home 
|
| contact
|
| action
|
| weekly worker
|
| respect
the unity coalition |
| european social forum
|
| theory
|
| resources
|
| what we fight
for |
| programme
|
| join |
| search
|
| communist university
|
| links
|
| our history
|
Weekly Worker 560 Thursday November 10 2005
For a Sixth Republic
SluggishI always read the letters first when my Weekly Worker arrives,” writes comrade MB. “And I must say, there were some pretty interesting ones last week.” She has sent us a cheque for £20 “in appreciation of your commitment to genuine communist debate”. Thanks, comrade. And thanks too to CP, VK and DR, who all sent us £10, not to mention PJ for her £15 despatched via our online PayPal facility. Once again just one donation via our website this week, and all the more welcome for that. Comrade PJ was one of 14,373 internet readers of the Weekly Worker over the last seven days - our hits are remaining pretty steady at around that level every week. I know I might have mentioned this before, but wouldn’t it be nice if just a few more of those readers followed PJ’s example? Our total for November is a sluggish £90, with a third of the month gone. Time to up the rate of contributions, comrades. Robbie Rix
|
The French left, like its counterpart this side of the Channel, is mired in economism. Political questions relating to the constitution and democracy under the bourgeois state are shunned in favour of almost exclusively trade union-type demands for better wages and conditions.
The Fifth Republic, with its monarchical president, epitomises the absence of any meaningful control from below - a situation that allows for the suspension of a whole range of democratic rights, as under the ‘state of emergency’ legislation. What is more, there is no right to armed self-defence - either against fascist gangs or, more pertinently at this time, against the state’s CRS thugs.
Jacques Chirac himself was elected with the active support of less than 20% of voters. He and the Front National’s Jean-Marie Le Pen together went into the second round head-to-head with between them under 37% of the votes cast. Members of the national assembly can go their own sweet way between elections.
We need to fight for a Sixth Republic, won under the hegemony of the working class, which will enshrine extreme democracy:
l Disband the armed police and the standing army. For a people’s militia.
l Abolish the presidency.
l For annual parliaments with instantly recallable deputies.
l For the right of full citizenship after six months’ residency.
