Communist Party of Ireland
Encyclopedia
The Communist Party of Ireland (CPI; ) is a small all-Ireland Marxist party, founded in 1933. An earlier party, the Socialist Party of Ireland
, was renamed the Communist Party of Ireland in 1921 on its affiliation to the Communist International but was dissolved in 1924. The present-day CPI was founded in 1933 by the Revolutionary Workers' Groups. In 1941 the part of the party in the south of Ireland
suspended its activities, while in the north
it continued to operate under the name Communist Party (Northern Ireland)
. The party was re-established in the South in 1948 under the name Irish Workers' League, which changed its name in 1962 to Irish Workers' Party
. The two sections reunited as the Communist Party of Ireland in 1970.
In the first half of the Twentieth Century the Communist Party failed to gain any traction, one reason for this is Communist hostility to the Roman Catholic Church which was the faith of a majority of the people in the country. Atrocities committed against Catholic clergy by Communists in Spain during the Civil War reinforced peoples' hostility against what was seen as an unwelcome, foreign and authoritarian political movement. The party provided some of the Irish volunteers in the 1936–39 Spanish Civil War, losing a number of members who were killed in action.
Historically, the party belonged to the wing of international communism that looked to the Soviet Union
for inspiration. In the mid-1960s, the U.S. State Department estimated the party membership to be approximately 100. The party grew consistently through the 1960s and 1970s.
In the late 1960s, some IWP members (notably Michael O'Riordan
) became active in the Dublin Housing Action Committee
. The IWP
also condemned the Soviet Invasion of Czechoslovakia
, although O'Riordan was opposed
to this position. In March 1970, following the CPNI/IWP merger, the new Communist Party of Ireland issued a
manifesto called For Unity and Socialism,advocating the election of left-wing governments in both parts of Ireland, and
eventually, the creation of a United Ireland
.
The CPI strongly criticised the Anglo-Irish Agreement
, claiming the AIA "underlined Partition and gave Britain a direct say in the affairs of the Republic".
In the 1980s, membership declined significantly during the collapse of the USSR and the electoral rise of the Workers' Party of Ireland
, but the party survived the 1990s and has since been rebuilding. The party’s aim is to win the support of the majority of the Irish people for ending the capitalist system and for building socialism
. It is actively opposed to neo-liberalism and to the European Union
. Internationally, it maintains fraternal relations with other communist and workers’ parties and is a strong supporter of Cuba
and Venezuela
.
The general secretary of the party is Eugene McCartan, who would have a more prominent public presence sometimes appearing on the Vincent Browne Tonight Programme as a panelist in recent years. The Belfast district produces a weekly paper called Unity, while the Dublin district produces a monthly paper called Socialist Voice. There are also branches in Cork, Galway, and Mid-Ulster.
While it is a registered party, the CPI has rarely run candidates in elections and has never had electoral success. Despite this, it has had a significant influence in the trade union movement and was actively involved in the Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association
. In addition, a number of prominent Irish Labour Party members were former members of the CPI . The CPI operates a bookshop in Dublin called Connolly Books and has the support of a youth organisation, the Connolly Youth Movement
. Both are named after the Irish socialist James Connolly
.
One notable split from the CPI was the Eurocommunist grouplet the Irish Marxist Society, which left the CPI around 1976. The IMS advocated Marxist feminism
and was also outspoken in its rejection of the Two Nations Theory
of Northern Ireland.
Most
of the IMS's members later joined the Irish Labour Party
.
The party and its members would be prominent in a number of campaigns such as advocating a No vote in the Lisbon Treaty Referendum, recently the party is advocating a referendum on the bailout of Banks. The party also supported the anti-war movement in Ireland as part of the Peace and Neutrality Alliance
.
Irish Socialist Republican Party
The Irish Socialist Republican Party was a pivotal Irish political party founded in 1896 by James Connolly. Its aim was to establish an Irish workers' republic...
, was renamed the Communist Party of Ireland in 1921 on its affiliation to the Communist International but was dissolved in 1924. The present-day CPI was founded in 1933 by the Revolutionary Workers' Groups. In 1941 the part of the party in the south of Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
suspended its activities, while in the north
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
it continued to operate under the name Communist Party (Northern Ireland)
Communist Party of Northern Ireland
The Communist Party of Northern Ireland was a small communist party operating in Northern Ireland. Its origins lay in the 1941 split in the Communist Party of Ireland, which also produced the Irish Workers' Party in the Republic of Ireland...
. The party was re-established in the South in 1948 under the name Irish Workers' League, which changed its name in 1962 to Irish Workers' Party
Irish Workers' Party
Irish Workers' Party was the name used by the communist party in the Republic of Ireland from 1948 until 1962. The Southern section of the party had suspended its activities from 1941 onwards because of police interference in its activities and the difficulties imposed by the emigration of many...
. The two sections reunited as the Communist Party of Ireland in 1970.
In the first half of the Twentieth Century the Communist Party failed to gain any traction, one reason for this is Communist hostility to the Roman Catholic Church which was the faith of a majority of the people in the country. Atrocities committed against Catholic clergy by Communists in Spain during the Civil War reinforced peoples' hostility against what was seen as an unwelcome, foreign and authoritarian political movement. The party provided some of the Irish volunteers in the 1936–39 Spanish Civil War, losing a number of members who were killed in action.
Historically, the party belonged to the wing of international communism that looked to the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
for inspiration. In the mid-1960s, the U.S. State Department estimated the party membership to be approximately 100. The party grew consistently through the 1960s and 1970s.
In the late 1960s, some IWP members (notably Michael O'Riordan
Michael O'Riordan
Michael O'Riordan was the founder of the Communist Party of Ireland and also fought with the Connolly Column in the International Brigades during the Spanish Civil War.-Early life:...
