The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1925-10-03

Communist Party of Germany. 1t
takes up the question of trade union
work, which the Communist Inter
national charges was neglected UNI
der the Ruth Fischer Maslow leader
ship in the German party. The con-
Guiding installment will appear in
the DAILY WORKER tomorrow.
Continued from yesterday
2. Trade Union Work, the comintern,
and the Leading Groups in the
Party Central.
These defects in leadership have
been most strikingly evidenced in the
trade union question. AS early as the
Frankfort Party Congress (1924), at
which the victory Of the German
left over Brandlerism was decided,
considerable differences arose bet
ween the Executive and the new Ger
man Party leaders in the trade union
question. The leading group Maslow-
Ruth Fischer, it is true, opposed the
crassest advances made by the ultra
left abandonment of work in the re-
formist unions, but their half-hearted
decisions (for instance, with reference
to the independent unions) showed
their failure to grasp the fundamental
4 essence and the full extent Of the
problem Of our trade union work.
This lack Of understanding of the
Importance Of trade union work has
practically had the effect OF causing
the Maslow-Ruth Fischer group for
months to carry out the decisions of
the Comintern imperfectly. A conf
Dental telegram sent by the Exec
utive after the Frankfort Party
Congress was sent in a circular to all
the district secretaries for the. pur-
pose of melting these to protest
against the Executive; the anti-trade
union propaganda in the ranks Of
the Party was inadequately combatted
up to the V. World Congress.
A T the Fifth World Congress the
"A slogan of international trade union
unity was placed on the agenda for
the first time. This congress regard
ed this new slogan as the fundamen-
tai element of our whole Bolshevist
strategy, the first aim of which is
the winning of the majority of the
working class. In this connection the
Fifth World Congress analysed the
Macdonald government as what It
really was; the reflection--tho false
and reformist-of a profound histori-
cal process Of development in the
English working class.
The German delegation, under the
leadership of Ruth Fischer, at first
opposed the propositions of the exec
| cHtive at the Fifth World Congress.
A yelled insinuation was made that
the struggle for international trade
union unity was merely a 'move in
the game of Russian foreign politics"
an attempt at a rapprochement to the
social democratic Macdonald govern
ment.
s.. 1t was not until after lengthy ne
| gotiations that the delegation. allow
| ed itself to be convinced of the un-
tenableness of its policy. The accusa-
ton that the struggle for trade union
unity was merely a diplomatic move
in Russian foreign politics can only
be attributed to q fundamentally anti
Bolshevist and social democratic men
tally on the part of the leading group.
The like accusation was made by Mac
Donald himself, and by all the Eng
fish and International social traitors,
in order to discredit the struggle for
trade union unity.
THE struggle for unity among the
4 trade unions is a Constituent of
Bolshevist strategy towards the ma
jority of the international working
class. Those who have not grasped
this have not been able, and are still
unable, to form correct estimate of
the total world political constellation
of the present day, and are even less
able to carry out the tactics of the
Comintern in their own country with
full energy
The lack of comprehension reveal
ed by the leading group in the inter
national trade union campaign is on
line with the serious errors and ON
issions of this group in their trade
union work in Germany itself.
| The decisions of the Fifth World
Congress in the trade union question
have been Carried out" too much by
means of mechanical pressure and
threats of organizatory measures.
On the other hand the actual work
of enlightenment, the theological edu-
cation of the members of the party
to an understanding of our trade
union policy, and the working out of
positive line of policy with the A.
d. G. B. General German Trade
Union Federation) have been exceed.
ingly deficient.
THIS has meant an increase in the
4 severe losses suffered by our party
of late years in every sphere of trade
union work. Whilst the opposition
counted S8 delegates at the last con-
gress held by the General German
Trade Union Federation 1927 nj