Socialism in Our Times

Equality in all spheres of public life constitutes the major value of the democratic socialist thought. It is true that liberty and solidarity have been emphasised along with equality: yet, it is not difficult to see that if all human beings are equal and no one dominates the other, every one enjoys liberty. Of course, solidarity is more feasible among equals, but unless there is solidarity in society, even the existence of the latter comes to be threatened, and then equality and liberty become nothing more than meaningless words. The socialists’ stress upon equality resulted because of the Industrial Revolution in Western Europe that was creating economic disparities. It was however associated with democracy - political equality which was the first concern of all those who wanted feudalism and all its vestiges to end. There is no doubt that socialists had to join hands in the struggles for democracy for common citizenship and territorial fellowship. The French Revolution in 1789, the break-up of the Austrian empire and the religious revolts against the ‘unchristian life styles’ of the Papacy in Rome and the cardinals, had strengthened the process of the birth of nation states, and with it, the desire for people’s sovereignty and their civic and political rights. Marx and Engels, for example, fought not only for the economic rights of the working class, but also for full civic rights in Germany and for Poland’s freedom from the Russian rule

Socialists, from the beginning, advocated austere life-style, possibly as a reaction against the ugliness of the ostentatious living of the purpled few, and also because of the lingering memories of the revolts of the poor masses against Papacy and the Clergy who were accused of shaming the austere-living Christ. Pre-Marxist socialists whom Marx-Engels duo dismissed as utopians stressed the essential social morality of the individual. To them austere living was synonymous with sharing with others in the society. Yet, moral protests notwithstanding, as also the idea of social ownership of wealth, socialism as a movement gained strength when it was stressed that the new era had to ensure common sharing and the protection of the vulnerable sections of the society. The unique contribution of Karl Marx and Frederick Angles lay in systemising the currents of socialist thought and practice, giving them coherence and providing a philosophic basis by stressing upon the phenomenon of class struggle.

Equally powerful currents of thought and practice like those of Bakunin, Proudhon and Prince Kropotkin were in vogue even then. It should be remembered that the co-operative movement, syndicalism, and the theory of general strike as preached by George Sorel cannot be dismissed as non- or anti-socialist. The concepts of mutual aid, the connection between the means and the ends, stress on morality and ethics of socialism, the need for abstinence, self-discipline and austere living should be treated as much a part of the socialist thought as the Marxist stress on intensifying the class struggle, the abolition of all exploitation by bringing about all means of production under social ownership and the consequent creation of a classless and stateless society

Without debating too much on what Marx really meant a systematic statement of the socialist thought that emerged in the industrialised countries ought to be attempted. The Declaration of Principles of the Socialist International, pronounced in 1951 is a good basis for it. Western socialists had seen the collapse of capitalist economy in the crisis of the 1930’s, had experienced the horrors of Nazism and Fascism and had gone through a ruthless World War which recorded the holocaust of nuclear bombs. Moreover, the distortion of socialism at the hands of Joseph Stalin in the name of the dictatorship of the proletariat plagued them not a little. They had, however, realised the gross limitation of welfare regimes which they had only then started to build. These regimes hardly changed the class structure, but helped the proletariat to be gradually co-opted in the capitalist system, nor could they rise above the Euro-centric limitations of their vision of socialism.

Socialists in the Third World do not find much in common with the established socialist or social democratic parties in the West, because while in power, the latter towed the line of global capitalism. Even when some of them raised voices in protest, these proved totally ineffective in addressing our concerns. WTO and its principles of free trade hurt the developing countries, as unequals cannot compete on the basis of equality. Western socialists are part of that unjust arrangement. They are marching hand in hand with huge nuclear arms industry, undeterred by the threat of the extinction of the whole human race. The warming of the physical environment brought the whole world together to ensure that all countries signed the Kyoto Treaty. However the Western countries lag far behind in its implementation, and USA and now Canada have refused to honour it. Now, even the Moon is not immune to the exploitation for Private Project. In this respect too Western socialists have raised but a feeble voice of protest. Even in late Sixties, when they were in the forefront to ensure that the developing countries got large aids from the developed ones, there was hope of ushering in a new international economic order. However, all those resolutions of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) have remained on paper only. Unfortunately, now Mr. Cooper, an advisor to the British Prime Minister and leader of the Labour Party, Tony Blair, has advocated the restoration of the old colonialism. Neither Blair nor the Labour Party has reprimanded the author of this repugnant theory.

From their own experience, socialists in India expanded the concept of political and economic equality, summed up in the West in the phrase of social democracy, to cover cultural and social aspects of public policy. They have sought to find solutions to the hierarchical caste system and the injustices and indignities inherent in it. The solution that they found was that while working for the eradication of the caste system, the policy of positive discrimination in favour of the downtrodden must be implemented. The slogan of 60 per cent of reservation in all spheres of public life for the backward classes and the implementation of the Mandal Commission is a major contribution. Nevertheless, in the absence of a progressive advancement towards economic equality and deliberately thought-out policies for the spread of education in regional languages or their introduction at all levels of the administration have strengthened the caste system, at least in politics. Moreover, many social ills of the forward castes are now being shared by the backward castes also.

The introduction of the 73rd and the 74th amendment of the Constitution by which power has been devolved to Panchayati Raj bodies is yet another feather in the cap of the socialists. It has been practiced to some extent in France as well, under a socialist administration. We must however admit that whatever power has been shared by the Centre and the states with the PRIs does not satisfy the aspirations of the followers of Gandhi, Lohia and Jai Prakash Narayan. Socialists learnt from Acharya Narendra Dev that people’s culture or folk culture was extremely rich and had to be given its due. The glaring disparities of emoluments et cetera of those who follow western culture and those who adhere to their folk culture, or the English-speaking urban middle class and the regional language speaking rural and urban poor have further aggravated. The concept of merit is based more on articulation rather than the skills by hands, so that those coming from higher echelons of the society with no physical skills always score in merit. These problems have not been addressed even though the socialists enunciated the language policy as early as 1956.

Equality in all spheres of public life, some of which have been referred to above, must be brought about. The physical environment, apart from the cultural environment, has also to be part of this exercise. As mentioned earlier, Indian socialists have to recall the examples of the life styles of the first generation leaders in respect of simple living.

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