4. The activities of the ‘Left’ in relation to Italy¶
Core Argument¶
This chapter documents a factional dispute within the Revolutionary Communist Party (RCP) in 1945, focusing on the conduct of the ‘Left’ faction in relation to the Italian section of the Fourth International. The core argument is that the ‘Left’ has acted disloyally, refusing to accept party discipline while remaining within the organisation, and that this situation cannot continue indefinitely. The Political Bureau (PB) presents evidence of the ‘Left’ conducting unauthorised political work abroad, specifically sending pamphlets and draft leaflets to Italian comrades without party approval. The chapter reproduces correspondence from a figure identified as TM, who attempts to explain these actions as attempts to aid Italian members with concrete advice, but the PB dismisses these explanations as thin and evasive, noting that TM himself reserved the right to issue a more considered statement later.
The PB accuses the ‘Left’ of attempting to provoke expulsion over organisational issues, spreading rumours that the PB would expel them, and refusing to participate in common party work. The chapter draws on the history of the fusion that created the RCP, noting that months have elapsed since then without the ‘Left’ integrating into the party’s structures. The PB insists that the ‘Left’s political position was decisively defeated at party conference, and that the party has the right to assign faction members to any field of work it chooses, but has refrained from doing so in the hope that common work would convince the ‘Left’ of the correctness of the majority view.
The polemic is directed squarely at the ‘Left’ faction, whom the PB charges with sabotaging discipline and choosing to fight on organisational rather than political grounds. The PB argues that the ‘Left’s failure to initiate political discussion demonstrates that their political views were not seriously held. The chapter concludes with an appeal to those ‘Left’ members who take their party membership seriously, demanding that they accept discipline like other members, and announcing that the discussion is being opened to the party membership after twelve months of patient negotiation. The tone is one of exasperated ultimatum, framed as a fraternal appeal but carrying the implicit threat of expulsion if discipline is not accepted.