- The Guardian
- Issue #1997
The CPA held its 14th Congress over the week-end. The slogan for the congress was “Build the Party for a Socialist Future.” The slogan highlights the importance of a strong communist working class Party.
In the last period, the CPA has seen tremendous growth around the country. This growth has led to the formation of the NSW state committee as per the decision of the 13th congress. Its role will be to develop and organise the work in the state.
The next period will require a lot of dedication, a serious commitment to working together, and a unified vision to build the Party for a socialist future. The adopted Political Resolution forms the basis for the development of the Party in the labour movement and in the community.
Party members fighting alongside workers for better wages and conditions also assists in the development of class consciousness and prepares workers for the political fight needed for real social change.
The key priority is building the Party itself. As people become disillusioned with capitalism and seek to find an alternative, we must be prepared for when people wish to join our ranks. We must continue to build our structures as interest grows and ensure that each organ of the Party is well supported. In practice, this means training recruits to be leaders, to be militant and ideologically strong.
Education will play a vital role if we wish to seek to build the Party for a socialist future. If our members aren’t ideologically strong and disciplined, we cannot take the Party forward. These two aspects must be done in tandem and one cannot be done without the other.
By building the Party, we are preparing for a socialist future. While we cannot predict every detail or even the specific circumstances under which a socialist future is possible, we know for certain that it is only possible by doing the above.
Additionally, it does not prevent us from outlining how we can envision a better society for all Australians from the examples of socialist construction already made available to us. By looking to these examples, we can see how our Party can build a society where the working class is front and centre. Considering these questions seriously will also help build the Party, especially when workers want to know about what alternative there is to capitalism.
We still have a tremendous amount of work to do. Our 14th Congress is another step to unite our Party behind a vision and program for the future of all Australians.
