THE theory of permanent revolution was first put forward by Marx as a result of conclusions drawn from the revolutions of 1848 — above all the German revolutions of that year. In all the previous great revolutionary struggles from the sixteenth to the end of the eighteenth century - - above all the Dutch revolutions of the sixteenth seventeenth centuries, and seventeenth centuries, the English revolution 1642-49, bourgeoisie had mobilised the widest masses in a struggle to smash to pieces the power of the old ruling classes. In Germany 1848, Iowcver bourgeoisie capitulated to the feudal Vienna and Berlin, did not proclaim a LUWI Germany to King Frederick William wolkig Vienna Ln e parliament, assembled in Frankfurt, called the feudal armies into the cities to crush the rebellions — thereby also 'German parliament' distributing land to the peasants, attempted to limit the revolution, and sought to compromise with the old ruling class. It collapsed in a debacle Capitalist ace dede renc e c had broken down all obstacles to the rule of its own class. The bourgeoisie Talled that in earlier capitalist revolutions, England in 1642-49 or had been confronted with an extremely weak working class of in.
prior lo totally secure in its ability to control and utilise for its own purposes the struggles of the working class and As Marx noted: 'In 1648 against the monarchy. aristocracy and the established churbourgeoisie was allied with the people against the monarchy, the aristocracy and the established church. In both revolutions the bourgeoisie was the CaSN realiy headed the move.
bourgeois strata of the middle class had either not yet evolved interests which were different from those of the bourgeoisie or they did not yet small, working class had begun develop both internationally and in IN THE struggle against apartheid South Africa many of the same tasks that were confronted by countries such as Russia, Germany and Italy in the nineteenth century: the gaining of the right to land and its development by the majority of the the population; the forging of a nation state; the the the OI Germany. The bourgeoisie therefore alone could have thoroughly smashed bourgeoisie... at the moment when it against itself the proletariat and all sections of the middle class whose interests and ideas were related to those bourgeoisie was now more scared of its existence, than it was of the old rultheir rights and development. The key goal of the bourgeoisie had become not revolution but, as Marx put it: 'Suppression of every political of the proletariat and of all social strata whose interests do not completely coincide with the interests of the class which believes itself to be standing at the helm of state.' New epoch and power of the working class the destroyed, the bourgeois democratic previous order could only be smashed completely through mass mobilisations. As Marx noted: 'The commercial and industrial sections of the bourgeoisie threw themselves into the arms of the counter-revolution for the capitalist class had lead the struggle to accomplish the tasks of the souceos cenocac reducer even although it hesitated and vacillated on bourgeoisie would, now take steps on secondary questions but would seek scope of the bourgeois democratic revolution compromise with the previous rulers.
bourgeoisie therfore sought evel. faces today tional democratic But today free into its own hands terms by gaining of nothing more than Connolly in struggle, with revolutionary naits tasks, were clear. The bourgeoisie HE Nene revolutionary petty-bourgeoisie who still sought to carry through the tasks political liberty. These are tasks reality referred to in Marxism as a 'narevolution'. these national democratic tasks can only be carried through thoroughly by the cess of working class taking state power - in Marx's establishing the 'dictatorship of the proletariat'. The «cueve flowed from the revolutions of 1848 was comeclv summersco Dye !
'Marx's theory of the distinction between the three main forces in nineteenth-century revolutions. According to this theory the following forces take a stand against the old order, against the aristocracy, system: 1) the liberal big bourgeoisie, Easter rising in Dublin of 1916 when he united in action the working class The state tionary nationalist Irish Republican The working class has tionary nationalist forces in a whole the twentieth century — for example with the FLN in the war for Algerian independence from France, with the MPLA and Frelimo in the struggle to free Angola DOR'COS rule, with the ANC against the regime In Russia.
