International Socialist Tendency
Encyclopedia
The International Socialist Tendency (IST) is an international
grouping of unorthodox Trotskyist organisations based around the ideas of Tony Cliff
, founder of the Socialist Workers Party (SWP) in Britain
(not to be confused with the unrelated Socialist Workers Party in the United States
). It has sections across 27 countries; however, its strongest presence is in Europe
, especially in Britain, and in Egypt
, where the Revolutionary Socialists
have played a role in industrial struggles against the former regime of Hosni Mubarak
and in the establishment of a workers' party
since the 2011 revolution
.
The politics of the IST are similar to the politics of many Trotskyist Internationals. Where it differs with many is on the question of the Soviet Union
, the IST adopting the position that it was a "state capitalist
" economy, rather than a "degenerated worker's state" along with their theories of the "permanent arms economy" and "deflected permanent revolution". The IST sees the often referred to "socialist" countries, such as the former Eastern Bloc
states, China
, Vietnam
, North Korea
and Cuba
as an inverse of classical Marxism
, arguing they are "Stalinist" in nature.
Unlike many international tendencies the IST has no formal organisational structures and has only ever made one publicly known decision, which was to expel the US International Socialist Organization
(ISO) from its ranks. However, the antecedents of the IST go back to the 1950s when the founders of the British Socialist Review Group (SRG), around Cliff, were expelled from The Club
and thus from the Fourth International
.
until it dissolved in 1958. It then retained links with comrades coming out of that group and with other individuals in the international Trotskyist movement. But there was no significant growth in support for its ideas until the late 1960s. Some of the ideas of the IST, such as the permanent arms economy were originally developed from writings published by the ISL. The theory of the permanent arms economy was developed by T. N. Vance in a series published throughout 1951 in the ISL journal New International and was later refined by Cliff in the late 1950s and over the years by key International Socialist (IS) theoreticians such as Mike Kidron, Nigel Harris
and Chris Harman
in later years.
s in a number of countries which led to the formation of IS groups in those countries. Perhaps the first such group was the Irish IS group founded in 1971, followed by groups in Australia
, Canada
and Germany
. Meanwhile links were built with the Independent Socialists
(later International Socialists) in the USA. These links led to a split in the American IS in 1978 and the formation of the ISO; a group which was more closely linked to the British IS.
During the late 1960s the British IS also attended a series of meetings held by the French
Lutte Ouvriere (LO) group which were also attended by the American IS. In many quarters the IS and LO groups were seen as constituting a loose semi-syndicalist
tendency within world Trotskyism in this period. The meetings were also attended by a wide variety of groups such as the Italian
Autonomia Operaia
but petered out.
Despite this growth there was no formal organisation. However, international meetings of the leaderships of the IS tendency did develop, usually held in conjunction with the (renamed in 1977) British Socialist Workers Party's Marxism Summer School, held in London
. This was the foundation of the IST which at some point in the 1990s came to be referred to thus with capitalisation.
, Denmark
, Egypt
, Netherlands
, Norway
and in Greece the Socialist Revolution Organisation (OSE) which had been loosely linked to the IS in the 1970s rejoined the tendency. A group of Turkish
comrades were also recruited in exile
during this period, its members living in Germany and Britain.
, Cyprus
, Spain
, Aotearoa/New Zealand
, South Africa
, Zimbabwe
and Korea
. Groups were also founded in the former Eastern Bloc states as contact could be sustained in those countries for the first time after the collapse of the USSR
. This led to the foundation of IS groups in Poland
and the Czech Republic
. A group linked to the IST existed in Russia
but collapsed.
However, the 1990s also saw the beginning of serious problems for the IST. While there was a great deal of geographical expansion there were also losses and fragmentation. There were a number of splits which were unrelated to each other but seemed to have a common cause. Those causes were a concern among some members of the groups concerned that the internal regime of their own group had become bureaucratised
and lacked in democratic accountability. Sometimes this was associated with the involvement in the internal affairs of the group by representatives of the SWP, as well as the political orientation of the group. Among the groups affected by such splits were those based in Germany, South Africa, Ireland, Zimbabwe, Australia, Aotearoa/New Zealand, Canada and France. In Belgium, the majority of the group joined the Belgian affiliate of the Committee for a Workers' International
.
