|
Real advance of any
revolutionary movement is impossible in the lack of ideological clarity. From
past history to the present, the question of ideology is found as the main
reason of determining success and failure in entire movements.
Mao’s emphasis on the
question that correctness or incorrectness of the ideological and political line
decides everything indicates this fact. Finally, how does the development of
that clear scientific and revolutionary ideology take place? In short, it takes
place in the course of fighting against the wrong ideology. In thousands of
years of history, whatever development mankind has achieved is the consequence
of struggle. Today, Marxism-Leninism-Maoism represents a clear, scientific and
revolutionary ideology as the reflection of the entire struggle that mankind has
carried out in the field of ideology. In this context, it is urgent to
understand the science of Mao’s emphasis on the fact that human knowledge and
consequently social life develops in leaps in the form of struggle for
production, class struggle and the scientific experiment itself. Today the most
severe attack is being done exactly upon this revolutionary and scientific
ideology on the part of reactionaries and revisionists. In the present context,
when a forceful attempt is being made from the camp of reactionaries and
revisionists to make dominant the trends of anarchism, skepticism,
liquidationism and capitulationism worldwide, it is necessary to raise struggle
against these regressive ideas and trends further resolutely and courageously by
those who think the revolutionary movement is inevitable. This banner of
struggle is the banner of progress and emancipation of mankind.
To be clear on the
aforesaid ideas and context is of special significance while discussing on the
New Democratic revolution and the theory of People’s War. Because all over the
world today the most vitriolic attack from the side of reaction and reformism is
being launched upon the New Democratic revolution, the theory of People’s War
and mainly, upon Maoism. It is happening because Maoism represents Marxism in
the development of class struggle in the world today. To devaluate Maoism is in
fact to devaluate Marxism-Leninism itself and in that way is ultimately to
devaluate the line of People’s War necessary for that. Clarity upon New
Democratic Revolution and People’s War is impossible without the ideological
guidance of Marxism-Leninism-Maoism.
The concept of New
Democratic Revolution was developed with the concrete historical necessity of
revolution. Historically, prior to the development of capitalism into monopoly
capitalism or imperialism and prior to the forcefully increasing role of the
proletariat in the international political arena, particularly before the world
historic importance of the great Russian October Socialist Revolution under
Lenin’s leadership in 1917, the bourgeoisie played a progressive role in the
fight against medieval feudal oppression. But because of the development of the
aforesaid historical situation the bourgeois class came to lose its progressive
anti-feudal, and anti-foreign -encroachment and intervention character. The
development of proletarian revolutions went on proving it to be regressive, at a
fast pace. The bourgeois class reached monopoly capitalism. Colluding with
feudalism it started making a front against the most revolutionary class, the
proletariat. In order to erect an empire in the backward countries, it widely
broadened the process of exploitation, oppression, intervention and sabotage. By
this, a specific situation of fighting simultaneously against feudalism and
imperialism developed before a huge majority of nations and people of the earth
who were floundering for emancipation from medieval feudal oppression.
Development of the backward nations of this sort took place into semi-feudal and
semi-colonial conditions in the form of distorted capitalism. Nonetheless, the
emerging bourgeois class that was developing in such countries had
contra-dictions simultaneously with feudalism and imperialism. But, by
completely loosing its ability to provide leadership in the decisive struggles
it was proved to be very much vacillating and impotent.
In these
circumstances, a right tailist conception, which agues that leadership of the
struggle in the aforesaid types of countries should be left to the bourgeois
class that has already become regressive, vacillating and incapable, on the one
hand, and a mechanical, sectarian and dogmatic concept that argued to make
socialist revolution at once by crossing over the historical process of social
development, on the other, were prevalent in the international communist
movement. Lenin, raising forcefully the significance of struggle against both of
these deviations, put forward historical facts that the leadership of the
proletariat had become unavoidable in the revolutions of a bourgeois character,
too. As per this, in the fighting against the Czars, which were in feudal
imperialist condition, and there was considerable industrial development in
cites, comrade Lenin, by developing an independent strategy and tactics of the
proletariat, led the revolutionary movement to victory. But Lenin himself had
clearly stated that it is the historical duty of commu-nist revolutionaries to
develop real strategy and tactics of revolution in those countries where
industrial development is lagging behind, dominance of peasants based on the
medieval feudal production system exists, and imperialist oppression prevails.
