Encyclopedia of Anti-Revisionism On-Line

Documents of the National Conference on the Unity of Canadian Marxist-Leninists

Montreal, October 9, 1976

Speech of ORHAP and En Avant

Comrades,

ORHAP (Organisation Revolutionnaire Haitien d’Action Patriotique – Haitian Revolutionary Organization of Patriotic Action) and EN AVANT! (Forward! – Movement for the development of the patriotic mobilization) warmly greet the participants of this first national conference of Canadian Marxist-Leninists on the question of unity. We hope that this conference marks a decisive step forward towards the unity of Canadian Marxist-Leninists, essential condition for the unity of the proletariat and the people, essential condition for the creation of the Canadian Proletarian Party.

The Canadian and Haitian peoples are one in their struggle against American imperialism and against the imperialist Canadian bourgeoisie. Presently, in Haiti, the resistance of the workers, peasants and other strata of the people camp is becoming increasingly strong. The peasants and workers are rising up against exploitation, misery, fascist repression and against the imperialist occupation of our country, posing concrete, albeit spontaneous, acts of resistance. But the people’s camp lacks a veritable Marxist-Leninist party capable of unifying and channeling its spontaneous struggles. In response to the daily resistance of the popular masses, the fascist dictatorship of Duvalier, as well as American imperialism, arm the forces of repression (Leopards, death squads) and maintain their arsenal of anti-democratic, anti-communist laws.

The fascist dictatorship is openly supported by Canadian imperialism. Through the CAID, the Royal Bank of Canada, the Bank of Nova Scotia, International Bonanza Petroleum, the LIP Projects, the Brothers of Sacred Heart, the hotels, the mixed-public companies, and the agricultural projects, Canadian imperialism exploits the Haitian people and helps the dictatorship to hold out. Canadian Marxist-Leninists must on the basis of these facts understand the imperialist nature of the Canadian bourgeoisie and oppose it as such.

Haitian Marxist-Leninists are working to unite the camp of the people against the fascist dictatorship and against all the imperialists; American, Canadian, French, German, etc.; to achieve this, the Haitian Marxist-Leninists (those outside the country) are resolutely struggling against the revisionism of the PUCH (Unified Party of Haitian “Communists” which follows Moscow’s orders).

We are also struggling against the dogmatic, sectarian and splitting line of a supposedly workers’ party which calls itself Haitian Workers Party (HWP) and whose action has never gone further than discussions in Bruxelles, Paris and Rome cafes. Within the country we are also waging the struggle against the so-called communist party, a Duvalierist organization set up by the CIA; it is the principal obstacle to the mobilization of masses in Haiti.

Firstly, the task of our young movement is to link itself with the masses both inside and outside the country. Secondly, under present conditions, our principal task is to unify Marxist-Leninists in preparation for the creation of the Marxist-Leninist Haitian party. There are the fundamental and indispensable conditions we need to wage our national liberation struggle.

This fundamental orientation synthesizes our political line and orients our work in the emigrant fractions of the Haitian proletariat. We clearly state that the Haitian workers in Canada are an integral part of the Canadian working class. They must unite with their class brothers against the common enemy, and with them defeat racism, discrimination and division. We firmly believe that the Canadian Marxist-Leninist movement must deploy genuine efforts to rally emigrant workers to the struggle of the Canadian proletariat. As well, it is the duty of the Haitian Marxist-Leninists to aide them in the spirit of proletarian internationalism, while maintaining that for us the priority is the Haitian National Question.

To defeat Canadian imperialism in Haiti is to weaken the Canadian imperialist bourgeoisie and thus directly contribute to the advancement of the proletarian revolution in Canada. In the same way, the victory of the proletarian revolution in Canada will be a direct contribution to the national liberation struggle in Haiti.

And so we say:

LONG LIVE THE SOLIDARITY OF THE CANADIAN AND HAITIAN PEOPLES!
LONG LIVE THE UNITY OF CANADIAN MARXIST-LENINISTS!
LONG LIVE THE STRUGGLE FOR THE CREATION OF THE CANADIAN PROLETARIAN PARTY!
LONG LIVE MARXISM, LENINISM AND MAO TSE-TUNG THOUGHT