Biermann deals blow at Stalinist regime

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China, or that fascism and Honecker regime-despite its This is a major theoretical corrupting effect of the high howls of rage and embarrass- work giving a detailed status attached to western To maintain the latter ment-against the develop- political and economic goods. position, he says, provides a ment of a socialist alternative analysis of GDR Stalinism.

Biermann The battered East German (GDR) regime received yet another jolt this week with the publication in Die Zeit' of a major statement by Wolf Biermann, singer and poet exiled since August 1976.

This was in reply to a manifesto "discussion-document" , allegedly written by middle or upper GDR functionaries and published in the West German magazine Der Spiegel in January.

Nerve ends

This has rubbed raw the easily disturbed nerve ends of diplomatic relations between the two German states.

The Spiegel articles contain all the contradictions of the Eastern European dissident movement-the combination of hatred of the privileged and corrupt bureaucracy with dangerous liberal and anti-communist nositions Biermann's reply attacks the right wing positions of the document, which he regards as bogus, its authorship remaining a mystery.

Limousines

He agrees with the characterisation of the bureaucracy as feudal Buddhist priests with incredibly expensive hunting habits, driving luxurious limousines, living in fortified 'golden' residences and attending private clinics restricted to the top twodozen' families, preaching austerity to the underling populace.

But unlike the document's authors, Biermann opposes Ulbricht's introduction of proto-capitalist planning and management, asserting that the capitalist road is not the one for the GDR.

Cover for Nazis

He denies that class struggle has been superceded, that Spanish CP leader Carrillo's anti-So vietism can be equated wil h that of China, or that tascism Stalinism are 'twins' Stalinism are 'twins' To maintain the latter position, he says, provides a cover for the old Nazis, and falsifies the fundamental character of fascism, which is that it defends the capitalist mode of production.

Prague spring

"Stalinism is a socialist revolution infected with bureaucratic syphilis"-only a mortal illness if it is treated lightly.

He also attacks the document's call for 'free secret elections for a national assembly' and an independent court of justice in order to set up a democratic communist order in a united Germany.

He ridicules the idea that under bourgeois society elections can be 'free' and points out that in the GDR free' elections would first require a *Prague Spring'-prolonged and victorious, to remove the He also says that the development of a new socialist party, independent of the East German Communist Party (SED) is necessary, although this important point is not emphasised.

It may well be true that, as the Honecker regime in the GDR alleges, the manifesto• was written with the collaboration of West German secret services.

But it can be used by the Honecker regime-despite its howls of rage and embarrassment-against the development of a socialist alternative in the GDR.

To prevent such a political development is almost as crucial for the Federal as for the Democratic Republic.

The GDR deals with the utmost ruthlessness with its "socialist' dissidents.

Raymond Bahro, an academic of many years party membership is now in jail for publishing his book "The Alternative"

Honecker

Confined

Robert Havemann, an eminent physicist and party member till his expulsion in 1964 has been confined to Berlin and closely watched since November 1976. His crime in 1976 was 'violating security' by publishing a letter to Honecker protesting against the exiling of Biermann, in Der Spiegel.

Havemann has a record of dennouncing the sclerosis of Marxism under Stalinism, of demanding freedom of information, of welcoming the Prague Spring uprising and of protesting against 'ps: psychiatric detentions Police constantly patrol his street, the houses on either side of his have been bought by the Stasi (security forces) and flood lights erected.

Followed When he leaves his house he is followed by 2 to 5 police cars, each with 3 or 4 police in.

His visitors are checked.

In an interview achieved by Le Monde two weeks ago, Havemann pointed to the economic chaos of the GDR.

He showed that an engineer can earn three times as much doing a sparetime job for a bureaucrat as in his 'regular' job.

And he dwelt on the corrupting effect the high status attached to western goods.

But the 'socialist' upsurge But the 'socialist' upsurge in the GDR is not confined to the intellectuals. Havemann refers to a strike last autumn of workers in a lamp factory, who since most of their produce went for export, demanded part-payment in foreign exchange.

Upheaval

This would enable them to buy coveted goods special shops.

One of the biggest upheavals in the GDR took place late last summer when a riot broke out between youth and police at an outdoor concert. Several were killed and the main chant was 'Wolf Biermann'.

It is precisely this connec tion between dissident intellectuals and the mass of workers that the Honecker overlords would like to prevent-a task towards which the anti-communist Spiegel 'manifesto' might be of considerable assistance.

Biermann's reply is an important step against that and in any case there is every sign that the state of concussion in the GDR bureaucracy is too great for Honecker to succeed.

Chamberlayne

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INDUSTRIAL NEWS PHOTO: Chris Davies, Report