[Individual-members-EL] EL Congress

[Steve Spence]

Dear Comrades,

The EL Congress is in November.  I am planning to attend.  At this stage as an observer because I can't attend any other way.  I have no national party.

This mailing list exists for individual members but most of the time it is inactive.  In GB there are too few of us to sustain our own network and frankly so far I have failed in my attempts to get a website established.  The webmaster is a member but also a trade union organiser and simply runs out of time to do anything on a volunteer basis.  I am in a similar boat with my trade union work.

I understand in Germany activity of individual members is minimal despite Uli's efforts.

Only in Italy do I hear there may be more with the formation of an Italian Section of the EL.

The website does not have detailed reports of such initatives, only brief news items, there are no minutes of the Executive Board to look at to keep up with events, there is a newsletter I have tried to subscribe to but so far the system has failed when I tried, I contact the Brussels office every so often and catch up when I/they are there or have time which is not very often.  I attended one summer university but this year work made it impossible to go again.

In short it is my opinion as an individual member it is very hard for me to get a real engagement with EL.  There is little I can input into day to day, little real sense of belonging, no real sense of being a left activist within a Party, little to offer other people as a reason for joining.  I am not much more now than I have been for a number of years, an independent left activist with a loose association with EL.  This is different to being a 'member'.  

I attend the trade unionists network twice a year and whilst this can only work at a minimal level at least I feel there is something to organise around.  There are two yearly meetings and in time you get to know the individuals.

Maybe for individual members elsewhere it is different.  I'd like to hear because what I thought we should do is forget national boundaries and request that a Europe wide individual member Branch of the EL is established at the November Congress.  The Branch would have a Chair, Vice Chairs, a Secretary and a small committee with the individual member subscriptions going into a Individual Member Branch account.  There should be an Annual General Meeting that the members can attend with at least one from each country paid for by the Party.  That's what happens with the trade union network although on both occassions I have attended I have paid my own airfare as I believe I should contribute something.  If I had to pay for accomodation as well I couldn't afford to expense. 

 The Individual member Branch should have delegates to the Congress, the Chair on the Council of Chairs, and a seat on the Executive Board.  Reports of meetings could be posted on this list and debate stimulated from having to deal with real issues rather than just trying to keep motivating ourselves.

What do you think?  Should we push this agenda forward to the Executive Board.

Best wishes

Stephen Spence   
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