the Portuguese workers' movement, probiems facing the working class over the reectionary farces in Sept the probiems of women workers: ember, the Portuguese sympathising group of the Fourth Internetional ILCI - International Communist and a revolutionary workers pow Leaguel has bean organising a series of mass rallies throughout the count ionary workers party and saction On 12 October a big crowd of workers and students tumed out at uggle. the Sports Pavilion for the LCI's rally in Porto, the courtry'? regond largest, crowd charted siogans such as This gathering was the culmination Only one solution - smash faction of a series of ass astions that the LOl has undertaken in Porto since is me shall win. 25 April: a demonstration against colonialise and the colonial wars. a demonstration and mass meeting agairist redundancies; and a demon stration and meeting in solidarity s with the Chilean workers, held on The rally opened by paying Stalist exploitation. Seven speakers then addressud the meeting or the Political situation after the vietney the attacks on workers rights: the feed for a workers" united fent.
ernment, the building of a revolut T of the Fourth Internationel; and the LCI's programme for the class strIn betwuen the speaches, the "Down with capitalist exploitation, and Workers of the world - united As Luta Proveteria (Profatarian Struggle), the LCI's paper, put it:
The present situation is one of growing politicat instability and streegthening of the position of revolutionaries within the working alast and Isbouring masses. This meeting of the LCI allowed it to crystallisé out around a revolutacquired by broad sectlom of woeking people in the recest clair struciet
a war, but for Marxists it is above all else a polirical question.
Golan Heights, and Sinal.
The US is far more aware than It is clear as we go to press that the conservative "New Democracy" party of Constantine Karamaniis has won an outright victory in the Greck elections. But the way in which it was achieved means that his Government will surely face troubled times abead.
Karumanlis presented himself as the sole guarantee that there would be no return to the days of the junta-in other words, "Karamanlis or tanks? The very real fear he played on was underlined -particularly in rural arcas-by the survival of many local and state officials from the days of the junta.
This was symbolised at the top, of course, by the continuation of General Gizikis-one of the leaders of the second military coup in November 1973-in the presidency.
VOTING SYSTEM
Karamanlis was also able to im pose a voting system which was bound to give his party big advantages. The elections were conducted on the basis of voting lists drawn up by the junta (from which many op positionists understancably withheld their names). The hundreds of Once again there is widespread talk of another war in the Middle East, writes SALEH JAAFAR. For the bourgeois press this is simply a question of idle speculation on the probable military trends and outcomes of such It is likely it will be difficult tor Israel to take the military instative however, much it may want and need to for internal purposes - without at least the prior knowledge and tacit approval of American imperialism. It is equally certain that the latter will not be forthcoming until there has been a further round of diplomatic manoeuvres over the question of the West Bank, the Israel of the neute repetcussions that any war could have on "stability" experienced and sophisticated mach ine to carry it out.
Karamanils's failure to purge the state bureaucracy, the army and the police is no accident -the only way be can hope to contain the workers' movement is through the repressive apparatus of a 'strong state" which downplays the importance of parlinment. This is why he bas expressed so much admimation for the French -presidential system, which was built up in just this way by de Gaulle.
LEFT DIVIDED The left, on the other hand, was deeply divided and lagly unprepared. The two factions of the Communist Party-the hard-line 'orthodox" wing and the more bberal 'interior" group - joined together for the purposes of the cloction under the banner of the United Left, Bat this could not conceal the real crisis of perspectives fot the Stalinists in Greece-their emphasis on 'national unity and democracy' in the weeks after the junta was overthrown played right into the hands of KaramanThey also lost votes heavily to the new Panhellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK) led by Andreas Papandreou, within the Arab worid. Even more to risk the international spilover effects that tend to he generated by the Soviet Union.
aration for another war and partly as a deterrent" that might Irighten off the Arab regimes. Secondly, it is searching through Kissinger for the holy grail of Middle Fastern bourgeois politics - the 'magic line" that will separate Israel from the Arab world in just ruch a way as to make all parties happy.
