Saturday, 07 May 2011, 14:00 - 18:00
Speakers: Alan Woods of the International Marxist Tendency, Muayad Ahmed of the Worker Communist Party of Iraq
The Revolution in the Arab World and the Middle East is a source of inspiration to workers and young people everywhere. It has rocked every country in the Middle East and North Africa to their foundations and its reverberations are being felt all over the world. These dramatic events mark a decisive turning point in human history.
In Egypt and Tunisia we saw the power of the masses once they move in a decisive manner. And once the regimes in Tunisia and Egypt had fallen a process of international revolution was set in motion across the whole of the Arab world, from Morocco to Iraq and beyond.
However, the capitalist class and its politicians are extremely concerned and are working to derail these revolutions so that they can regain control of the situation in this important oil-rich region. That explains the intervention in Libya. It also explains the brutal repression in Bahrain, which has been tacitly backed by the West.
In spite of this the workers and youth of Tunisia and Egypt keep moving forward, while other regimes in countries like the Yemen, Jordan, Syria, Morocco are facing growing levels of opposition and mass protests. In Iraq and Kurdistan where corrupt and despotic militia regimes, backed by the US-UK invasion, rule, we see a growing protest movement. There too, the revolutionary situation is grow and protesters are met with brutal measures and killed, with large numbers of them wounded, arrested and tortured.
What is evident from all this is the immense potential for revolution in the whole region. However, it is also clear that the local ruling elites, together with their imperialist backers, are attempting to divert, confuse and push into safe channels the movements that have erupted. So where do we go from here?
Come and hear Alan Woods, Political Editor of the In Defence of Marxism website and a leading cadre of the International Marxist Tendency, and Muayad Ahmed a leading cadre of the Worker Communist Party of Iraq & Editor of the ‘Alsheoiya Al-Omalya’ (Worker Communism) monthly paper, speak on the way forward for the Revolution in the Region.
Location:
University of London Union ( ULU), Room 3D
6 Malet Street, WC1E 7HY London, United Kingdom ·
Contact :
Daniel Morley danielmorley85@hotmail.com
Nazar Akrawi/ UK Branch of WCPI n.akrawi@hotmail.com