Quebec solidaire held its 4th congress in Sherbrooke the 19th, 20th and 21st of June. Members of the International Marxist Tendency braved the two-hour trip to take part in this democratic gathering. In a historic step forward for the IMT in Quebec, the tendency is now officially recognized as a collective within QS.
Quebec solidaire is a new left party in Quebec, where there has never been a mass party of labour. QS recently made history by electing Amir Khadir as its first MNA in December and is continuing to make great strides forward.
The comrades were only able to arrive for the morning of the second day, due to financial and time constraints. Waking at 4 AM, the comrades arrived early and were the first to set up a table, with an IMT banner and copies of the first issue of their journal, La Riposte, proudly on display. After a quick breakfast, the congress began, with the first item being the recognition of new associations: one new riding association and one new collective.
QS allows for the organization of officially recognized collectives within the party, reflecting the democratic nature of the party. Different tendencies exist within every party, but in most parties the only recognized tendency is an unaccountable self-selecting bureaucratic clique. QS, on the other hand, recognizes these different currents and brings them out into the open, to allow for a free and open debate of the ideas. Official collectives are given a section of QS’s internal website, and have the right to set up tables at all major meetings (congresses, national councils).
Comrade Nichola Richer made a presentation to the congress, describing the Marxists’ principles and why we were seeking official recognition within the party. He explained that the IMT considers the election of the first QS MNA as the biggest political event in Quebec since the Common Front general strike of 1972. He explained that everywhere in the world – faced with the deepest crisis since the great depression – the capitalists are engaged in attacks against workers, students, women, and the unemployed in an effort to make us pay for this crisis.
The capitalists are all united in this effort – whether they’re American, Canadian, or Quebecois. They have their parties: the Conservatives, the Liberals, the PQ, and the ADQ. The working masses have no such party representing their interests. We need our own party, and this is why the IMT calls on the unions to link up with Quebec solidaire and make it a mass party of the working class with a fighting socialist program. This is the goal the IMT will be working towards within QS. Nichola ended his intervention by calling the attendees to purchase the first issue of our newspaper La Riposte, and asking the delegates to vote yes to allow us to further this work. The comrade’s intervention was met with applause, and even created some excitement, with two delegates immediately approaching the comrades to purchase a copy of La Riposte.
After the applause, there were questions and comments from the crowd, which the comrades dealt with easily. One older delegate seemed to be shell-shocked by an attack from the Parti Quebecois’ candidate in Mercier in the last provincial election – the same candidate who was toppled by Amir Khadir on his way to a historic first seat for the party. Before being thrown to the dustbin by the electorate, this PQ candidate’s supporters made one final desperate attempt to smear Amir’s name. They attached fake campaign material to Amir’s election placards that claimed that a vote for Khadir would be a vote for “Quebec sovietique”.
The delegate had laminated one of these posters and furiously called against our recognition as a collective because there were already enough “Marxist” collectives, and QS’s image was suffering because of it! Comrades were further amused by her claim to being a Marxist herself.
One question came from a youth delegate from the PCQ, who asked what the differences were between the IMT and Gauche Socialiste, another collective. Nichola answered this by encouraging her to buy a copy of our new paper, La Riposte, and discover for herself. This quip drew some friendly laughter from the room.
After this, the chair moved to the vote, and the comrades anxiously scanned the room. Despite the unfriendly first question, the result was overwhelmingly positive. The vote was nearly unanimous, with only four (including the frightened delegate) opposed. This was a very good beginning to the congress for us, and marks the next step forward for us.
The congress was poorly attended due to the two-hour distance from the party’s core in Montreal, but debate over the future of the party was lively nonetheless. Discussions raged around the party’s position on such issues as the kind of sovereignty to fight for and how to achieve it, the integration of immigrants, and what political institutions the party should seek to create. There were also proposed amendments to the party’s constitution and structures.
After breaking for lunch, three bigger caucuses were created to discuss issues of policy: immigration, sovereignty, and political institutions. Attendance was also assigned in advance here. The discussion on sovereignty brought forward interesting debates: does sovereignty necessarily mean independence? Is sovereignty a goal in itself, or a means to achieve social aims?
After the congress, comrades were excited about the possibilities for QS and the IMT as a Marxist collective affiliated to it. The last congress held in Montreal was ten times the size, which is not something to be ashamed of.
This congress was only the beginning of our work within the party. We will continue to advocate for union affiliation to the party, and for the adoption of a socialist program. Only the participation of the working class in this party can guarantee its future. Only when the workers grab this party with both hands and make it their own instrument in their struggle against the bosses can it rise to victory.
When that happens, the congresses will be dominated by debate over the issues that matter most, the threats facing all working people: job losses, factory closures, rising inflation, decaying healthcare, rising education costs and all the other attacks on our standards of living. Most important of all, they will be able to answer these questions and not just pose them, by responding:
Fight back! QS must adopt a program for an organized fight back by the masses against the attacks of the bosses!
No more closures! QS should call on workers to occupy threatened workplaces and make a commitment: a QS government would nationalize occupied institutions under workers’ control!
For a mass party of the working class! QS needs to issue an official call: the unions need to break with the capitalist PQ and join our party to make it the fighting party of the masses!
Join the IMT in Quebec, and help us fight for these ideas within the party!
