Trotskyist International Liaison Committee formed

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Trotsky: the struggle renewed for the principles and method of December pre-conference fully the Irish Workers Group.

There were, eleven organisa- and IC and from the EMB tions in attendance-some of which is based in Germany and time. Discussion which: have been in political wanted to attend the precollaboration with the WSL for conference but had been some time-the American prevented by practical problems SLDC, the TAF of Denmark from doing so.

In addition to thesergroup- soon as possible on the outcome ings, the conference was of the conference. Italian GBL and their nucteus in three main sections.

Observers came from the a presentation by WSL ExecuAustrian IKL, the German tive member John Lister on the Spartacusbund, the Fourth world political situation and the Internationalist Tendency, the crisis of the Fourth InternationThe International Pre-conference hosted by the Workers Socialist League on December 28-31 was a. resounding success..

At the end of the four days' discussion a decision was taken to establish a new international Trotskyist organisation -the Trotskyist International Liaison Committee.

This is an historic decisionnot only because it establishes all • international grouping comprised of organisations operating in six countries-but because of the degree of programmatic agreement reached between the organisations which united to form the Committee at the end of the conference.

Development

The conference resulted from developments at the WSL summer school held in July. 1979.That school represented an important development in the work of the WSL, with the attendance of six international groupings.

This reflected in particular the sharpening of the political crisis in the USFl, and the emergence of a number of small groupings to the left of the growing international impact of the WSL itself.

The school decided to convene an international confer: arina nf thace arnuninas interested in discussing the formation FILE VI of a new international tendency' based on the draft discussion document The Transitional Programme Today's Class organisations A target date was set for the Christmas period of 1979 and a decision taken to prepare for this with the publication of an International Discussion Bulletin.

Both of these deadlines were met with the first edition of the Bulletin being published early in December.

The attendance at the justified the decisions of the summer school.

them entering detailed discus Italy. sions with the WSt for the The conference was convenade by the organisations anda group of Turkish militants.

attended by delegates from the France, and the Chilean LOB.

TOC from the United States, al. Workers Power from Britain and Messages to the conference came from the Spanish FOR These stressed that they had They urged discussion as The agenda was divided into The conference opened with This sketched in some of the I his programme major political and: economic developments that have changed the world since the adoption of the Transitional Programme as the founding document of the Fourth International in 1938.

It was followed by extensive discussion and amendment of the main document before the conference-The: Transitional Programme in: Today's Class The second section began with a presentation. on the application of the method and demands of the Transitionat Programme in. the fight for leadership in the class struggle.

This section also included the presentation of the GBLs nine point Programmatic Basis document, which is designed to encapsulate the differences between Trotskyism and opportunism in the struggle for revolutionary leadership. • The third section of the agenda • revolved around the Declaration of Intent (moved for the WS by John Lister) which spelt out the basis for the formation of an international liaison committee.

Its task is to undertake the work of preparing the ground within a maximum of two years fór the establishment of a democratic centralist international tendency, pledged to the struggle for the reconstruction of the Fourth International:

Motion It was repeatedly stressed by supporters of the Liaison Committee that its purpose, and that of the projected International Tendency, is not to proclaim itself artificially as an alternative; ready-formed "Fourth Rather its task is to coordinate, deepen and develop the struggle for a principled discussion within, the fragmented and confused worid Trotskyist movement on the historical problems that have since 1953 effectively destroyed the Fl as a revolutionary centre.

With this in view the pre-conference unanimously adopted a motion calling on the Bolshevik Faction/OCRFI/LTT Parity Commission to proceed at once to organise its promised 'Open Conference' on the teednstruction of the Fourth International, 'and demanding that the Parity Commission restrict itself to this task alone, and open its doors to full participation by all Those tendencies pledged to fight for the reconstruction of the Fourth Inter: national.

Campaign

The task of practical solidarity was raised centrally, with an agreement to launch a coordinated campaign in solidarity with the Turkish working class, around the slogan "Don't let Turkey become another Chile!"

from the FIT declared in the Observers at the conterence final session their eagerness to develop a written dialogue with the newly formed Trotskyist International Liaison Committee, in the form of discussion bulletin.

An amended version of-the Transitional Programme in Today's Class Struggle was carried with the support of all the : delegated organisations present, and a similarly unanimous vote was taken to adopt the Declaration of Intent and establish the TILC..

While this pre-conference is only a first step in the process of political debate and clarification required to establish international democratic centralism, there is no doubt that it represents a major step forward in the struggle for Trotskyist programmatic principles.

A fuller : report of the proceedings, together with extracts from key resolutions, will be published in next week's Socialist Press.

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