BE CONCERNED WITH THE WELL-BEING OF THE MASSES

"Be Concerned with the well-being of the masses, Pay attention to Methods of Work" is the title of a speech made by Mao ZeDong  at a Congress of Workers and Peasants Representatives in January, 1934.

This speech  emphasises the  connection between the  nationwide political tasks (conducting the revolutionary war ) and  concern for the problems faced by  the people  in their daily life.

While  Mao ZeDong was speaking about the particular situation  in China in 1934 in the midst of a civil war, the method of  gaining the trust of the people has universal  significance.  Once the people could see through their own experience that the Communist Party  was worthy of  their trust, their enthusiasm for the struggle against imperialism increased enormously.

Doing More than Just The Political Tasks

To quote – “If we only mobilise the people to carry on the war and do nothing else, can we succeed in defeating the enemy?  Of  course not. If we want to win, we must do a great deal more.  We must lead the peasants struggles for land and distribute the land to them, heighten their labour enthusiasm, and increase agricultural production, safeguard the interests of the workers, establish co-operatives, develop trade with outside areas, and solve the problems  facing the masses - food, shelter, and clothing, fuel, rice cooking oil, and salt , sickness and hygiene, and marriage.

 

“In short all the practical problems in the masses' everyday life should claim our attention. If we attend to these problems, solve them and satisfy the needs of the masses, we shall become organisers of the well-being of the masses, and they will truly rally round us and give us their warm support.  Comrades, will we then be able to arouse them to take part in the revolutionary war ? Yes, indeed we will.”

Are there Lessons for  Kiwi Activists?

In  1934, Mao Ze Dong was speaking in an liberated area where the people had control. This made it possible to  solve problems concerning the well being of the people.

 

Although the New Zealand  people have yet to 'liberate" themselves and  gain control of  state power, there are  still  lessons  for us in  the above.

 

Consulting with and Listening to Working People

 Where efforts are made to go among the people,  a common practice is  to  take political issues to them, as distinct from consulting with workers and communities  what their needs are.   This method  persists although it has consistently failed. It is a “leftist” method  of work.

 

Instead of starting from the needs of the people ,  the ‘leftist’  approach  is to  get stuck in with the heavy political  slogans. Their activity starts from what they think  what working people and others should be  supporting.   This is a form of impatience. Trust in a party is not built  in this way.

 

Another Example

To celebrate the recent  May Day   anniversary,   a union committee in cooperation  the local branch of the Labour Party  organised a programme with band, tug-of-war  prize and other attractions.  Even allowing for the weather,  no workers  from the various job sites turned up.

 

To respond to the  Council of Trade Union’s recommendation for observing May Day  was  good. But  the fact that no workers attended, indicated that they  were not consulted   or listened to.  Such outcomes are used  by  ‘right wing’  union sources to  exclaim – “what’s the use?  , the workers do not respond, despite our hard work”.

 

This method of work is highly bureaucratic. To be successful, a May Day   observance must be “owned” by the  workers and  organised by their delegates  to suit their  needs and level of understanding.

 

When a ’leftist’ line captured  the  Communist Party  in the 1970‘s,  members with experience in  organising in communities  around their  immediate  needs,  were told to stop.  The ‘leftist’ leadership selectively and misleadingly quoted  Mao ZeDong,  to  counter the  correct Marxist  method of  ‘being concerned with the well being  of the masses”. Yet at that time, these experienced  members  raised more finance and sold more papers than other members who concentrated on  the heavy political campaigns.

 

The People  Are the Motive Force of Social Change

To succeed in  the anti-imperialist  tasks,  activists cannot ignore  international  and New Zealand experiences. We need to learn to consult with workers and take their needs as the starting point.