150 years - Long live the Commune of Paris (1871)! Let us organize for revolutionary socialism!

The continental conference of ICOR EUROPE in the beginning of 2020, on the proposal of its member organizations in France “Unité Communiste” and “Union Prolétarienne Marxiste-Léniniste” decided by unanimity to carry out a campaign in order to celebrate the 150^th anniversary of the Commune of Paris.

This anniversary to us is not a 'historical affair', not a fetish. With Karl Marx we say: “Working men's Paris, with its Commune, will forever be celebrated as the glorious harbinger of a new society”, liberated from the dictatorship of the exploiters, the capitalists, the gravediggers of human progress. This is of particular importance in the face of the overall social crises that have already surfaced in some countries, showing that the masses are looking for alternatives.

The Commune of Paris was a mighty blazing flame, the violent outburst of suffering, anger and hope of the people of Paris. It was a shining meteorite from 18 March to 28 May 1871. Even if only for a short time, it was an important break that the revolutionaries knew how to bring about in order to establish their own order.

An order of justice and democracy, of freedom, equality and peace. The Paris Commune was an earthquake that, after the revolutions of 1830 and 1848, sought not only bourgeois freedom but a new, socialist and internationalist society.

The revolution of the Paris Commune in 1871 is a brilliant example, of a fundamental social alternative to crisis-ridden capitalism and the imperialist world system:

- The Paris Commune created the first workers' government, the first dictatorship of the proletariat, and fought for important rules and features of this democracy of the workers and the people. It served as an indispensable experiment for revolutionaries in the 20th century. However, the Paris Commune was still too timid in suppressing the oppressors and enemies of the revolution and its base like the Bank of France.

- The Commune of Paris showed the need to overthrow capitalism through socialist revolution. The bourgeois state cannot simply be reformed or even taken over; Marx and Engels drew the lesson: "The revolutionaries must smash it.”

- The Paris Commune shows the need for a strong, clear, united and determined organisation to win and secure victory. This was and is an important struggle against reservations about organising and relying on the spontaneous course of history. The lack of a clear communist leadership was one of the reasons for the crushing of the Paris Commune by the bourgeoisie after only 72 days.

- Last but not least, the Paris Commune confirmed the necessity of proletarian internationalism for the close-knit nature of future revolutions: although enemies, the French and Prussian powers buried their differences to crush the revolutionary storm of the Commune. For the Paris Commune posed a threat to capitalism, emerging imperialism and old authoritarian empires in Europe. In the future, the world socialist states will create the transitional stage to a society without classes, communism.

Today, in the numerous crises of the imperialist world system, it is becoming more and more obvious that the bourgeois dictatorship has fascism within it. The ruling class is again trying to maintain its outdated system through fascism and war. In this situation, our campaign is meant to be a 'flame': a shining flame for a social alternative, a socialist state, the dictatorship of the proletariat. The conditions for this workers' state are riper today than ever before.

We, the ICOR organisations in Europe, take the initiative in 2021:

• We organise attractive, self-confident and visible activities in our countries, related to current issues. Let us fight anti-communism in all its forms - Long live the Commune!

• We strengthen our organisations and ICOR with new comrades and member organisations! We strengthen our cooperation! The importance of ICOR is growing in order to coordinate struggles and direct them towards a revolutionary solution.

• We will meet in Paris in May 2021 to join our forces, messages, talents and initiatives for a weekend worthy of the Commune.

• A fundraising campaign will finance our activities with the aim of strengthening ICOR. Every member organisation, all Friends of ICOR should set a financial target in this respect.

• Our campaign will in all its aspects adhere to the health measures of the covid epidemic and will be adapted to the development of the health crisis.

Let’s organize for the socialist Revolution! Forward with ICOR !

Long live the Commune (1871)!

Signatories (as of 29 January 2021, further signatories possible):

1. БКП Българска Комунистическа Партия (Bulgarian Communist Party)

2. PR-ByH Partija Rada - ByH (Party of Labor - Bosnia and Herzegovina)

3. MLPD Marxistisch-Leninistische Partei Deutschlands (Marxist-Leninist Party of Germany)

4. UCLyon Unité Communiste Lyon (Communist United Lyon), France

5. UPML Union Prolétarienne Marxiste-Léniniste (Marxist-Leninist Proletarian Union), France

6. BP (NK-T) Bolşevik Parti (Kuzey Kürdistan-Türkiye) (Bolshevik Party (North Kurdistan-Turkey))

7. KOL Kommunistische Organisation Luxemburg (Communist Organization of Luxemburg)

8. RM Rode Morgen (Red Dawn), Netherlands

9. UMLP União Marxista-Leninista Portuguesa (Portuguese Marxist-Leninist Union)

10. MLP Marksistsko-Leninskaja Platforma (Marxist-Leninist Platform), Russia

11. MLGS Marxistisch-Leninistische Gruppe Schweiz (Marxist-Leninist Group of Switzerland)

12. VZDOR VZDOR - strana práce (Resistance - labour party), Slovakia

13. KSC-CSSP Komunisticka Strana Cheskoslovenska – Cheskoslovenska Strana Prace (Communist Party of Czechoslovakia – Czechoslovakian Workers Party), Czech Republic

14. MLKP Marksist Leninist Komünist Parti Türkiye / Kürdistan (Marxist Leninist Communist Party Turkey / Kurdistan)

15. KSRD Koordinazionnyj Sowjet Rabotschewo Dvizhenija (Coordination Council of the Workers Class Movement), Ukraine

16. БРП(к)   Българска Работническа Партия (комунисти) (Bulgarian Workers Party (Communist))
17. TKP-ML   Türkiye Komünist Partisi – Marksist-Leninist (Communist Party of Turkey – Marxist-Leninist)