Page:Solomon Abramovich Lozovsky - The World's Trade Union Movement (1924).pdf/97

 Rh occupation of the Ruhr, in the reformist internationals in general and in the Amsterdam International in particular.

In order clearly to understand the internal struggle of opinions which exists in the world's trade union movement, we will, on one hand, have to consider briefly the fundamental questions which were agitating the labor movement in the last year and a half, and, on the other hand, we will have to take these same questions which we took for the Amsterdam International and see how we answer them. First of all, we will consider around which questions and slogans the struggle of the Profintern was shaping itself in the world's labor movement.

We stated above that the decisions of the Constituent Congress of the Profintern brought forth, right from the start, opposition not only from the reformists but also from the anarcho-syndicalists, many of whom it seemed stood on the platform of proletarian dictatorship.

The anarcho-syndicalists are divided into a few categories: First, there are anarcho-syndicalists who learned much from the Russian revolution and the world war; they are called revolutionary syndicalists or plain syndicalists. They recognize the dictatorship of the proletariat, and the forcible overthrow of the bourgeoisie; they recognize the soviet form of government and in general the necessity of the state. But the anarcho-syndicalist movement has also many other variations: There are anarcho-syndicalists who learned nothing from the war or from the Russian revolution. These so-called "pure syndicalists" have been preserved from the pre-war time in such a condition that it seems they have been all that time in pickle.

What is this "pure syndicalism?" The anarcho-syndicalists are advocating the same program which they advocated in 1906, 1907, 1908 and other years, being convinced that their platform is adaptable not only to their own countries, but that, in general, their point of view and tactics are most correct for the whole international.

Directly after the First Congress, began the struggle on the question of relations between the Profintern and the Comintern. What was the argument about? The anarcho-syndicalist section held the viewpoint that the Profintern should have nothing in common with the Comintern; the Profintern should not participate in any kind of politics and should not be under the influence of any political party; the Profintern should not stand on the platform of proletarian dictatorship, for every dictatorship is an evil.

The struggle centered itself mainly not around the principle questions, not around the question if, in general, the working class can conquer without the dictatorship; but around the decision of our Con-