Vote in Greece in the June 17 2012 election for Antarsya and a Transitional Programme
Dave Hill
Revised Version of 30May 2012
In this paper I argue that Antarsya should not join Syriza in an electoral coalition or joint list, but that Antarsya should fight the elections and continue to stick with and advance its Transitional Programme.
Antarsya should announce, in advance of the June 17 parliamentary elections, that it will support a Left government and hold it to its programme, while pushing for a more socialist programme such as repudiation (rather than negotiation) of the debt, nationalisations of privatised industries and the banks.
For Antarsya to continue with its Transitional Programme.
Programme and Strategy
The type of Programme demand by revolutionary Marxists and by Parties (such as Socialist Resistance in Britain, and OKDE-Spartakos in Greece) within the Fourth International is related to Strategy
i.e. whether to support the
(1) Broad Party concept strategy or
(2) the Revolutionary Unity strategyor
(3) a revolutionary sectarian/ us alone policy
The implications can be seen in, for example
France (whether in the first round of the 2012 Presidential elections to support the (left social democrat) Front de la Gauche of Jean-Luc Melenchon, or whether to support the NPA)
The UK (what to do about the Manchester Central and other parliamentary by-elections) and more widely, to work in Broad Parties such as Respect, to work in broader coalitions such as the Coalition of Resistance (with, for example, the Green Left, other Greens, Left Labour MPs and supporters), or whether to work with avowedly Marxist/socialist parties and individuals in organisations such as TUSC (The Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition)
In Greece, whether to support Syriza or Antarsya in the upcoming elections of 17 June2012 and what advice we should give to OKDE-Spartakos, the Greek section of the FI, regarding whether Antarsya should (i) fight the elections alone, or (ii) as part of Syriza, or (iii) alone but saying we will support (and join? or support and not join) a Syriza led government (which, if it happens, will likely be in government coalition with the Democratic Left (of Fotis Kouvelis), a right-wing split off from Synaspismos the major component of Syriza.
The actual results of the Greek general election of 6 May 2012, e.g. at and at Current (late May 2012) opinion polls indicate high levels of support (between 20% and 30% for the (conservative) New Democracy party, and the (Left of PASOK) Syriza, with clear class polarisation and political polarisation taking place. The 6 May 2012 election, and the upcoming 17 June 2012 general elections, take place amidst the terrible economic and social and human consequences of the austerity programme imposed on the Greek people by the international/ transnational capitalist class and their institutions (`the Troika’) and their tools, the formerly dominant parties of neoliberal capital in Greece, New Democracy (Conservative) and PASOK (now neo-liberal, formerly social democrats). (For `The effects of the crisis on daily life’ in Greece, see Andreas Sartzekis and Tassos Anastassiadis, at
This class polarisation has been evidenced by massive resistance to the austerity measures imposed by the Troika (European Union, International Monetary Fund, European Central Bank) in February 2012. There have been 17 general strikes and one fifth of the population of the country has been on the streets in recent months protesting against occupations. There have been re a number of workers’ occupations, such as hospitals, newspapers, steel works (though not yet on the scale of Argentina's fábricas recuperadas movement, which emerged in response to the 2001 economic crisis in Argentina).
Minimum, Maximum and Transitional Demands (how to get from minimum to maximum)
The Death Agony of Capitalism: and the Tasks of the Fourth International
The Mobilization of the Masses around Transitional Demands to Prepare the Conquest of Power (Online at the Marxists.org website, at, Trotsky explains,
The strategic task of the next period – prerevolutionary period of agitation, propaganda and organization – consists in overcoming the contradiction between the maturity of the objective revolutionary conditions and the immaturity of the proletariat and its vanguard (the confusion and disappointment of the older generation, the inexperience of the younger generation. It is necessary to help the masses in the process of the daily struggle to find the bridge between present demand and the socialist program of the revolution. This bridge should include a system of transitional demands, stemming from today’s conditions and from today’s consciousness of wide layers of the working class and unalterably leading to one final conclusion: the conquest of power by the proletariat.
Classical Social Democracy, functioning in an epoch of progressive capitalism, divided its program into two parts independent of each other: the minimum program which limited itself to reforms within the framework of bourgeois society, and the maximum program which promised substitution of socialism for capitalism in the indefinite future. Between the minimum and the maximum program no bridge existed. And indeed Social Democracy has no need of such a bridge, since the word socialism is used only for holiday speechifying. The Comintern has set out to follow the path of Social Democracy in an epoch of decaying capitalism: when, in general, there can be no discussion of systematic social reforms and the raising of he masses’ living standards; when every serious demand of the proletariat and even every serious demand of the petty bourgeoisie inevitably reaches beyond the limits of capitalist property relations and of the bourgeois state.
