Carta da ISL a LC
O ISL é um grupo trotskista de
Israel (territórios palestinos ocupados).
Abaixo, a correspondência enviada pela ISL a LC.
Abaixo, a correspondência enviada pela ISL a LC.
Dear comrades of the Humberto Rodrigues in
Brazil
Thank you for your letter. We read it very carefully and we also read your
material in English
Leon Trotsky: The Agrarian and National
Questions (1935)
www.marxists.org/archive/trotsky/1935/04/wpsa.htm
At the same time we strongly do not agree with your orientation
toward the Arab revolution from Tunisia to Egypt and Syria that you see as an
imperialist ploy. Kaddafi and Assad regimes are not anti imperialist regimes,
as we in Israel (occupied Palestine) can testify. Israel occupation of South Lebanon
was with the agreement of Assad the father and the intervention of Syria in the
1975 civil war in Lebanon was aimed at the support of the reactionary
falangists and again with the backing of
Israel.. Kaddafi supported Ben Ali in Tunisia against the mass movement saying
that Ben Ali acts in the same spirit of Israel repression of Hamas. Kaddafi
blocked the Africans migrant workers from reaching Europe.
We side with the revolutionary struggle of the
masses against the pro imperialist regimes. The fact that the imperialists
intervened in the mass revolutionary struggle in order to block it and that the
imperialists support of course the pro imperialist bourgeois like the CNT in
Libya, or Morsi in Egypt with an eye to the National Salvation front in Egypt,
or to pro imperialists elements within the SNC
to prevent the revolutionary struggle from winning, does not make the
revolutionary struggle of the masses is a ploy of imperialism. In Libya it was
necessary to support the armed struggle against Kaddafi repressive army and
when NATO intervened and sent solders to fight for its own control of the oil,
it was necessary to fight the imperialists as well even when it meant shooting
in the same direction as the Kaddafi army as long it did not shoot the masses without
stopping the struggle against Kaddafi. It was necessary to struggle against the
CNT for workers leadership.
Trotsky was very clear the question of
imperialist interventions. Trotsky wrote
Trotsky wrote on Brazil:
"In Brazil there now reigns a semi fascist
regime that every revolutionary can only view with hatred. Let us assume,
however, that on the morrow England enters into a military conflict with
Brazil. I ask you on whose side of the conflict will the working class be? I
will answer for myself personally—in this case I am on the side of ‘fascist’
Brazil against ‘democratic’ Great Britain. Why? Because in the conflict between
them it will not be a question of democracy or fascism. If England should be
victorious, she will put another fascist in Rio de Janeiro and will place
double chains on Brazil. If Brazil on the contrary should be victorious, it
will give a mighty impulse to national and democratic consciousness of the
country and will lead to the overthrow of the Vargas dictatorship. The defeat
of England will at the same time deliver a blow to British imperialism and give
an impulse to the revolutionary movement of the British proletariat."
—"Anti-Imperialist Struggle Is Key to
Liberation," 23 September 1938
This was in line with Lenin debate with Rosa
Luxemburg. Lenin wrote:
"„Britain and France fought the Seven
Years’ War for the possession of colonies. In other words, they waged an
imperialist war (which is possible on the basis of slavery and primitive capitalism
as well as on the basis of modern highly developed capitalism). France suffered
defeat and lost some of her colonies. Several years later there began the
national liberation war of the North American States against Britain alone.
France and Spain, then in possession of some parts of the present United
States, concluded a friendship treaty with the States in rebellion against
Britain. This they did out of hostility to Britain, i.e., in their own
imperialist interests. French troops fought the British on the side of the
American forces. What we have here is a national liberation war in which
imperialist rivalry is an auxiliary element, one that has no serious
importance. This is the very opposite to what we see in the war of 1914-16 (the
national element in the Austro-Serbian War is of no serious importance compared
with the all-determining element of imperialist rivalry). It would be absurd,
therefore, to apply the concept imperialism indiscriminately and conclude that
national wars are “impossible”. A national liberation war, waged, for example,
by an alliance of Persia, India and China against one or more of the
imperialist powers, is both possible and probable, for it would follow from the
national liberation movements in these countries. The transformation of such a
war into an imperialist war between the present-day imperialist powers would
depend upon very many concrete factors, the emergence of which it would be
ridiculous to guarantee.“
V. I. Lenin: The Junius Pamphlet(1916); in: CW
22, p. 310-11
The struggle that began in the Middle East in
2011 for democracy has to be led by the working class and its allies with the
perspective of workers revolutions that will implement the democratic tasks (
Agrarian revolution and throwing out the imperialists) but will not stop there.