) became active in the Dublin Housing Action Committee
Dublin Housing Action Committee
The Dublin Housing Action Committee was a 1960s protest against housing shortages in Ireland's capital city.It arose from a serious shortage of affordable housing, combined with a large number of properties standing empty. It also functioned as a way for a broad range of left-wingers in the...
. The IWP
also condemned the Soviet Invasion of Czechoslovakia
Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia
On the night of 20–21 August 1968, the Soviet Union and her main satellite states in the Warsaw Pact – Bulgaria, the German Democratic Republic , Hungary and Poland – invaded the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic in order to halt Alexander Dubček's Prague Spring political liberalization...
, although O'Riordan was opposed
to this position. In March 1970, following the CPNI/IWP merger, the new Communist Party of Ireland issued a
manifesto called For Unity and Socialism,advocating the election of left-wing governments in both parts of Ireland, and
eventually, the creation of a United Ireland
United Ireland
A united Ireland is the term used to refer to the idea of a sovereign state which covers all of the thirty-two traditional counties of Ireland. The island of Ireland includes the territory of two independent sovereign states: the Republic of Ireland, which covers 26 counties of the island, and the...
.
The CPI strongly criticised the Anglo-Irish Agreement
Anglo-Irish Agreement
The Anglo-Irish Agreement was an agreement between the United Kingdom and Ireland which aimed to help bring an end to the Troubles in Northern Ireland...
, claiming the AIA "underlined Partition and gave Britain a direct say in the affairs of the Republic".
In the 1980s, membership declined significantly during the collapse of the USSR and the electoral rise of the Workers' Party of Ireland
Workers' Party of Ireland
The Workers' Party is a left-wing republican political party in Ireland. Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970 after a split within the party, adopting its current name in 1982....
, but the party survived the 1990s and has since been rebuilding. The party’s aim is to win the support of the majority of the Irish people for ending the capitalist system and for building socialism
Socialism
Socialism is an economic system characterized by social ownership of the means of production and cooperative management of the economy; or a political philosophy advocating such a system. "Social ownership" may refer to any one of, or a combination of, the following: cooperative enterprises,...
. It is actively opposed to neo-liberalism and to the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
. Internationally, it maintains fraternal relations with other communist and workers’ parties and is a strong supporter of Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
and Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
.
The general secretary of the party is Eugene McCartan, who would have a more prominent public presence sometimes appearing on the Vincent Browne Tonight Programme as a panelist in recent years. The Belfast district produces a weekly paper called Unity, while the Dublin district produces a monthly paper called Socialist Voice. There are also branches in Cork, Galway, and Mid-Ulster.
While it is a registered party, the CPI has rarely run candidates in elections and has never had electoral success. Despite this, it has had a significant influence in the trade union movement and was actively involved in the Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association
Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association
The Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association was an organisation which campaigned for equal civil rights for the all the people in Northern Ireland during the late 1960s and early 1970s...
. In addition, a number of prominent Irish Labour Party members were former members of the CPI . The CPI operates a bookshop in Dublin called Connolly Books and has the support of a youth organisation, the Connolly Youth Movement
Connolly Youth Movement
The Connolly Youth Movement is an all-Ireland youth organisation affiliated to the Communist Party of Ireland but which is also strongly independent and organises separately from the CPI. Internationally the Connolly Youth Movement is affiliated to the World Federation of Democratic Youth...
. Both are named after the Irish socialist James Connolly
James Connolly
James Connolly was an Irish republican and socialist leader. He was born in the Cowgate area of Edinburgh, Scotland, to Irish immigrant parents and spoke with a Scottish accent throughout his life. He left school for working life at the age of 11, but became one of the leading Marxist theorists of...
.
One notable split from the CPI was the Eurocommunist grouplet the Irish Marxist Society, which left the CPI around 1976. The IMS advocated Marxist feminism
Marxist feminism
Marxist feminism is a sub-type of feminist theory which focuses on the dismantling of capitalism as a way of liberating women. Marxist feminism states that private property, which gives rise to economic inequality, dependence, political confusion, and ultimately unhealthy social relations between...
and was also outspoken in its rejection of the Two Nations Theory
Two Nations Theory (Ireland)
The Two Nations Theory holds that the Ulster Protestants are a distinct Irish nation.According to S J Connolly's Oxford Companion to Irish History The Two Nations Theory holds that the Ulster Protestants are a distinct Irish nation.According to S J Connolly's Oxford Companion to Irish History The...
of Northern Ireland.
Most
of the IMS's members later joined the Irish Labour Party
Labour Party (Ireland)
The Labour Party is a social-democratic political party in the Republic of Ireland. The Labour Party was founded in 1912 in Clonmel, County Tipperary, by James Connolly, James Larkin and William X. O'Brien as the political wing of the Irish Trade Union Congress. Unlike the other main Irish...
.
The party and its members would be prominent in a number of campaigns such as advocating a No vote in the Lisbon Treaty Referendum, recently the party is advocating a referendum on the bailout of Banks. The party also supported the anti-war movement in Ireland as part of the Peace and Neutrality Alliance
Peace and Neutrality Alliance
Peace and Neutrality Alliance is an Irish anti-war grouping and a lobby group which campaigns to protect Irish neutrality. It was involved in a number of campaigns such as those against the Iraq war, against the use of Shannon Airport by the US military, and against the Republic of Ireland...
.
External links
- Official site
- History of the Communist Movement in Ireland
- The storming of CPI headquarters, Connolly House (1933)
- Irish Left Online Document Archive - contains PDFs of CPI material, with commentary