Ruken Isik: Women struggle for a new society in Rojava

Ruken Isik writes about Women struggle for a new society in Rojava.

The idea of democratic autonomy is directly opposed to the ideology of the nation-state, which in the Middle East is tightly bound to ideas of cultural and ethnic homogeneity. The new system in Rojava is more of a multicultural, multilingual, and multireligious system that is designed to “allow the legal participation of individuals who will be able to mobilise and organise along the lines of ethnicity, religion, gender, class.”

It is a system of self-governance that rejects the model of centralised administration. This is also the model of self-rule advocated by the Kurdish movement across the border in Turkey. Women in Rojava believe that this system can and does enable them to organise, and to participate in all decision-making processes.

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The West always presents itself as deeply invested in bringing change and democracy to the Middle East. Yet the Kurds, together with the other ethnic groups now administering themselves for a better future, have been historically and continue to be ignored by the international community, which has turned a blind eye to the Kurds in general and to Kurdish women in particular.

As they work to build a society grounded in a systemic commitment to gender equity, the women in Rojava want to be in dialogue with international women's organisations and share their experiences.

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It is in the obscure parts of the world that the real social revolution is occurring.

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Opinion on Bernie Sanders after New York

After Bernie Sanders' defeat in the New York Democratic primary, I think it is necessary for the Sanders campaign to continue even though the pundits see it as a waste of time.

Peter Boyle interviews Australians supporting Bernie Sanders:

Dührsen was was a bit down about Clinton's unfair victory in the NY state primaries on the day we met up but he was determined to keep campaigning hard, especially to mobilise people who wouldn't otherwise even vote in the US presidential campaign.

If Sanders' campaign is defeated by the powerful establishment in the US, Dührsen is certain that this will not be the end of it: "Walls have been broken. Firstly, substantial numbers of Americans have voted for a man who is an open socialist. Second, the campaign has been able to self-fund through crowdfunding by ordinary people. At the very least he will be an inspiration to people all around the world because he has shown that this can be done."

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James Schneider describes How Bernie Sanders can harness the kind of momentum transforming British politics.

Whatever happens, build on the thing that reduces the structural power gap between you and the real enemy, which isn’t the Clintonite, plutocratic wing of the Democrats. For Sanders, that’s the ability to have half-a-million people who are doing some kind of activism weekly, a highly decentralized ability to raise money, etc. Whether he wins the nomination or not, the campaign needs to clearly articulate the political strategy of this movement. And then, of course, figure out how people in the movement can then engage with the strategy and try to change it.

Another thing is that you’ve got to decide what the relationship is to the Democratic Party, in a variety of ways. If you’ve got half a million people you are the biggest movement of people being active. But how do you engage with all the other movements that are transforming the country? How does the Sanders movement relate to Black Lives Matter? Who does it relate to in the Fight for $15?

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Juan Cole reposts Bernie Sanders’ Path Forward: The Disappointed Generation.

With all of these factors in mind, there is still a path for Bernie Sanders to win the nomination, but beyond that, the candidate is helping to shift the political spectrum in the United States. The Sanders campaign is still confident that moving forward they will be able to obtain the nomination. In a press release statement, Senator Sanders congratulated Hillary Clinton on her victories, but highlighted that he intends to continue all the way to the Democratic Convention in Philadelphia. “With more than half the delegates yet to be chosen and a calendar that favors us in the weeks and months to come, we remain confident that our campaign is on a path to win the nomination,” Sanders said.

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Ali R. Abootalebi asks What is Political Revolution and Can Bernie Sanders Deliver?.

The structural changes needed in the American body politics demand reconnecting the governed and the governors after years of political underperformance. This task calls for the creation of an alternative SDP to address the needs of the American electorate on the political left–and possibly the creation of a conservative party on the political right as well. Bernie Sanders’ political revolution requires not only popular input in electing a progressive candidate like him, it demands continuous popular engagement in politics through disciplined and well-organized party politics participation. Progressive candidates in the Congress can help the cause of progressive politics in the executive office, further mobilizing popular opinion to demand structural changes in the body politics and the better distribution of national resources though more effective governance. In that case, the American courts also will be more responsive in considering the popular will in their overall balancing calculation of legal and political rights. The inaction alternative will only see the continuing political decay. Then, no amount of political rhetoric and false promises through short term economic ‘bandaging’ and irresponsible fiscal borrowing will resolve the country’s deep-rooted political problems, nor will it rescue it from its international decline.