, Pakistan
, Botswana
, Lebanon
, Uruguay
, Finland
, Sweden
and Ghana
. However the largest groups in the IST outside Britain have both split and sections of them have left the IST. Thus in the US the ISO's leadership entered into a dispute with the leadership of the SWP as to the significance of the anti-capitalist and anti-globalisation movements following the World Trade Organization demonstration in Seattle. This led to the ISO being expelled from the IST and a small faction (sympathetic to the SWP) leaving it to form Left Turn (LT). Ironically, LT also left the IST in 2003 leaving the tendency with no affiliate in the US. Very small numbers of people sympathetic to the SWP operate in the US Keep Left and the US Solidarity, but with no official link to the IST. Meanwhile in Greece the OSE (which had renamed itself the Socialist Workers Party) split on similar lines with a substantial minority forming the Internationalist Workers Left.
have made moderate gains in the lead up to, and in the aftermath of, the Egyptian Revolution of 2011, the same year members of the Zimbabwean affiliate - the International Socialist Organisation - face the potential death penalty for hosting a meeting discussing the revolutions in Egypt and Tunisia
.
and Malaysia, are in fact websites only. Many IST sources also refer to the Organización Socialista Internacional of Puerto Rico
as being in the IST but it is actually close to the ISO. Some other small groups existing in various countries cannot be mentioned for legitimate security reasons. In addition there are IS type groups in a number of countries unconnected to the IST as in Germany, Greece, the USA, Australia and New Zealand. New Zealand's official group (Socialist Worker
) triggered an international debate within the IST. On May 1, 2007, it presented a May Day
statement to the IST, calling on it to "engage with the mass revolutionary process in Venezuela
".
Political international
A political international is a trans-national organisation of political parties or activists. The international works together on points of agreement to co-ordinate activity....
grouping of unorthodox Trotskyist organisations based around the ideas of Tony Cliff
Tony Cliff
Tony Cliff , was a Trotskyist who was a founding member of the Socialist Review Group which went on to become the Socialist Workers Party...
, founder of the Socialist Workers Party (SWP) in Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
(not to be confused with the unrelated Socialist Workers Party in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
). It has sections across 27 countries; however, its strongest presence is in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, especially in Britain, and in Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, where the Revolutionary Socialists
Revolutionary Socialists (Egypt)
The Revolutionary Socialists are a Trotskyist organisation in Egypt aligned with the International Socialist Tendency. According to Mark LeVine, a professor of history at the University of California, the RS "played a crucial role organising Tahrir and now in the workers movement" post-President...
have played a role in industrial struggles against the former regime of Hosni Mubarak
Hosni Mubarak
Muhammad Hosni Sayyid Mubarak is a former Egyptian politician and military commander. He served as the fourth President of Egypt from 1981 to 2011....
and in the establishment of a workers' party
Vanguard party
A vanguard party is a political party at the forefront of a mass action, movement, or revolution. The idea of a vanguard party has its origins in the Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels...
since the 2011 revolution
2011 Egyptian revolution
The 2011 Egyptian revolution took place following a popular uprising that began on Tuesday, 25 January 2011 and is still continuing as of November 2011. The uprising was mainly a campaign of non-violent civil resistance, which featured a series of demonstrations, marches, acts of civil...
.
The politics of the IST are similar to the politics of many Trotskyist Internationals. Where it differs with many is on the question of 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....
, the IST adopting the position that it was a "state capitalist
State capitalism
The term State capitalism has various meanings, but is usually described as commercial economic activity undertaken by the state with management of the productive forces in a capitalist manner, even if the state is nominally socialist. State capitalism is usually characterized by the dominance or...
" economy, rather than a "degenerated worker's state" along with their theories of the "permanent arms economy" and "deflected permanent revolution". The IST sees the often referred to "socialist" countries, such as the former Eastern Bloc
Eastern bloc
The term Eastern Bloc or Communist Bloc refers to the former communist states of Eastern and Central Europe, generally the Soviet Union and the countries of the Warsaw Pact...
states, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
, North Korea
North Korea
The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea , , is a country in East Asia, occupying the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Its capital and largest city is Pyongyang. The Korean Demilitarized Zone serves as the buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea...
and 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...
as an inverse of classical Marxism
Marxism
Marxism is an economic and sociopolitical worldview and method of socioeconomic inquiry that centers upon a materialist interpretation of history, a dialectical view of social change, and an analysis and critique of the development of capitalism. Marxism was pioneered in the early to mid 19th...
