Support for Revolutionary Maoist Parties within China

An article posted on the website of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences entitled “Strong Left-wing Political Parties Inspire Asia Again” heralds the armed revolutionary struggles led by the revolutionary communists of Nepal and the Philippines. The article by Liu Yuanqi is typical of many circulating in official and semi-official “New Left” circles in China, which are obliquely critical of the Chinese government’s counterrevolutionary foreign policy, and are supportive of revolutionary movements abroad. A weakness of the article is its eclecticism - it also heralds the electoral strength of the “Communist Party of India (Marxist),” which is a right-wing outfit that that is a part of the national Indian governing coalition, and leads two Indian state governments, enforcing anti-people, pro-IMF and pro-World Bank policies. However, it is a positive development that more and more Chinese people are searching for political solutions from the international communist movement. Ultimately, however, the Chinese “New Left” will have to accept the fact that socialism can only be restored in China through a second revolution, and that the state machinery in the hands of the revisionist “Communist Party of China” will have to be smashed if China’s working people are to again assume their role as masters of the country. Certainly, Marxist-Leninist-Maoist forces can contribute to this emerging debate by creating and distributing Chinese translations of materials such as A World to Win magazine and documents of Comrade Prachanda and other revolutionary leaders.

Strong Left-wing Political Parties Inspire Asia Again

At the end of 1980’s and the beginning of 1990's, the drastic changes in the Soviet Union caused the Asian left-wing political parties to suffer serious setbacks. But, because the Asian left-wing has a strong historical basis in Maoist principles and national independence, the Soviet and Eastern European collapse has not affected the Asian left as much as the left in the developed countries…

(Since the 1997-1998 Asian financial crisis) the Asian left has continuously gained strength, the Communist Party of India (Marxist), Communist Party of the Philippines and Nepalese Communist Party (Maoist) with particular strength warranting attention.

The Poverty of the Philippine Countryside Inspires the New Strength of the Communist Party of the Philippines.

The Philippines was one of the first third world countries to thoroughly implement the neo-liberal development agenda under American hegemony. As early as in 1962, the Philippines ended government regulation of the economy, and thereafter continuously carried out the export-oriented development strategy recommended by the International Monetary Fund, attempted to attract foreign capital with its cheap labor force, and became the supplier of cheap commodities to the developed countries. This strategy is advantageous to the developed countries, but actually causes the Philippines to become one of nations which most retarded in terms of development.

These factors have prepared the soil for the Communist Party of the Philippines' growth. After the massive change in the Soviet Union, the Communist Party of the Philippines has an inner-party struggle, with the appearance of a faction denying the necessity of military revolutionary struggle and advocating only parliamentary struggle. The New People’s Army force rapidly declined in strength… In this critical moment, the “Second Great Rectification Movement” was launched, confirming that protracted people's war was the main revolutionary form, and reiterating that the main route of people's war is the countryside surrounding the city, thus enabling the Communist Party of the Philippines the to restore the strength of the New People’s Army…

The New People’s Army has not established completely liberated areas, but has established massive guerrilla areas, established 127 guerrilla fronts, spreading across 90% of the provinces. The New People’s Army works in the countryside, implementing rent reduction for the tenant farmer, raising the wages for the farm worker, carrying out genuine land reform in the countryside, and therefore has a good mass base, and can carry on very large-scale guerrilla warfare…

Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) Rises up in Impoverished Countryside

The Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) is a faction which split from the Nepalese Communist Party. Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) thought Nepalese class contradictions greater and greater, that is was impossible to struggle through the parliament to obtain transformation, and believed that only the path of Mao Zedong - establishing rural revolutionary bases, the countryside surrounding the city through armed struggle - could transform the society. In 1996, the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) initiated the people’s war in Nepal’s poorest west mountainous under the leadership of the working class, fully mobilized the populace, carried out agrarian revolution, set up the liberated areas’ new political power, liberated women by eradicating feudal customs, and has obtained people's widespread support…

At present, liberated areas have a population of 10 million, with the total Nepalese population being 23 million. Even in white areas which are controlled by the enemy, there also appear general strikes and other forms of struggle…

Conclusion

… Mao Zedong Thought still has vital significance regarding third world development and liberation in the present time. Mao Zedong's military concept of guerrilla warfare waged by the people - people's war - still currently has value to the third world. As proof of this, the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) and the Communist Party of the Philippines have absorbed and have developed Mao Zedong's concept of people's war, and have obtained very great success… After nearly 30 years of dense historical fog has dissipated, we discovered that Mao Zedong Thought still will be very important to the future of China and the world.

http://ilas.cass.cn/redianzt_fj/20051007224049-0.doc