China, Vietnam, and Cuba parties of the working class achieved hegemony democratic forces occupying a suborrole, and themselves led the national bourgeois democratic revolution, and now attempted to abort the bourgeois therefore the working class could not However the that in our epoch the thorough carrying out of the national democratic tasks requires the taking of state power by the working class is termed the pro'permanent revolution'. JOHN ROSS looks at development of the theory of permanent revolution in the writings of Marx Trotsky. of the bourgeois democratic revolution by revolutionary means Overwhelmingly the most important bourgeoisie was the peasanry.
sions of these class forces this meant the working class could not ally with the bourgeois democrats, but it could and must seek to ally with petty-bourgeois revolutionary revolutionary democrats and revolutionary nationalists. Again as Lenin democrats can and should the proletariat march now? With the Cadet ocaNalll tionary democrats? There can be only Ole cuswer lo tis oie OekRolwl revolutionary democrats: not with the liberals but with the masses of the bourgeoisie in the struggle for the national democratic revolution against Ine 1S, WILd petty bourgeoisie cannot hold state power - there has never been a petty power can only be held by one of the society — the bourgeoisie or the proletariat. If state power passes into the hands of the bourgeoisie through the revolution then, as we have seen, the 1916-21 for example where bourgeois forces strengthened within the pettvbourgeois Sinn Fein and aborted the atonal democrauc revolution — åc cepting the pattition of the country and installing a reactionary church dominated state in the south. It occurAsian and African countries — where formal independence was gained but carried through and the countries remained neo-colonies subordinated to tional democratic revolution passed into the hands of the working classas in Russia, China, Vietnam and Cuba were ne tasks of the bourgeois democratic revolution carried through - and here, with state power passing into the hands of the wolkig the proletariat then proceeded implement socialist tasks. As Trotsky put it summarising the development later: 'Marx regarded the bourgeois revolution of 1848 as the direct prelude to the proletariar revolution, Marx "erred" '. Yet his ernot methodological character. The revolution of 1848 did not turn into a socialist revolution. . But that it is just also did not achieve This analysis has been confirmed by the entire history of the 20th cenWhere the dictatorshin ot the proletariat is not established naturally this does not mean inat no steps Ior ward have been taken. But it means that the bourgeois democratic tasks have been limited, aborted as li Ireland, and then followed by Zimbabwe, India, and many other countries. Only where the dictatorship of the proletariat has been established have the bourgeois democratic tasks been carried through consistently -as in Russia, China Cuba Vietnam. The attempt of Lenin to formulate ar alternative to this in the early part of the twentieth century in a theory of a revolutionary democrațic dectatorship of the proletariat and 'peasantry has not been born out by history. No caalllc of the revolutionary democratic dictatorship of the proletariat and peasantry has come into existence in any country class in South Africa is and must ally with the revolutionary natinalists, the ANC, in order to carry through the struggle against apartheid. However in that struggle there are two perspectives. If the destruction of the apartheid state is followed by the transfer bourgeoisie then the tasks of the national democratic revolution will be thoroughly transferred into the hands desegregation of every aspect of life will not be carried through, a united nation will not be forged but rem. nants of racism and tribalism will continue. Only if state power is transferCharter supported by the ANC, the tasks of a thorough democratic ECVO HENI Africa, cannot be carried out without means the working class in South Africa today must even now seek to organise itself separately from, and define itself independently politically, seeking the closest possible alliance perfectly in Trotsky's book Permanent Revolution as: 'The dictatorship of the proletariat which has risen to power as the leader of the democratic revolution. '"I It was a perspective also outlined in the October 1985 resolution by the United Secretariat of the Africa: "A proletarian leadership will democratic and national questions are solutions to these questions can only be carried out by the dictatorship of the proletariat as the decisive point in Even if certain socialist tasks must wait for later, only the dictatorship of the proletariat is capable of fulfilling and defending the demands of the national democratic revolution." simply by Marxist theory but, most importantly, by the entire history of
Socialist Action 6 Feb 1987 9
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proletariaca pett forse oisie, s thr democratic republic; the third for a