| Written by André Freire |
| Wednesday, 18 January 2012 02:56 |
 The National Congress of PSOL does not veto the coalitions with bourgeois and pro-government parties and transfers the decision on these alliances to the National Board.The PSOL (Socialism and Freedom Party) has recently held its National Congress, where the main theses ranged from those who have assumed right away the proposition of alliances with the bourgeois sectors in the coming elections, and others who, accepting this assumption as correct, presented propositions to transfer this decision to the National Board or to a future Party convention. It eventually prevailed, according to the Congress official reports, the decision to accept the possibility of coalitions with bourgeois parties and pro-government parties, but the final decision on the matter must be transferred to the National Board. Regardless of the Congress formal resolution, what is taking place is the strengthening of the policy that had already been applied partially in 2008 and 2010. Unfortunately, the overwhelming majority of PSOL national leaderships propose the rout of the so-called expansion of political alliances with bourgeois parties or pro-government parties, such as PV, PSB, PTB and PCdoB[1]. Thus, PSOL attempts to repeat the same road walked by PT in the late 1980’s and 90’s, that is, to adapt its program and strategy to alliances with bourgeois parties, arguing that this is the only way to increase their participation in the legislatures and thus arrive at the municipal power. PT’s trajectory has already shown where this action inevitably ends, this relaxation of the principle of the working class’s political independence towards the bourgeoisies and their parties. In 2008, out of the 25 councilors elected by PSOL, no less than 15 have won the election because of their alliances with bourgeois and pro-government parties. After that, some of these councilors were expelled, especially those of small cities. But in the most important cities, where PSOL’s major currents controlled the mandates, its national leadership endorsed the election of councilors allied with the bourgeois parties. This is what happened in Macapá (capital of Amapá state), in alliance with PSB and PMN, and in Porto Alegre (capital of Rio Grande do Sul state) with the PV. Another unfortunate memory of the 2008 elections was the fact that the PSOL of Porto Alegre has accepted funding from large companies like Gerdau, for Luciana Genro’s campaign, then running for Mayor Election. In 2010, we watched the initiative of most of the leadership of PSOL to seek an alliance with the presidential candidacy of Marina Silva, at that time in PV. This alliance did not materialize, after public negotiations that stretched out until the election year, because it bumped into the PV approach to the right-wing opposition parties, especially the alliance with Fernando Gabeira (PV) and the PSDB[2], for the municipality elections in Rio de Janeiro city. In 2011, during the preparatory discussions for the municipal elections, rather than what was expected by PSOL’s rank and file and some of its Left trends, we’ve not seen a review of the 2008 and 2010’s wrong path, but rather the intensification of the alliances policy with bourgeois parties. PSOL’s Congress in Rio de Janeiro approved the name of Marcelo Freixo as the Mayor Party’s candidate for next municipality elections and, by a wide majority, approved the alliance of PSOL with PV and with Gabeira, who may run for councilman. That is, the same Gabeira who, in 2010 allied himself with the PSDB can now be side by side with PSOL. In addition to the alliance decision with PV, the Congress vetoed the possibility of alliance on the proportional slate with the leftwing parties, demonstrating once again the PSOL’s hegemonic behavior before other left parties, such as PSTU and PCB. The State of Amapá, Northern Brazil, experienced the disputed election of Senator Randolfe Rodrigues (PSOL) in 2010, when there was a public and informal alliance with PTB and other bourgeois parties. Earlier in 2008, it had already happened the election of Luis Clécio as a Councilman for Macapá, in coalition with PSB. Now, the PSOL, as demanded by Randolfe, has been discussing even broader alliances involving governmental parties like PT and PCdoB as well as PTB, PTC and other bourgeois parties, all in an attempt to make feasible his election as Macapá’s Mayor in 2012 elections. Unfortunately, the same scenario can be repeated in other capitals and major cities such as Belém (capital of Pará state), Northern Brazil, where the coalition around the candidacy of the State Representative Edmilson Rodrigues for the Mayor elections may include PCdoB. PSTU will keep calling for a Leftist and Socialist Front Our party will continue, in these first months of the year, calling PSOL, PCB[3] and all the combative social movements in the country, to join forces and build together a Socialist Left Front in the main cities. A Leftist and Socialist Front completely independent, politically and financially from bourgeoisie; a Leftist and Socialist Front which is not funded by enterprises and entrepreneurs; a real Leftist and Socialist Front which fights against all governments and is built in a democratic way, respecting the social weight of all political parties and social organizations involved in it. In this direction, it has been of great importance the positive examples of the major cities such as Natal and Aracaju, where programmatic initial discussions have been held among parties, organizations and activists. In these cities, although there are political differences, any and all alliances with the bourgeois parties have been rejected, just the opposite of the pathway adopted, unfortunately, by the majority of the PSOL national leadership. We renew the call to the PSOL national leadership and to local leaders, at least in Rio de Janeiro and Amapá, to review their chosen route, i.e. the alliances with the bourgeois parties, so that the discussions on the construction of a Leftist and Socialist Front can be resumed in most cities. However, we want to make it clear and public, where this route is adopted by PSOL, the PSTU will not participate in such alliances of class conciliation, and we will be discussing with the combative social movements and with PCB the possibility of a Leftist and Socialist Front construction. Or else we will present our own candidates for the elections aiming at the continuous defense of the principle of political independence of workers and their organizations. [1] PV – Green Party; PSB – Brazilian Socialist Party; PTB – Brazilian Labor Party; PCdoB – Communist Party of Brazil; PT – Workers Party (that runs national administration). [2] PSDB – Party of Brazilian Social-Democracy, the main rightwing party in Brazil. [3] PSTU – Unified Socialist Workers Party (section of IWL-FI in Brazil); PCB – Brazilian Communist Party. |