Their petty-bourgeois mentality which tries to keep them away from revolution will disappear gradually if they try to be one with the people. Only in this way can they become real revolutionaries and can dedicate themselves to the bigger cause by giving up their own class interest. Only then can they be able to unite with the progressive classes and give up their own class position. But the task is not easy. They have to bring this change.

The intellectuals and students have to go among the workers and peasants to unite and organise them. The main task will be to propagate politics among them. The intellectuals and students will in this way help in forging a political united front of the toiling masses.

What is the class character of the Students?

A large section of young intellectuals is the student community. Students do not belong to any particular class, because young men and women of all classes are there among them. They are young in age. So the forces of reaction can influence them little. They have a tremendous life-force. They are very much interested to learn new things. They have less conservatism in their thought. They have a strong sense of Justice. They are always ready to oppose injustice. A great advantage for them is than they have time at their disposal. They can spend this time in revolutionary work. For all these, the student community as a whole, is always progressive and a party to the people’s democratic front.

Build yourself in the light of Mao’s Thought

Mao wrote, “How should we judge whether a youth is a revolutionary? How can we tell? There can only be one criterion namely, whether or not he is willing to integrate himself with the broad masses of workers and peasants and does so in practice. If he is willing to do so and actually do so, he is a revolutionary; otherwise he is a non-revolutionary or a counter revolutionary. If today he integrates himself with the masses of workers and peasants, then today he is a revolutionary; if tomorrow he ceases to do so or turns round to oppress the common people, then he becomes a non-revolutionary or counter-revolutionary.”

The Chinese youths and students occupied the front rank during the historic May 4 th Movement in China in 1919. How could they do this? Intellectuals and students were the first to realise the need for a revolution to win freedom from the yoke of exploitation, as they possessed some progressive

consciousness derived from their education. If political consciousness and the sense of revolutionary self- sacrifice intermingle, the intellectuals acquire a revolutionary character. Youths and students fought from the forefront during the May 4 th Movement because they believed in revolutionary politics and were ready to sacrifice everything for the interest of the masses. As a result, they could show courage and take a leading role in the movement.

Moreover, the Chinese working class was not advanced and united at that time. The Communist Party of China was not yet there. As a result, the movement was deprived of such a party leadership. So the working class could not come to the forefront of the movement. In this situation the intellectuals and students came to the forefront of the movement with their progressive thoughts and political consciousness. They created a revolutionary impact throughout the country. But yet they could not be the motive force leading the Chinese revolution to success.

A trend in Student movement

Some politicians have, of late, raised such slogans – students, leave the educational institutions; go to villages; mix with the peasants; propagate politics of revolution. These cannot be done by attending schools and colleges. So, go to villages by leaving schools, colleges and universities. This system of education is the fulcrum of this decaying society. So it must be destroyed. Boycott

examinations.

Are such slogans correct? Two things must be examined to find out whether a slogan is correct or wrong. First, why is a slogan being given? And secondly, when is the slogan being given?

1. Why will a student cadre be sent to the village or to the working class? Communists should be, at the same time, both a student and a teacher. To teach revolutionary theory to the masses one must become a student as well of the masses. Then only can one qualify himself for propagating revolutionary theory and become an organizer. So while trying to disseminate the theory of revolution, he must stay with them, must share the stresses and strains of their life. This is why he should live among the peasant in villages and among the workers in cities. And as the peasantry constitute by far the greatest numerical strength in the revolutionary camp. It is necessary to place large number of political cadres in the rural belt. Herein lays the urgency of sending revolutionary intellectuals in large numbers to the villages. The work requires patience and theoretical knowledge. Time as well as adequate training is needed for his. But why are the students being sent to villages now by giving “leave the colleges” slogan? They are being sent to participate in operation extermination. The idea of those people who are giving this slogan to leave educational institutions, is that the local reactionaries must be killed one by one by secret guerrilla units and only in this way can the local people be awakened. These extermination operations are being called “actions”. Students are being sent to villages to lead and participate in these actions, and not to preach revolutionary theories, or build a revolutionary party or mass organization. This theory of action is against the “people’s war” theory of comrade Mao Tse-tung. Leave the colleges will not be a revolutionary slogan if the students are asked to go to villages for this action.

Another thing must be made clear. Those who are going to villages may do so by revolutionary impulse. But they cannot do serious revolutionary work if they do not acquire complete competence for this. To build up revolutionary struggle and organization is a tough job. Strong determination, patience, courage and correct theoretical knowledge are needed for this. It must be seen whether a cadre possesses these qualities before sending him to build up revolutionary

organizations in village or in a workers’ colony. If he does not have these qualifications he will do harm instead of doing good. Revolutionary organization cannot build only with revolutionary impulse.

The first necessity for the success of revolution is the existence of a real communist party. The revolutionary forces are rising in India with a tremendous speed. These forces fail to proceed in the proper way for the absence of a correct leadership of a party. There exists much theoretical confusion in the revolutionary camp. The revolution is not proceeding along the correct line as a result of wrong application of correct theories or application of incorrect theories. And no real revolutionary Party has emerged as yet. When there is no real party, the main task should be to strive to build up a real party and not to send student cadres indiscriminately to rural areas enmasse. Ideological battle must be carried on in building up the party, relentless theoretical war must be

continued against all sorts of deviations. At the same time, every revolutionary cadre must take part in all class struggles and mass movements. Through all these works a revolutionary leadership will emerge and develop.

