Communist School 2025: a milestone for revolutionary communists in Pakistan

From 15-17 August, 300 revolutionary communists from across Pakistan gathered to attend the Communist School at Banjoosa lake near Rawalakot, ‘Azad’ Kashmir. Despite dire inflation, unrest in Balochistan and Pakhtunkhwa, heavy rain, floods and traffic jams, the comrades overcame all kinds of difficulties to attend the event. Many other young people were unable to attend due to financial difficulties and for other reasons.

[Originally published in Urdu at marxist.pk]

The highlight of this school was that comrade Ehsan Ali – the leader of the Gilgit-Baltistan Awami Action Committee who endured immense hardships in prison for three months – was released just a day before. Despite being seriously ill, instead of going home, he immediately arrived to attend the school, which raised the political standard of the entire event and sparked huge enthusiasm.

Along with him, young comrade Waheed Hassan from Gilgit-Baltistan – despite having spent two months in prison – also attended the school along with other comrades from Gilgit-Baltistan. Both these comrades were warmly welcomed and when they were called on the stage at the beginning of the school, the enthusiasm and passion of the participants in the hall was palpable.

The highlight of this school was that comrade Ehsan Ali was released just a day before / Image: RCP

Due to the ongoing crisis of the capitalist system internationally, we have entered an extraordinary historical era. This is an epoch of revolutions, counter-revolutions, wars and civil wars, which is being expressed all over the world, including in Pakistan. In these circumstances, the decision to hold the Communist School was of utmost importance. Hundreds of communists gathered to analyse the world situation, learn the revolutionary ideas of Marxism and seriously prepare for the upcoming class war in the event of a revolutionary situation developing.

International and Pakistani perspectives

The first session of the school began with revolutionary slogans and poetry. Yasir Irshad also welcomed the released prisoners from Gilgit-Baltistan. This session was chaired by comrade Umar Riaz from Kashmir and the first talk was given by comrade Paras Jan from Karachi.

The present situation is characterised simultaneously by barbarism and by a growing appetite for socialism. Examples of barbaric conditions exist around the world: in Sudan, Afghanistan, Gaza, Syria, the Russia-Ukraine war, etc. According to one report, civil wars are currently taking place in 37 countries. Only recently, the Iran-Israel war and the Pakistan-India conflict, showed that there is even a threat of nuclear war.

The first talk was given by comrade Paras Jan from Karachi / Image: RCP

Alongside this barbarism, however, we see a rise in anti-establishment and even revolutionary sentiments. According to a survey, socialism has immense support among American youth aged 18 to 29, and 36 percent of them support communism. The same situation can be seen throughout Europe, including the UK, where objectively the conditions for revolution are ripe, despite the lack of the subjective factor: the revolutionary party.

Discussing Pakistan, comrade Paras said that the Pakistani state is also currently in a serious crisis due to the general crisis of capitalism. The working class of Pakistan – which has suffered environmental disasters, economic attacks, and restrictions on democratic rights – deeply hates the state and the ruling class. This hatred is being expressed in the form of movements in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan, Kashmir, Gilgit-Baltistan and Sindh. Government employees in Punjab are continuously fighting against salary cuts and privatisation.

The ruling class of Pakistan is also well aware of these conditions and is very afraid of the possibility of a revolutionary movement. This is why restrictions on democratic rights are being intensified. Paras Jan explained that the conditions in Pakistan are also ripe for the emergence of a revolutionary movement. We will have to intensify the struggle to build a revolutionary communist party, whilst also engaging in urgent struggles against all kinds of problems facing the poor and oppressed.

Conditions in Pakistan are also ripe for the emergence of a revolutionary movement / Image: RCP

After Paras’ opening talk, questions were taken from the audience. In this session, Arsalan Dani from Lahore, Farhan Rashid from Bahawalpur, Karim Prahar from Quetta, Babu William Rose from Faisalabad, Asif Lashari from DG Khan, Taimur Khan from Peshawar, Anand Prakash from Karachi, Sarfaraz from Larkana and Adam Pal participated in the discussion and spoke about the revolutionary movements going on in Pakistan and around the world, as well as the need for a revolutionary party.

Imperialist war: a communist perspective

After the lunch break on the first day, the second session began. The second session discussed the communist perspective on imperialist wars. This session was chaired by comrade Waheed Hassan from Gilgit-Baltistan who had recently been released from prison, and the main talk was given by comrade Saqib Ismail from Lahore.

Saqib Ismail looked at the ongoing wars and civil wars around the world, including the barbarity in Gaza; the Russo-Ukrainian war, in which millions have been killed; the Iran-Israel Twelve-Day War; and the India-Pakistan conflict. Saqib explained that to understand the reasons for these imperialist wars, we have to study Lenin's book, Imperialism: The Highest Stage of Capitalism, written in 1916 during the First World War.

Saqib explained that to understand the reasons for imperialist wars, we have to study Lenin's book, Imperialism: The Highest Stage of Capitalism / Image: RCP

This book explains the material basis for imperialist wars, especially the First World War, which was a war between different imperialist countries to acquire markets and colonies, but we also see the same fundamental logic in the various wars that have been taking place in the Middle East for several decades.

Saqib further explained that, when adopting any position, communists seek to represent the interests of the working class. Communists do not consider capitalist pacifism as the solution to wars, since imperialist peace is a precursor to a new imperialist war. War and violence are inherent in the nature of capitalism and until imperialism and capitalism are abolished, wars cannot be abolished. Imperialism and imperialist wars cannot be defeated through ethnic or national unity, but through the global unity of the working class.

