p Dear Comrades,

p Our work is drawing to a close. Questions of principle have been raised in the discussion with which we fully agree, but also questions with which we cannot possibly agree and on which we wish to state our views.

p Our Party regards the present Meeting of 75 Communist and Workers’ Parties as an event of historic importance. Its significance will be appreciated only as we translate its decisions into practice.

p We consider attempts mechanically to compare this Meeting with earlier ones to be somewhat simplistic and anti-dialectical. The preliminary steps, the preparation and the very convocation of this Meeting have revealed many totally new phenomena in the international communist movement. We cannot, therefore, draw a parallel between this and earlier meetings. This Meeting represents a long step forward.

p Its convocation was preceded by an open confrontation of opinions and views on practically all the pressing problems of our time. All Parties stated their positions, publicly or privately. At times the discussion developed into stormy polemics, and no one can deny that there was a real confrontation of views.

p On the other hand, 70 Parties shared, at various stages, in the collective preparation of the Meeting; all Parties, big and small, were thus able to put forth, in a democratic and comradely form, their views on all questions and directly contribute to the framing of the Main Document. If we consider the communist movement in its dynamics, this is a fact that can neither be belittled nor underestimated. On the contrary, as Marxists-Leninists fully aware of our responsibility, we must develop the positive aspects of the Meeting and overcome in practice those that are less positive.

p The preparation and convocation of this Meeting, we believe, has revealed much that is positive. Looking ahead and aware of our responsibility, we can say that only unity on ideological issues and practical matters will enable us to fulfil our duty of gravediggers of imperialism, that source of brutality and oppression.

p Our Party takes a clear stand on whether or not, at the present stage, the communist movement needs one or several directing centres. We cannot agree with 663 attempts to negate the historical value of all earlier forms of international unity. They accorded with a definite stage of the movement’s development. Conferences and meetings at various levels are in keeping with the requirements of the new stage in our movement’s growth. We should not negate or underestimate the value of earlier forms of unity; we must retain their positive features and apply them in our work-a-day practice. Any other course will lead us directly to nihilism and anarchism.

p Every conference, every meeting of Marxist Parties is of vast importance, especially in the present situation, when our Parties are operating in such widely different and complex conditions while being the vehicles of our common doctrine, which discloses the laws of transition to socialism. And we are convinced that no Parry, irrespective of its development, numerical strength or geographic position, can alone appraise all the complexities of the present period and provide a comprehensive picture of the world situation. In our view, every Party, big and small, is the vehicle of the concrete experience necessary for interpretative generalisation, for a full and accurate picture of our movement and its tasks. Attempts by any Party to predicate its work merely on its relative achievements, in disregard of other Parties’experience, are bound to lead to serious mistakes and can do immense damage to it and the movement as a whole.

p That is evidenced by the Chinese Communist Party’s bitter experience over the past ten years. Its leaders have absolutised their own practice to a point when they regard it as the only absolute and universal truth. And having so flagrantly violated the Marxist method, they have not only placed themselves outside the ranks of the communist movement, but have set themselves up in opposition to that movement and its individual contingents. The armed clashes on the Soviet frontier are the logical outcome of this violation of Marxist principles and methods.

p Despite the difficult conditions in which our Party finds itself after the military coup of last October, our Central Committee was able to discuss the draft Document and, as distinct from the stand taken here by some other delegations, it believes that it provides a scientific, Marxist analysis of the pressing problems of our time. Our Central Committee regards the Document as comprehensive and consistent. It brings out the new phenomena in the transition process from capitalism to socialism, and there is no denying that it adequately examines and generalises them.

p At the same time, it enumerates the motive forces of the transition process and assesses each of them, which, in our view, is perfectly correct. More, the Document creatively rectifies and develops some formulations inadequately or inaccurately set out in the 1960 Statement. This applies to its emphasis on the importance of the anti-imperialist movement in Latin America, which it does not mechanically separate from the national liberation movement in Asia and Africa.

p Attainment of the immediate aims of the anti-imperialist revolution in each country will depend largely on the correlation offerees involved in the struggle. We therefore believe that the minimum programme takes a very wise and very important step forward compared with earlier maximum programmes. For they not only tended to restrict the activities of Marxist Parties, but in many cases set them on a course that led fo serious mistakes and isolation. The present 664 programme, we think, is a good minimum basis. In our judgement, each Party can extend it and make it more radical. That will depend on the Party’s ability and influence in concrete situations.

