(bv our [ereclt Correspondent) The Comtnunist Party, led hy 2cki ol Hakairi and publishing a daily mewspaper IJitilmd cok Shaah (trans.: Unity of the People) is faced now with a rival group, led by Daud al Sayegh, publishing Al Maebda (Principle) which ‘' has appealed to all Traqi Communists to help eradhcate * opportunist elements * from the party and uphold the international proletariat and Marxist- Leninist principles." stccording to the Iraqi Associations Law, promulgated at the New Vear, political parties have to apply for a licence. Such applications have ta be signed by at least ten founding members and fifty supporters. Both Communist groups have applied im this form, but according to /itihad #sh Shaab seven of the ten founding members of al Sayegh's group have withdrawn and afterwards one more founding member and four supporters withdrew likewise. Alt Machda reports that the Prime Minister Kassem told al Sayegh on 15th January that there could not he more than one Communist Party in Iraq, In all, four parties had so far applied for licence: Two Communist Parties, the ‘' National Democratic Party '' and the ‘' Democratic Party of Kurdistan (Iraq]’’. Tn order to give a clear idea of the completely opportunist, menshevik character of the Iraqi Communist Party, we publish below some extracts from the Introduction te the National Charter of the Iraqi Commumst Party (Iraqi Review, January 18th, 1a60) :
“ Those are in general the baste tasks of our curren! historical slage, they are (iberationaldemocratic tasks whick are nol direcled agains! fhe capftalisi-bourgeots relations of production, Therefore, Wig accomplishment of these tasks is nol in the taterest of one class apart jram the hers, ff is in fact in the trlercs! of all national classes of the peaple—the workers, thy peasants, the petty bourgeoisie (artisans, professionals, small farmers and intelligentsia), the middle bourgeoisie, foc. the anti-imperialist and antifuedal bowrgeotsico (the industrialists, the merclhanis, farmers, culreprencurs and nationai capitalists)" “The working class—together with all the tating masses—realise that thetr standard of living is bound wp with the develapinent of the economy of the country, Thal is why the workers co-operale with the businessmen and the peasants with the Governmental bedizs and others for lhe welfare of the notional indebendence, (he increase of the national wealth and tite reinforcement of the notional economy, The same lakes place in various seciors of production. The toiling masses make in this respect considerable micrifices which ought lo meet wilh tee response of businessmen to the rights of the working class and totlers in imereasing their wages, improving their working conditions, refraining from making them to do unpaid over: fime work, and in applying a jus! social security?"
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