The strategic task of the Fourth International lies not in reforming capitalism but in its overthrow. Its political aim is the conquest of power by the proletariat for the purpose of expropriating the bourgeoisie. However, the achievement of this strategic task is unthinkable without the most considered attention to all, even small and partial, questions of tactics. All sections of the proletariat, all its layers, occupations and groups should be drawn into the revolutionary movement. The present epoch is distinguished not for the fact that it frees the revolutionary party from day-to-day work but because it permits this work to be carried on indissolubly with the actual tasks of the revolution.
The Fourth International does not discard the program of the old “minimal” demands to the degree to which these have preserved at least part of their vital forcefulness. Indefatigably, it defends the democratic rights and social conquests of the workers. But it carries on this day-to-day work within the framework of the correct actual, that is, revolutionary perspective. Insofar as the old, partial, “minimal” demands of the masses clash with the destructive and degrading tendencies of decadent capitalism – and this occurs at each step – the Fourth International advances a system of transitional demands, the essence of which is contained in the fact that ever more openly and decisively they will be directed against the very bases of the bourgeois regime. The old “minimal program” is superseded by the transitional program, the task of which lies in systematic mobilization of the masses for the proletarian revolution. (Trotsky, 1938)
Alistair Mitchell (1985) has a good enough summary of the three different types of programme
Marx and Engels didn’t just call for the introduction of a socialist society (the maximum programme) without charting the way of getting there. Neither did they merely advocate reforms which fell way short of breaking from capitalism (the minimum programme). The key to their method lies in the extract quoted above with its steps which are by themselves inadequate, but through the workers’ struggle for them lead to other attacks on capitalism. These further measures become possible and necessary as the workers gain in confidence and rally others to their side, learn the next steps required and challenge a weakened and retreating ruling class. The method of Marx and Engels is to connect the present situation and immediate aspirations of the proletariat with the task of the socialist revolution. The minimum and maximum programmes are linked in a transitional programme’.()
As Wikipedia summarises,
It is necessary to help the masses in the process of the daily struggle to find the bridge between present demand and the socialist program of the revolution. This bridge should include a system of transitional demands, stemming from today’s conditions and from today’s consciousness of wide layers of the working class and unalterably leading to one final conclusion: the conquest of power by the proletariat.
Trotsky urges that transitional demands should include the call for the expropriation of various groups of capitalists- sometimes translated in modern terms into the nationalisation of various sectors - under the control and management of the workers. Transitional demands should include opposition to imperialist war. Such demands intend to challenge the capitalist class's right to rule.
By fighting for these "transitional" demands, in the opinion of the Trotskyists, the workers will come to realize that capitalism cannot meet their needs, and they will then embrace the full program of the Fourth International. (
Antarsya, Syriza and Greece and the elections of 17 June 2012
Now let’s apply this to Greece
Syriza Programme following the May 6 elections(taken from the Coalition of resistance website, 9 May,
* The immediate cancellation of all impending measures that will impoverish Greeks further, such as cuts to pensions and salaries.
* The immediate cancellation of all impending measures that undermine fundamental workers' rights, such as the abolition of collective labor agreements.
* The immediate abolition of a law granting MPs immunity from prosecution, reform of the electoral law and a general overhaul of the political system.
* An investigation into Greek banks, and the immediate publication of the audit performed on the Greek banking sector by BlackRock.
* The setting up of an international auditing committee to investigate the causes of Greece's public deficit, with a moratorium on all debt servicing until the findings of the audit are published.
Or in the words of Andrew Burgin and Kate Hudson on the Socialist Unity website, 12 May, words
• Cancelling the bailout terms, notably laws that further cut wages and pensions
• Scrapping laws that abolish workers’ rights, particularly a law abolishing collective labour agreements due to come into effect on 15 May
• Demanding proportional representation and the end to the 50 seat bonus to the first party
• Investigating Greece’s banking system which received almost 200bn euros of public money and posing the need for some kind of state control over the banks
• Setting up an international committee to find out the causes of Greece’s public deficit and putting on hold all debt servicing.
Analysis: What type of Programme is Syriza’s
I thought the 5 point plan put out for negotiation by Syriza serves well as a socialist minimum, defensive, programme. It is at
In other countries such a plan would (currently, with existing states of political and class consciousness) be considered more than a minimum programme, but such is the state of political and class consciousness in Greece currently that this can be regarded as a minimum programme. However, it can also be analysed as a left social democratic programme, and this is my view of what it is. A huge advance on neoliberal, neo-conservative pro-austerity programmes of ND and PASOK for example, but Syriza says, essentially, overall… `no more cuts’… it does not say,` reverse the cuts! Restore the wages and pensions’.
