Iraqi Communist Parties

[American_Trotskyist]

I have read the the Communist Party of Iraq Created a "Peoples Union", made up of minorites and it pressed for issues other than that of Church and State. How did they do? How about the Workers Communist Party? I heard for many people that the Iraqi Communist Party is the Largest and Oldest in Iraq, anyone think it is true?

[refuse_resist]

The "Communist Party of Iraq" are nothing more than petty-bourgeois opportunists. No way is collaborating with an imperialist puppet government revolutionary.

[Freidenker]

Originally posted by [email protected] 2 2005, 07:56 AM
The "Communist Party of Iraq" are nothing more than petty-bourgeois opportunists. No way is collaborating with an imperialist puppet government revolutionary.
Not exactly doubting you, but evidence please.

[Guest1]

They have been collaborating unfortunately, but nowhere near to the extent that is implied by such a statement.

They were on the council I believe, which was rebellious if anyone recalls.

They're misguided, but they are still the traditional party of the working class, which is attracted to them not by their corruption, but by the ideas of Communism.

It is a sign of the class consciousness in Iraq, they are huge.

[refuse_resist]

Doesn't matter. There's never an excuse to even make an attempt to run in imperialist puppet elections, no matter what any parties agenda is. It may seem like a nice idea, but it will certainly never work it keeping it from becoming another colony.

As for the people in Iraq getting into Communist ideology, I do think that's a good thing though. I would hope they wake up and realize these are fake leftists and start forming true parties that are going to bring about socialism and liberation from imperialist hegemony.

[h&s]

Doesn't matter. There's never an excuse to even make an attempt to run in imperialist puppet elections, no matter what any parties agenda is. It may seem like a nice idea, but it will certainly never work it keeping it from becoming another colony.
Why not? If running in an imperialist election increases class consciousnous (sp.?!?) in Iraq and therefore speeds up the revolution what is wrong with that? Surely that would be a good thing?
Anyway I think the ICP stood as part of the Popular Alliance, not on their own.

[Phalanx]

Well, i know the Kurdish Workers Party is communist, but they're branded a terrorist organization by many countries. Including Turkey which persecuted Kurds over the centuries they have controlled them. And now Turkey will become part of the EU. Yes, a more peaceful and democratic Europe.

[bolshevik butcher]

I was under the impression that the leftist parties had been prevented from running.

[RedStarOverChina]

By no means am i trying to discourgae them, but i dont think they are going to succeed in a society that is so heavily chained by ill tradition and religion.

[Phalanx]

Because the country is so poor, people in Iraq could go either way. However, because the country has a strong religious history, it is unlikely they would adopt the atheist views of communism

[refuse_resist]

Originally posted by h&[email protected] 2 2005, 12:17 PM

Doesn't matter. There's never an excuse to even make an attempt to run in imperialist puppet elections, no matter what any parties agenda is. It may seem like a nice idea, but it will certainly never work it keeping it from becoming another colony.
Why not? If running in an imperialist election increases class consciousnous (sp.?!?) in Iraq and therefore speeds up the revolution what is wrong with that? Surely that would be a good thing?
Anyway I think the ICP stood as part of the Popular Alliance, not on their own.
Increasing class consious is definately a good thing. However, if that's what they plan on doing instead of running, then that's ok. If they go with the latter then they're just asking for trouble.

[American_Trotskyist]

Ok, so how did they do? By the way Refuse and Resist you seem to sound like a Left Communist, thats not a goodthing. This is on theoreticall grounds only, the bolshevik idea is to gain the support of the masses, what they want, it maybe a constituional congress, we know is useless, but you gain no support with boycotting that. The German Communist Party did what you said, and they uttley failed. The Bolsheviks, might I remind you, were the bigest campainers for the National Congress.

[Severian]

Originally posted by [email protected] 2 2005, 02:57 AM
Doesn't matter. There's never an excuse to even make an attempt to run in imperialist puppet elections, no matter what any parties agenda is. It may seem like a nice idea, but it will certainly never work it keeping it from becoming another colony.

As for the people in Iraq getting into Communist ideology, I do think that's a good thing though. I would hope they wake up and realize these are fake leftists and start forming true parties that are going to bring about socialism and liberation from imperialist hegemony.
Why? As a blanket statement that is... Elections sponsored by the colonial power have been a part of many decolonization processes; Patrice Lumumba was elected prime minister of the Congo in one of them for example.

The Worker-Communist Party of Iraq didn't run in these elections. If you do a search you can find their webpage which has a lot of articles about why not.

It would be interesting to know how many votes the CPI got and who else is in their coalition....even tentative results have not been announced though.