Only a revolutionary party leadership can send bathes of students in a planned manner to participate in movements on necessary occasions and can direct them properly under the control of the leadership. When even this primary revolutionary work is not done the slogan of leaving schools and colleges is not only a deviation from revolutionary politics, but is also a slogan to create chaos and anarchy among the student community. The student community can be consistent in the revolution only when the basic masses carry on an uninterrupted revolutionary struggle. The students of Telangana can out of their educational institutions in 1949 and participated in the movement along with the peasants only after the peasantry carried on their struggle to the optimum. Of course, students have work to do at the first stage of revolution. Advanced students with revolutionary political consciousness and character will definitely go to villages in a planned way to awaken the peasants with revolutionary politics. They will unite with the workers in cities to organise them for direct class struggle. Through these works they will acquire the qualities to directly participate in fights in villages in a bigger way. And those who acquire these qualities will of course stay in the rural belt as professional revolutionaries. The advanced students will do this under the leadership of the party. Apart from students who live in cities, there are many students who live in villages. The responsibility of students living in villages is great in peasant revolution. They can very well preach the politics of revolution to the peasantry. The students residing in villages have the best opportunity to work among them even without leaving schools and colleges.

The students who come from villages to attend schools and colleges in cities and suburbs can learn acquire knowledge about working class struggle in cities. They can utilize this knowledge in rousing their respective villages. They can at the same time enlighten the students of cities with their special knowledge about the rural life and its struggle. In this way can the students of cities come in direct contact with class struggle in villages and vice versa and verify respective knowledge. Moreover, the students of cities and towns may in leisure time accompany their student friends coming from the village, to go to their native places to have firsthand knowledge of the village life.

Student organization is a type of mass organization. The party preaches and spreads its politics among the larger masses through these mass organizations. So, the party must have a student organization to reach the politics of new democratic revolution to the student community as a whole. The advanced students will do this work under the leadership of the party. The advanced students will be able to establish mass base for the politics of the working class and bring the student community into the fold of the revolutionary united front only if they succeed in spreading the politics of new democratic revolution. If without doing this the educational system is paralyzed with “leave colleges” slogan, a large section of the student community and middle class people will go against the revolution. This is a big loss at the stage of new democratic or

people’s democratic revolution, when large section of the masses should be united. It will not do if a handful of students only go ahead. Politics must be spread among the entire student community. So long as there is no organization among the students and the largest section of the student community is not participating in the politics of revolution, the “leave college” slogan cannot deliver any good for the cause of revolution.

Before doing any work we must see how far it will advance our main aim. If the cause of revolution can advance with the closure of schools and colleges then we must do that. But in practice the case is just the reverse.

Build a New Society: Destroy the Thoughts of the Exploiters

The bourgeois education system must be destroyed. But how? Is it by upsetting the examinations and closing the educational institutions? Of course not. That is possible only after the establishment of the people’s democratic state. The education system is a part of the super- structure which depends on the system of production, that is, the economic structure of the society. The super-structure cannot be radically changed without changing the structure. So, it is not possible

at this moment to establish a new system of education by destroying only the present educational institutions.

But shall we the revolutionary workers then allow this bourgeois education system to go unhampered and unchallenged? Of course not. Comrade Mao Tse tung teaches us that all reactionary things are of same stuff. They do not crumble down on their own without any blow. We will oppose everything that the enemy supports. We have to fight in all fronts. Education and culture is one of enemies’ important fronts. We have also to fight against it. We must prove that this system of education is a part of this decaying colonial and imperialist culture and so this system is also worn out. In 1968 some examiners of the political science department of Calcutta University took bribe and gave good marks to many bad students. Their nasty move was made public by an inquiry forced by a student movement. Here the students have a major role to play.

Again, a few years back, the students of political science of Calcutta University started a movement against the syllabus and demanded that it must be changed. In this way they revealed the decadent character of this education system. Though their movement did not totally succeed but it proved that no progressive change can be brought under this setup; the whole system must be changed. That is possible only after changing the whole society through the new democratic revolution. But this education system must be constantly hit by movements like this and other democratic movements. Entry of imperialism into Universities and other educational cultural institutions must be resisted by organizing large scale and strong student movements. Simultaneously, the students must endeavor to build up a revolutionary culture with the medium of art, literature, drama, etc. These are the historical limitations within which the students should necessarily confine themselves just at the movement.

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FIXED TERM EMPLOYMENT: A SUBTERFUGE FOR LEGITIMIZING CONTRACT LABOUR.

Fixed Term Employment: A Subterfuge for Legitimizing Contract Labour.

(This Article Published in 'CLASS STRUGGLE', the Organ of CPI(ML) Central Committee)

In the budget for 2018-19, Central Finance Minister announced the government’s decision to allow hiring of workers on fixed-term contracts for all employers.