, arguing they are "Stalinist" in nature.
Unlike many international tendencies the IST has no formal organisational structures and has only ever made one publicly known decision, which was to expel the US International Socialist Organization
International Socialist Organization
The International Socialist Organization is a revolutionary socialist organization in the United States that identifies with the politics of International Socialism, a current of Trotskyism, and the Marxist political tradition that American socialist writer and activist Hal Draper called...
(ISO) from its ranks. However, the antecedents of the IST go back to the 1950s when the founders of the British Socialist Review Group (SRG), around Cliff, were expelled from The Club
The Club (Trotskyist)
The Club was a Trotskyist group in the United Kingdom. It operated inside the Labour Party and was the official section of the Fourth International from 1950 until 1953 when, after the FI split, it became part of the International Committee of the Fourth International...
and thus from the Fourth International
Fourth International
The Fourth International is the communist international organisation consisting of followers of Leon Trotsky , with the declared dedicated goal of helping the working class bring about socialism...
.
1950s
Through the 1950s the SRG had a loose relationship with the US Independent Socialist League (ISL) led by Max ShachtmanMax Shachtman
Max Shachtman was an American Marxist theorist. He evolved from being an associate of Leon Trotsky to a social democrat and mentor of senior assistants to AFL-CIO President George Meany.-Beginnings:...
until it dissolved in 1958. It then retained links with comrades coming out of that group and with other individuals in the international Trotskyist movement. But there was no significant growth in support for its ideas until the late 1960s. Some of the ideas of the IST, such as the permanent arms economy were originally developed from writings published by the ISL. The theory of the permanent arms economy was developed by T. N. Vance in a series published throughout 1951 in the ISL journal New International and was later refined by Cliff in the late 1950s and over the years by key International Socialist (IS) theoreticians such as Mike Kidron, Nigel Harris
Nigel Harris
Nigel Harris may refer to:*Nigel Harris , British economist*Nigel Harris *Nigel MacArthur, British broadcaster under the pseudonym Nigel Harris...
and Chris Harman
Chris Harman
Chris Harman was a British journalist and political activist, and a member of the Central Committee of the Socialist Workers Party...
in later years.
1960s - 70s
In the 1960s the International Socialists (as the group was now called) established links with militantMilitant
The word militant, which is both an adjective and a noun, usually is used to mean vigorously active, combative and aggressive, especially in support of a cause, as in 'militant reformers'. It comes from the 15th century Latin "militare" meaning "to serve as a soldier"...
s in a number of countries which led to the formation of IS groups in those countries. Perhaps the first such group was the Irish IS group founded in 1971, followed by groups in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. Meanwhile links were built with the Independent Socialists
International Socialists (US)
The International Socialists was a Third Camp Trotskyist group in the United States.The roots of the IS went back to the fall of 1964 when the Berkeley locals of the SP-SDF and YPSL left with 16 members to found the Independent Socialist Club led by Hal Draper and Joel Geier...
(later International Socialists) in the USA. These links led to a split in the American IS in 1978 and the formation of the ISO; a group which was more closely linked to the British IS.
During the late 1960s the British IS also attended a series of meetings held by the French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
Lutte Ouvriere (LO) group which were also attended by the American IS. In many quarters the IS and LO groups were seen as constituting a loose semi-syndicalist
Syndicalism
Syndicalism is a type of economic system proposed as a replacement for capitalism and an alternative to state socialism, which uses federations of collectivised trade unions or industrial unions...
tendency within world Trotskyism in this period. The meetings were also attended by a wide variety of groups such as the Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
Autonomia Operaia
Autonomia Operaia
Autonomia Operaia was an Italian extra-parliamentary leftist movement particularly active from 1976 to 1978. It emerged in 1972 not as a party but rather as a place of encounter among various extra-parliamentary and revolutionary left-wing tendencies opposed to reformism...
but petered out.
