For a united front of the entire Left against the coup, on the streets, in the elections, in the places of work, study and housing! Now!
We hereby translate and reprint a statement by our comrades from the Frente Comunista dos Trabalhdores (Brazil) regarding the escalating threats for a new coup by the counter-revolution.
Alert Manifesto by the Communist Workers’ Front, FCT - LCFI Brazil
A day after the
carnival, the Army, the Globo TV channel and the Temer government escalated
military intervention in the country's second most important state, as an prelude
for the imposition of a new regime in the country. One month after the start of
the intervention, a popular parliamentarian was executed, in a public street in
the center of the city, with four shots in the face. Nobody should be fooled by
the stories about a “robbery”. This was a message from the coup leaders to the
Left. Their goal is to terrorize those who take a stand against the military
intervention, to which the city council is also opposed. The following week and
in broad daylight, armed fascist militias threatened Lula, the top leader of
the masses and favorite candidate of the population, who is about to be
arrested by the regime.
PT and PSOL continue to keep a sectarian stance while being attacked by the
same front of right-wing enemies. With the military intervention underway and
fascists taking advantage, the Left is not building the necessary united front,
believing that somehow it will benefit from the elections.
If the coup regime decide to go ahead with the elections, they will use
them to camouflage the militarization of social control. At the same time they
try to stifle the struggle against the re-enslavement of labor and to cover up
their dirty deeds with media manipulation, as Globo has been doing now with the
murder of Marielle, pushing "against violence and for more
intervention" (although, to confuse, it was announced that the military
would withdraw from Vila Kennedy). The elections will manipulate the leftist
electoral body enough, so that nobody goes to the second round. At best, they
will try to stage something equivalent to the second round of the French elections
between the right (Macron) and the extreme right (Marine Le Pen) in 2017. In
other words, if elections do take place, if there is no new parliamentary or
military coup... Boulos, Marina and Ciro and the PT candidate will annul one
another, dividing left-wing political capital and allowing the Right and the
extreme Right to go to the second round.
The result of these elections could be the legitimation of the next ruler
who will formally get rid of the coup plotters. The successor of Temer will
have the task of imposing all the approved slaveholding counter-reforms plus
the gutting of social security, continuing the policy of expropriation and
national neo-colonization imposed by imperialism and finance capital.
However, what we should be concerned about at the moment is not the
legitimizing elections of the coup, but state terrorism and the growing para-state,
the nationalization of military intervention against the population and the
selective execution of the popular leaders, such as Marielle, and the arrest of
Lula and the almost 50 assassinations of leaders of the social struggle since the
impeachment. Those who do not know how to defend their democratic rights, their
historical achievements and their own lives will not be alive to defend new
conquests.
The Left is happy to form formal united fronts in manifestos of unity
between its organizations, but with no real base in the streets, let alone in
the elections; at a time when the political situation reminds us of the climate
of that film "Z" by Costa Gavras. Only this is not simply a movie.
Greece has gone through 9 years of military dictatorship.
For the end of the military intervention in Rio!
Against Lula's arrest and in defense of his right to run as a candidate!
For a united front of the entire Left against the coup plotters, on the
streets, in the elections, in the places of work, study and housing, now!
For self-defense committees of social militants, trade union movement,
working-class organizations, youth and popular movement, popular Brazilian
fronts and people without fear, to prevent new Marielles from repeating
themselves, to prevent the hatching of the egg of the fascist
counterrevolution, to prevent the consolidation of the new dictatorship!
