Spain: the inspirational second congress of the OCR

On the weekend of 13-15 March the Organización Comunista Revolucionaria (OCR), the Spanish section of the Revolutionary Communist International, held its second national congress in Madrid. With 100 comrades and visitors in attendance, it was a truly inspiring event that many commented marked a personal turning point in their political development.

In attendance we had comrades from Madrid, Catalonia, Basque Country, Andalusia, Castile-León, the Balearic Islands, Galicia, Murcia and Aragón. In addition, we had a Portuguese delegation from Colectivo Comunista Revolucionaria (CCR), Jorge Martín from the International Secretariat (IS) of the RCI, and a visitor from the British section of the RCI (RCP).

For many of our comrades, this congress was their first, as we have seen a renovation and rejuvenation of our forces since the autumn. There were even a handful of visitors who were invited from Madrid, two of whom joined the OCR on the first day of congress!

World perspectives

The congress began on Friday afternoon with a discussion on world perspectives, introduced by Jorge Martín. Naturally, the USA’s imperialist war against Iran and our position on it were central to the discussion.

The US will emerge battered from this warmongering and barbaric adventure. Already it is having a sharp impact on the world economy, but as the war drags on, the long-term economic and social consequences remain to be seen. They will be more profound and painful than what we witnessed during the COVID pandemic, and will deepen the questioning of the system that is already occurring in the US and the rest of the world.

We also addressed inter-imperialist relations, the rise of China and its limitations, the global economic stagnation (exacerbated by the war with Iran), and the AI bubble that could burst soon. Flowing from this, we discussed the growing discrediting of the establishment, a process accelerated by macabre scandals like the Epstein case, which expose the interconnectedness of the world ruling class. We also discussed the political expressions of this, such as the temporary rise of ‘radical’ right-wing parties, and what they represent, as well as the revolutionary processes that took place in many countries in Asia and Africa at the end of last year.

Spanish perspectives

On Saturday morning we discussed the situation in Spain, introduced by David Rey. This discussion began by addressing the unfolding of the systemic capitalist crisis that began with the Great Recession of 2008, and is still ongoing today.

Following the relative political stabilisation achieved after the disappearance of Podemos and the Catalan independence movement as significant political factors – due to the failure of their leadership – the Sánchez government now faces the challenge of its potential electoral defeat at the hands of the right-wing PP-Vox alliance. This is amidst the deep scepticism of millions of young people and workers who, behind the official rhetoric of success, find themselves living hand to mouth, with wages that do not stretch to the end of the month, and the impossibility of accessing housing.

Indeed, whilst the working population has increased by three million over just a few years, this is coupled with a growing reliance of the economy on tourism (97 million visitors last year!). Public and social services (housing, transport, healthcare, energy infrastructure, etc.) are lagging far behind in terms of development and funding, causing society to fray at the seams.

There was an interesting debate on the rise of the reactionary right-wing forces of Vox, and on immigration and the general atmosphere of discontent that Vox tries to turn to their advantage. Despite everything, the right lacks a solid and consistent social base, and its rise is viewed with immense resentment and unease by broad sections of the working class and the youth. Many workers and youth have seen through Vox with their reactionary rhetoric, their racism, their attacks on democratic and national rights in Catalonia and the Basque Country, and their threats to the right to abortion. Furthermore, many also oppose Vox’s support for the genocide in Gaza, the current war in Iran, and the anti-worker policies and social cuts that are anticipated should PP-Vox come to power.

It will not be long before we see a furious and massive response from below that will radically transform the entire social atmosphere, just as in the period 2011-2014, but at a higher level of development, and with more advanced political conclusions.

Organisational discussion

On Saturday afternoon we discussed the work of our organisation, looking back on the previous year, at what had been achieved and what we can improve on going forward this year. The main focus of this discussion was on the importance of youth work, especially amongst the students. We have recruited many university students and a handful of high school students in the recent period which gives us a great basis for continued work in this field.

What is needed now is a concrete plan of action to channel this energy and achieve specific and realisable goals in a cohesive way, with all the students working together on campus. We have to stay focused and not rest on the laurels of our recent success. As one comrade said in the discussion “it’s a marathon not a sprint, but that doesn’t mean it stops being a race”.

We also highlighted the successful national school that we held in November, which will become an annual tradition along with our regional day schools every two to three months. Comrades proudly spoke on the central role of the paper in our daily activity, which is now produced in three languages: Spanish, Basque, and Catalan. The comrades in Catalonia and the Basque Country write, design, and distribute their own paper to tackle regional topics. This is having a great impact on consolidating the comrades and helping them connect with a wider layer of radicalised youth and workers.

Comrades also spoke on the importance of combining growth and political education harmoniously, citing our ‘Joiner’s manual’ as a very useful tool. Finally, we launched a new campaign against the war in Iran with which to intervene in the anti-war protests and on university campuses with a clear communist position on the fight against US imperialism.

The day ended with a report from Jorge Martín on how the work was going in the rest of the sections and new groups across the International. It was encouraging for all to learn about the great strides forward being taken, the impressive growth, especially of the US and Mexican sections, and of the establishing of new groups or contacts being made in countries where we haven’t had a presence before.

Bolivarian Revolution

Finally, on Sunday morning, Jorge Martín, introduced a discussion on the Bolivarian Revolution in Venezuela. He gave an explanation of the historical context leading up to the revolution as well as describing the character of Chávez and his connection to the masses. We also looked at aspects such as the role that the RCI played in these events, how our ideas and our paper connected with the mood in Venezuela, and how Chávez recommended Reason in Revolt (by Alan Woods and Ted Grant) and classic works by Trotsky on public broadcasts and speeches.

In the discussion comrades spoke about the role of the individual in history, exposed the lies spread about the revolution, discussed the relationship of Venezuela with Cuba, and gave examples of workers control. There was also a personal anecdote from a comrade who visited Venezuela as a child to meet Chávez, who still had her copy of the Bolivarian Constitution that was a symbol of the revolution and the empowerment of the masses.

The discussion concluded by stressing the importance of building a revolutionary party, to ensure the completion of the revolution, rather than stopping halfway, as it did in Venezuela. As the Bolivarian Revolution failed to destroy the bourgeois state and expropriate the capitalists, it gave way to counterrevolution and has led to the situation in Venezuela today.

Building our forces

At the congress we launched a new edition of Origins of the Family, Private Property and the State, by Friedrich Engels, which was very well received. We sold almost €900 worth of material, €700 of which was spent on books. In the collection, we raised just over our goal of €6,000.

The congress was so inspiring that, for the first time, comrades sang The Internationale twice during the weekend. At the end of the Sunday session, we went outside for a group photo and recorded a video message calling for the release of Ehsan Ali: our comrade of the Revolutionary Communist Party in Pakistan who has been arrested for a second time by the authorities.

In his closing remarks, Jorge emphasised the need for personal responsibility to build the forces of genuine communism in Spain. If we all work together, we can achieve our goals this year and continue to build the forces of communism in Spain. Comrades reported afterwards how inspiring the congress had been, how the first branches after congress had been electric and dynamic; how they truly feel that the organisation is theirs to take forward and that with that comes a personal responsibility to do everything to build the OCR in their region.