Despite this growth there was no formal organisation. However, international meetings of the leaderships of the IS tendency did develop, usually held in conjunction with the (renamed in 1977) British Socialist Workers Party's Marxism Summer School, held in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. This was the foundation of the IST which at some point in the 1990s came to be referred to thus with capitalisation.
1980s
Through the 1980s the IST grew internationally, in part, as other revolutionary socialist tendencies entered into crisis thus removing competitors. New IS groups appeared in France, BelgiumBelgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
, Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
, Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
and in Greece the Socialist Revolution Organisation (OSE) which had been loosely linked to the IS in the 1970s rejoined the tendency. A group of Turkish
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
comrades were also recruited in exile
Exile
Exile means to be away from one's home , while either being explicitly refused permission to return and/or being threatened with imprisonment or death upon return...
during this period, its members living in Germany and Britain.
1990s
The 1990s saw more international growth for the IST as groups were founded in yet more countries including AustriaAustria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, Cyprus
Cyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, Aotearoa/New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
, Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
and Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
. Groups were also founded in the former Eastern Bloc states as contact could be sustained in those countries for the first time after the collapse of the USSR
Dissolution of the Soviet Union
The dissolution of the Soviet Union was the disintegration of the federal political structures and central government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , resulting in the independence of all fifteen republics of the Soviet Union between March 11, 1990 and December 25, 1991...
. This led to the foundation of IS groups in Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
and the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
. A group linked to the IST existed in Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
but collapsed.
However, the 1990s also saw the beginning of serious problems for the IST. While there was a great deal of geographical expansion there were also losses and fragmentation. There were a number of splits which were unrelated to each other but seemed to have a common cause. Those causes were a concern among some members of the groups concerned that the internal regime of their own group had become bureaucratised
Bureaucracy
A bureaucracy is an organization of non-elected officials of a governmental or organization who implement the rules, laws, and functions of their institution, and are occasionally characterized by officialism and red tape.-Weberian bureaucracy:...
and lacked in democratic accountability. Sometimes this was associated with the involvement in the internal affairs of the group by representatives of the SWP, as well as the political orientation of the group. Among the groups affected by such splits were those based in Germany, South Africa, Ireland, Zimbabwe, Australia, Aotearoa/New Zealand, Canada and France. In Belgium, the majority of the group joined the Belgian affiliate of the Committee for a Workers' International
Committee for a Workers' International
The Committee for a Workers' International is an international association of Trotskyist parties. Members include the Socialist Party of England and Wales, the Socialist Party , the Socialist Party the Democratic Socialist Movement in South Africa and Nigeria and groups using the name Socialist...
.
2000s
The 2000s saw contradictory developments for the IST. New groups were formed in a number of countries for the first time as in AustriaAustria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
, Botswana
Botswana
Botswana, officially the Republic of Botswana , is a landlocked country located in Southern Africa. The citizens are referred to as "Batswana" . Formerly the British protectorate of Bechuanaland, Botswana adopted its new name after becoming independent within the Commonwealth on 30 September 1966...
, Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
, Uruguay
Uruguay
Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...
, Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
and Ghana
Ghana
Ghana , officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country located in West Africa. It is bordered by Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south...
. However the largest groups in the IST outside Britain have both split and sections of them have left the IST. Thus in the US the ISO's leadership entered into a dispute with the leadership of the SWP as to the significance of the anti-capitalist and anti-globalisation movements following the World Trade Organization demonstration in Seattle. This led to the ISO being expelled from the IST and a small faction (sympathetic to the SWP) leaving it to form Left Turn (LT). Ironically, LT also left the IST in 2003 leaving the tendency with no affiliate in the US. Very small numbers of people sympathetic to the SWP operate in the US Keep Left and the US Solidarity, but with no official link to the IST. Meanwhile in Greece the OSE (which had renamed itself the Socialist Workers Party) split on similar lines with a substantial minority forming the Internationalist Workers Left.
The IST today
While the Egyptian IST affiliate, the Revolutionary SocialistsRevolutionary Socialists (Egypt)
The Revolutionary Socialists are a Trotskyist organisation in Egypt aligned with the International Socialist Tendency. According to Mark LeVine, a professor of history at the University of California, the RS "played a crucial role organising Tahrir and now in the workers movement" post-President...
have made moderate gains in the lead up to, and in the aftermath of, the Egyptian Revolution of 2011, the same year members of the Zimbabwean affiliate - the International Socialist Organisation - face the potential death penalty for hosting a meeting discussing the revolutions in Egypt and Tunisia
Tunisian revolution
The Tunisian Revolution is an intensive campaign of civil resistance, including a series of street demonstrations taking place in Tunisia. The events began in December 2010 and led to the ousting of longtime President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in January 2011...
