Imperialism

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Marxism Day School August 13, 2006

Imperialism Sartaj Khan


The dominant issue • Demonstration against imperialism everywhere • Trend increased since 2001 • Against American invasion of Iraq • Feb.2003 35 million demo • 350 cities


Resistance…but confusion • Imperialism in 21 century? • Development of capitalism 250 yrs

• Tool to grab raw material, investment ­­ increase profit? • War against a religion/culture? • Imperialism ­­ corporate/financial inst/ globalization?


Imperialism. Sense: broad and narrow • Broad sense: “ refers to the political, military and/or economic domination of small countries and/or weak countries by the powerful states/advance countries”


Characteristics of the conception • Imperialism ­­ “ transhistorical” • Applicable to: ancient/modern Roman empire, American imperialism

• Reformist view of imperialism: Kautsky and Hobson


Imperialism ­ Marxian View • Relates imperialism with development of capitalism • Historical/associated with development of capitalism/ • “monopoly stage of capitalism” • 19th century

• Early 20th century theory • Russian Revolutionaries − V I Lenin and Nakoli Bukharin


Marxist theory of Imperialism • Links imperialism to capitalism. Lenin: • “ capitalism has grown into a world system of colonial oppression and financial strangulation of the overwhelming majority of the people of the world by a handful ‘advanced’ countries. And this ‘booty’ is shared by two or three world­dominating pirates( America, England, Japan), armed to the teeth who embroil the whole world in their war over the division of their booty”


Three main propositions • Capitalism • Created a world market

• Drive: accumulation • Highly unequal basis: • “uneven & combined development’’ − first & third world...north vs south − domination of weak by strong


Imperialism

• “the economic and military domination of globe by a handful western powers”


Imperialism • Development of industrial capitalism in western world • “ tendency of money and productive capital to fuse into capital... ‘finance capital’ make it economically powerful


Combination • Large multinational corporations combine with their nation states • Russian revolutionary Nokali Bukharin called it “ state capitalist trust”


Capitalism & Competition • Competition: core of system • Economic rivalries inseparable from military/territorial conflicts • Dams, Bridges, Highways, Ports, Pipelines • Afghanistan, Iraq, Lebanon, Palestine, Balochistan, Iran • Capitalist Competition to Capitalist Monopoly


Competition to Monopoly • Large Scale Industry replaced Small Scale Industry • Concentration of production & capital ­­­ monopoly, cartels, syndicates, trusts • Arif Habib, Jehangir Siddiqui, Aqeel Karim Dedhi, KASB

• Capital of dozen banks manipulates millions


Competition to Monopoly • Monopoly : grows out of free competition • But not eliminate competition • Monopoly/Competition live together • generate friction, conflicts ­­ Wars


Imperialism: 5 basic features • Concentration of production/capital to create monopolies with decisive economic role • Merging of bank capital with industrial capital, creating “finance capital”, financial oligarchy; • Export of capital (over commodities) acquires exceptional importance • Formation of int’l monopolist associations sharing world

capitalist

• Territorial division of world among the biggest capitalist powers


Imperialism -- Bourgeois Idea • bourgeois economists • admit the particularly incontrovertible facts concerning the latest stage of capitalist economy

• Globalist economists-- Imperialism: • must not be regarded as a “phase” or stage of economy, but as a policy “preferred” by finance capital; • must not be “identified” with “present-day capitalism” • is “all the phenomena of present-day capitalism”— cartels, protection, the domination of the financiers, and colonial policy—“flattest tautology” “imperialism is naturally a vital necessity for capitalism”, and so on.


Imperialism -- Globalist Idea • Kautsky’s definition: • “Imperialism is a product of highly developed capitalism. It consists in the striving of every capitalist nation to bring under its control or to large areas of agrarian [Kautsky’s italics]

industrial industrial annex all territory,

irrespective of what nations inhabit it.”[1] • No use: arbitrarily, singles out only the national question (extremely important) • arbitrarily/inaccurately connects this question only with industrial capital in the countries which annex other nations • pushes into the forefront the annexation of agrarian regions.


Imperialism -- Marxian Idea • Imperialism is a striving for annexations but politically, imperialism is... a striving towards violence and reaction.


Imperialism -- Economic Part • Feature of imperialism is not industrial but finance capital. • France: extraordinarily rapid development of finance capital, weakening of industrial capital, 1880s onwards gave rise to the extreme intensification of annexationist (colonial) policy -- not an accident

• Today US economically weak, militarily stronger than Europe…weakens hegemony of rival Europe


Imperialism -- Economic Part • Imperialism strives to annex not only agrarian territories, but even most highly industrialised regions • German appetite for Belgium; French appetite for Lorraine

• World already partitioned • -- redivisionists reach out for every kind of territory

• Rivalry b/w powers striving for hegemony, To weaken the adversary • and undermine his hegemony. − Belgium is particularly important for Germany as a base for operations against Britain; Britain needs Baghdad as a base for operations against Germany, etc.


