James Venables, a prominent activist in Bristol STW, posted an intriguing report on Bristol Indymedia (see http://bristol.indymedia.org/newswire/display/14073/index.php) regarding Saturday's small anti-war protest in Bristol. In it he questions the future direction of the anti-war movement, raises some of the problems, and suggests a possible broadening of the campaign.
Bristol STW has managed to maintain a relatively 'independent' stance within the national STW movement, which is testimony to the number of independent (ie not affiliated to organised left groups) activists in Bristol. This is to be applauded, but it has not resolved the issues raised of working with organised leftist groups.
While the independents ponder where to go next, the leftist groups know exactly where they are going - into the electoral vehicle of the Respect Unity Coalition, an essentially SWP dominated front group seeking to build on the successes of the anti-war movement in mobilising people against war, that aims to contest local & European elections in June as a 'protest' against new Labour. There are many who argue that the SWP and their ilk have all along seen the anti-war movement as nothing but a modern day conveyor belt carrying new activists into their organisations. This is not to deny that they oppose the war, but to acknowledge that their end aim is to build their leftist parties, whether the war is stopped or not.
Recent developments have born this out - the SWP have dropped their last electoral vehicle the Socialist Alliance in favour of the RUC; in Bristol the fragile unity of Bristol STW seems to have been broken - witness in East Bristol for example the independents out flyposting/publicising the Bristol M20 events, whilst the SWP flypost for the London march and their Socialist review mag. I understand also that the response of Bristol STW to the call for a global day of action with events in Bristol, preceeded the decision of STW nationally to call a national demo, at which the RUC was heavily pushed (can James/others confirm this?).
It is noted that James in his report specifically does not mention the RUC speaker on Saturday's demo, nor indeed the RUC as a future option for Bristol STW. However, many indepedents must be wondering how much of their hard work against war has merely led people into the arms of the SWP/RUC?
Which begs that question, can we work in popular fronts with the leftists and their secodnary (or primary) agendas? Or should we concentrate on working independently of them, on building our own community class based networks on non-hierarchical lines?
What do you think? What will you do the next time a similar campaign comes along?
There is also the associated issue of how we react to some of the groups the left brings with them - in the instance of STW/RUC- the Muslim Association of Britain.