.
Affiliate Organisations
The listing below is neither fully comprehensive, as there are additional groups not mentioned in official lists found on IST websites, nor completely accurate. IST sources often containing references to Suara Socialis in IndonesiaIndonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
and Malaysia, are in fact websites only. Many IST sources also refer to the Organización Socialista Internacional of Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
as being in the IST but it is actually close to the ISO. Some other small groups existing in various countries cannot be mentioned for legitimate security reasons. In addition there are IS type groups in a number of countries unconnected to the IST as in Germany, Greece, the USA, Australia and New Zealand. New Zealand's official group (Socialist Worker
Socialist Worker (Aotearoa)
Socialist Worker is a socialist organisation based in Aotearoa/New Zealand.SW evolved out of the group known as the Socialist Workers Organization, the successor organisation of the Communist Party of New Zealand...
) triggered an international debate within the IST. On May 1, 2007, it presented a May Day
May Day
May Day on May 1 is an ancient northern hemisphere spring festival and usually a public holiday; it is also a traditional spring holiday in many cultures....
statement to the IST, calling on it to "engage with the mass revolutionary process in 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...
".
| Country | Affiliate name (English) | Affiliate name (Country of origin) |
|---|---|---|
| Aotearoa / New Zealand New Zealand New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga... |
Socialist Worker Socialist Worker (Aotearoa) Socialist Worker is a socialist organisation based in Aotearoa/New Zealand.SW evolved out of the group known as the Socialist Workers Organization, the successor organisation of the Communist Party of New Zealand... |
|
| Australia Australia Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area... |
Solidarity Solidarity (Australia) Solidarity is a Trotskyist organisation in Australia, formed in 2008 from a merger between three out of four groups emerging from the International Socialist tradition: the International Socialist Organisation , Socialist Action Group and Solidarity. The group is a member of the International... |
|
| Austria Austria Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the... |
Left Turn Linkswende Linkswende is a Trotskyist group in Austria. It is part of the International Socialist Tendency, led by the British Socialist Workers Party.It is based in Vienna and publishes a newspaper also called Linkswende.... |
Linkswende |
| Botswana Botswana Botswana, officially the Republic of Botswana , is a landlocked country located in Southern Africa. The citizens are referred to as "Batswana" . Formerly the British protectorate of Bechuanaland, Botswana adopted its new name after becoming independent within the Commonwealth on 30 September 1966... |
International Socialist Organization International Socialist Organization (Botswana) The International Socialists Botswana is a small Botswanian Trotskyist organisation. It is part of the International Socialist Tendency and produces a newspaper called Socialism from Below.... |
|
| Brazil Brazil Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people... |
Revolts Revolutas Revolutas is a Trotskyist organisation in Brazil, organized around the politics of the International Socialist Tendency .... |
Revolutas |
| Canada Canada Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean... |
International Socialists International Socialists (Canada) The International Socialists is a Canadian socialist organization. It is part of the International Socialist Tendency. The I.S. publishes an English-language monthly paper, Socialist Worker and holds an annual Marxism conference every spring in Toronto.... |
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| Cyprus Cyprus Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the... |
Workers' Democracy Workers' Democracy (Cyprus) Workers' Democracy is a Trotskyist organisation in Cyprus. It is part of the International Socialist Tendency led by the British Socialist Workers Party.... |
Ergatiki Demokratia |
| Czech Republic Czech Republic The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest.... |
Socialist Solidarity Socialist Solidarity Socialist Solidarity is a Trotskyist organisation in the Czech Republic. It is part of the International Socialist Tendency.It seems to have developed from a circle around a punk rock band which developed links with the Socialist Workers Party .... |
Socialistická Solidarita |
| Denmark Denmark Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark... |
International Socialists International Socialists (Denmark) The International Socialists is a Trotskyist organisation in Denmark.IS was set up in 1984 as split from the Left Socialists. It is part of the International Socialist Tendency led the by the British Socialist Workers Party. The International Socialists are mainly involved in activities aiming at... |
Internationale Socialister |
| Egypt Egypt Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world... |
Revolutionary Socialists Revolutionary Socialists (Egypt) The Revolutionary Socialists are a Trotskyist organisation in Egypt aligned with the International Socialist Tendency. According to Mark LeVine, a professor of history at the University of California, the RS "played a crucial role organising Tahrir and now in the workers movement" post-President... |
