A STALINIST HUMBUG REAPPEARS

The British Communist Party has always been among the most willing, abject and uncritical fol. lowers of the counterrevolutionary policies of the Stalinist bureaucracy in the soviet Union.

At no time have its leaders failed to carry out the required campaigns of vicious lies and slanders against the Trotskyist movement and against Trotsky. This willingness, of course, has been matched by their capitulation to parliamentary reformism, their servile attitude to the tunda unina huranangan, and laut union vuitaulidly anu their opposition to any move of the working class towards political independence from the Tory government.

They have always bitterly opposed the demand TUC to organize a General Strike to bring about the resignation of the Tory governParticularly since the end of the 1950s, the formation and growth of the Socialist Labour League and the Young Socialists have necessitated that the Stalinists pay particular attention to discrediting Trotskyism.

A special agent has been appointed for this task. This special agent has served a long apprenticeship. He has been released from other leading positions so that he can get more credibility by appearing as some sort of liberal oppositionist. But he actually works directly under the control of the Stalinist leaders in their King Street, London, headquarters.

The name of this Johnstone was the subject of a statement by the Socialist Labour League's east London sub-committee in the Workers Press of February 17. He was excluded from a public lecture given by Tom Kemp, SLL Central Committee member. after having attended, unrecognized, the first of the series.

The statement made it perfectly clear that Communist Party members wanting. to discuss CP and SLL policies and differences are not excluded, but that Johnstone is in a different category. Let us restate the reasons for this and at the same time add some calla uctals. autun datnile Johnstone refuses to clear up a number of vital political questions. Until these are cleared up, the SLL reserves the right to protect itself against the danger of provocation and planned and deliberate distortion. We take this attitude especially because of the nature of the revolutionary period we are now entering.

We take our revolutionary theory, experience and practice seriously. The Trotskyist movement exists on the historical foundation of the October Revolution, the first four Congresses of the Commueist International and Trotsky's fight against Stalinism, 'the main counter - revolutionary force on the world arena'.

It is not for nothing that we have fought revisionists (followers of the Pabloite Ernest Mandel) who preached that Stalinism was no longer this counter - revolutionary force. The working class can only win in the coming fierce struggles our movement if leads a real fight against Stalinist attacks, provocateurs and agents.

Johnstone's record, until he explains it, excludes him from the revolutionary preparations of the SLL. He joined the Young Communist League in 1941 and claims unbroken membership until this day of the YCL, then the Communist In 1954 he was appointed editor of the YCL paper 'Challenge'. He has also functioned as full-time district organizer of the YCL in the Midlands, chairman of the National Students Committee of the CP and YCL National Flunatinn Araanizer cuuLduun vigamaci.

Yet in 1944-1946, when Trotskyism was everywhere denounced by Stalinists as an agent of imperialism and fascism, Johnstone became a member of the Trotskyist RCP (Revolutionary Communist Party), which at that time comprised the Trotskyists So long as Johnstone does not explain on what political basis he joined the RCP as an agent, all the time remaining secretly a member of the Stalinist party, we say what we have said in this newspaper before, that he is suspect, as one who entered our movement as an agent of the Stalinist Party, of the Stalinist bureaucracy.

Now this same Johnstone, who has repeatedly refused to answer this question (it was publicly raised in Workers Press, November 12, 1969, and in the Young Socialists then monthly-now weekly-'Keep Left' in February 1969), thinks YCL in 1964. he can appear at an SLL meeting armed-as he certainly was—with a tape recorder in his briefcase. excluded, but on open and stated political grounds. It is on these political grounds that Johnstone and the CP must take up this question.