AWP moot on Russian revolution concludes

Islamabad Pakistanis must adopt the political imagination and determination of the Russian revolutionaries that paved the way for the creation of the Soviet Union if they seek real change in the country.

This was the main message of the speakers of a two-day conference to mark the centenary of the 1917 Russian Revolution and the 150th anniversary of Karl Marx s magnus opus Das Kapital concluded here at the National Press Club on Sunday.

The conference titled 100 Years of the Russian Revolution Lessons for Building 21st Century Socialism in Pakistan was organised by the Awami Workers Party (AWP) which took place on Saturday and Sunday. The speakers included both veteran and young Leftist organisers from across Pakistan including AWP Secretary General Akhtar Hassan who delivered the welcome speech political economist, Aasim Sajjad Akhtar, senior advocate of the Supreme Court and AWP founding president, Abid Hassan Minto, Quaid-i-Azam University, lecturer, Alia Amir Ali, veteran labour indigenous rights activist, Yousuf Musti Khan AWP, spokesperson, Farooq Tariq, senior journalist, Farman Alia, AWP President Fanoos Gujjar and others.

Delivering the keynote speech of the first day AWP Punjab president Aasim Sajjad Akhtar highlighted that a crucial ingredient to the success of the Russian Revolution was the ability of the people to imagine a society and political system that was radically different to the prevailing one He contrasted this with the current situation in Pakistan where slogans of revolution had been coopted by establishment politicians who seek only a change of government without altering the exploitative capitalist economic system.

The panel stressed the need for the Left in Pakistan to take into consideration the effects of global warming and environmental degradation on the working class while formulating a strategy for economic development. They said that the prevailing ecological issues could not be countered without simultaneously challenging capitalism which lies at the root of these issues.