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What is most likely to happen is that Clinton wins the Democratic nomination and loses the presidental election to Trump. This will cause a split in the left between the Democratic Party and the rest. In that case, the best way forward would be the creation of broad Socialist Party (something along the lines of the Socialist Alliance in Australia) and an United Front with the various other movements.

The party is needed for theoretical and practical education and maturation of cadre from the various movements. Enthusiasm without knowledge of how the system works quickly leads to depression and despair.

Unfortunately, a Trump presidency would be the best hope of continuing and growing the widening political activism of the past year or so. The election of Obama was a set-back for progressive politics as it lulled people into apathy, and Clinton promises more of the same.

Let us not forget that Sanders' campaign is just one of many other campaigns in other countries. As noted above, we have much to learn from each other's experiences.

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Dan Little: Origins of feudalism in the West

Dan Little examines the Origins of feudalism in the West.

These observations make clear the central thrust of the book: there was substantial continuity between the institutions and economy of the late Roman Empire in the West and the political and economic institutions of European feudalism which followed it for a thousand years. This continuity is unwelcome to the "modes of production" train of thought, which postulates a sharp break between classical and feudal systems.…

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I disagree that the presented evidence argues against the "modes of production" train of thought. For example, Capitalism did not start on 14 July 1789—it had been developing for the previous 400 years within the confines of Feudalism. That social revolution eventually gave political power to the Capitalists, and greatly diminished the political power of the landed aristocracy. Society was then aligned to the mode of production which was Capitalism.

This new interpretation of the origin of Feudalism within the confines of the classical Roman slave society does not detract from the idea of historical materialism based on the mode of production. It would just mean that Roman society collapsed faster than feudalism was able to take up the slack. Indeed, the final collapse of ancient Roman society in Constantinople overlapped the genesis of Capitalism in Northern Italy.

The French Revolution unleashed the power of Capitalism. Whereas the greatest feudal king of France, Louis XIV, was able to attain and preserve the current borders of France, Napoleon Bonaparte was able to smash French rivals such as Austria and Prussia, disband the Holy Roman Empire, invade Egypt, invade Russia, invade Spain. All of this within a century of each other.

The transition from Feudalism to Capitalism within France unleashed a storm across Europe. The only power able to withstand France was the older Capitalist country: Britain. Feudal powers melted in the face of Capitalist military power with the exception of Russia.

Based on this historical experience of social transition from Feudalism to Capitalism, I am leery of a smooth transition from Roman slave society to Feudalism. There was an economic, political, military, and social collapse in Western Europe in the fifth century CE. The main viable system was Barbarism from which Feudalism developed.

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Denis Godard: France: Reflections on 'Nuit Debout'

Denis Godard examines what is happeninig in France: Reflections on 'Nuit Debout'.

While the movement advances and raises these questions, the dominant trajectories of power continue to operate in the direction of reinforcing the police state, in the direction of racism and nationalism, in the direction of social attacks. The monsters are not figments of our imagination, they are really there. One of their forms is the far right. This is also why the trajectory of the movement places it necessarily in radical confrontation with the politics of the ruling class and with the State.

Once more, this confrontation will not progress in a linear manner. The movement will no doubt experience partial defeats and apparent setbacks. Without doubt it will change form more than once. It will sometimes be necessary to know how to change direction in massive and spontaneous flows, to cease beating its head against a wall so as to learn how to demolish or jump over the wall. Sometimes it will depend on initiatives taken by a minority, but which will give a lead to greater numbers.

What is certain is that after years of apparent apathy and advance of all the reactionary tendencies in French society, something has changed which renews hope. The precious stones buried under the hardened lava of previous movements have been brought to the surface by fresh-flowing lava, shining even more brightly.

The times which are coming will be no less hard. But now we are not condemned to take them lying down.

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I am living through a very radical period in history:

• Liberation of East Timor
• Campaign against mandatory sentencing
• Refugee rights
• Land rights
• Anti-One Nation protests
• Anti-globalisation protests
• May Day protests
• Anti-war demonstations
• Anti-GST protests
• Free Palestine Rallies
• Canadian student strikes
• The Occupy Movement
• SYRIZA
• Podemos
• Bernie Sanders
• Jeremy Corbyn
• Scottish Independence Movement
• Nuit Bebout
• T.J. Hickey memorial
• Free David Hicks
• Anti-HECS and University fees protests
• Gay Marriage movement

Just looking over this brief list, I have seen large and small movements come and go, expand and contract. I have seen movements tear themselves apart. I have seen victories and defeats. I expect to see more of the same.

This does not mean that I should give up. As the old boxing maxim goes, victory is about getting up more times than getting knocked down.

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