After the talk, many audience members asked questions. In this session, Adam Pal, Karim Prahar from Quetta, Irfan Mansoor from Bahawalpur, and Yasir Irshad from Kashmir participated in the discussion and answered the audience’s questions.

With this, the first day of the school came to an end. A musical performance was held in the evening by Ustad Nasir Khan and tabla player Sharon, who had come specially from Lahore. All the participants enjoyed the music very much.

A musical performance was held in the evening by Ustad Nasir Khan and tabla player Sharon, who had come specially from Lahore / Image: RCP

Marxist philosophy and modern science

The first session of the second day began once again with enthusiastic slogans and poetry. The topic of this session was ‘Marxist philosophy and modern science’. The chair was Majeed Panhwar from Hyderabad and the talk was given by comrade Irfan Mansur from Bahawalpur.

Irfan began by discussing the relationship between philosophy and science. After then explaining the idealist interpretations of quantum mechanics that deny the independent existence of matter, Irfan responded to these claims from the perspective of Marxist philosophy. Having explained the role of materialism and objectivity in philosophy, he looked at the progressive role that formal logic historically played in science and showed how the scientific discoveries of the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries revealed the limitations of the principles of formal logic.

Comrade Irfan explained that due to the limitations of formal logic, many scientists rejected formal logic’s understanding of the material world and claimed instead that it was impossible to know reality / Image: RCP

Comrade Irfan explained that due to the limitations of formal logic, many scientists rejected formal logic’s understanding of the material world and claimed instead that it was impossible to know reality. In fact, however, this understanding of matter has long been obsolete. Dialectical materialism, rather than formal logic, is the method that can explain matter in all its complexities.

Many questions were asked by the audience in this session, showing that there is a strong desire to understand Marxist philosophy among young people today.

After this, Adam Pal, Farhan Rashid, Paras Jan, Rawal Asad, Tasbih Khan and others discussed various aspects of this topic in their contributions.

History of the Iranian Revolution of 1979

The second session of the second day was on the history of the Iranian Revolution of 1979. This session was chaired by comrade Anand Prakash from Karachi and the main talk was given by comrade Salma Nazar from Lahore.

Comrade Salma, while talking about the revolutionary movements that have arisen in Iran in recent years, explained the history of the struggles of the Iranian working class. The 1979 Revolution, in which the working class overthrew the Shah, was a major historic achievement, rich with lessons for workers today.

Comrade Salma, while talking about the revolutionary movements that have arisen in Iran in recent years, explained the history of the struggles of the Iranian working class / Image: RCP

After the overthrow of the Shah in 1979, all the conditions were ripe for a socialist revolution. Yet due to the ideological weaknesses of the various leftist parties – especially the Tudeh Party, which had strong foundations in the Iranian working class – the Iranian mullahs got the opportunity to seize power.

The talk also looked at the series of strikes during the revolution, in which workers connected with oil production played a leading role. At that time, all the conditions were in place to establish a workers’ government in Iran. It is a tragedy that despite the tremendous revolutionary energy of the workers, the Iranian working class was prevented from achieving socialism by the party that was supposed to lead the revolution – the Tudeh Party.

In this regard, it is very important to understand the role played by the counter-revolutionary ideas of Stalinism, and the communist parties under the influence of Stalinism in the twentieth century. These examples clearly show the importance of revolutionary ideas. Wrong ideas have always led revolutionary movements to failure. This is why Lenin had said that without revolutionary ideas, there can be no revolutionary movement.

Adam Pal, Sanaullah Jalbani from Lahore, Halima Khan from Peshawar, Seema Khan from Quetta and Sarfaraz from Larkana contributed to this session.

After it ended, Ustad Nasir Khan once again entertained the participants with beautiful singing.

Building a revolutionary communist party

The last session of the three-day school was on the topic of building a revolutionary communist party. This session was chaired by Sanaullah Jalbani from Lahore and introduced by comrade Ajmal Rashid from Kashmir.

Comrade Ajmal said that we are living in an interesting and turbulent era. In this period, the central question for communists is how to transmit revolutionary ideas to the people who want to struggle to overthrow the system.

In this period, the central question for communists is how to transmit revolutionary ideas to the people who want to struggle to overthrow the system / Image: RCP

At present, nowhere in the world is there a mass party with a clear political program to solve the problems of the people. This leaves an immense vacuum that only the revolutionary communists can fill, because we have the correct ideas and the correct political program that today's revolutionary movements desperately need.

After the talk, representatives of the Revolutionary Communist Party from different cities gave reports on party building in their cities and announced their targets for future activities and recruitment.

Comrade Ehsan Ali also spoke about his ordeal over the last three months and his plans for building the RCP in Gilgit-Baltistan in the coming period. He said that the comrades are determined to continue our struggle despite all difficulties, and will build the RCP on the basis of the genuine ideas of revolutionary Marxism. His speech received a rousing applause from the audience and filled all those present with new enthusiasm and determination.

The political discussions held at the school gave real hope and confidence to the young generation who hate the rotten capitalist system / Image: RCP

The closing remarks of the school were delivered by comrade Adam Pal, in which he spoke about the rapid growth of the Revolutionary Communist International around the world. Many of those who have joined the Revolutionary Communist International are young people from schools, colleges and universities and Adam stressed the urgent need to reach the layer of young people in Pakistan who want to join the Revolutionary Communist Party.

Many young people attended the school who had not yet become members of the Revolutionary Communist Party, but after listening to the various sessions over three days, a large number of them announced they would join the party, including 5 women. This shows that the political discussions held at the school gave real hope and confidence to the young generation who hate the rotten capitalist system. It showed that the Revolutionary Communist Party is the only party that could overthrow the brutal capitalist system and liberate the working class.