from its original date in March just before the invasion of Iraq, the political landscape has changed and new issues and opportunities have opened up:
We have seen the biggest anti-war movement ever in this country - with hundreds of thousands on the streets, even after the war had started. The movement posed a serious challenge to the Blair government and its war drive.
We have seen thousands of school students on the streets and an unprecedented participation of the Asian and Muslim community
We have seen the biggest ever parliamentary revolt of Labour MPs and large numbers of Labour Party members leaving the party to express opposition to the war.
The political situation is polarised. Whilst public opinion shifted to a pro-war majority after the invasion, one-third of the population still think it was wrong. The millions who participated in the demonstrations are still opposed to the war and unconvinced by propaganda about liberation' rather than occupation.
The thousands of activists of the anti-war movement remain totally opposed to the war and the overall US war drive, and are preparing for long-term opposition to the idea of the Project for a New American Century. A real and radical mass movement has emerged and is continuing.
This has created the most important period of politicisation since the late 1960s and early 1970s, and it has emerged mainly around world politics and the role and aims of the American Empire. The question is whether this politicisation is to be allowed to recede, or whether a powerful, new political force of the left can develop from this new radicalisation.
The Stop the War Coalition (StWC) as such cannot become such a new force. It is critical that it continues as a broad campaign against the occupation of Iraq, and against new wars which the US and Britain might forces comprising:
• As many of those involved in the antiwar movement as possible, including individual activists, campaigns, as well as the political organisations (notably the Communist Party of Britain and the Socialist Party). It is particularty important to draw in Asian and Muslim activists who are in agree ment with the arguments socialists have been putting in the anti-war movement.
• The left of the trade unions (and the new left leaders).
• Those who have left the Labour Party
WAR - Socialist Alliance AGM: a major new initiative required
which was a problem. This made it more difficult to recruit, as new activists do not see the organisation as integral to the movement - particularly if they are in local areas where the local Alliance does not have a strong profile he new situation alters the debate as reflected on the order paper for the March AGM. Whilst the issue of party or alliance (or united front) .....
WINK remains a key debate for the future, what is posed at this AGM is not how, when and whether the Socialist Alliance should become a political party, but whether it can rise to the challenge and help create a new alignment of the left under current political conditions
This would put the building of an alterna tive to Blairism on a new level. The debate on party or alliance would take place in the new formation under completely new con.... The Alliance appears like a party at elections. However its electoral effectiveness s hampered by ts weak profile between could be come a reality
The AGM needs to be something of a relaunch of the Alliance. The Socialist Alliance needs to promote much more vig. orously the debate started around 'Where is Labour Going' in meetings like the Central London rally addressed by George Galloway MP, Mark Serowotka (PCS general secretary) and others (see Resistance 5).
The Alliance must call on wider forces to rediscuss the question of building a left alternative with no preconditions on organisational forms, based on inclusiveness and effective democratic structures.
The last meeting of the Alliance I Erective took the decision to
launch a new appeal for left unity in the form of a pamphlet. This can be the basis for a major campaign around the realignment of the left and building a broad alternative at every level including a series of local I rallies. The incoming Executive will have a big responsibly to ensure this happens.
If such realignment is successful, the new coalition should set itself the aim of standing candidates in the majority of constituencies at the next general election.
At the same time, there must be no letup on building the Alliance in the here and now. Effectively building the Alliance is the way to create the best possible conditions for a new development.
This means adopting the campaigning and other priorities set out at the end of the res olution by Mandy Baker and myself and also adopted in the resolution by Will McMahon and others (see box).
A serious approach to such tasks, along side the appeal for a radical realignment of the left, could break the Alliance out of its current situation and open the door to an important new development