al-ištirākiyyūn aṯ-ṯawriyyūn |
| Finland Finland Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside... |
Socialist League Socialist League (Finland) The Socialist League is a Trotskyist organisation in Finland. It is affiliated to the International Socialist Tendency... |
Sosialistiliitto |
| France France The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France... |
What To Do | Que Faire |
| Ghana Ghana Ghana , officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country located in West Africa. It is bordered by Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south... |
International Socialist Organisation International Socialist Organisation (Ghana) The International Socialist Organisation is a Trotskyist organisation in Ghana. It is a member of the International Socialist Tendency led by the British Socialist Workers Party.... |
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| Great Britain Great Britain Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles... |
Socialist Workers' Party | |
| Greece Greece Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe.... |
Socialist Workers' Party | Sosialistiko Ergatiko Komma |
| Ireland Ireland Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth... |
Socialist Workers Party Socialist Workers Party (Ireland) The Socialist Workers Party is an Irish Trotskyist political party.-Foundation and growth:The SWP was originally founded in 1971 as the Socialist Workers Movement by supporters of the International Socialists of Britain living in Northern Ireland, who had previously been members of People's... |
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| Italy Italy Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and... |
Communism from below Communism from below Communism from below is a Trotskyist organisation in Italy. It is part of the International Socialist Tendency led by the British Socialist Workers Party. Its supporters work within the Critical Left .... |
Comunismo dal basso |
| Netherlands Netherlands The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders... |
International Socialists International Socialists (Netherlands) International Socialists is a revolutionary, Trotskyist organisation in the Netherlands. It is part of the International Socialist Tendency led by the British Socialist Workers Party.-Ideology:... |
Internationale Socialisten |
| Nigeria Nigeria Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in... |
Socialist Workers League | |
| Norway Norway Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million... |
International Socialists International Socialists (Norway) The International Socialists is a Trotskyist organisation in Norway founded in the early 1980s. It is part of the International Socialist Tendency led by the British Socialist Workers Party.... |
Internasjonale Sosialister |
| Pakistan Pakistan Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan... |
International Socialists | |
| Poland Poland Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north... |
Workers' Democracy Workers' Democracy (Poland) Workers' Democracy is a small Trotskyist group in Poland. It is affiliated to the International Socialist Tendency. It was originally founded with the name Socialist Solidarity.- External links :*... |
Pracownicza Demokracja |
| Serbia Serbia Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans... |
Marks21 | |
| South Africa South Africa The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans... |
Keep Left Keep Left (South Africa) Keep Left is a small Trotskyist group in South Africa which is affiliated to the International Socialist Tendency led by the Socialist Workers Party of Britain.... |
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| South Korea South Korea The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south... |
All Together | Dahamke |
| Spain Spain Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula... |
In Struggle In Struggle In Struggle is a Trotskyist organisation in Spain. It is part of the International Socialist Tendency led by the British Socialist Workers Party. The organisation produces a newspaper entitled En lucha.-External links:**... |
En Lucha |
| Sweden Sweden Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund.... |
International Socialists International Socialists (Sweden) The International Socialists is a Trotskyist organisation in Sweden. It is part of the International Socialist Tendency and publishes a paper called Gnistan . It was formed in 2002 by two members of the British Socialist Workers Party who moved to Sweden.Early in 2010 they renamed their paper... |
Internationella Socialister |
| Thailand Thailand Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the... |
Workers Democracy Group Workers Democracy Group The Workers Democracy Group is a Trotskyist group in Thailand. It is a member of the International Socialist Tendency led by the British Socialist Workers Party.... |
Klum Prachatipatai Rangarn |
| Turkey Turkey Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe... |
Revolutionary Socialist Workers' Party Revolutionary Socialist Workers' Party (Turkey) Founded in 1997, the Revolutionary Socialist Workers' Party ) is a Trotskyist party in Turkey. One of its leaders Doğan Tarkan has links to Liberation Movement, before 1980. DSİP declares its adherence to Trotskyism and libertarian socialism.... |
Devrimci Sosyalist İşçi Partisi |
