[Individual-members-EL] (no subject)

[Mike Nagler]

Dear Mario, dear friends,

i am in hurry..thats why in short term: This network of individual members was founded in 2006 during the first EL Summer University in Tavira/Portugal.
You are right when you say that there are several countries where memberparties of the EL existing.
But: We understand the EL not as "umbrella organization" of national parties. Now its not more than this - unfortunately. 

On the one hand its nice to have an EL to form new organizations in these countries where no memberparties exist. But thats not our main point. On the other hand its needed to have a more powerful united left at the european level. The national parties focus too much on the national level - what we need is a European Left and a european movement if we realy want to change something. I have not the time to explain widely now - but we had this discussion on this list earlier in detail.

We live in times where many of the political decisions disposed on the european level.
The left in most countries is very "national" orientated - and of course extremly defensive. (at least here in germany)

The EL is not realy existing for people. If i ask here in Leipzig about the EL nobody knows about it. Also if i ask the members of Die Linke nearly nobody knows about the EL.
We want a strong European Left that is also visible for people. We need more than that traditional national party structures.
I think that the individual membership is one step to break that old national partystructures. 

Ok, thats for now.. perhaps someone else can explain more widely.

Best regards,

Mike

PS: We had already older discussions on exactly the same thing.. but i didnt found it so fast.. (Archive of the list: https://listi.jpberlin.de/pipermail/individual-members-el/)



Mike Nagler
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@ : mnle at gmx.net

www.mike-nagler.de
UNSERE Stimme für den Bundestag 2009!
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  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Mario & Alicia Gabrielli 
  To: individual-members-el at listi.jpberlin.de 
  Sent: Wednesday, May 06, 2009 7:37 PM
  Subject: Re: [Individual-members-EL] (no subject)


        Dear comrades,

        I'm Mario, an Italian-Spaniard living in Brussels, member of Rifondazione Comunista in Belgium (see www.rifondazione.be). I was following the discussion, as usual, and in this case I would like to say something on the question of EL Individual Members, organisation, claim for recognition and support, and so on.

        Sincerely, I do not understand the real meaning, and above all, the real need and utility, to have such "individual members" groups - apart when in a specific country there is no party or organisation as member or observer of the European Left Party. But in a lot of European countries, we do have at least one party, so, my question is: why create someting "new" or "different" when something already exist? Why don't give them a hand, instead of re-investing the wheel? If someone want to engage him/herself in political/social activities in the framework of the EL, why don't join a EL party somewhere?

        I hope that the idea of "individual members" groups outside the local EL parties would not mean to be "against" or "overcoming" those parties... Of course I don't think that a party is the only or exclusive way to "make politics" and to be engaged in social issues, but at the same time I don't share some negative attitudes towards political parties, which lead someone to think that only in an informal organisation it would be possible to be "free" or "independent".

        In my opinion, if we want to do something for a better Europe, as leftists (or, even better, as communists!), let's join one of the political parties members of the EL; or even one not a member, and in this case, we can try to contribute to approach positions - instead of dividing our forces and losing time, resources and efforts in defining what an "individual members" group should do or not, what representativity, what right of vote, what support, what... what?

        I take the opportunity to confirm that the Italian communists - Rifondazione Comunista and Comunisti Italiani, in the EL as member and observer respectively - partecipate together to the European elections, in the Communist and Anti-capitalist list http://www.unaltraeuropa.eu/. This is the only real Left in Italy... beware of imitations!

        Fraternally,

        Mario 




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