The following article is reproduced from International, the organ of the Australian section of the Fourth International, and was written for the Dec. 15th issue. At that time the finel election results had not been published. These resulted in the Menzies party eet: returned with a majority of two with wide-spread speculation that thore would’ another general election in a few months time. Resurgent Labour looks for results - lLoadership confronts its tasting time.
The continuing decline of the Australian economy and the failure of the Menzies "Liberal" Government to halt it, produced evidence of petti bourgeois resentment indicating a probable roduction of the Government's strength in the clections of December 9th, A gain of 6-8 seats by the Labour Party was widely anticipated together with the loss of the Government's Senate majority, which latter would make real the perspective of forcing a double dissolution and new general elections in 1962.
Senate election results are determined by the ageroegats vote in cach of the six States and more accurately reflect Labour's voting strongth than does the House of Kepresontativos elections, where big Labour majorities in working class electorates are wasted. In the evont, a much biggor swing to tho left was demonstrated by a Labour gain of at loast 16 seats at this stage and a likelihood of a deadlocked House (61-61) necessitating a furthor election in March or April.
In the ovent of the count ending in a majority of 1 or 2 for Labour in tho lower house, a great danger oxists in tho already-canvassod right wing perspective of aiming to hold on to the reins of government in faco of a hostile sonate both before and after July, when the nowly-clected senators would be installed, Monzies' advisors would be well aware that he would moet a worse fate in new clections at this stage, whereas a Labour Government may well be constrained by a strong opposition and a hostile senate to avoid contentious logislation, and so be allowed to hang on to office.
As time dragged on (granting the economy continued to stagnate) the upshot would be that the Labour Govornmant, eschewing initiatives aimed at soriously tackling the probloms pressing on the people, would not be measuring up to elect— orate's expectations, would invite an increasing scepticisim as to its bona fides, and would prepare the basis for an anti-Labour ascendancy when finally came round, On the other hand an carly general eloction would inevitably increase the number of Labour gains. More of the doubtful voters will get on the winning side if Labour projects an image of determination to seriously get on with the job.
While the proportional representation set-up of the Senate may slightly improve the D.L.P. numbers (D.L.P. is the Democratic Labour Party, an extremo right wing catholic action inspired breakaway from the Australian Labour Party:ed. note) this will be offset by the preponderance of A.L.P. mombers over "Liberals" who will be elected. The fate of the outside workers! party sooking clectoral support, the Communist Party, was a sorry one. We have previously expressed the view that the attractive power of the workers! states duce to their scientific achievoments and the supcrior tempo of thoir development because of their nationalised planned economy will not induce a parallel growth of tho Australian C.P.
The adherence of the workers to their traditional party built over long years is a fact of life that tho C.P. loaders do not even bogin to undorstand. They do not understand that only a major historic failure or betrayal by tho party and tais means one that the masses appreciato as such, will produce any substantial shift in allogiance from the mass party.
In failing to appreciate that tho main arona for the struggle to establish the validity of the socialist objoctive and policies really transitional to its achievement is in the mass workers! party, tho C.P, leadership misleads and miseducates militants, divorces them from the sphere of effective activity and so dosoricntates and woakens the forces of progress in the struggle against the right wing adheronts of the capitalist status quo.
The catastrophic drop in the figures of voting for the C.P. precisely when the olectorate was moving to the left, should cause C.P. members and supporters to re-examine the pretonsions of thoir leadership to a capacity for scientific marxist ana lysis. On anothor plane the C.P. loaders have done the left wing a disservice in this election. This was in their uncritical endorsement of the election policy enunciated by the Labour leadership which promised the
wstralia -— swings to the tort continyed/ imination of unemployment in twolve months and incrvases in social services aymonts, whilst repudiating a Labour Government's right and duty to take whatover measures tho situation demands to implomont its pledges.
The fact is that only in the fortuitous circunstances of a new economic boom can these promiscs be realised without oneroavhment on capitalism's self- proclaimed rights, a circumstance that only a porennial optimist can envisage. Labour cannot afford to failto measure up to its responsibilities to justify its claim to boing a people's government. In the critical days of the now paiod now opening up Labour will have noed of its repudiated platforms, particularly in respect to nationalisation and planned economy, essential to oconomic advanesment. «anda viable platform cannot make its way if its adhorents fail to advocate it, let alone when the leaders openly repudiate it. In underwriting such an attitude, the C.P. leadership is mislcading the workers, failing to alert them to the policy requiremonts of the times, and is demonstrating its unwathiness to any claim to be a socialist leadership.
Tho excuce of the need to placate the D.L.P. votors with a right wing policy needs critical oxamination when wo considor the rosults in scats such as PARK#S (New South Wales) There Haylen, MP, was tho target for tho most vindictive concentration of D.L.I. morons with their hate campaign labelling him "Communist" and "fellow travellor"., In this long time borderline seat Haylen gained a respoctably increased majority. (It is also pertinent to remember that the Sydney Morning Horald, now voicing its daily demand that tho party cut off its left and thereby cease to be a Labour party - is not read in Queensland, where the pro Labour swing was so spectacular. )
Labour at last is gotting its oppurtunity to demonstrate its capacity to imploment a viable alternate policy to that of Menzios, the roactionary dofender of the capitalist barrier to Australia's advancement. A heavy responsibility rests on the left wing to work and organise to ensure that Labour's opportunity is seized with frutiful rosults, that Labour's platform is honoured in its observance, not in its breach,