At the end of last week another new platform inside YourParty was launched, under the name ‘Our Party‘. It gave the impression that it was a response to the factional flare-up at the top of YourParty, but it seems that platform has in fact been in formation for some time.
I have criticisms of the proposals contained in the material of ‘Our Party’.
I only saw this on Friday and still haven’t had a lot of time to study it in detail but it seems to me to repeat all the mistakes and problems of the initial process towards launching YourParty.
It is not at all clear who has launched this platform? Who are they? what do they represent? The only name that I can see on the website is Joshua Virasami who will have your personal data if you sign up.
I don’t want to criticise Joshua as I know very little about him. I confess that i did not know who he was until I read Archie Woodrow’s article ‘Whose party is it anyway?’ on the Prometheus – a Journal for Socialism and Democracywebsite. Archie writes “Apparently, he was invited onto the committee to represent the tenants’ movement.” I am sure he is very capable but this approach is part of the problem. It seems to be a case of ‘who you know’, rather than being elected by any democratic mandate.
This is a problem.
Who is involved? Why are they there? What do they represent? What are their politics? What are they advocating? Why aren’t we being told?
The proposals in this new platform include this:
“we propose the following: the appointment of an independent Handover Team, not aligned with either of the current factions at the top of Your Party and selected from the bodies of grassroots organisations, including current and former trade union general secretaries, people from the Palestine movement, social movement lawyers, tenant union organisers, and climate movement representatives.”
And this:
“Events are moving very rapidly, so names aren’t available yet, but a number of individuals who meet these criteria have already been approached. Names will be added to the website as they confirm.”
So who is deciding on these names of people who ‘are not aligned to either faction’?
Why can’t we be told? And who elected the unnamed people behind this platform to approach the unnamed people, and who decided the “criteria” they have chosen?
Which “bodies of grassroots organisations”?
Which “current and former trade union general secretaries, people from the Palestine movement, social movement”?
What are “social movement lawyers” and why do we privilege or prioritise lawyers?
And so on.
An activist of the putative Stockport YourParty branch commented on Facebook:
“For me the most glaring issue is the requirement of 250 signatures before even getting on the ballot paper, especially when the party hasn’t met and we don’t know each other. It means people will have to come from a relatively large sect or campaigning organisation, like rs21 or acorn. It means good comrades who work hard and well in their union branch or proto branch will be shut out. We must believe that every cook can govern and not every cook has 250 mates.”
The people who should be organising the membership and the branches and preparing the conference are the people who have signed up to YourParty and who are setting up the local branches and getting the thing organised on the ground despite the dithering, delay and obstruction at the top.
We need openness, transparency and democracy, not another group of unknown, unnamed people who will sort things out for us.
What do you think?