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Salient. Victoria University Student Newspaper. Volume 36, Number 22. 1973

Democratic Centralism

Democratic Centralism

The only means by which the proletariat may establish the dictatorship of the proletariat and build socialism is by means of a Marxist-leninist communist party run on the lines of democratic centralism. A united and militant party run on democratic centralist lines is essential for the proletariat to gain victory. As Lenin stressed "organisation is the only weapon of the working class." This disciplined organisation has the police, and ultimately the armed forces of the capitalist state to confront.

But although it is disciplined and thoroughly united the workers' party is also essentially democratic. "We have already more than once enunciated our theoretical view on the importance of discipline and how this concept is to be understood in the party of the working class. We defined it as unity of action, freedom of discussion and criticism." (Lenin)

"If we are to make the party strong, we must practise democratic centralism to stimulate the initiative of the whole membership...... centralism must be closely linked with democracy. Let us apply democracy and so give scope to initiative throughout the party." Mao Tse-tung.

An excellent example of this style of work may be found in the book "Vietnam will Win" by Wilfred Burchett, where the revolutionary fighters for Vietnamese liberation are shown to have successfully applied Lenin's principle of unity of action and freedom of discussion and criticism.

Only such a party of the most politically conscious and advanced elements of the working class can lead the masses to victory.

This has never been more true than in the present era of imperialism. Imperialism is, as Lenin pointed out, the highest stage of capitalism. It is the financial and political control of one or more countries by a highly industrialised country in the interests of obtaining at the cheapest cost the minerals, products and labour and selling at the highest profits. If the exploited people resist then the military of the imperialist country intervene.

The relationship of people's liberation movements and imperialism may be illustrated by a comment from W.W. Rostow, one of Lyndon Johnson's advisers. (We always give the other side of the story!!!)

"The location, natural resources, and populations of the underdeveloped areas arc such that, should they become effectively attached to the communist bloc, the United States would become the second power in the world... If the underdeveloped areas fall under communist domination or if they move to fixed hostility to the West, the economic and military strength of Western Europe and Japan will be diminished, the British Commonwealth as it is now organised will disintegrate, and the Atlantic world will become, at best, an awkward alliance, incapable of exercising effective influence outside a limited orbit, with the balance of the world's power lost to it. In short, our military security and our way of life as well as the fate of Western Europe and Japan are at stake..." (W.W. Rostow)

And of course Rostow's "military security and "our way of Iife" is the way of life of the bourgeoise, the exploiter.

As Stalin correctly pointed out in "The Foundations of Leninism", "Leninism is Marxism in the era of imperialism and of the proletarian revolution."

The progressive people of the world, the oppressed masses of Africa, South America and South-east Asia, the working classes of the capitalist nations are all struggling in a common battle to the death against imperialism and capitalism.

"People of the world, unite and defeat the U.S. aggressors and all their running dogs! People of the world, be courageous, dare to fight, defy difficulties and advance wave upon wave. Then the whole world will belong to the people. Monsters of all kinds will be destroyed." (Mao Tsetung).