Comment on The Fake Xinjiang Allegations Caused me to Lose my Job & Friends
Weyland@lemmygrad.ml 1 year agoBut the thing is, as long as these people don’t actively fight against China, they might still be worth a shot.
I made the mistake of saying that I got interested in socialism due to China and that I'm in support of SWCC. I thought they didn't have anything against China, only to find out that they (I'm in the Netherlands) copy-pasted most of the talking from the Communist Party of Belgium to show a semblance of activity. They didn't hold those views, or at least the recruiter I talked to didn't. And seeing as the other two people in that organization are still ghosting me after 2+ weeks I'm not holding out hope.
I wish there was a communist party that is transnational. As I don't plan on staying in this country.
DankZedong@lemmygrad.ml 1 year ago
I'm from the Netherlands as well and I live in Belgium now (where I joined the party). Which party did you wanted to join? I think BIJ1 is the most leftist party in The Netherlands but I don't know what they think of China. SP and PVDA have regressed to social democracy unfortunately. Maybe check if you can join ROOD jongeren?
I'm not familiar with an international party or even a Benelux one sadly.
Weyland@lemmygrad.ml 1 year ago
Apart from Rood none of those parties is actually Communist though. I reached out again to the NCPN, but if I don't get a reply by next week I'm just going to let it slide. What I don't get: seeing as getting a communist party off the ground in the West that can actually get a controlling amount of seats in any chamber of government is futile until we have a multipolar world where the global south isn't merely used as a commercial spot to scam money from the lower classes: why aren't more of the directions of these parties directed abroad? Like the CPC was literally helped set up by Henk Sneevliet, a Dutch guy.
commiewolf@lemmygrad.ml 1 year ago
I'd advise you to be careful, I have my suspicions about the NCPN, they give off a hint of controlled opposition, all the visuals but no radical substance.
Weyland@lemmygrad.ml 1 year ago
Controlled opposition... Is getting involved in non-classist identity politics a common red flag?
DankZedong@lemmygrad.ml 1 year ago
I don't have a concrete answer for that I think. I think it's being a socialist party for your own people first and then focussing on other countries. It's sometimes hard to do both, especially when most marxist parties in the west don't have a majority in their governments or simply lack the resources for it. That being said, there are ways to help people in the global south. Supporting activists through Patreon for example or looking for organizations that do groundwork in developing nations. China is helping countries with their Belt and Road initiative.
Also, like you said yourself, there are not that many real, big communist parties in the west. A lot of leftist parties are socdem at best and they don't really have the intention to help the global south.
It's a shame really, but now that you mentioned it I will try to see if things can be done within my party regarding this.
Weyland@lemmygrad.ml 1 year ago
(Before COVID) if you put in the effort you could literally send a few dozen party members to study in China on the cost of the government without too much hassle (as long as they were below the age of 25). China has a quota for students of Western countries that never gets fulfilled. They literally set aside money that has to be spent on e.g. students from France, but if they only have 10 students from France while they budgeted for 100; guess what happens(ed). Those 10 French students get an inflated scholarship, and literally, get several times the scholarship someone from let's say Madagascar gets.
Want to become a climate activist lawyer? China has an English language degree for that. Want to become a doctor? China has a degree for that. And afterwards, you can speak Chinese and you have the contacts (if you didn't waste your time in university) that you could leverage to get business loans to set up companies abroad. Whether it be in the West or the global south.
Want to know what it takes to organize a political party? The Chinese don't care; they'll let you sit in on meetings and will spend their evenings looking up documents to give you a proper foundation. It was already a meme that the Chinese embassy/consulate would send a copy of the Governance of China to anyone who asked, but that's the thing: that's just the tip.
The CPC is there to help. But outreach has to come from outside. The CPC won't try to meddle in your affairs as that'd go against your right to self-determination. I've met people from Tanzania, Indonesia, Pakistan, Madagascar, Russia, and more who have taken them up on the offer. What's up with these moribund communist chapters in the West that feel like they've already won in the war of ideas and are merely dealt a bad hand? Last I checked none of these groups has set up a socialist publishing house, heck a book print on demand machine is $20k new. Did they and I read the same Marx and Lenin? Last I checked being able to print your own propaganda was pretty fucking important. /rant
commiewolf@lemmygrad.ml 1 year ago
The Netherlands has the NCPN and its youth wing, but there is very little reading material on their stances apart from a measly selection of articles on their websites. And its not very encouraging either, they condemn the SMO in Russia and have a lot of annoying "Both sides bad" rhetoric. Although they are self proclaimed MLs, then again this is all I know from just reading about them online and occasionally coming across their posters in the streets.
DankZedong@lemmygrad.ml 1 year ago
I had never heard from them really so I had a look. You're not kidding lol. They have all these reasons why Russia did what it did and then go: but Russia also bad. No offense to them but they seem a bit 'all talk no action' if I glance through their website.
commiewolf@lemmygrad.ml 1 year ago
A lot of Dutch people are genuinely under the impression that Groenlinks is the farthest left party in the country. That's how little recognition real leftist movements get around here. They think a lukewarm milktoast green party is somehow the leftist core of their political spectrum.