p Dear Comrades,

p On behalf of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Salvador, we greet all the fraternal Parties represented here. This Meeting of Communist and Workers’ Parties is an outstanding event in the history of the international communist movement. It responds to the aspirations of progressive mankind and deals a mighty blow at imperialism. It is proof of the communist movement’s awareness of its responsibility as the guiding force of the peoples’ revolutionary struggle.

p By stimulating unity of the international communist movement and of the anti-imperialist and progressive forces the world over, by orienting communist activity on effective support of the revolutionary struggle, our Meeting is accomplishing a task of inestimable import for the destinies of mankind. That is why our Communist Party wholeheartedly supported the convocation of this Meeting, shared in all phases of its preparation and instructed its delegation to make a maximum contribution to strengthening the communist movement on the basis of the immortal principles of Marxism-Leninism.

p It is highly significant that the Meeting is being held as we approach the 100th anniversary of the birth of Lenin, founder of a new type of party, the Communist Party, and of the Soviet Union, the first socialist state in history and the bulwark of the world’s revolutionary and progressive forces in the fight for a happy future for mankind, for socialism and communism. We believe that the proceedings of this Meeting should be worthy of the centenary of the leader of the world proletariat, whose teachings are the firm foundation of international communist unity, the source of our movement’s indestructible strength in its world-wide struggle for final victory over all the enemies of the working class.

p The vast importance of the Meeting lies in the fact that it will mark a turning point in the achievement of world communist unity. And united action against imperialism will increasingly strengthen cohesion of the communist movement and will more clearly indicate the ways and means of finally resolving the differences which in recent years have impeded concerted erTor; in our difficult struggle.

p Our Meeting has a very special meaning for peoples who have not yet broken out of imperialist oppression. Its call for the merger of the three basic revolutionary forces into a single stream against our common foe will do much to support the peoples’ fight for national emancipation.

p Our Party had a part in preparing the materials submitted to this Meeting and is therefore in a position fully to appreciate its vast importance. It has instructed our delegation to sign the Main Document in its entirety and the address "Centenary of the Birth of Vladimir Ilyich Lenin", the Appeal in Defence of Peace and the appeal "Independence, Freedom and Peace for Vietnam!”.

p Of course, it would be too much to expect the documents, the result of collective work by a large number of Parties, to reflect all the thoughts and suggestions each of the participating Parties would like to see in them. There have been suggestions to approve only Section Three of the Main Document. But we ask ourselves: How will the people understand a bald programme without a theoretical substantiation ? If we were to follow that course, would we be discharging our communist duty to the masses ? We must first of all disclose to them all the brutality of imperialism, instil a feeling of hatred for imperialism and an urge to fight it. We could not do that by presenting merely a cut- anddried platform, devoid of vitality, energy and enthusiasm. The proposal to curtail the Document is wholly unacceptable to our Party because the Document represents an integral, harmonious and indivisible whole. It is the result of more than a year’s intensive work by seventy fraternal Parties. It is the common denominator of united action in the fight against imperialism. It paves the way to strengthening the cohesion of the world communist movement on the basis of Marxism-Leninism, and to uniting the entire anti-imperialist movement. Full equality in an atmosphere of genuine democracy enabled every Party to set out its views and consider the views of others, uphold its ideas and assess the ideas of others. The result of that work is the draft Main Document, that ex- . cellent weapon of revolutionary struggle. We wholeheartedly approve all its sections and urge other fraternal Parties enthusiastically to adopt it.

p For the people of Salvador, for all the peoples of the world, the International Meeting of Communist and Workers’ Parties is a great stimulus in their revolutionary struggle. The people of Salvador are engaged in an incessant fight against the economic, political and social stranglehold of US imperialism, which is supported by the oligarchy and the anti-democratic militarist regime. The US monopolies are making ever deeper inroads into our industry, trade, banking and agriculture. One of their penetration weapons, both in Salvador and other parts of Central America, is the Common Market and Central American economic integration. This enables them to control industry, stifle national capital and directly exploit our working class. And all this, of course, has a direct impact on the class struggle, which is not confined to national capital, but with every passing day it is more and more directed against the US monopolies, which, either directly or jointly with the oligarchy, through mixed jointstock companies, are draining the lifeblood of our workers and peasants.

