The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1928-04-12
OPPOSITION IN
BELGIAN PARTY
BADLY Defeated
Voting at Communist
Meet Favors Party
By F. c. (Brussels).

The Conference of the Communist
Party OF Belgium, which took place
on the 18th and 18th of March, re-
suited N shattcring political and
moral defeat for the Trotskyist Op-
position. AS the Trotskyist "Interna-
tlonal attaches a special Importance
to its Belgian agency, it is necessary
to describe the development of the
ght against it, which contains Pc
cuiiar features
/ The offensive of the Belgian Trot-
skylsts began at the end of Novem-
Der when, by taking the Central Com
mlttee OF the Party by surprise, thew
managed to slip through a resolution
protesting against the expulsion of
Irotsky and zinoviev from the Com
imunist Party of the Soviet Union, Tn
order to make this resolution accepta-
bic to the Central Committee its in
PRODUCERS declared in the resolution
itself that they did not adopt any at
tltude with regard to the views of the
Imposition, and that they undertook
strictly to adhere to the discipline of
the Central Committee and of the
Party. This resolution was then
adopted by Is votes against 8. But
already at the beginning of January.
when the Opposition, headed by the
general secretary of the Party, Van
Overstraeten, were compelled to show
their eolors, their resolution, which
although with reservations adhered to
the Trotskyist platfrom, obtained 10
votes against 13 votes cast for an
other resolution which solidarises
with the c. P, S. U. and the Comm
tern. AT the same time it was de-
clded to organize broad discussion
both IN the press and in the Party
organizations down to the nuclei. in
order afterwards to bring about a de-
clslon at Party Conference.
Party Wins Vote.
The discussion in the press was
conducted in such way that the OPP
position and the tendency adhering to
the standpoint of the C. I. alternate
ly had the discussion column in the
"Drapeau Rouge" at their disposal
The freedom of discussion on the part
of the Opposition was so unlimited
that there was great joy over it in
the papers of their French friends.
In the district meetings which had to
elect the delegates for the Party Con-
ference on the basis of a strict Dro-
portlonal system, there was always
present a speaker of the Opposition
and another of the Comintern adher-
ents, both speakers appointed in ad-
vance.
The result of the voting was that
more than 70 per cent of the votes
Were cast for the C. l. and less than
30 per cent for the Opposition. In
order to be able to appreciate the sig
nificance of this defeat of the Oppo-
sitlon, it must be borne in mind that
the whole Party apparatus was in
their hands, beginning from the two
secretaries of the Party down to all
district secretaries. The defeat of the
Opposition was greatest in the dis
tricts: thus it obtained 7 delegates in
Brussels against 20, 3 in Luttich
against 10, and one IN the Borinage
against II; altogether 33 in the whole
country against rs.
Many Leave Opposition.
While the conference was still sit
ting, there occurred an incident which
greatly contributed to expose the ma
ture of the oppositional leaders. The
premises of the Party secretariat
were broken into during the night and
important Party material and proper
ty were stolen. Although there was
no doubt who were the burglars and
at whose behest they acted, the con
ference set up an investigation com
mission; in this commission an oppo-
sitional delegate was elected who, I'M