PARTIT KOMUNISTA MALTI: 70th anniversary of the Victory over nazi-fascism

Thursday, May 7, 2015

70th anniversary of the Victory over nazi-fascism

The liberation of Berlin by Soviet troops in May of 1945, marks the victory of the peoples in World War II and the defeat of Nazi-fascism – the most violent form of class domination generated by capitalism and the direct cause of the war and of the death of tens of millions of human beings.

The decisive role in the Victory of May 9, 1945 was played by the Soviet Union, its people and Red Army, under the leadership of its Communist Party. It was on the Eastern Front that the major battles which determined the outcome of World War II were fought. To mark the 70^th anniversary of the Victory is to recall and celebrate the heroism, the courage and determination of millions of Soviet men and women who, at the cost of enormous sacrifice and of over 27 million dead, resisted and fought, giving a decisive contribution to the defeat of the Nazi-fascist barbarity. To celebrate the 70th anniversary of the Victory is to remember and praise the heroism, courage and determination of millions of other resistance fighters and anti-fascist strugglers from all over the world who dedicated and committed their lives to the struggle for Victory.

Nazi-fascism was a brutal instrument of big capital to impose its rule, when confronted with the profound crisis of capitalism which followed World War I, in particular after the big crisis of 1929 and the repercussions of the October Revolution. Anti-communism was always a defining trait of Nazi-fascism. Everywhere, the working-class and popular movements, and especially the Communists, were its first victims. Everywhere, the Communists were in the front ranks of the resistance to fascism and were at the vanguard of the mass and armed resistance which led to the liberation.

Today, the resurgence of the fascist threat and the danger of a new war of great proportions are real and and growing. Again, in the context of an ever deeper crisis of capitalism – which results from its irreconcilable contradictions – big capital is attempting to emerge from the crisis by force, imposing brutal levels of exploitation and attacking the peoples' sovereignty and the independence of States on all continents. The big imperialist powers attempt to impose their world-wide hegemony by military means, multiplying their wars of aggression. Ukraine is living the consequences of fascist action, with the active support of the USA and the European Union – and of their military wing, NATO. In the name of “the struggle against Communism”, revisionism and historical forgery, with the shameless equation between fascism and Communism, are leading to a rehabilitation of fascism.

It is therefore of crucial importance to recall the lessons of history, to remember the crimes of Nazi-fascism, its class nature and the complicities which gave rise to its ascent. The tragedy of World War II must not be forgotten, so that another catastrophe may be prevented.

The undersigned Communist and Workers' Parties call upon the workers and the peoples of the whole world to develop their liberating struggle, to make the celebrations of the 70^th anniversary of the Victory over Nazi-fascism into a powerful assertion of unity and struggle for peace, and against the threat of fascism and war, which is rooted in capitalism and which represents a danger to Humanity, and for democracy, social progress and socialism.

List of signatory parties

Communist Party of Albania

Communist Party of Argentina

Algerian Party for Democracy and Socialism

Communist Party of Australia

Workers Party of Belgium

Communist Party of Brazil

Communist Party of Britain

New Communist Party of Britain

Communist Party of Canada

Communist Party of Chile

Socialist Workers' Party of Croatia

Progressive Party of the Working People, Cyprus

Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia

Communist Party in Denmark

Communist Party of Denmark

German Communist Party

Communist Party of Greece

Hungarian Workers' Party

Communist Party of India

Communist Party of India (Marxist)

Tudeh Party of Iran

Iraqui Communist Party

Communist Party of Ireland

Party of the Italian Communists

Lebanese Communist Party

Communist Party of Luxembourg

New Communist Party of the Netherlands

Communist Party of Malta

Communist Party of Mexico

Peruan Communist Party

Portuguese Communist Party

Communist Party of the Russian Federation

Communists of Serbia

South African Communist Party

Communist Party of Slovakia

Syrian Communist Party

Syrian Communist Party (Unified)

Communist Party of Spain

Communists of Catalunya, Spain

Communist Party of the Peoples of Spain

Communist Party of Swaziland

Communist Party, Turkey

Communist Party of Uruguay

Communist Party of Ukraine

Communist Party of Venezuela

Comunist Party of Vietnam

New Communist Party of Yugoslavia

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Some History

An organized Communist Party did not exist prior to 1969. Secret Communist cells existed in various periods from the 1920's onwards, but they were always small in number. Maltese communists militated either in the Communist Party of Great Britain, or in the Partito Comunista Italiano, or worked under cover within the Malta Labour Party, which was also infiltrated by the catholic clergy at that time, in an effort to prevent the Labour Party from taking a Marxist line, notably amongst these infiltrators was Mgr. Michael Gonzi, the future Archbishop of Malta and a faithful servant of the British Crown and a much bitter enemy of Malta’s Liberation Movement in Malta’s struggle for Independence in the late 1950's.
The Civil and ecclesiastical authorities were ever vigilant in their witch hunt, and this culminated in the 1933 sedition trails where a number of dockyard workers and intellectuals were imprisoned for the crime of possessing classical Marxist literature. This however proved to be a great setback for the progressive movement as it took years and years to get back on its feet again
. The major exponent of the bourgeoisie was the Nationalist Party, an irredentist party firmly believing that Malta was a part of Italy that had yet to be redeemed, from English occupation. Its leaders favored the Italian Language to Maltese, and openly shown sympathies towards Mussolini’s fascist Italian state. With the Second World War looming on the horizon the English colonial authorities sacked a Nationalist administration after winning an election with the aid of the Catholic Church who had imposed mortal sin on who ever voted for the Constitutional Party, a pro British Bourgeoisie party. This pro Italy position eventually led, to the internment of the Nationalist Party leadership on breakout of the war. After the Second World War it was the right wing turn now to suffer a setback. The Second World War changed completely the political scene in Malta; however the times were still difficult for the setting up of a Communist party.
At the Mayday celebrations of 1948, where in a dinner held by the Labour Party for the occasion. The English socialist anthem Scarlet Banner was sung by some leftists present of the at this event. This caused an incident which led to affidavits and statements by the leading members of the labour party in parliament and a witch hunt by the Catholic Church paper Lehen Is-Sewwa (The Voice of the Righteousness) and the British Colonial authorities.