As a follow up of this announcement the “Industrial employment (standing orders)rules- 1946 have been amended, so as to enable employers to hire workers through fixed term contract method providing much flexibility in hiring seasonal and other temporary laborers.

The Union government thus made it easier for the industry to hire labour contractually for a fixed, implicitly for shorter term. Such labour can be terminated at the end of the contract without any notice, without having to pay any retrenchment compensation whatever. The employers need not renew the contract on its expiry.

As usual the FICCI welcomed this move made by the NDA government hailing it that it would ease the doing of business.

This move is an outcome of a consultation meeting held on Feb 2018 by the Labour and Employment Ministry with representatives of state governments, trade unions and industry. All the 12 state governments represented in the meeting were in favor of the Fixed Term Contracts (FTC). The RSS affiliated BMS, National Front of Trade Unions (NFITU) and Trade Union Coordination

Committee (TUCC) have supported the move. The other trade unions walked out of the meeting as a protest over not holding consultations before announcing the move in the Union budget.

The supporters of the industry are hailing this move to be a “big ticket labour reform”.

In fact this bitter pill of FTC is coated with such a sugar that it provides for more job opportunities, and more secure working conditions. That the FTC workers are ensured with same work hours, wages, allowances and other benefits on par with the permanent workers such as PF, ESI, bonus, gratuity and other compensation in case of accidents or death while at work, is the bait put forwarded before the workers to accept the contract work system which is universally being criticized and opposed.

While such a facility of FTC was allowed since October 2016 to the leather and garment industries, now it has been extended to all the sectors.

According to the data from the Annual Survey of Industries, the proportion of contractual labour in total employment in industries has increased considerably. During 2014-15, about a third of the total workers employed in factories were hired through contracts and the terms of their employment are worse than the rest. Such worse working conditions and terms are being condemned and opposed strongly by various sections of contract labour, whose basic demand was the regularization of their services as permanent workers with all due statutory benefits.

But instead of meeting and answering this pertinent and basic demand, the NDA government has chosen to hood-wink the workers with secondary promises rejecting the concept of permanency in jobs. It successfully evades to address this demand of workers and has chosen to reject the demand of guaranteed permanent employment and job security of workers with dubious pretensions that FTC would help to remove the discrimination against contractual workers. Thus it refutes the notion that jobs shall be the entitlement of people.

The supporters of the system laud this FTC rules “despite higher costs it will entail”. Whatever might be the trumpeting about the virtues of FTC by the rulers and their henchmen, the bitter fact that the FTC system is a legalized stepping stone to entirely doing away with the system of permanent employment and job security which every workmen is aspiring as his natural entitlement.

This FTC system is not a new one invented by the NDA rulers. In Europe, employers of many countries, to avoid the employment protection provided for the employees by law and to reducing firing costs of workers have taken recourse to FTC system.

The experience of the FTC system shows that majority of the employment contracts comes under FTC to a significant level. As a consequence of this the employers remain reluctant to convert FTC jobs to permanent ones and only fewer workers are hired as permanent workers. In Spain 90 percent of all entries into employment starts as FTC and these workers are either ending up getting struck in FTC or more frequently become unemployed or self employed, rather than employed on permanent basis. There is every possibility that the same would be the fate of workers in India in FTC.

Moreover FTC will have adverse effects on permanent workers too. The managements will be using the FTC workers to their advantage to suppress the bargaining power of the permanent workers as has been evident in the study conducted by Radhika Kapoor and P.P.Krishnapriya who found that “the rising of contract workers in India has enabled firms to curb the bargaining power and

consequently wages of their existing work-force. That the real wages of directly hired workers in the organized manufacturing sector has remained virtually stagnant over the last 15 years is suggestive of this behavior”.

These are the times that the contract workers from various departments have been launching vigorous agitations for the regularization of their jobs and better working conditions as has been witnessed in the strike of contract workers of AP Electricity corporations and the agitation of 1500 railway apprentices that held up rail movement in Mumbai recently demanding for their recruitment into railways directly to permanent posts and doing away with contract system of

employment. The NDA rulers in the guise of new FTC system are legalizing the very contract employment system.

Though the FTC system is praised for its virtues of providing all statutory benefits to contract workers of FTC on par with permanent workers, there is no guarantee that the provisions of the newly amended law will be strictly implemented by the employers, as has been the case with the implementation of previous labour laws which have been deliberately violated by them.The HR departments of corporate sector are more skillful in evading the implementation of laws under some invented pretext or other, raising unending litigation as has been with the case of Maruti- Suzuki workers.

As usual the traditional trade union centers have expressed their ‘protest’ as a formality against FTC. It is apparent that they are more worried that the government has not consulted with them about this move before announcing in the Union budget, than for the actual adverse impacts of the FTC, on the conditions of workers in India denying their natural rights of job entitlement, permanent employment and job security. Instead of conducting ritualistic protests with formal approach as is being done presently against anti-worker policies and attacks of our rulers, ruling classes at the behest of big bourgeoisie, the workers’ movement of our country shall make sincere efforts to unite, awaken the workers consistently and prepare them to fight relentlessly for the protection of their interests with class militancy.
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