Paris May 1968
Source: Simon Fraser University May 1968 Archive;
Translated: by Mitchell Abidor.
The Parti Communiste Internationaliste (French Section of the Fourth International) denounces the total responsibility of the Gaullist regime for the violence that is developing in all the cities of France. It is the Gaullist power that took the initiative in the brawls and the savage repression carried out by the Gardes Mobiles and the CRS through its refusing the right to demonstrate to more than 60,000 young workers, university and high school students, and teachers gathered Friday night in front of the Gare de Lyon.
This regime attempted to isolate the vanguard assembled at that demonstration and sought a terrorist blood bath. Resisting this provocation and foiling this maneuver by transforming the massive demonstration where the dead would have been counted in their dozens into a series of partial demonstrations and alerting numerous sections of Paris, the demonstrators defended the right to demonstrate for the entire working class movement, for all those who want to drive out this disoriented regime.
Not having been able to obtain its pool of blood, this puppet power still dares to insult the working class, the young workers, the teachers, and the university and high school students that are the leading edge of the combat. Its minister Fouchet calls them crooks to be loathed. Today, in the struggle that is arousing all of France, where Paris, Lyon, Marseilles, Nantes, Bordeaux, Strasbourg, etc are standing up to the coercive forces of a state in decomposition, the only criminal band is that of the regime of barbouzes in the service of the owning class, is the political personnel of the Fifth Republic.
These are the criminals the workers loathe and that they are ridding the country of.
No plebiscitary referendum! The general strike is the true referendum of a country that can’t wait till mid-June to send away a band loathed by all.
In order to ensure the triumph of their demands, the leaders of the union organizations are preparing to begin negotiations presided over by the leadership of this more than moribund government. This is the worst of contradictions. This government has no political or moral authority. Negotiating with it doesn’t mean contributing to its overthrow; rather it helps it by prolonging its agony, permitting it to commit new abuses of power, new provocations and the preparation of a coup d’etat.
Refusing negotiations under such a band doesn’t mean demonstrating “leftism” or “anarchism;” it means having your eyes wide open and acting in the only sensible way.
The leadership of the CGT has declared that it will submit the results of the negotiations to a vote of the striking workers. In the same way, in order to respect workers’ democracy it must immediately ask the workers: ARE YOU FOR NEGOTIATIONS WITH POMPIDOU OR ARE YOU FOR CHASING OUT De Gaulle?
There can be no doubt as to the response of the workers:
NO NEGOTIATIONS
WITH THE GOVERNMENT OF THE COUP DE FORCE OF THE COLONELS OF ALGIERS!
THE IMMEDIATE RESIGNATION OF DE GAULLE
Through unity in action of workers, teachers, university and high school students, peasants
FORWARD,
AGAINST THE GAULLIST REGIME, FOR A WORKERS’ GOVERNMENT
Le Parti Communiste Internationaliste
(French Section of the Fourth international)
May 15,1968