- by Vinnie Molina
- The Guardian
- Issue #1986
On Sunday, 31st October, commemorating the 101st anniversary of the Communist Party of Australia (CPA), the Central Committee held a Pre-Congress online forum.
The forum brought together delegates elected as representatives to the 14th National Congress due to be held in Sydney on 25-27 February 2022 after being postponed by COVID-19 restrictions from October 2021 to 2022.
Enthusiasm around Party organisations and membership in general for the past few months has been building. The party-wide discussion of the draft political resolution culminated with the adoption of a final draft to be discussed and voted on at the National Congress.
Despite the severe restrictions due to COVID, state conferences in South Australia and NSW were held with the election of new state committees and delegates to the National Congress.
Delegates from NSW, SA, Victoria, Queensland and Western Australia also joined them at the Pre-Congress online forum, hearing a report from General Secretary comrade Andrew Irving, and participating in robust discussions.
Delegates discussed the different campaigns the CPA is involved in, such as health, workers’ rights, peace, and the environment. The struggle for peace and anti-war campaign against the AUKUS and QUAD initiatives was prominent in those discussions. There was a call for all Party members to get involved in the campaigns for peace and the environment and the struggle for workers’ rights to ensure workers won’t pay for the capitalist crises.
A talk about the history of the Party press and communist reporting was be presented. There is a necessity to improve the production and circulation of The Guardian – The Workers’ Weekly to many more readers. The Guardian must be an organiser, agitator and education tool to mobilise people for social change.
In the months ahead and close to the National Congress in February, Guardian readers will get to know some of the Congress delegates through a series of short interviews.
The forum inspired Congress delegates to renew their pledge to work tirelessly to build the Party for a Socialist Future!