p The US imperialists are tightening their grip on the government’s internal and economic policy, which is geared to plans closely linked with US 138 monopoly interests. Through these plans, and with the help of their experts and commissions, they are able to control many government agencies.

p The imperialists have managed to integrate the armed forces of Central American countries within the so-called Central American Defence Council, the express purpose of which is to give the imperialists a combat-ready force for use against popular movements in any part of the area. The police forces, too, are under direct imperialist control. The CIA has set up the "White Hand" and “Order” fascist organisations, which engineer the assassination of Communists and other patriots. In the recent period CIA hirelings murdered a number of our comrades. The list includes Saul Santiago Contreras, Oscar Gilberto Martinez and Juan Alberto Vasquez Carcomo, brutally done to death by the police and fascist thugs. The homes of Communists and other patriots and the offices of democratic organisations are often fired at or bombed.

p The Salvador people, like those of other Central American countries, are uniting more closely to fight their common enemy. For isolation and lack of co-ordination make it much more difficult to break the fetters of imperialism and the oligarchy. The heroic armed anti-imperialist struggle of the fraternal Guatemalan people is also our struggle, and the same applies to the- courageous struggle of the fraternal peoples of Costa Rica, Panama, Nicaragua and Honduras. The need, we believe, is for more co-ordination in the battle against US imperialism.

p The people of Salvador and their main motive force, the working class, know that after more than 37 years of rule by a military pro-oligarchy and proimperialist dictatorship, they must resort to every means dictated by the situation to further the fight against imperialism. The working class is steadily organising and mobilising its forces to back up its pressing economic, political and social demands. This is raising the workers’ class consciousness, their organisation and revolutionary resolve. It should be perfectly clear that in the conditions created by the enemies of our independent development, our people can assume power only by armed struggle closely linked with other forms of political struggle. The Communist Party of Salvador is exerting every effort to lead the masses, it directs their fight for immediate demands and prepares them for the decisive battle for liberation.

p Our Communists highly appreciate the Main Document’s stress on the vast importance of the Cuban revolution, which opened a new stage in Latin American history. Our Party regards the Cuban revolution as a beacon illumining our countries’ path into the future, as a source of inspiration for revolutionaries throughout the continent. And we Salvador Communists consider joint defence of the Cuban revolution against US imperialist provocations and aggressive designs to be one of our principal internationalist duties, a priority duty of the peoples everywhere. That this is emphasised in the Document is of exceptional importance.

p We wish to say that our views on questions relating to Czechoslovakia differ fundamentally from what has been said here by the Australian comrade. This is so perhaps because we feel the burden of US imperialist exploitation. However, we believe that this Meeting should not discuss the timely assistance 139 fraternal socialist countries rendered another socialist country. The Czechoslovak comrades have asked all fraternal Parties not to harm the normalisation process in their country by premature discussion, and it is our duty to respect the will and concrete request of this fraternal Party.

p In conclusion, comrades, we think that real unity should be based on the principles of Marxism-Leninism, and that it will be forged in the struggle against Right and “Left” deviations. On the other hand, it should be perfectly clear that anti-Sovietism is the marsh into which flow both anti-Leninist streams that harm the unity of the international -communist movement, We wish to emphasise that our Party has from the very start come out against the Leftist tendencies of the Mao Tse-tung group, which has now become a source of aggressive provocations against the Soviet Union, other socialist countries and many Communist and Workers’ Parties. To all practical purposes, it has abandoned the anti-imperialist struggle; in fact, it objectively helps the imperialists by its attempts to obstruct united action of the international communist movement and the world progressive forces. However, we feel sure that the great Chinese people will soon again be standing on our side of the barricades in the fight against the common enemy.

Comrades, in the name of communist unity we once more sincerely urge all the fraternal Parties to approve the documents of this Meeting. On behalf of the Communist Party of Salvador, the Young Communist League, progressive women’s organisations, progressive intellectuals and the entire Salvador people, we warmly greet this historic Meeting of Communist and Workers’ Parties. It opens up new prospects to the revolutionary struggle of the people for national liberation, socialism, social progress and world peace. Under the banner of proletarian internationalism, true to the watchword of the Communist Manifesto, "Workers of All Lands, Unite!", let us march forward to unity of the communist movement .and of all the progressive forces of the world!