But this policy is doomed to itions in the Midile Fast, The conflict between Zionism and the Arab masses is unly superlicially a territoral one.
classes to meet even the most clementary needs of the Arab masses, term 'stabilisation' of the area. The effects of this are already visible.
recontly set fire to two trams in Cairo in protest at having to walt throe hours lo get home from wark.
ancour mass actions which have been balding up over the last few months as for the regime, this particular expression has now been turned against them in a peculiarly Egyptian waycartoons and articles as a means of hiplighting the regime's total inahility to sitaution inside the country.
the Egyptian masses. It is vory different from the waves of optimism which followed on the hecks of the Oclober war complexi, Frypt was to impose price contrals. On importantly, i is extremely reliciant at a time of worldwide capitalist crisis Arab-Isracli wars: heightened inter-imperialist tensions, changing oil politics, population, and a question mark over detente with American policy is therefore working int two directions, First, it is massively re arming Israel, partly in prep failure, because this magic boundary does not exist in the objective condOn a more fundamental level, it is Zionism's role as the principal ally of imperialism in the arca, combined with the inability of the Arab ruling which stands in the way of any long In EGYPT a crowd of more than 2.000 The Egyptian Government has offic ially described this and other such spont "regrettable incidents'. But unfortunately of living of the masses It has now boon systematically incor porated into everyday speech, newspaper dual with the stuadily worsening cconomic A new mood is developing amongst markedly different.
a striking resemblance to the pre-October situation, with its student demonstrations President Sadat's response to the ferocious inflation which has been sweepine the face of it, nothing to complain about.
But these incasures have been introduced in the wake of increasing denationisation of the Egyptian coonomy (begun by Nasser Price controls in such a situation have ane hand it is under tremendous pressure to translate its great victory over Zionism in Cletober into something more tangible than a nreagne strip of uscless descet. Thus would require al least the rovement in the standard of living of the But on the other band, the means by which the Egyptian ruliag class has chosen to felt Zionism - by slavishly adhering to ing aboul a change in the inporialist alignThe weakening of Israel's international bargaining position was shown most dramatically last woek when Palestinian leader Yassir Arafat was allowed to address the UN Assembly ment - has meant up to now no rocovery of territory and a reduction in the standard This parades is producing an inercasingry unstable situation which is now beg initing seriously to undermine Sadat's political authority in ligypt.
In ISRAEL the situation when viewed from inside the country does not look With a rate of inflation of 405 a year, and with military expenditure on now equipment flecluding the cost of the decline in production resulting from six months of mohilisation) estimated at 40,000 million Israeli pounds - more than the country's Gross National Product! the Government has clearly heen sitting on a volcano of discontent for some time.
The first explosions have now been set off with the devaluation of the Israeli pound by 43%, along with drustic cuts in Government suhsilies on Fourteen basic In many ways the dilcauna of the Zionist rapine is oven greater than that of Sadat. Not only is the economy in shambles, but the Israeli political leader ship is deeply dirkled within itseif as a result of the relative diplomatic achieve ments of the Arah regimes following the October war The trustrated and incomplete chara Ler of the isract military victory in October has quite seriously weakened Israel's international bargaining position. All if has going for it at the moment is US imperialism's implicit agreement that it is still the most dependable ally This recognition need not necessarily be sellecled too strongly in Kissinger's political antics. Where it comes through very clearly is in the increasingly froquent shipments of arms - Including warplanes and whole weapons (not just spare parts)
- to Israel by the US.
According to a report by the International Institute of Strategic Studica, these have not only restored Israel's armaments to their pre October 1973 level, but have also considcrably strengtheoed Israel's ad vantage over the Arab regimes an a purely military level.
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homage to resolutionaries wha had fallen in the fight against caps jonary perspective the experience