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A new Labor government is in office. However, this will not lead to a new direction for Australia. There will be continuation along the same path of service to big business and imperialism, the ruling class in Australia. Australia is a country dominated and therefore dependent on foreign imperialism with US imperialism at the head of the ruling class in Australia.
For the Australian working class and its allies, their ultimate interest lies in doing away with the capitalist order and building a socialist society. However, Australian reality shows that this goal can only be achieved through a process of revolution by stages.
It means going through the immediate stages of uniting all those whose interests are threatened by imperialism, and isolating US imperialism as the main decisive power in Australia economically and politically.
The present task in Australia’s conditions is assisting the development of a broad and united people’s movement that sets its sights on a truly independent and democratic Australia, with key industries in public ownership by the people.
The struggle for an independent and democratic Australian republic sows the seeds and creates conditions for the next stage of Australia’s socialist revolution. Central to this anti-imperialist mass movement and struggle is the leading role of the working class. Strengthening the fighting capacity of the working class and raising its anti-imperialist political awareness is crucial to the struggles of the people.
In today’s Australia, the many struggles and concerns objectively point to a future vision of an independent and democratic Australian republic. The necessity to travel along this road is more widely understood amongst some activists and advanced workers. However, most Australians are not consciously aware of this yet. The winning of immediate battles looms larger than the need to build a new society.
Broadening the base and narrowing the target against imperialism is the immediate task in the present period of Australia’s revolutionary process. This period requires many patient steps. Communists work with the people in sorting out the best forms and methods of struggle that can unite and mobilise the majority, while building the strength of the working class and its allies.
Different approaches are required to lift people’s awareness and recognition of the connection between immediate struggles for reforms and the necessity for a future revolutionary change. This can’t be done through declarations and slogans in isolation from involvement in people’s struggles, and without understanding the nature and conditions of these struggles and the classes involved. When we’re involved in the struggles of the people, we need to listen and learn from the experiences of the working class and other classes. Then we can contribute positively in not only working out the next steps but also, and equally important, raise the people’s anti-imperialist political consciousness from a lower to a higher level. We work with the people to develop strategies and tactics in the immediate and intermediate struggles, for reforms as stepping stones and stages in a revolutionary process.
The Party’s analysis to date is that the election of the Rudd Labor government does not change anything fundamentally, but there is also a difference from a period we have just left. The outright reactionaries have suffered a set back. This election has seen much lower public expectations of Labor in power than from any previous Labor government. There is much cynicism about how much Labor will deliver and to what extent they will put the interests of the people above big business and foreign corporations. There’s wider recognition that changes for the better will only be peripheral and temporary, and fewer workers now hold illusions about Labor’s true class interests. Nevertheless even a few small measures to relieve the pressure temporarily are a welcoming respite. However, America’s economy will largely determine if Labor will deliver even a small handful of promised concessions. All this needs to be taken into account. |