It will continue with the fulfilling the socialist tasks, according to the
tempo of the world revolution. This is the strategy of Trotsky's Permanent
revolution. What today is missing more than anything else is working class
revolutionary leadership that we are fighting for on the international and
national levels and we hope you will join us..
Let me ask you a question: Do you think that
Hamas today is a creature of Israel? If you agree with me that Hams today is
not a creature of Israel how do you explain the fact that Hamas supports the
opposition and especially the Islamist opposition to Assad?
We will like to offer you to sign our call for
the release of all Palestinians political prisoners and to organize a united
front in Brazil with the demands:
Free all Palestinians Political prisoners
An Appeal from the Internationalist Socialist
League (Israel/Occupied Palestine)
Demand the Immediate Release of Samer alIssawi
and All Palestinian Political Prisoners!
To all political parties, trade unions, groups
and individuals that oppose the oppression of the Palestinian people,
We call you upon you comrades, brothers and
sisters and all advocates of justice and democracy, to demand from the Israeli
government to release immediately Samer alIssawi who was imprisoned without
charges and without trial. Samer chose to protest this inhumane and grotesque
imprisonment by going on a hunger strike that has currently exceeded 200 days.
Naturally, his life is now in grave danger.
Samer alIssawi is a Palestinian from Issawiya
neighborhood in alQuds (Jerusalem). He is a freedom fighter in the resistance
movement against the oppression of the Palestinians. He was twenty four years
old, when in April 2004 he was arrested, accused of armed struggle and
sentenced to 30 years in prison. You can learn from this that even the Israeli
military forces didn’t accuse Samer of killing anybody, as if this was the
charge he would be sentenced for life in prison.
In the past, Samer alIssawi’s release was
secured by the prisoners’ exchange deal of October 2011 (in which Israel
secured the release of its soldier Gilad Shalit). However, on July 7th, 2012,
he was arrested again, passing through an army roadblock in Jerusalem. This
time he was accused of parole violation by trying to reach Ramallah. The “Ofer”
military court decided that Samer should be returned to prison to serve the
remaining 20 years left to his original sentence.
Shirin alIssawi, Samer’s sister, has opened a
Facebook page, where she published a letter from him. This letter says:
"I turn with admiration to the masses of
our heroic Palestinian people, to our Palestinian leadership, to all forces,
parties and national institutions. I salute them for standing by our fight to
defend our right to freedom and dignity.
I draw my strength from my people, from all the
free people in the world, from friends and the families of the prisoners who
continue day and night chanting for freedom and an end to the occupation.
My health has deteriorated dramatically and I’m
hung between life and death. My weak body is collapsing but still able to be
patient and continue the confrontation. My message is that I will continue
until the end, until the last drop of water in my body, until martyrdom.
Martyrdom is an honor for me in this battle. My martyrdom is my remaining bomb
in the confrontation with the tyrants and the jailers, in the face of the
racist policy of the occupation that humiliates our people and exercises
against us all means of oppression and repression.
I say to my people: I’m stronger than the
occupation army and its racist laws. I, Samer al-Issawi, son of Jerusalem, send
you my last will that, in case I fell as a martyr, you will carry my soul as a
cry for all the prisoners, man and women, cry for freedom, emancipation and
salvation from the nightmare of prisons and their harsh darkness.
My battle is not only for individual freedom.
The battle waged by me and by my heroic colleagues, Tariq, Ayman and Ja’affar,
is everyone’s battle, the battle of the Palestinian people against the
occupation and its prisons. Our goal is to be free and sovereign in our
liberated state and in our blessed Jerusalem.
The weak and strained beats of my heart derive
their steadfastness from you, the great people. My eyes, which started to lose
their sight, draws light from your solidarity and your support of me. My weak
voice takes its strength from your voice that is louder than the warden’s voice
and higher than the walls.
I’m one of your sons, among thousands of your
sons who are prisoners, still languishing steadfasting in the prisons, waiting
for an end to be brought to their plight, their pains and the suffering of
their families.
