How UCPN-Maoist See The World?

Yuba Nath Lamsal

The largest political party of the country –UCPN-Maoist— is busy in the preparation of what it describes as the historic seventh National Unity Congress. The Maoist seventh national congress is being held in 21 years since the last or the sixth congress was held in 1992. The seventh congress kicks off on February 2, Friday with the theme of further developing the ‘revolutionary political line”, which is expected to come up with the new sets of ideas, policies, programmes and plans.

Many have speculated that the seventh national congress of the UCPN-Maoist would mark a unique ideological shift that may declare its official and formal departure from the violent and armed revolution and reiterate its commitment in public for peaceful and competitive politics. But things would not develop in such a simplistic way and the Maoist party may not make a complete U-turn in terms of ideology in the national congress. What is certain that there would definitely be marked shift in its tactics, plans and approaches and also the definition and analysis of the objective national as well as international situation.

In the political report to be submitted by the Chairman Puspa Kamal Dahal ‘ Prachanda’, states that the party has not totally abandon the path of revolution. But its nature may take strategic change which will also bring about marked shift in its tactical policy to achieve its goals and objectives. The party believes that revolution in Nepal has not yet been completed. According to the party document, the decade-long people’s war has attained partial achievements of the new democratic revolution and the party will now focus on institutionalizing and consolidating these achievements, complete the remaining task of the new democratic revolution and prepare for the socialist revolution. What is true is the fact that the party is definitely going to abandon the path of people’s war (armed revolution) and focus on peaceful revolution or competitive politics through mobilizing the people for peaceful people’s revolt.

More than its domestic policy, the world is looking closely at how the UCPN-Maoist has analyzed the international situation and international powers. The analysis of the national situation determines its ideological and international policies and perspective. Since the party has taken a marked shift in the domestic policy, its reflection can be seen in the international policy and perspective and also in its views and outlook on the international powers and events taken place in the world. Both the domestic as well as international situations have seen a sea change in the last two decades. The situation within Nepal and in the world no longer remains as it was in seventeen years ago when the Maoist party launched the armed insurgency. Thus, there is a marked change in its outlook on international situation as well as in the international powers.

The UCPN-Maoist, in the past, had dubbed imperialism as the main enemies of the poor, working class and oppressed people in the world.  It has still termed imperialism as the principal enemy of the revolution and efforts for progressive change of the working class people. On imperialism, Prachanda, in his main document to be presented in the seventh congress, says:  Imperialism often changes and is changing its color, shape, slogans and tactics to protect the interest of the ruling and capitalist class. But its tactics, forms and slogans change has been using and applying new color, new shape and new slogans depending upon the situation and necessity to protect its class interest through misinforming and misleading the people in the world. Economic liberalization, privatization and globalization are the latest example of this process of imperialist design. These are the slogans that were devised to defend capitalist monopoly and imperialist domination in the world. Despite these newer devices and designs of capitalism, the capitalist system is entering into a new but more serious phase of crisis. Capitalism intends to make unlimited profit, which is possible only through exploitation and squeezing the global resources and the people living in the entire developing world. During the height of colonialism, imperialism used to directly intervene and take over power and squeeze resources of the colonies for the benefit of the colonial powers. After the Second World War, which gave rise to a new wave of national consciousness in the developing countries and national liberation movements, imperialist design took a new shift and turn. In order to hold control and extract benefits, the Western powers, adopted the policy of intervening in the strategically vital and resource-rich countries in the name of supporting democracy, human rights and fighting terrorism, through which they have continued to have  their hold and monopoly over the resources. The intervention in Afghanistan, Iraq and several other countries in Asia and Africa are the example of imperialist design to control resources and maintain its domination in the world. Despite these efforts, the western powers have not been able to prevent crisis in global capitalism. Instead the capitalist crisis is becoming more acute and explosive. The present economic crisis that began in the United States in 2008 and has spread worldwide is the self-evident of the serious crisis capitalism is facing. This is a testament of the necessity to seek an alternative to capitalism to get rid of the growing crisis that the world has seen and suffered. The alternative is already with us that are socialism, which alone can address and end global economic crisis and ensure better human conditions.

The capitalist powers and their media allies have unleashed and are unleashing media campaign and propaganda that Marxism and socialism have failed and they claimed that socialism cannot be an alternative political and economic model. The fall of Soviet Union and collapse of Soviet satellite regimes in Eastern Europe and elsewhere is being portrayed by the capitalist media as the defeat and debacle of socialist model. It is true that the failure of Soviet socialism after the death of Joseph Stalin and rise of Nikita Khrushchev was definitely a debacle and setback to socialist movement in the world. But this cannot be called a defeat of socialism and victory of capitalism. In the world with limited resources, the unlimited profit, which is the fundamental objective and goal of capitalism, is not possible. In the absence of unlimited profit, capitalism is bound to fail and collapse. The present global economic crisis is both its cause and effect. Efforts are now being made to find a solution to the crisis from within the capitalist system, which is not possible.  “It has been proved that the globalization of financial capital is nothing more than the means and process of imperialist conspiracy of making billions and trillions of profit through the exploitation of the people in the poor and developing countries. As its consequences, the entire world is likely to fall into bigger whirlpool of economic crisis in future”. Thus, the UCPN-Maoist has its prediction of new wave of socialism in the world that may start from Nepal.

The UCPN-Maoist still views the United States as the leader of the global capitalism and imperialism. But Washington’s leadership is being challenged even within the capitalist world. Some signs of rift and contradictions have appeared in the capitalist camp and these contradictions are for the control of the resources in the world because the resources are getting scarce. The intervention and exploitation being perpetrated by the imperialist countries in the developing world are slowly agitating and stirring the poor and oppressed people in the developing countries against imperialism, capitalism and their lackeys at home. This situation is creating favorable environment for global revolution.

As the crisis in the imperialist and the capitalist countries is intensifying, Prachanda, in his report, has his suggestions that poor and proletariat people in the world more particularly in the developing countries, need to take initiative to lead the movement against imperialism and capitalism and also to serve the revolution. For this, it is necessary to establish good rapport and relationship with all communist revolutionaries both at home and abroad and accordingly move ahead in a planned manner so that revolution would be advanced and socialist regimes can be established. This is the summary of the views of UCPN-Maoist about the world and world conditions.

So far as Nepal is concerned, Prachanda has described the present situation as the transition to socialism. He claims that partial achievements of new democratic revolution have been made and the party needs to advance to formally institutionalize these partial achievements and make preparation for socialist revolution. According to him, the republican set up, secularism, federalism and proportionate representation and inclusive democracy are the partial achievements of the new democratic revolution. These achievements, as stated by Prachanda, can be institutionalized through the new constitution to be promulgated by the Constituent Assembly, while the preparation of socialist revolution can also be made in peaceful way by mobilizing people for production and construction but not by armed and violent method.