International Socialist Congress (1907)
The International Socialist Congress in Stuttgart in 1907 was the only such congress on German soil. It was the seventh meeting of its kind. Actually, three different meetings took place between August 17th and August 26th. In addition to the actual international socialist congress , the first international women's conference and the first international conference of socialist youth organizations also took place in the state capital of the Kingdom of Württemberg .
Socialists Congress
procedure
The actual Socialist Congress began on August 18th and lasted seven days. 884 delegates from 25 countries came to attend. The venue was the Liederhalle . Due to the more liberal political culture in the Kingdom of Württemberg, the meeting was held in Stuttgart and not in Berlin . But even in southern Germany it was not taken for granted that the authorities allowed the event.
As chairman of the local committee, Johann Heinrich Wilhelm Dietz was responsible for the organization. The authorities made it an obligation: 1. Red flags may not be used; 2. Offensive attacks against the Reich government, the governments of the German federal states and friendly states must not occur. 3. A police officer in civil clothing lives during the negotiations.
On the opening day on August 18, an “International Mass Meeting for Peace and Liberation of Nations” took place on the grounds of the Cannstatter Wasen . There, speakers from twelve countries gave speeches to a total of 60,000 people on six speaker's stands.
subjects
The main items on the agenda were:
- Militarism and the international conflicts (Rapporteur: Émile Vandervelde )
- Relations between the proletarian parties and the trade unions (Rapporteur: H. Beer)
- Colonial question (Rapporteur: Henri van Kol )
- Immigration and emigration of workers (Reporter: Wilhelm Ellenbogen )
- Women's suffrage (Rapporteur: Clara Zetkin )
Militarism and the International Conflicts
A main theme of the congress in this high phase of imperialism were the questions of "militarism and the international conflicts." There were violent disputes over the question of what means should be used to prevent an impending war. These resembled the dispute within German social democracy, such as that fought out in the mass strike debate . Jean Jaurès from France pleaded for the mass strike and also claimed the right to an emergency uprising. Gustave Hervé was even more radical in this regard. With regard to his own party, August Bebel argued that a commitment to such means could mean the SPD could face renewed repression. After martial law had already been declared, Bebel and Georg von Vollmar considered a general political strike in Germany to be impracticable.
Ultimately, only one formula compromise could be achieved in the final declaration. According to this, the parties and organizations should endeavor to prevent the outbreak of war “by using the means that appear most effective to them”. From Lenin , Rosa Luxembourg and Julius Martov an addition was enforced "threatens the outbreak of war, the workers and their parliamentary representatives in the participating countries committed to do everything to the outbreak of war to be prevented by taking suitable measures, which naturally change and increase depending on the intensification of the class struggle and the general political situation. Should the war break out nevertheless, they are obliged to endeavor to end it as soon as possible and to strive with all their might in order to exploit the economic and political crisis brought about by the war to politically shake up the people and to accelerate the overthrow of capitalist class rule. " But in the end a common line did not come about until the beginning of the First World War .
Labor migration
Another topic was the migration of workers from more agrarian countries to the industrialized countries. The Congress did not fail to recognize the problems associated with immigration, but did not want to exclude any group from immigration for reasons of principle “also from the standpoint of proletarian solidarity”. One means of control in the immigration countries should be the introduction of a minimum wage .
Colonial question
The colonial question was also a topic of the meeting. Karl Kautsky , for example, gave a speech and proposed a resolution that condemned colonialism. Instead, he advocated a concept of voluntary technical cooperation. This was contradicted by the Dutch social democrat Henri van Kol , who appeared as a staunch supporter of colonialism. Van Kol also criticized the methods of colonialism, but not its basic assumptions. He saw the non-European populations as "savages" who had to be educated by colonialism. On closer inspection, the resolution passed in Stuttgart was therefore only a limited condemnation of colonialism. According to her, the assembly condemned the “barbaric methods of capitalist colonization” and advocated a policy “that guarantees peaceful cultural development and places the earth's natural resources at the service of the advancement of humanity.” However, the resolution did not rule out colonialism in principle, but differentiated between "workers colonies" and "exploiter colonies."
Parties and unions
On the question of the relationship between party and trade union, it was stated that both had to fulfill equal tasks in the struggle for emancipation of the proletariat. Despite the recognition of equality, relations between parties and trade unions should be as close as possible.
Women's conference
Before the Socialist Congress, the first international socialist women's conference took place from August 17th to 19th. 59 delegates from 15 countries took part. One result was the decision to create a central point to exchange information on women's issues between the countries. The seat of the body should be Stuttgart. This should be linked to the editorial team of the journal Die Equality . This was also designated as the joint publication medium. From a German point of view, this meeting was legally problematic because only with the Reichsvereingesetz of 1908 women were allowed to be politically active. Clara Zetkin, a recognized leader of the German socialist women's movement, called for women to vote at the congress. She repeated this at the general socialist congress.
Youth conference
From August 24th, 20 delegates from 13 countries came together for the first socialist international youth conference. The conference rejected a uniform cross-border organization. Instead, a liaison office should be set up in Vienna. Karl Liebknecht became chairman of this office . This decision stood at the beginning of the Socialist Youth International . Henriette Roland Holst spoke during the conference about the socialist education of young people and Karl Liebknecht gave a lecture on the fight against militarism .
Individual evidence
- ↑ Chronicle of the German Social Democracy Reference date: 18./24. Aug. 1907 online edition
- ↑ Internationaler Sozialisten-Kongress 1907: Protocol p. 36f, quoted from: Ralf Hoffrogge , Socialism and Workers Movement in Germany, Stuttgart 2011, p. 168f
- ^ Walter Euchner : History of ideas of socialism in Germany part I. In: Ders. u. a .: History of social ideas in Germany. Wiesbaden, 2005 p. 263; and Ralf Hoffrogge, Socialism and Workers' Movement in Germany, pp. 167–170.
- ^ Gerd Callesen: The International Socialist Women's Conferences
- ↑ Gerd Callesen: International Association of Socialist Youth Organizations 1907-1919