The year 2017 will go down in history as the year of the centenary of the Great October Socialist Revolution. This is the opinion of Russian communists. This is what all progressive humankind thinks.
The events of October 1917 did not only shake the world by their sheer scale and grandeur, but laid the foundation for sustained, consistent development and progress of the world towards destroying exploitation of man by man, the building of a just society and socialism.
By giving its answers to the formidable challenges of the 20th century the Great October Revolution proved to the world the right of socialism to exist.
The October Revolution turned an imperialist war into a struggle against oppression marking the start of a mass movement for socialism in various corners of the world.
The October Revolution defeated imperialism’s most reactionary unit, Fascism.
The October Revolution destroyed the world colonial system paving the way for equal development of people of different colors and faiths.
The October Revolution blazed humanity’s trail to outer space.
The October Revolution made it possible to harness the atom and put it to peaceful uses.
The October Revolution opened for people the path forward, towards peace and progress.
At the same time the century-old legacy of socialism has confronted communists with many questions answering which calls for precise and balanced thinking. The theory and practice of socialism depends in many ways on us, 21st-century communists. The task facing us is not only to mark the centenary of the Great October by festive events.
The Communist Party of the Russian Federation started preparations for marking the jubilee of the Great October Socialist Revolution in March 2015 when the Plenum of the CPRF Central Committee reviewed the legacy of the Great October Revolution and discussed the Party’s tasks. Based on its results work got under way and a plan of activities to prepare the celebrations was made. The Jubilee Committee was created and held its first meeting on 26 January 2017. A special enrolment of new Party members was begun.
The CPRF’s Plan contains a wide range of activities.
The 19th International Meeting of Communist and Workers’ Parties dedicated to the centenary of the Great October Revolution will be held in St.Petersburg in November. An International Forum of the Left ‘October 1917: Breakthrough towards Socialism’ will be heldconcurrently.
The traditional mass events conducted by the CPRF will be devoted to the October Jubilee. They are:
– Soviet Army and Navy Day;
– the birthday of Vladimir Lenin;
– the Day of International Solidarity of Working People;
– the Day of Victory of the Soviet People in the Great Patriotic War;
– events devoted to Young Pioneers and other dates.
Responding to the reactionary policy of the ruling circles of the Russian Federation the CPRF at its Central Committee Plenum in March 2017 will discuss the issue of counteracting anti-Sovietism, Russophobia and distortion of our country’s history.
Other events the Party considers to be important include the Economic Forum under the CPRF Aegis, participation in the 19th World Festival of Youth and Students, and the holding of a Rally-Cum-Concert “Anti-Capitalism-2017.”
Many of the events timed for the jubilee have an ideological-theoretical and propaganda character. They include: an International Round Table on the Topic “Class Struggle: Experience, Problems of Out Time and Perspectives. Towards the 100th Anniversary of the Great October Socialist Revolution (as part of the Forum of the Left), International Scientific-Practical Conference on the topic “Soviet Socialism: a Phenomenon of World History.”
Russian academics have already held round tables ”Lenin’s Theory of Imperialism and the Modern World” and “Liberal February and Proletarian October.” Their content is available in the Party press and on Web sites.
The same series of round tables will discuss such topics as:
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“From War Communism to NEP. What did Lenin mean when he said that NEP was serious and was here for a long haul?”
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“From Lenin’s GOELRO to Stalin’s Industrialization”
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“Was there an Alternative to Collectivization?”
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Soviet Culture: the Pinnacle of Russian Culture
There are plans to establish an annual CPRF prize for achievements in scientific study of the issues of theory of Marxism-Leninism and problems of Soviet history.
Not all the major events are concentrated in the Russian capital. The city of Penza will host an All-Russia Scientific-Practical Conference “Labour: the Basis of Development of Society: History, Theory, Practice.”
The CPRF has teamed up with scientists and publishing houses to organize the issue of a large number of books devoted to the theme of the Great October Socialist Revolution. Some of them have already been published. Forthcoming are a book-cum-album “The Life of Lenin,” and the collection “Topical Issues of Marxist-Leninist Theory in 21st-Century Russia. Academic and Journalistic Essays.”
Also planned are festive rallies, demonstrations, pickets and other mass actions in all the cities of the Russian Federation as well as participation of CPRF delegations in events to be held together with fraternal communist and left-wing parties and movements.
The climax of the jubilee celebrations will be Gala Sessions and Evenings in Moscow and St.Petersburg in November of 2017.
The course of the preparation and holding of CPRF jubilee events will be regularly covered in the newspaper Pravda and local CPRF press, on the Internet, on the www.kprf.ru site, on the CPRF Red Line TV channel.
The CPRF is calling on its comrades in struggle to mark on a large scale the 100th anniversary of the Great October Socialist Revolution and its significance in world history.
Central Committee of the CPRF