During the afternoon of Sunday, March 31, with the hand vote of the delegates from all around the country, the last day of the 13th Congress of the MST in the Left Fron Unity came to an end. This organization is part of the International Socialist League (ISL) https://lis-isl.org/.
The Congress had been preceded by several months of deep debate and collective exchange of all the militancy, around the documents submitted for debate by the leadership on the international situation, national situation and the assessment and orientation of the party for the coming period, together with the contributions made by the militancy from different cities and provinces, both in writing and in different plenary meetings held.
The Congress had begun last Thursday, March 28th with an important Opening Rally in Plaza Congreso, where thousands of militants and sympathizers contributed with their chants and enthusiasm in front of the presence and words of emblematic struggles such as INCAA, Telam, Banco Nación, state workers and leaders of the MST Teresa Vive. They received the presence of international guests at the event and the greetings through videos and texts from other organizations of the ISL and fellow organizations from different countries of the world. In this initial rally, Cele Fierro and Alejandro Bodart, who was in charge of the closure, spoke on behalf of the MST leadership.
Regarding this important initial rally, Página 12 highlighted the main proposals developed. It summarized that Cele Fierro said the following: “The first months of Milei’s government showed on the one hand a far-right project that attacks social and democratic rights and plunges the popular majorities into misery, while we are already in a recession that will bring thousands of new layoffs and much less consumption. They want to put the country at the service of a few and move towards an authoritarian regime of DNU and repressive protocols. But these months have also shown that there is a social force willing to confront them and that they can stop them, like the massive marches of 8M and 24M. This is the path we must follow, with millions in the streets to make our demands for decent salaries and pensions, for jobs, health and public education felt. A mobilized people that says Enough of Milei, his austerity, repression and denialism. That is why from this rally we tell the CGT not to take a nap anymore, to call for a big national strike and a plan of struggle to defeat this government”.
And that Alejandro Bodart in the closure proposed the following: “We call for this great opening rally of our Congress to tell thousands of workers and young people the proposals that we have as members of the Left Front Unity. Because we have to put an end to Milei’s project, and no more going backwards with variants of Peronism, because precisely that allowed this character to rise to power. We have to build something new, and that is why we call on all those disappointed with these projects to build a better alternative from the left. Because there is no possible way out in this system, which never allows nor will allow solving problems, but rather generates them. For that we propose that our front summons thousands who are today fighting in the streets, workers, social leaders, neighborhood assembly members, from the culture, intellectuals, integrate them and become a great political movement of the workers and the left to turn everything around and start a completely different course. For all this we are going to propose to the other forces of our front that we call for a great Open Congress of the FIT-U to debate and resolve all these issues, together with thousands of workers and young people who today are fighting in the streets.”
After the Opening Rally on Thursday, the sessions of the Congress were held during the following three days addressing several topics, which will be socialized in-depth during the coming days for the knowledge of the militancy, the thousands of sympathizers of the left and the readers of Periodismo the Izquierda. Now, briefly, we tell you some items of this 13th Congress.
On behalf of the coordination of the ISL and the MST, Alejandro Bodart presented the point on the international situation, in a very deep debate that included the intervention of all the international guests present from countries like France, Portugal, Australia, Brazil, Mexico, Peru, Colombia, Chile, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Lebanon and the video intervention from Pakistan. This enriched the debate held with all the delegates present, who agreed with the analysis and policy presented on the global capitalist crisis, the policy of the revolutionaries in the face of inter-imperialist disputes from an independent position, the strong tendencies towards greater social and political polarization and the need to intervene in depth in the processes of class struggle in the world, the priority of maintaining firm in the unconditional support to the Palestinian people and the frontal denunciation of the genocidal State of Israel. Also the importance of the unity of action against all the far-right phenomena in the world. In this sense, among other initiatives, there was the announcement of the participation in an anti-fascist forum in May in Porto Alegre. And finally, it was very important to continue strengthening the construction of the ISL, which has been making important progress.
The point on the national situation was in the hands of Sergio García on behalf of the leadership of the MST and of Periodismo de Izquierda. He analyzed the profound changes that are developing in the country under the far-right government of Milei, the brutal attack against social and democratic rights of the population and the strong response in the streets of workers, popular, cultural and neighborhood assemblies, among others. The strong polarization that we are living in the country was highlighted, as well as the tendencies to greater confrontations in the coming months. The need to demand a new active national strike and a real plan of struggle to say No More to Milei, his austerity and repression was deepened. Strengthening the coordination of all the left and the sectors in struggle as it has been happening since last December 20. And enormous importance was given to the need for the Left Front to improve and change, to stop being only an electoral front and to rise to the situation. That is why it was decided to bring to the other forces of the FIT-U the proposal to hold an Open Congress of our front and to debate there how to organize thousands and thousands so that the left takes a leap forward as an option for power in the country.
Finally, the Congress addressed the assessment of the last period and the tasks ahead with a presentation made by Mariano Rosa on behalf of the leadership of the MST. The presentation noted the important advances that the MST has been making in recent years, both in the incorporation of new militants throughout the country, its progress as a clear voice of the FIT-U with permanent proposals and new legislative positions achieved. Also the development in important workers’ sectors such as healthcare, state teachers, now in the struggle of the INCAA, within Unidxs por la Cultura and in the neighborhood assemblies where the MST has a strong intervention and impulse. Also in the workers’ neighborhoods with the MST Teresa Vive, which combatively resists a strong attack by the government. At this point, logically as any revolutionary and serious organization, the advances were noted and also the things to improve, to correct, to deepen. There was a proposal to maintain as a priority the continuation of important efforts to support the construction of the ISL, as a militant and internationalist organization should do. The impulse was to make new leaps in the spreading of our ideas and proposals, in consolidating more advances in our communication on large strips using all the digital and printed tools that we have at our disposal; to deepen the intervention in the struggles of the working class, of the youth that will be joining the rise and many other tasks that the delegates supported in the debate.
The Congress concluded with the vote of all the documents presented, with the vote of an important number of political and organizational resolutions. The final democratic vote by the body of delegates was the leadership of the MST until the next Congress and the Moral Committee. Late in the afternoon of Sunday, March 31, The Internationale resounded with strength and combativeness, together with the raised fist of all those present who sang the international anthem of the workers, ending the Congress and prepared now, much better, for the enormous challenges and opportunities that lie ahead.
