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| Michael Chant at the piano while Hyong Hak Bong speaks |
The
turn of the year was heralded in communist style when friends and comrades
gathered to welcome the New Year at the London centre of the Revolutionary Communist
Party of Britain (ML). NCP leader Andy Brooks and other London comrades met
friends old and new at the annual social organised by the London Region of the
RCPB (ML) at the John Buckle Centre in south London last weekend that included diplomats from the DPR Korea
embassy and many active in solidarity work,
the cultural front and anti-fascist struggle.
Progressive musicians provided the
entertainment throughout the evening while the militant role of the RCPB (ML)
throughout its life was highlighted by two RCPB (ML) leaders during the formal
part of the proceedings. Chris Coleman
unveiled a plaque of John Buckle during his tribute to their leader whose life
was tragically cut short in a terrible air crash in Madrid in 1983 while on his
way to attend an international communist conference in Colombia.
Chris spoke passionately about John
Buckle’s commitment to the communist cause and his prominent role in the defeat
by mass action of the bourgeosie's attempt to develop a mainstream fascist
party, the National Front, to attack the workers' and progressive movement. This
was taken up by Michael Chant in a keynote address outlining the RCPB
(ML)’s continuing work to build the
resistance to the ruling class offensive and its austerity programme and fight
for a working class agenda and an anti-war government.
An essential part of that struggle is
proletarian internationalism and this was raised by London’s DPR Korean ambassador who thanked everyone for their efforts to
build friendship and solidarity with Democratic Korea. Hyong Hak Bong spoke
about the resolute response of the Workers Party of Korea to root out the
treacherous clique that had been unmasked and dealt with in December and the
way forward that Kim Jong Un outlined in his New Year address to the people of
the DPRK this year.
Eventually everyone said their goodbyes
and made their way home as the evening ended in the spirit of confidence and
optimism that always grows whenever comrades meet.
