Official Speech of Comrade Manzurul Ahsan Khan, President Communist Party of Bangladesh at the 8th Congress of CPN(UML) held in Gutwal

Official Speech of Comrade Manzurul Ahsan Khan, President Communist Party of Bangladesh at the 8th Congress of Communist Party of Nepal UML held in Gutwal Lumbin Zone from 16-21 February.2008
(Due to shortage of time during the congress session an extempore speech was delivered).

Comrades in the Presidium, dear delegates to the 8th Congress of CPN-UML and fraternal delegates I bring you revolutionary greetings from the Communist Party of Bangladesh and all left and progressive forces.

We congratulate you on your great victory against monarchy and for the establishment of a secular democratic and Federal Republic.

Communist and left progressive forces in Bangladesh take pride in the great achievements made in Nepal where your party played a pivotal role. We know your party was the first to gain state power and start a meaningful democratic process. The fact that the victorious red flag with hammer sickle flies over the highest mountain, the Himalayas and the fact that the Communists lead the government here is a source of great inspiration to communists in Bangladesh and other countries of the region. It gives us confidence in the future of revolutions in our countries. Every revolution round the world has shown us that there are many ways and forms of revolution and many a ways towards socialism and we should be able to creatively use every situation every turns to advance towards progressive and democratic changes.

We know very well that the enemies of the people, the Imperialists and their allies and reactionary forces within the countries never sit idle but continually conspire against progressive changes, create distrust, disunity, hostilities, split amongst people, communities and progressive parties and make desperate efforts to come back to power.

In Bangladesh we achieved our independence after a heroic armed struggle and framed a democratic (1972) constitution within a short time with four fundamental principle namely Nationalism, Secularism, democracy and socialism. Reactionary forces from within and outside conspired, governments were overthrown, leaders were assassinated, military dictatorship was imposed on several occasions and many changes have been brought about in the constitution and two fundamental principles like secularism and socialism has been abandoned.

In Bangladesh in the recently held Parliamentary election the more right forces along with their religious communal and fundamentalist allies were defeated which is a positive development. But we know that US imperialist and their global and regional allies are conspiring to establish their political, economic and military hegemony in the region. The Indo-US nuclear deal and strategic partnership between US, Israel and India, as comrades from India mentioned in their speech not only pose a danger to India and its people but also to countries of the region. The diktats of the World Bank, IMF and the “donor countries” in the name of structural reform, deregulation and privatization and so called open market economy have created havoc in our economy causing de-industrialisation wide scale unemployment, peasants loosing land, comodification of education and health care, homelessness uncontrollable price rise, poverty, hunger and pauperisation.

In the face of unprecedented crisis in the citadels of capitalism since 1930’s the philosophy of Market economy and the present version of Capitalism are being challenged. The governments in these countries have now started to intervene in the economy and nationalizing losses while privatization of profit continues.

Despite changes for the better in recent elections in Bangladesh our party is of the view that to overcome the existing crisis a revolutionary democratic change of the society will be required. A left democratic alternative consistently fighting against Imperialism, plundering capitalism and communal fundamentalist forces as opposed to capitulation and vacillation of bipolar bourgeoisie politic, can bring about a meaningful change.

The US state terrorism has become the greatest danger to humanity. In our region they are desperately trying to establish their hegemony and contain china. For this US resort to open pressure, covert action, to de-stabilize, to make the countries fight each other, provoke trouble and use dark forces of reaction including communal religious fundamentalist to weaken the countries and entangle them in unequal treatise undermining their political and economic independence.

The regional and global onslaught capital has to be fought back with regional and global action of Labour. To fight back imperialist aggression Communists within every country and every region and throughout the world must unite and mobilize progressive, patriotic, democratic and peace loving forces.

Dear Comrades,
We wish success of your congress and further increase in your strength, unity and ability to intervene. We also hope that you will bring about unity of communist parties and left democratic forces so essential for advancing the cause of the people.
We are in complete solidarity with the ongoing revolutionary process in your country. We wish you further success in bringing about a real change in the life of the people of Nepal. With warm greetings and Solidarity.

17.02.2009
Gutwal, Lumbini Zone, Nepal.