Imperialism -- Progressive!? • Cunow: argues that • imperialism is present-day capitalism; • development of capitalism is inevitable and progressive; • therefore imperialism is progressive; • therefore we should grovel before it and glorify it! • Development in Balochistan is Progressive!


Imperialism -- Progressive!? • Kautsky • reply to Cunow • imperialism is not present-day capitalism • it is only one of the forms of the policy of present-day capitalism. • This policy we can and should fight, fight imperialism, annexations, etc.


Fight Against ‘a’ policy of Imperialism!?

• Quite plausible? • Effect:

• more subtle, more disguised, more dangerous • advocacy of conciliation with imperialism

• a “fight” against the policy of the trusts and banks that does not affect the economic basis of the trusts and banks • Mere bourgeois reformism and pacifism • the benevolent and innocent expression of pious wishes.


Imperialism and Wars • The question is: what means other than war could there be under capitalism to overcome the disparity between the development of productive forces and the accumulation of capital on the one side, and the division of colonies and spheres of influence for finance capital on the other? • Redivision of World Not Possible Peacefully


Things to Read


MIA > Archive > Kautsky Karl Kautsky

Ultra-imperialism &

V. I. Lenin

Imperialism, the Highest Stage of Capitalism A POPULAR OUTLINE


Things to Read • Analysing Imperialism by Chris Harman in International Socialism Journal 99, 2003 • New Mandrains of American Power by Alex Callinicos, 2004. • Ultra Imperialism (Kautsky) and Imperialism the Highest Stage of Capitalist Development (Lenin) • All available with Intl Socialists Pakistan • www.geocities.com/internationalsocialistpakistan


Common Sense View of Class • Status • Social position • Perception: Own/Others

• Life Style • Consumption Patron

• Occupation • Kind of work one does • Manual Worker/White Collar

• Income


Marxist Conception • Class as a relationship

• Relationship of an individual in a group with other social groups • Antagonistic relationship • • • •

Forms in Process of Production Exploiter/expolited Exploiter owns means of production Exploited sells labour power

• ClassStruggle­Class inseparable

• Class Struggle: Owners Security & Control of Labour


Layers in Class • Two Main Classes • Capitalist • Workers

• Layers

• White Collar • Middle Class

• Who are Capitalists?

• Owners of means of production/distribution (machinery, land, tools)

• Have effective control of MoP

• Who are Workers

• Productive Labour

• Produces surplus value (profit)

• Non­Productive


Effective Control? • MoP: Not a problem of Legal Definition • Bosses: Seth, Director • Bosses: • Multinational Executive: IBM, Boeing • State Bureaucrats • Administrators

• State Owners • China, Pakistan Railway, PIA

• Effective Control matters rather than the type of ownership


Layers in Class • Middle Class? • White Collar? • Independent Classes?

• Statistics • • • • •

Working Class Disappering Working Class=Manual Service Workers=Non­Manual Less Working Class More White Collar


Nature of New Middle Class • Read Alex ad Chris’s: • “The Changing Working Class”

• Changing Working Class • Capitalism : A Process • Changing Capitalism Changes Shape of Working Class

• All White Collar/Middle Class • Wage Labour • All are not Working Class


New Middle Class • Three Divisions • Managers/Supervisors • Varying degrees of control over investment/resource­allocation, labour power • Clearly part of capitalist class • Minority among new middle­class


New Middle Class • Semi­Autonomous • • • • •

Employees No longer Self­Employed Designers, Media Producers No or little control..

The New Middle Class have a measure of operational control delegated to them from above, thanks to their success as individuals in climbing up a bureaucratic career­structure.


The Rest of the New Middle Class • Managerial, Professional, Administrative, Clerical

• Lower­Professionals: School Teachers, Nurses, Draughtsmen, Lab Technicialns, Social Welfare Workers, Call Centre Workers, Sales Promoters, Computer Operators, Computer Programmers, Copy­Writers, Sub­ Editors, Reporters, Medical Reps

• Purely wage labour • Have no control at all over investment, decision making, resource allocation • Treated on the same or even weaker grounds than manual ‘workers’


Therefore • Capitalists’ Class • Working Class


Conclusion • All those who sell their hours for a salary or wage are working class • They have no role in decision making or over the means of production • They are exploited by one or the other type of exploitation • Their only way out is the abolition of class­ based system


Books to Read • Changing Working Class Alex Callinicos & Chris Harman

• Revolutionary Ideas of Karl Marx (Chapter 8: Marx Today) • Alex Callinicos

• International Socialism Journal • Socialist English/Urdu


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