Trois idées de conclusion :
1- Les nouveaux problèmes auxquels doit faire face l'Internationale du fait des conditions de sa création.
2- Comment embrasser, à partir de là, la question de la fusion.
3- Premières expériences concrètes.

 

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Duration: 44:27

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Bensaid expose les premiers pas de la création d'une nouvelle Internationale par Trotsky. Concernant la base politique de la lutte internationale, la première chose à faire était de rassembler tous les documents programmatiques fondamentaux de la Troisième Internationale. Cela concerne notamment les questions sur la Révolution Russe : la question de l'Etat, celle de la forme de la dictature du prolétariat, les premières années de l'organisation sovietique, puis la discussion intervenue lors des troisième et quatrième congrès sur le front unique. Mais quelques événements historiques majeurs posent de nouveaux problèmes de tactique. Bensaid décrit le contexte : la question de la guerre, la guerre mondiale, les armements nucléaires, la révolution chinoise, etc. Il parle de la formation de l'Internationalle et de l'Opposition de Gauche.

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Duration: 61:06

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Au cours de cet exposé, Bensaid présente les problèmes identifiés dans la Troisième Internationale par Trotsky. Il aborde la situation des partis communistes dans différents pays dans les années 1930 et la création d'une ligne politique pour une nouvelle Internationale.

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Duration: 27:31

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Cet enregistrement est issu d'une formation de trois jours consacrée à l'histoire de la Quatrième Internationale. Bensaid distingue trois grandes périodes: a) les années de formation 1933-1938, b) les années de l'après-guerre 1946-1965, c) la période de 1965-1968 à 1979 - l'année du grand congrès mondial. L'exposé concerne ces grandes périodes et les aborde par le prisme des perspectives de construction de l'Internationale (et, dans une moindre mesure, de la section), et des problèmes qui y sont liés. Cette première partie de l'exposé concerne les années de formation, et avant tout la necessité de créer une nouvelle Internationale à l'aune des problèmes identifiés dans les précédentes Internationales.

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Duration: 27:01

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Bensaïd discusses "entryism" departing from Trotsky's position in 1934 concerning the CPs until today, posing the question of "what is the place of revolutionaries and what can they do to add revolutionary content in the united front." He concludes the lecture with an overview of the party activities, policies and organisational decisions from 68 to 69-71, which was marked by a hypothesis of acceleration of class struggle, revolutionary perspective on the situation, and rapid breakthrough in the organisation. He underlines that in a new situation, everything needs to be redefined along the axis of tactical choices and strategical decisions.

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Duration: 30:27

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The mainly clandestine activities in the early 1970s changed with the 1974 presidential elections. Some democratic demands for the army were raised, including a soldiers union. Collaboration with workers committees, to make room for soldiers committees. In 1975, the Chirac campaign denounces a 'plot' against the army and all soldiers committees were dispersed. In this context, Bensaïd mentions the organisational problems and "two big" mistakes. First one being the election campaign of 1978, where the party prepared a programme with a strategical planning for future in the case of a victory of the left. Bensaïd underlines that the plan did not correspond with what the militants did at the time - "a big difference between what you plan and what people do". Second mistake was, according to him, the position regarding the question of leadership.

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The first part focuses on the founding of the JCR, and the process of fusion from 68 to 69 between the JCR and the PCI. The context of youth organisation and youth radicalisation around Maoist currenst and the Vietnam War are discussed as well as the organisational structures and movements.

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Duration: 92:21

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In this part of recording, Bensaïd focuses on the reunification process in 63, with concrete points from the reunification congress. He continues to discuss the context of the reunification: In Europe, the strategical framework was linked to what he calls a "strategical hypothesis", with a prospect of revolutionary crisis in the 70s. New conditions of the proletariat in Europe and new organisation building strategies came up. He provides a critical perspective of the FI's lack of analysis and failure of recognition regarding Latin America in the 1970s. He concludes with an account of 10th and 11th World Congresses, the latter being a "balance-sheet" that put forward coherent perspectives and key tasks for transforming the FI's position on Europe and Latin America.

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Duration: 76:32:00

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Bensaïd provides a chronological account of the period from WWII to the split in 52-53, the reunification process in 63, the 9th world congress, and considerations on the 11th world congress. FI started as a prognosis on the WWII and its results. Trotsky thought that this war would have the same effects as the WWI and trigger a series of revolutions. A strong internationalist revolutionary vanguard was necessary. After WWII, the perspective of Trotsky was to be maintained closely. Bensaïd gives example from the 46 Document, where a general problem of building sections in Western Europe was raised to prepare for a new wave of revolutionary movements around Europe. Bensaïd outlines general characteristics of the period from 48-49 to the 53 split: Firstly, the international reacted correctly to the one of the major outcomes of the war, which was how to interpret and understand the new revolutions that happen. It was a problem to understand these movements. Secondly, and this lead to the split, the global perspective was not changed because there was no understanding of what were the social and economical conditions after the war. With the colonial revolution and its weakening impact on imperialism, it was believed that the third world war, which would be an international civil war, would break out, and in this situation there was no time to build mass organisations or parties.

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Duration: 89:21

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In this final part of his lecture, Bensaïd discusses entryism with concrete examples from the SWP, and CP's in different countries such as America, Brazil and France. He draws conclusions and comments on the results as well as their validity today.

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Duration: 15:45

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