The doctors told me I became exposed to stroke
because of the disorder of my heartbeats, the shortage of sugar and the drop in
blood pressure. My body is full of cold and I can’t sleep because of the
continued pain. But despite the extreme fatigue and chronic headaches, as I
move on my chair, I’m trying to summon all my resources to continue on the road
till its end. There is no going back, only in my victory, because I’m the owner
of Right and my detention is invalid and illegal.
Do not be afraid for my heart if it will stop,
don’t be afraid for my hands if they will be paralyzed. I am still alive now
and tomorrow and after death, because Jerusalem is flowing in my blood, in my
devotion and my faith".
A more detailed information in Arabic and
Hebrew can be found in the Free Haifa blog.
We appeal to you to send your own demands to
release Samer alIssawi to the office and Facebook page of Mr. Benyamin
Netanyahu, the prime minister of Israel:
http://unitedwithisrael.org/ask-the-prime-minister
A Proposed Petition
We took the liberty to draft a short petition
you may want to sign:
To Mr. Benjamin Netanyahu, Prime Minster of
Israel,
It has come to my knowledge that Samer
alIssawi, a Palestinian from Issawiya neighborhood in alQuds (Jerusalem), was
arrested and subsequently imprisoned by your military regime that rules over
the Palestinian West Bank. In 2011 he was released in the prisoner exchange
deal for Gilad Shalit. On July 7, 2012, he was arrested again passing through
an army roadblock in Jerusalem, accused of parole violation by trying to reach
Ramallah. The "Ofer“ military court sentenced him to serve the remaining
20 years left to his original sentence. Against this inhumane and grotesque
arrest Samer has chosen to go on a hunger strike which is already more than 200
days in progress. I demand his immediate release.
Name:
Name of organization:
An Appeal to Left Groups and Organizations
We call upon all left parties, groups and trade
unions, that oppose the oppression of the Israeli apartheid state to demand,
not only the release of Samer alIssawi, but also of all Palestinian political
prisoners. We call for the establishment of an International Committee for
Freedom to all the Palestinian Political Prisoners (ICFPP). Needless to say,
all political parties, international tendencies and groups must have their
freedom to express their own independent political views, and keep complete
organizational independence. This committee could prove useful as a coordinator
of international solidarity actions, the most effective of which being, in our
opinion, working class actions that could put immense economic and strategic
pressure on Israel.
Who are we?
The Internationalist Socialist League is a
working class revolutionary Trotskyist organization active in Israel (Occupied
Palestine). In our opinion all of Israel is occupied Palestinian land and that
it is an imperialist apartheid state from the river to the sea. Even without
counting in the Palestinian refugees, there is already an Israeli-Jewish
minority rule over a Palestinian-Arab majority. While we support partial,
democratic struggles and demands, we do not hide our position that the
oppression of the Palestinian people will continue as long as Israel exists and
that the only solution is a working class revolution.
We stand for demands such as:
For a Constituent Assembly of all the People
Who Live in This Land Including the Palestinian Refugees Who Were Ethnically
Cleansed from Palestine in 1947-48 and in 1967.
For the Complete Right of Return to all
Palestinian Refugees to Their Historical Homeland.
For a Single Palestinian Democratic State from
the River to the Sea. (The same demand the Trotskyists in South Africa raised
in the 1930s)
At the same time we understand that the only
way to achieve this demand is through a working class revolution. The Jewish
workers who will participate in the socialist revolution on the side of the
Palestinians will have the right to be a part of the new ruling class in the
new workers’ state. This workers’ state must be a part of a Socialist
Federation of the Middle East. Under this new workers’ state the Israeli-Jewish
working and poor masses would have equal civilian rights. However, since the
Palestinians are the majority it will be reflected in the national character of
this workers’ state and for this reason we say:
For a Palestinian Workers State from the River
to the Sea!
Until such a demand could be realized by the
working class in this region, we would struggle for transitional demands such
as:
Sliding Scale of Wages and Sliding Scale of
Hours
Palestinian Independent and Democratic Trade
Unions
Workers’ Control of Industry by the Palestinian
Workers and their Jewish Supporters
Expropriation of Capitalist Industries Under
Workers Control
Expropriation of the Private Banks and
Nationalization of the Credit System, Under Workers Control
Defense of the Palestinian Peasants from
Zionist Land Theft
Defense Guards that In Time Will Become
Workers’ Militias of Palestinians and Jews who Side with the Palestinian
Revolutionary Struggle
Yossi Schwartz
for ISL
