22nd Congress of the KKE sees consolidation of ideological and political unity

Image via the KKE

Following the opening ceremony of the 22nd Congress of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE), which took place on Wednesday, January 28, at the Galatsi Olympic Hall, the Congress continued Thursday, January 29, at the headquarters of the Central Committee in Perissos. During the proceedings, Dimitris Koutsoumbas, the party's General Secretary, presented the Central Committee’s report to the delegates. The presentation was attended by dozens of Party veterans, who were present at the start of proceedings in the conference hall.

In his introductory speech, Koutsoumbas emphasized, among other things:

Each Congress examines the Party’s activity since the previous Congress and draws conclusions useful for our action in the coming period, on the basis of the Programme. (...) At the 22nd Congress, our focus is on the Party itself, of course from the standpoint of developments and prospects for the future, with the main characteristic being that the Party —and therefore the workers’ movement and its social alliance— will become more decisive factors in the direction of revolutionary change. For this reason, the improvement of our intervention must be reflected at every level: organizational, ideological, political, and within the movement, on the basis of our strategic goal. On this foundation, the main slogan of our Congress was determined “A powerful KKE, steadfast in every trial, ready to answer history’s call, for socialism!”. The slogan of the 22nd Congress expresses the necessity for our party to act consistently on the basis of the strategy set out in our programme, carrying out our day-to-day organizational and political activity in unbroken unity with this strategy.

Deepening the ideological and political unity of the KKE

At another point in his speech, the General Secretary of the Central Committee referred to the internal party discussion on the Theses of the Central Committee for the 22nd Congress, which include the outgoing party leadership’s assessments of international and domestic developments, the situation in the international communist movement, the Party’s activity since the previous congress, and the tasks facing the KKE up to the Party’s 23rd congress.

Koutsoumbas noted that the Theses of the Central Committee were discussed by all KKE organizations throughout the country, and were debated and approved in two rounds of General Assemblies. The Theses of the Central Committee were adopted by an overwhelming majority of the thousands of Party members. It should be noted that the KKE, due to security considerations and its long history of illegality and harsh persecution by the bourgeois state, has never publicly disclosed data on its membership numbers. Of the many thousands of Party members, only eight voted against the Theses and twenty-eight abstained.

The Theses of the Central Committee were also discussed at the Conferences of the Sectoral and Regional Organizations and were adopted unanimously by the elected delegates.

In addition, the guiding organs of the Communist Youth of Greece (KNE), as well as its Base Organizations, youth cadres and members, discussed the Theses and expressed a positive stance toward them.

The proceedings of the Congress continue with speeches by the delegates, followed by discussion and voting on the Resolution of the 22nd Congress. The Congress will conclude on Saturday, January 31, with the election of the members of the new Central Committee and the Central Audit Committee of the KKE.