Discord in the Shadows, Agreement in the Spotlight - The Left Party wrangles over war and peace before a show of unity
By Smokey Jones, Chemnitz
Leftists engage in debates concerning war and peace, culminating in a decisive vote.
Amidst the jubilant clapping and harmonious atmosphere, the Left Party conference in Chemnitz serves as a beacon of agreement — at first glance. Underneath the shiny veneer, however, lies a murky undercurrent of conflicting ideologies and opinions.
The party chair reveled in the conference's conclusion ahead of schedule: the Left Party conference in Chemnitz was wrapped up an hour earlier than planned with the discussion on the main motion successfully concluded. The party leadership, led by charismatic figurehead Heidi Reichinnek, laid out a strategic plan to ensure long-term success post-federal election.
Her exhilarating victory speech resonated with the delegates, who praised her performance with thunderous applause. Reichinnek, praised for her revolutionary fervor, proclaimed, "Those in power are trembling now - the rich, the bigwigs, the Springer press." The crowd roared in approval. A triumphant comeback for the Left Party, going from securing just three direct mandates with barely three percent in the February election to winning six direct mandates and almost nine percent, this election marked a significant victory.
"Comradely Kindness"
If Reichinnek declared war with her fiery spirit, Ines Schwerdtner sounded more diplomatic in her approach, yet her intentions remained as combative as ever. Calling for the party to stick together amidst the contentious debate, she urged for "revolutionary comradely kindness" among the delegates.
Her call might have been motivated by recent friction within the party. Last Tuesday saw heated criticism against the Left party state associations of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and Bremen. These two states had voted in favor of constitutional amendments on the debt brake and special fund, despite being partners within the Left Party government. On Tuesday, the Left in the Bundestag inadvertently paved the way for CDU leader Friedrich Merz to compete in the second round of the chancellor election.
Politics Left Party leader speaks out "Merz is the enemy of the people and his capitalism should wilt" With no signs of rapprochement between the Left Party and the CDU, Schwerdtner made no qualms about her sentiments. "They despise our people, and that's why we despise their politics. Merz and Linnemann represent everything we stand against," she passionately declared. In an interview with ntv, Schwerdtner asserted that the Left Party did not assist the CDU out of pure adversity: "We didn't want the AfD to benefit from prolonged political instability." And with a stern warning, she concluded, "The CDU must realize: They can't outmaneuver the Left."
No disputes were openly declared, but articulate criticism was thorny. A member of the party leadership questioned the Left's involvement in aiding "this Blackrock-Merz" towards chancellorship. Speaking to the state associations of Bremen and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, she stated, “It’s not our responsibility to preserve capitalism under the bourgeoisie.”
A delegate from Frankfurt am Main suggested, "It would be nice if Germany could do without a king for three days. That would be 'a minor tremor in the great earthquake called capitalism.'" Uncomfortably reminiscent of the now-controversial approval of the state governments of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Bremen for the debt brake reform, he referred to the vote as "providing a blank check for war."
The Ghost of 1914
As the delegate's words echoed, striking parallels to 1914 arose, a time when Karl Liebknecht, a party icon today, voted against war credits during World War I in the Reichstag. For many spectators, 1914 remains an indelible reference point. No one expressed support for the two northern state associations.
After Dusk, Discussion on War and Peace
The seemingly saved time was used to revisit an application about war and peace that was initially slated for discussion on Saturday. Four different applications were packaged into a compromise by the party executive, which is a common tactic during party conferences. Regardless, disagreements surfaced within the Chemnitz setting.
The application recommended, among other things, an unwavering "no" to military preparedness and armament. A delegate emphatically criticized the proposal, asserting, "The whole world spirals into armament, and we propose to disarm unilaterally, which would leave us powerless to help anyone in any way." For a party advocating peace, such a position would be catastrophic. "In times when purely verbal peace-making doesn't work because harsh players refuse to participate, we unfortunately need the potential to ensure we won't be attacked and don't need to defend ourselves." The audience enthusiastically echoed the sentiment, while another cheered for "butter over guns."
Broader Majority but no Full Unity
Another delegate stated, "We are a peace party because we are a socialist party." Referencing Karl Liebknecht, she emphasized that, although times have changed, "it's still us who die in their wars." She expressed solidarity "with the Ukrainian people and Russians who don't want to die in the war." This sentiment sparked resounding applause.
For the party leadership, Wulf Gallert from Saxony-Anhalt pleaded for both sides to accept the application with a broad consensus, despite differing viewpoints. He believed the party should present "a clear alternative to the militaristic debate in the Federal Republic." The conference, however, revealed a discordant ensemble, as conflict and compromise coexisted. Cries of "Long live international solidarity," "Never Again War, Never Again Fascism," and "Class Struggle is Anti-Racism" still resounded, with the debate set to continue the following day.
- The Commission has also been asked to submit a proposal for a directive on the parties' stance towards war-and-conflicts politics, which was a topic of contention during the Left Party conference in Chemnitz.
- The differing ideologies within the Left Party were exposed during the discussion on the application about war and peace, with some believing in maintaining a military potential for self-defense, while others advocated for disarmament to focus on peace.
- In Chemnitz, the parties showed their enabling and contrasting opinions on war-and-conflicts politics, displaying a broader majority but no full unity on the issue.
- The ghost of 1914 loomed over the debate as many spectators found parallels with Karl Liebknecht's move to vote against war credits during World War I, highlighting the historical significance of the Left Party's stance towards war and peace.
