THE CRISIS IN THE JVP - III
Modernity that began in the fifteenth century with the so called renaissance has gone through "enlightenment" that left people in darkness with respect to the logic, premises, rationality, objectivity etc., of the knowledge and also with respect to democracy, is now going through a third phase that is entangled with consumerism. This third phase is identified by some people as postmodernism though it is only another phase of modernism. We have described modernism (please refer to Vidusara series of articles, the three hundredth of which appeared on 23rd April 2008, accessible through www.kalaya.org) as a revolution in European Chinthanaya. The Chinthanaya of the Europeans changed from Medieval Catholic Chinthanaya to Greek Judaic Christian (GJC) Chinthanaya with the "renaissance". The leadership was first taken by the Southern Europeans and then by the Western Europeans with the "enlightenment" and now by the Americans. If industrial revolution is associated with the second phase of modernity, electronic revolution is associated with its third phase.
With modernism the dominant partner in many of the binary oppositions with which the westerners are used to think changed. In Medieval Catholic Chinthanaya the dominant partners were society, concrete, synthesis, in some of the binary oppositions. After "renaissance" individual, abstract and analysis became the dominant partner in the relevant binary oppositions. The individuals were separated from each other as well as their bonding to the land and the so called free man was left high and dry. The individuals were encouraged to go after sensory pleasure and finally with the western attitude that the world has been created for the man, gradually the stage was set for the development of Capitalism, western science and related culture.
The individual separated from the others and the land had no choice other than selling his labour and very soon the village was deserted as in Goldsmith's Deserted Village, and the men migrated to the towns to sell their labour to the emerging capitalists. The abstractness in formulating theories rather than the so called experimental method led to the development of Physics first, to be followed by other western sciences. Sensory pleasures led to consumerism and all these integrated into the modern outlook. However man separated from others soon felt alienated and people wanted to create a better world. Various people formulated different forms of socialism putting society before the individual. All most all these were based on the Catholic Chinthanaya and one could see the threefold (thrikotika) logic of Catholic Chinthanaya being used by them instead of the twofold (dvikotika) logic of GJC Chinthanaya. When the Catholics claim that Jesus is the God and also the son of God it is based on threefold logic.
Hegel, Marx and many other German intellectuals were attracted to Catholic Chinthanaya. The so called dialectics can be shown to be the result of an attempt to camouflage twofold logic in a threefold attire. (This is explained in Apohakaye Rupikaya - Formalism of Dialectics - which would be soon available in the website referred to above.) The pioneering socialist thinkers were very much happy with the Catholic Chinthanaya and formulated their "theories" in concrete form, The difference between Marx and the pioneers, as the Marxists claim was that Marxism was scientific where as the pioneers were not. However, as there is no scientific method as such, I would not agree with these ideas and all that I would say at present is that while Marx was based in Catholic Chinthanaya like the other socialists, as in the case of dialectics he tried to play with mixing some aspects in the two Chinthanayas. If in respect of dialectics he tried to camouflage twofold logic in a threefold outfit, in the case of formulating "theories" he tried to wrap his ideas in abstract terms. However, he was basically in Catholic Chinthanaya just as much Hegel was, and with the use of words that were employed by the so called objective theorists based on JGC Chinthanaya, he and his friends were able to project themselves as Left Hegelians.
In any event the Marxist tradition also tried to go back to Catholic Chinthanaya, however, at the same time trying to go beyond modernity into a so called communist world through socialism. Thus there was a contradiction in Marxism itself from the very beginning and one could see Marxism collapsing being unable to solve the contradiction. All forms of socialism from that of Fourier and St. Simon to that of Marx are reactions against GJC Chinthanaya within the Western European tradition. They were to fail in Western Europe but the ideas caught the imagination of leaders such as Lenin and Mao who were based respectively in Greek Orthodox tradition and Confucius tradition with Tao and Buddha coming into the picture occasionally.
The party of Lenin though claimed to be based on centralized democracy was a theocracy without a visible Pope. The central committee and the political bureau took the place of the Pope and within that structure Stalin was able to become the "Socialist" Pope in no time with the central committee acting like the College of Cardinals. The bourgeoisie based on GJC Chinthanaya knew that there could be more than one view or "theory" within a paradigm but the socialist theocracy based on Catholic Chinthanaya never learnt that lesson.
Marxism which died a natural death in Western Europe survived thanks to the Greek Orthodox and Asian cultures. The Catholic Chinthanaya with its threefold logic (considered as mystic by the Judaic Christian culture) is appealing to the non western countries more than the GJC Chinthanaya with its dry and static twofold logic and to a certain extent Leninist (and Maoist) parties had an attraction in these countries than in Europe. However, even in these countries Leninism had to be mixed with a kind of nationalism even for a temporary survival.
The JVP borne as a Maoist Party had all the characteristics we have outlined above. However, it was Stalinism or Socialist theocracy of Catholic Chinthanaya that has triumphed over nationalism in the JVP at critical junctures. The first split in the Party took place when GID Dharmasekera who led the nationalist faction was ousted by Wijeweera. The other splits in the party were non significant and in certain instances people such as Bopage with more Marxist inclinations than nationalistic inclinations have left the party.
The JVP in its "wisdom" thinks it has to oust the SLFP first and then become the only challenge to the UNP for state power. The party high command also thinks that it is not in the interests of the Party to form coalition governments with the SLFP. It cites the example of the LSSP and CP whenever they want to castigate coalition politics. However many people forget those "Super Marxists" who did not go into coalition politics but could not go beyond the Lipton Circus and the Fort Railway station. The Marxist Parties are in wilderness not because of coalition politics but because of their contradictory policies emanating from different Chinthanayas.
As a Marxist party JVP has no future. It can survive even temporarily not by moving away from the SLFP but by working closely with the SLFP. The JVP could have been the remote control but they have decided that they should get into the driving seat. Wimal Weerasinghe is the heir to nationalistic policies of Dharmasekera and most probably he was also influenced by the Jathika Vyaparaya or the nationalist movement. However, the JVP is more Marxist (the Super Marxists of the Lipton Circus would not agree with it) than nationalistic and once the College of Cardinals or the Central Committee decides on policy those who are against the decision are branded as Satans. The JVP does not understand that there can be more than one view within a paradigm and thinks in terms of the Party of the Proletariat though they call it the Party of the Nirdhanin not to the liking of the Puritans among the Marxists. The Party of the Proletariat has to be protected even at the expense of the Proletariat (in a way it is easy as there is no Proletariat as such) and all Satans have to be exorcised. The European medieval type inquisition is about to begin if it has not taken place already.
Professor Nalin de Silva
>
>
>