Portugal:Left majority wins but stopped from forming government.

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Portuguese workers on the move. 

Sean O'Torain.

Extremely important events are taking place in Portugal. The recent elections gave the combined left a majority. The President I think it was then refused to allow this left majority to form a government.

This capitalist politician representing the Portuguese and EU capitalist class and its so-called austerity program has refused to accept the results of the capitalist's own election results. What should be the response of the working class?

I think it should be to demand the mobilization of the working class, the formation of workers committees and a general strike to force a workers government based on these workers committees and this workers government to take over the dominant sections of the economy and move to a democratic socialist planned economy and spread this internationally.

We have a situation where the European capitalists are setting aside bourgeois democracy. It is not the working class which is setting aside bourgeois democracy. We have a situation here similar to Greece where the European capitalist class refused to accept the referendum result. 

In Portugal the European capitalist class has refused to allow the majority in the election to form a government. In Greece the European capitalist class refused to accept the two to one referendum vote against austerity. In both cases they enforced their will with the threat of a strike of capital. It is time that the working class moved to a strike of labor. 

I think the socialist movement and the working class should be raising  revolutionary demands, ones that raise the issue of power.  The European capitalist class have already put the issue of power on to the table.

I am not there and do not know the mood. But I feel that if the left parties do not raise revolutionary demands, face up to the reality that the issue of power is what is posed and mobilize the working class to take the power then the mood will fall back. At least for a temporary period. I hope I am wrong on this. But I think I am not. In raising these ideas I am keeping in mind the explosive movement of the Portuguese working class in the early 1970's when the working class took over the banks and sections of industries and the armed forces cracked after the defeats in the Portuguese African colonies.  

I think such demands should at least be discussed. But as I say I am not in Portugal and do not know the mood and the balance of forces there.