Paul Mason (online at
When I interviewed a SYRIZA spokesman earlier this year I explored the problem of a far-left party, which is anti-NATO etc, taking power in a country whose riot police have been regularly clashing with that party’s youth since 2008. The message was that they would be purposefully limited in aim, and that the core of any programme would be a debtor-led partial default – that is, the suspension of interest payments on the remaining debt and a repudiation of the terms of both Troika-brokered bailouts. What SYRIZA shares with the Dem Left and PASOK it its commitment to the EU social model: they are left globalists.
… the resulting government may, in effect, be little more than a left-social democratic government, despite its symbology and the radicalism of some of its voters..
The Antarsya programme
The anti-capitalist Left, ANTARSYA, is the only tendency of the Left that openly called for an immediate annulment of debt payments and exit from the Eurozone, (Sotiris, at
1. Immediately terminate the loan agreement, any memoranda and all related measures.
2. Do not recognize the debt, debt cancellation and suspension of payments.
3. Break with the system and with the euro/EU.
4. Nationalize the banks and corporations without compensation under workers’ control.
5. Immediately increase wages and pensions! Cancel the poll tax and increase the taxation of capital.
6. Prohibit layoffs and fully protect the unemployed. Shorten working hours and reduce the retirement age.
7. Expropriate hundreds of closed factories and re-commission them controlled by the employees themselves.
8. Provide cheap and good quality food through agricultural cooperatives, poor and middle farmers—without middlemen and large producers.
9. The solution is a strong Left struggling for a break with the system and the anti-capitalist revolution!
The Antarsya statement continues
The parliamentary parties of the Left do not meet their historical responsibilities. SYRIZA suggests a "leftist government," but does not dare to say anything against the euro and the EU. It is increasingly in search of “solutions” to the debt problem through agreements with the creditors! The Communist Party (KKE) now rejects the recognition of the debt and takes a stand against the EU position, but points to the metaphysical presence of “peoples’ power” that should come into existence through parliamentary channels and through the conquest of the parliamentary majority in the election. This party avoids any overt political conflict and still refuses to participate in a united front for a workers and popular uprising. Such an approach is a barrier to the struggles. Joint action is more necessary than ever!
What is needed is the mobilization and organization of goals and demands, put today on the agenda by reality itself (cancellation of debt, leaving the euro zone and the EU, nationalization and workers’ control). This can be achieved by a united front of all those who want a break with the system and revolution, by the escalation of the workers’ and popular uprising combined with strikes, occupations, demonstrations, also by the organization and coordination of struggles at the level of the rank and file on the basis of an anti-capitalist program. This is the way to achieve the power of working people, true democracy combined with a socialist and communist perspective.
This is the left ΑΝΤΑRSΥΑ is struggling to create. We are committed to ensuring that this left—one which will break with the system and aim for the insurrection, the anti-capitalist revolutionary left—will come out stronger from the national parliamentary elections.
In the elections we give our voice and support to ΑΝΤΑRSΥΑ!
Analysis: What type of Programme is Antarsya’s
This is a revolutionary Marxist programme that would lead to the expropriation of Capital/ism and its replacement by a Socialist state. It can be regarded as a Transitional programme.
The Ways Forward for Antarsya: a) Support/ Coalition with/ Join in with Syriza/ Become, or at least Support, `the Broad’ (Left) Party
Socialist Resistance, together with Andrew Burgin and Kate Hudson, various socialist and Marxist groups nationally and internationally (such as the ISO in the USA) and the SP in Britain argue for various versions of Left Unity. SR’s position (to be voted on at an NC meeting on 26 May 2012 (the fuller extract from the policy statement is below) states:
In fact the strategy of building broad parties (either anti-capitalist parties like Syriza or radical left reformist formations in other situations) capable of uniting the left and radical trade unions across the political spectrum, from revolutionary socialists to those who have not reached such conclusions, is designed for exactly this kind of situation - when no single current or tradition can meet the challenge alone
Socialist Resistance in Britain:
In a Socialist Resistance Editorial statement of 13 May, (online at SR stated,
We therefore make the strongest possible appeal to all sections of the Greek left to unite behind Syriza in the upcoming elections and to unite behind a Syriza-led anti-austerity government if it is elected. This is exactly the reason for building broad organisations like Syriza – in order to unite the working class in this kind of situation.