FROM

Dear comrades:

Happy New Year to all of you!

The human civilization under capitalist clutches has plunged into a dark era of tyranny, oppression and misery. About 157 years ago Karl Marx, and his comrade in arms Frederick Engels predicted this scenario in their great book "Communist Manifesto". The whole world saw this condition during the First World War. Following the teachings of Marx and Engels, Comrade Lenin showed the path of emancipation, at that time, accomplishing the Great October Socialist Revolution in Russia. Under his leadership it was proved then that only socialism is a guaranty of peace, justice, equality, freedom and progress.

The world faced that dark era again during the Second World War while fascism, growing in the womb of imperialism, was about to grasp the whole of mankind. But it was proved again that none but socialism can defeat the great menace. Today everyone has to admit that it was the USSR that defeated fascism under the great leadership of Comrade Stalin and saved the whole human civilisation.

At present we are facing that menace again. You know, that we have entered into an era of a battle between the two opposing forces. The imperialist forces are, on one side, with their aggressive design to dominate and rule the world with their economic and military might; and the forces fighting for justice, equality, peace etc., are on the other side.

We firmly believe that to win this battle the need of the hour is to consolidate the people’s movements and steer them towards a sustained fight against global imperialism on the basis of a correct revolutionary ideology. Besides this, the struggle to revive the ex-USSR is an unavoidable demand of the era. We have to build up a strong unity between this struggle and all these secular-democratic, anti-imperialist, anti-capitalist people’s movements.

In this respect I would like to mention here three proposals that I raised at the Second World Congress of the International Council for Friendship and Solidarity with Soviet People.

First, an anti-imperialist forum should be established that could coordinate the worldwide struggles against imperialism. It can have different regional branches too.

Second, with a view of creating a Communist International, we should have a platform, to conduct discussions amongst the Communist parties who have different shades of opinion on different issues.

Third, under the present capitalist globalization, workers and peasants’ struggles all over the world has become a global phenomena too. So we should take immediate steps to coordinate those struggles.

I think that against this backdrop, the International Council for Friendship and Solidarity with Soviet People and its published organ – the Northstar Compass as well, has a great role to play.

I hope that all of the honourable readers of Northstar Compass all over the world, will maintain their constant cooperation to this end.

Khalequzzaman
Convenor
Central Committee
Socialist Party of Bangladesh
Member of the Editorial Board of NSC