p The Document clearly states that the socialist camp is the greatest gain of the international communist movement, and emphasises that the Soviet Union is the chief bulwark of the socialist system. The People’s Party of Panama accepts this as irrefutable. That is why we regard anti-Sovietism—no matter from what quarter and how camouflaged—as an attack on the very heart of the socialist system, on the greatest gain of the international communist movement. We Panamanian Communists consider every gain of the communist movement, whether in Europe, Asia or America, to be our own gain, and its defence our internationalist duty.

p Comrades, in the fight for the world’s radiant future, for communism, we, popular and revolutionary contingents of Latin America operating behind enemy lines, still have to fight major decisive battles. Difficult, but also glorious, times lie ahead. Conscious of its duty to the people, the international communist movement and history, our Party does not intend to be a passive onlooker in these battles. Our Party has never been passive in face of the enemy, and never will be. In common with all other Communist Parties of the Americas, we do not expect the enemy to surrender without resistance. Certainly, our position is difficult, but by no means hopeless, and we shall attain our goals. With full confidence in the courage of our people, inspired by the heroic example of the glorious Vietnamese, and absolutely sure of the solidarity of our Latin American brothers and of the powerful socialist camp, we do not for a moment doubt that the future will belong to us.

p The military dictatorship that took over last October is imposing a regime of terror on the Panamanian people. Taking its orders from CIA, it has thrown into prison the finest leaders of our Party, among them the Chairman of the Central Committee, Comrade Ugo Victor, and Central Committee members, Professor Cesar de Leon, the historian; Carlos Francisco Changmarin, our national poet, and Simon Vargas, a veteran of the communist movement. The dictatorship wanted to wipe out our Party, isolate the Communists from the masses. All these attempts have ended in failure, and our Party has not only retained its strength, but continues to grow as it fights the dictatorship. Having recovered from the first blow, the masses are regrouping and preparing to pass to the offensive against the regime.

p However, the development of our movement has been marked by certain negative features. And if I mention them here, it is not to criticise anyone, but merely to show that some of our difficulties are due to outside interference, and we want the comrades to realise how harmful and ruinous this interference is. The entire repressive apparatus of the government and imperialism has been hard at work to wipe out our Party, undermine its influence among the masses, deprive the Panamanian revolution of its Marxist vanguard. That is nothing new. But beginning with 1964 the leaders of the Chinese Communist Party, thinking, apparently, that they alone possess the absolute truth, have been fighting our Party—in much the same way as the oligarchy—in an attempt to undermine the influence of the Party, which they denounce as “revisionist”. In fact, going 665 further than their reactionary competitors, they have decided that even physical annihilation of opponents is permissible. Thus, in 1964 Victor Avila, head .of the Student Federation and leader of the anti-imperialist movement, was wounded in the head by a shot fired by one of the “hard-liners”. Later, an attempt was made on the life of another leader of the Communist youth movement. I do not propose to give an appraisal of these actions, but things are difficult. And worst of all, now, when our Party is the target of brutal persecution, these “hard-liners” are free to walk about the streets, and they even defend the military regime.

p Comrades, the Dominican delegation, using the right to exercise its brilliant oratorical eloquence, has put forth several ideas on behalf of its Central Committee. Our delegation declares that it categorically rejects all these ideas. To this I would add that the delegations of fraternal Latin American Parties— Chile, Ecuador, Colombia, Costa Rica and others—have authorised us to express their sharp negative attitude to these absolutely unfounded views.

p Our movement is going through a period of grim ordeal, but we are confident that we will emerge from it with honour. That is why we repeat our request for wider and more active solidarity with our struggle, so that we can rescue from the clutches of the militarists hundreds of men now held in Panamanian prisons, more than half of them, probably, Communists. In the present situation such solidarity would be of most effective assistance to our cause.

p In conclusion, we wish to express our full support for the document on the centenary of the great Lenin and the Appeal in Defence of Peace, and to reaffirm our complete solidarity with the appeal "Independence, Freedom and Peace for Vietnam!”

p From the bottom of our hearts we express our gratitude for the hospitality accorded us here in the Soviet capital. We wish to thank the Communist Party of the Soviet Union for its efforts to provide such excellent conditions for our work. We wish to make special mention of the Hungarian Socialist Workers’ Party, which over a long period was responsible for the preparation of this Meeting.

We convey fraternal greetings from our Central Committee to all delegations and thank them for their attention.