AID FOR ALGERTA: Those returning from the Conferance of Non—Covernmental
Aid for Algeria are likely to face the question: why should British socialists get steamed up abour Algeria? Such a question must 48 ty expected, after all, throughout the seven years war the British presa c fee news of the etruggle except when something of a 'sensational' nature occured. ince the ending of the war the news coverage has been even more cursory, Of sOuTs@, we can argue from gonersl principles: that here is a country which suffered terribly in ite struggle for freedom, stc., etc,, bit such an argument applies to a mumber of countries, What nesds establishing is that aid to Algeria, apart from its obvious humanitarian function, will materially and significantly help the advance of world sccialian,
Like all revolutions, the Algerian Nevolution is an extremely complex affair and has many contradictory features, The social forces in the liber— ation front were varied despite the fact that the main force was that of the oppressed masses of the countryside. Ths pressures on the Algsrian Revolution are Many and no one would say that the leftward evolution of the Revolution since Ten Bella took over is irreversible. However, it is clear that the majority of the leadership of the Algerian Revolution want to go along the Cuban path and,even more, the mass of the people and middle cadres want their revolution to become socialist, Such ian evolution will only take place against fierce resistance from French imperialism and from various reactionary forces within tho Algerian state, The spced with which 4lgoria goes along the socialist road willlargely be determined by the etrangth of the Algarian economy. Whilst 80% of Algoria's foreign trade is done with France and whilst the Algerian budget depends upon a French subsidy big obstacles are placed in the way of taking decisive action against French interests,
Not only is aid essential for epeeding up the social evolution of the Revolution, but to the extent that this aid comes from workers! organisations and to the extent that tha thousands of tachnicians who are required have a s0cialist outlook, so the hand of the left in the Revolution will be strongthoned. Whilst every socialist is im favour of massive aid from the workers atates to Algeria, we would be foolish to ignore the dangers that etcessive reliance on such a source can bring. Substantial aid from workers! organis— ations in the capitalist countries will help, in many ways, to counter forces which tend to distort the Revolution.
There is an element of urgency too — relations betwoan France and Algeria are not only strained by the takeover of and placing under workers! management of former French concerns, The French Government is under pressure from its own farmers to cut dowm Algerian imports (how far this is encouraged by the Government as a bargaining counter is difficult to jell) There is the atrong possibility that relations betwoen France and Algeria will deteriorate vary rapidly. This would lead very quickly to a 'Cuba-like! situation. ‘The roapercussions of this on the workers movement of Surope (especially in the Iberian penisula) and on the development of the African Revolution would be tremendous. This would be all the more significant in view of tha Algerian experiment of wolkers management on a completely democratic basis, In short, Algeria, of which we hear so little today, could almost overnight become one of the main focal points of world politics, Let us not leave matters until we have a crisis on our hands, [Everything we do now to help the Algerian Revolution will hava a ten-fold effect in the future,
Thus we have the posaibility not merely to easist the development of a living revolution bit to influences its course, Arising out of the conforence important plans are to be drawn up to wage a practical campaign of aid: for Algeria, Wo shall give extonsive coverage to all these proposals.