DEMOCRACY DID NOT REALLY EXIST IN MALTA PRIOR TO 1971, not under the direct British Colonial rule, neither under the first Nationalist Administration after the 1964 independence. It was not possible to form a Communist Party. It was enough just to receive the "Soviet Weekly" from the United Kingdom, to find yourself watched and tailed by plainclothes policemen, and even taken to be interrogated by the Police. The Maltese Prime Minister in the early 1950’s took a film distributing company to court in order to stop the screening four Soviet films which the then, very harsh censors, had deemed them fit for viewing by the Maltese general public. Even Hollywood ran into trouble, if the story line included communists. One positive aspect was the cold war cinema films of the McCarthy era were banned in Malta. The Civil authorities went into hysteria at the word communist. The then regular Christmas tournament, organized by the Malta Football Association was stopped, because most the teams invited came from Eastern Europe. The catholic oligarchy led by the now Sir Michael Gonzi Archbishop of Malta with its’ network of Parish priests spying on each and every individual in each respective parish operating in a Gestapo fashion. The Main employment on the island depended on the Naval Dockyard, and on the other British Military Bases. The contradiction here was that, to declare oneself Communist would have been sheer madness, as these "devout" Catholics, would have starved you to death, while on the other hand Marxist Ideas spread amongst progressive workers, by the odd English Airmen or Sailors posted on the island.

In the last days of the Catholic hierarchy imposed Dr George Borg Olivier Nationalist administration, as in 1962 and 1966 general elections the church again made use of moral sanctions, now to safeguard its privileges it enjoyed during the colonial period, The Communist party was eventually set up, through the activism of Paul Agius who had returned to Malta, from Australia, who along with other Maltese comrades founded the Communist Party of Malta This event took place around 1969. The party for a short period operated underground but after 1971 when the Borg Olivier administration was finally defeated The Party came out into the open. The Party Membership started to grow Lillian Schiberras Anthony Vassallo, Anthony Baldachinno and others. Evarist Bartolo, Mario Vella, and Alfred Consiglio were amongst the early members
It is not possible to mention all here but many passed through party membership. During the 1970,s the party gave critical support from the left to the Dom Mintoff’s Labour Party administration progressive, anti imperialist policy. The Party supported the policy of neutrality and the demilitarization of Malta, At the time Malta was an important NATO Base. The Communist Party was not prepared to contest the General Elections in 1976 and in 1979 was in support of the closing down of all the military bases in Malta. In 1981.for various reasons, again the party could not contest in the general elections. During the 1980's the party embarked on the road towards electoral campaigns. The party started to publish a monthly newspaper "Zminijietna" and started to prepare for the evantuality of contesting. The Party was now going through its golden age as membership started to grow and things were looking up. On the eve of the 1987 elections Dom Mintoff now a backbencher in the Labour administration proposed amendments to the Maltese constitution, which were accepted unanimously. The electoral rules were changed to suit the two party system and it resulted that small parties now had no chance of surmounting the unofficial 17% threshold. The Central Committee failed to read the writing on the wall. Failed to withdraw from the fray, and contested the 1987 elections with disastrous results. After this debacle, the party went into a period of decline. The events in Eastern Europe of 1989 continued to give the party further blows, where now it was a struggle to survive and keep its archives.
In the mid 1990’s the party slowly started again on the road of being active once again.
NEWS FROM FRATERNAL PARTIES
Communist Festival in Copenhagen, Denmark
A Festival jointly organised by the Communist Party in Denmark (KPiD) and the Communist Party of Denmark (DKP) takes place on Saturday 15. August (12-23) and Sunday 16. August (12-18) in Norrebroparken in Copenhagen (near Nordbanegade). Bus 5A from Central Train Station. Lots of music, speakers from the 2 organising parties and from other organisations, political debates, displays, food, drinks and happiness - everything in favour of the 2 communist papers, Kommunist and Skub.
Everybody visiting Copenhagen are invited!

LINKS
http://www.icsbrussels.org/ICS/2009/Sci09_Available_Papers.htm
http://cubaveritas.blogspot.com/

http://www.havanatimes.org/?p=14368

http://wwwlavienglish.blogspot.com/2010/10/soviet-union-was-born-in-october-1917.html

http://aucpbenglishwebsite.blogspot.com/

http://inter.kke.gr/en/articles/Statement-of-77-Communist-and-Workers-Parties-against-the-Imperialist-Military-Attack-against-Syria/

http://communismgr.blogspot.com.mt

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PARTIT KOMUNISTA MALTI

Thursday, May 7, 2015

70th anniversary of the Victory over nazi-fascism

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