| Uruguay Uruguay Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area... |
International Socialism International Socialism (Uruguay) International Socialism is a Trotskyist organisation in Uruguay. It is part of the International Socialist Tendency led by the British Socialist Workers Party.It produces a newspaper called El Mundo al Revés.... |
Socialismo Internacional |
| Zimbabwe Zimbabwe Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three... |
International Socialist Organisation | |
Non-aligned IST organisations which hold to its basic positions
| Country | Organisation name (English) | Organisation name (Country of origin) |
|---|---|---|
| Aotearoa / New Zealand New Zealand New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga... |
International Socialist Organisation | |
| Aotearoa / New Zealand | Socialist Aotearoa Socialist Aotearoa Socialist Aotearoa is a socialist organisation based in Aotearoa/New Zealand. SA formed as a split from Socialist Worker in 2008. They have branches in Auckland and Wellington and work closely with the International Socialist Organisation. Although the two groups are not formally aligned with the... |
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| Australia Australia Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area... |
Socialist Alternative Socialist Alternative (Australia) Socialist Alternative is a Trotskyist political organisation in Australia formed by an expulsion from the former International Socialist Organisation in 1995. It is one of the largest groups of the Australian far Left, claiming to have the largest active membership. With branches across... |
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| United Kingdom United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages... |
Counterfire | |
| Scotland Scotland Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the... |
[International Socialist Group] | |
| France France The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France... |
International Socialism Socialisme International Socialisme International was a small French revolutionary socialist organisation, founded in 1985 and publishing its magazine until 2009.... |
Socialisme International |
| Germany Germany Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate... |
Marx21 (Network within The Left) | Marx21 (Network within Die Linke) |
| Greece Greece Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe.... |
Internationalist Workers' Left Internationalist Workers' Left (Greece) The Internationalist Workers' Left is a revolutionary marxist organization in Greece, founded in 2001, having split from Socialist Workers' Party-International Socialist Tendency .... |
Diethnistiki Ergatiki Aristera |
| Puerto Rico Puerto Rico Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an... |
International Socialist Organisation | Organización Socialista Internacional |
| Turkey Turkey Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe... |
Anti-capitalist (abolished in 2010) | Antikapitalist |
| United States United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... |
International Socialist Organization International Socialist Organization The International Socialist Organization is a revolutionary socialist organization in the United States that identifies with the politics of International Socialism, a current of Trotskyism, and the Marxist political tradition that American socialist writer and activist Hal Draper called... |
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Organisations which originated in the IST but have significantly changed their political orientation
| Country | Organisation name (English) | Organisation name (Country of origin) |
|---|---|---|
| Canada Canada Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean... |
New Socialist Group | |
| Germany Germany Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate... |
Group of International Socialists | Gruppe Internationaler SozialistInnen |
| United States United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... |
Left Turn | |
See also
- Socialist WorkerSocialist WorkerSocialist Worker is the name of several socialist/communist newspapers associated with the International Socialist Tendency...
- Tony CliffTony CliffTony Cliff , was a Trotskyist who was a founding member of the Socialist Review Group which went on to become the Socialist Workers Party...
- TrotskyismTrotskyismTrotskyism is the theory of Marxism as advocated by Leon Trotsky. Trotsky considered himself an orthodox Marxist and Bolshevik-Leninist, arguing for the establishment of a vanguard party of the working-class...
- Fourth InternationalFourth InternationalThe Fourth International is the communist international organisation consisting of followers of Leon Trotsky , with the declared dedicated goal of helping the working class bring about socialism...
- List of Trotskyist internationals
External links
- International Socialist Tendency Website Official website of the IST
- International Socialist Tendency Documents Page Documents relating to the debates between the International Socialist Organization and the Socialist Workers Party
- More Years of the Locust: The Origins of the SWP Criticism of Cliff and the SWP by Jim Higgins, former National Secretary of the International Socialists
- IST Subject Archive at the Marxists Internet Archive Articles written by former leaders of the IST
- The International Socialists Official listing of IST affiliates