[h&s]

Increasing class consious is definately a good thing. However, if that's what they plan on doing instead of running, then that's ok. If they go with the latter then they're just asking for trouble.
But running in the elections is a way to increase class consious in Iraq, why do you have a problem with that? I'm sure you have no problem in participating in Western borgeois elections, so why should the Iraqia not particiapate in elections controlled by the same people? It makes no difference wether the election is a colonial one or not.

[American_Trotskyist]

Ok, so, any idea on how they did, feel free to post articles here about any thing on them and the election.

[refuse_resist]

Originally posted by [email protected] 3 2005, 02:59 AM
Ok, so how did they do? By the way Refuse and Resist you seem to sound like a Left Communist, thats not a goodthing. This is on theoreticall grounds only, the bolshevik idea is to gain the support of the masses, what they want, it maybe a constituional congress, we know is useless, but you gain no support with boycotting that. The German Communist Party did what you said, and they uttley failed. The Bolsheviks, might I remind you, were the bigest campainers for the National Congress.
Uhhhh, no.

What the Bolsheviks in Russia faced back then is a complete different situation compared to what is going on in Iraq. Right now Iraq, a sovereign nation, is being occupied by imperialist militaries.

What is even more hypocritical is how this "Communist Party" runs in these puppet elections that are being backed by the same imperialists who gave the list of leftist to Saddam to kill.

If you've seen there website you would see how much in favor they are of the puppet government. Hell, some of the members go around meeting up with and collaborationg with such people like Paul Bremer and all the other capitalist lapdogs!

They're the equivalent to the Communist Party USA.

How revolutionary. :rolleyes:


Why? As a blanket statement that is... Elections sponsored by the colonial power have been a part of many decolonization processes; Patrice Lumumba was elected prime minister of the Congo in one of them for example.
:lol:

[chebol]

The long and short of it is that they collaborated with the invasion forces- the same fores that are responsible for 100,000 odd deaths. While they have held more or less theoretical positions against US occupation, the fact remains that they welcomed it.

This has an historical reason- well, several. Chiefly, the CPI was once the largest and most influential party in Iraq. It spearheaded the movement against the British colonial power, and it's puppet king. They were so popular, in fact, that they could have taken power. That is, they could have initiated a revolution whereby the Iraqi people themselves could have taken power.
Unfortunately, they took their cue (and precise orders) from the Stalinised USSR, whose approach was to prevent 'rocking the boat'. The CPI was ordered not to take power.
The Ba'athist Socialist Party, created by Michel Aflaq (a former leader of the CPI), took advantage of the confusion created by a mass party with mass support but no intention to lead the masses to power.
Using many of the communists' policies, but given a strong nationalist bent, the Ba'athists forced the CPI into coalition government, implemented their policies, then forced them out, and, having secured a list of leading comrades (from curiously reliable sources), the Ba'ath exterminated tens of thosands of communists.

The communists in Iraq have never recovered from this cataclysm.


Lacking a cohesive base in the people (and being banned for decades after) the communists have followed the Stalinist parties of most of the world into the graduated eternity of history.

The PKK are a Kurdish outfit, based mostly in Turkey. Most of the left-Kurds in Iraq have been wiped out or driven out. The various Kurdish outfits in Iraq are mostly right wing verging on fascist. However, without going too much into the history of the various splits, the Workers Communist Party of Iraq appears to be mostly Kurdish in it's make-up, and is linked to the WCPIran, which is similar. The WCPIraq is a member of the Socialist Alliance in Australia, which makes debating the occupation interesting.
All this said, both groups are doing interesting work among unions in Iraq. It is just unfortunate that they hold the sectarian and surrealist position that all the armed resistance in Iraq is either nationalist (ex-Ba'athist) or "islamofascist"- and nothing else. They use this characterisation to justify collaboration with an unpopular, murderous invasion force in order to gain electoral representation- they are thoroughly opportunist.

here's the website for the CPI. Unfortunately, it appears the WCPIraq website recently went up for sale. Do a google search and you can find more info on them.
http://www.iraqcp.org


I'll post articles ssome other time. I've ssome of my own to write now.

[Edelweiss]

According to THIS (http://pakistantimes.net/2005/02/06/top8.htm) source, the "Peoples Union", which is led by the ICP, gained 1.2 percent of the vote. I guess that's much less than they have actually expected, there is a much higher potential for them in Iraq, the ICP used to be the biggest communist party in the whole Arab world, and is deeply rooted within the Iraqi working class. I'm assuming this is the bill for joining the governing council, which as it turns out now, brought them some political power and influence on a very short term, but politcal irrelevance on a long term.

[Iepilei]

I can guarentee you the US wouldn't allow the election to fall into the hands of just anyone. They made sure it worked in their favour, somehow.