In the mean time,
most of the Communist Parties existing in the world failed to creatively develop
the revolutionary movement by studying this reality seriously in their
respective countries on the basis of the universal principals of
Marxism-Leninism. They were victims of tailism or mechanical materialism. But
the Communist Party of China accomplished this historic responsibility under the
leadership of Mao Tse-tung. Clarifying the fact that it is inevitable to advance
towards the goal of socialist revolution by accomplishing a new type of
bourgeois democratic revolution under the leadership of the proletariat, as part
of the world revolution, in such oppressed countries, Mao, led it to success by
developing first of all the strategy and tactics of New Democratic Revolution.
Mao stated – it is really a mere imagination to make efforts of building a
socialist society over the rubble of colonial, semi-colonial and semi-feudal
conditions without a bourgeois democratic revolution of a new type under the
leadership of the Communist Party. In this way, the entire conceptions Mao has
developed regarding New Democratic Revolution, have become universal guideline
of emancipation to all those nations that have been victims simultaneously of
dual exploitation and oppression of feudalism and imperialism. Marx and Engles
had clarified the fact that violent revolution has a universal character in
class society. Lenin further explained systematically and developed theoretical
concepts regarding the necessity of armed struggle in the course of implementing
it in the Russian revolution. Being based on the theoretical assertions of
Marxism-Leninism on violent revolution and the experience acquired from their
practical application, Mao developed the comprehensive theory of People’s War in
the course of intense protracted war of accomplishing New Democratic revolution
in China. The theory of People’s War developed by Mao represents the apex of
Marxist-Leninist military science and will be applied universally in all kinds
of countries according to the situation. In this sense, it is impossible for any
of them to become a genuine Marxist-Leninist revolutionary who opposes the
theory of People’s War. Today the development of a revolutionary movement is
possible only by being united in the process of waging People’s War in both
types of developed and underdeveloped countries according to their respective
situation. To make revolution in the present era of imperialism means in reality
to smash reaction through People’s War.
The fact that Mao
developed the theory of People’s War in the process of accomplishing New
Democratic Revolution clarifies the close relation between them. For the success
of a revolution in the country like ours that lies in semi-feudal and
semi-colonial conditions it is essential to pass through the three stages of the
strategic defence, equilibrium and strategic offence with the strategy of
seizing towns from the rural areas. These assumptions are applicable at large
and only in these application will the specificity of each country be revealed.
To talk of New Democratic revolution by those elements that deny these basic
concepts of People’s War does not prove to be anything in reality other than an
opportunist move of confusing the people. Since long, it was not thought
seriously upon the strategy and tactics indispensable for protracted People’s
War, which a Communist Party needs to implement for the success of the New
Democratic Revolution from the very beginning, for right opportunism remained
dominant in it. Today the situation is so serious that the persons who advocated
armed insurrection by developing mass movement have now earned the fame of being
called a senior communist leader but merely talk of New Democratic Revolution
and Mao Thought without hesitation. The communist revolutionaries will be able
to expose these opportunists, who talk of revolution by dissociating the
inevitable relation between political and military strategy only through the
development of People’s War. Because of wrong interpretation on the part of
opportunists since long regarding New Democratic Revolution, many cadres,
supporters and sympathizers are confused about the aforesaid type of
opportunism. The leadership of some of the groups that talk of New Democratic
revolution and Mao’s Thought have been confusing the masses for decades saying
that People’s War should be waged tomorrow not today. For the opportunists of
all shades, the Party, leader and activists that emphasize on Maoism, New
Democratic Revolution and principally the preparation of protracted People’s War
have become the main hurdles to their deviation. Therefore, a united front has
been built up among them for different kinds of propaganda and intrigues against
such a party.
16-30 April 2004 of Maoist
Information Bulletin
|
