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For Welsh Self-Government!

[June 1996; International Socialist Group discussion document]

The question of a Welsh Assembly is without doubt a key issue in Welsh politics today. It has created the greatest ferment in the Welsh Labour Party for many years and promises to be an on-going source of problems for the party's Welsh Executive. This document attempts to locate these developments within an overall historical context and to offer a Marxist analysis of the question.

A brief look at the various organisations on the left in Wales reveals a wide variety of positions on the nature of Wales and the type of Assembly, or Parliament, we need. The socialist republicans of Cymru Goch see Wales as nothing less than a colony of England: they are thus engaged in an anti-colonial struggle, with complete independence as their final goal. The approach of Plaid Cymru is far more measured, though they too see Wales as a suffering 'Tory colonial suppression from Westminster' and seek independence within Europe as their final aim.

The range of views within the Labour Party is of course extremely broad. For some, Wales is little more than an administrative region and the Welsh language an irrelevance. Others take a more positive view but still see the establishment of an Assembly as simply a constitutional reform, which can carried through without threatening the existing British state.

The Communist Party of Britain view the establishment of a People's parliament as a key issue and favour 'a bold and innovative type of Welsh Parliament, one with real teeth'. On the far-left, there has been a positive development in the position of Welsh Militant Labour in recent times, under the pressure of their own organisation in Scotland, itself under pressure from the Scottish National Party. This leaves the Socialist Workers Party, epitomising as they do so many of the weaknesses of 'British' Trotskyism, to defend the integrity of the British state in the name of workers' unity.

So where should we stand? This document will attempt to answer that question. It is worth beginning with a brief re-cap of Welsh history, in order to better answer the question: What is Wales?

Wales in History

The year 1536 is felt to be pivotal by many people in Wales. This is the year in which the first Act of Annexation was passed, which stated that: 'Wales ... is and ever hath bene incorporated, annexed, united and subiecte to and under the imperialle Crown of this Realme'. The act formally incorporating Wales into England and forbade the use of the Welsh language in government.

Did this make us a colony? If colonialism is understood to be a specific, political relationship between two states, then quite the opposite in fact. It formalised our status as an oppressed nation, without doubt, but as Gwyn Alf Williams has pointed out, it actually rescued us from colonialism. From being a disenfranchised and colonised people, the Welsh, or at least their ruling class, were made politically equal to their English counterparts.

From this time on Wales became very much a border country and little changed until the late eighteenth century, which saw the development of industrialisation and the tentative beginnings of a working class response. The industries developed first around metal extraction and processing, later around coal. The outstanding dates from this period are the Merthyr rising of 1831 and the Chartist march on Newport in 1839. The development of Chartism in Wales was particularly significant, given the preponderance of physical-force Chartists in the Gwent coalfield and the use of the Welsh language as a means of organising conspiracy.

Here was a social mobilisation of enormous scale which led to a direct, armed attack on the state. The government of the time was severely rattled and once the rising had been decisively quelled, it set about finding the roots of the problem. A commission of enquiry was despatched which discovered that, lo and behold, the Welsh language was a major contributor to the degenerate state of the Welsh.

The commission recommended a series of measures for the eradication of the language, which remain the source of nationalist propaganda to this day. In truth, they were never really implemented because they were never really needed. Something far bigger came along - it was called coal. Coal eclipsed everything that had gone before it in Wales and placed Wales at the centre of the imperial expansion of the British empire. Britannia ruled the waves and the Welsh kept digging the coal.

In the process, sections of the Welsh working class became corrupted by the profits of empire. The working class of Chartism gave way to the working classes of Victorian Britain and in the process 'the Welsh working class lost its memory'. It was not until the end of the century that a working class movement began to re-emerge and then at a far lower level than Chartism. Trade Unions were formed and very moderate they were too. They eventually formed the Labour Party, also very moderate, but still an enormous step forward in working class organisation.

By 1911 a new mood had developed in South Wales, exemplified by the Tonypandy riots. The new activists were impatient with their reformist leaders and The Miners' Next Step, published in Tonypandy in 1912, demanded that: 'The old policy of identity of interest between employers and ourselves be abolished, and a policy of open hostility installed.' What followed is more familiar history: the influence of the Russian revolution; the formation of the Communist Party; the defeat of the 1926 General Strike; company unionism and the struggle against it; the huge mobilisations against the means test in 1935; the sending of volunteers to Spain.

It is striking that in all this period the national demands raised by Welsh workers were minimal. The Welsh Nationalist Party, formed in 1925, was completely irrelevant, and indeed hostile, to the best developments in the Welsh working class. A tradition of support for Welsh home rule survived within the Welsh Labour movement until the Second World War but was in the main a carry over from Liberalism and was thus supported by sections of the right wing. The attitude of Welsh workers to the Welsh language also seems to have been little more than benign indifference at this time. Certainly, they seemed in the main happy to accept a transition to English, without any means of compulsion having to be used. This applied equally to the more combative sections of the class, who could hardly be accused of being servile lackeys of the English ruling class.

And yet, as we approach the end of the twentieth century, the demand for a Welsh Assembly is a key question in Welsh politics. Plaid Cymru has emerged as a modern nationalist party, with the consistent support of around 10 per cent of the electorate, and the Welsh language is enjoying a revival across Wales.

How can this be explained? Each of these phenomenon can be understood as reactions to both the continued economic marginalisation of Wales and the failure of the Labour Party to consistently address this problem. Labour emerged from the Second World War with a staggering dominance of Welsh politics. Welsh workers had huge illusions in the ability of reformist socialism to transform Britain and ensure that there would never be a return to the 1930s.

The post-war boom certainly brought improvements to an impoverished Wales but the regional aid policies of both Labour and Conservative governments were never able to address the uneven economic development within the British state. When the 1974 recession finally burst the bubble, Wales was the first to suffer. Since then the history of the Welsh economy has been a catalogue of cutbacks, closure and low pay. Little wonder that an increasing number of Welsh workers are becoming dissatisfied with a centralised British state which is increasingly unable to deliver the goods. What is more, the repeated mantra of the Labour movement, that 'nothing can be done until the next general election', becomes less credible with each successive defeat.

Developments in Wales and Scotland mirror those in a whole series of European countries which have seen the re-emergence of the national question in the last 30 years. These developments cannot be understood without seeing the nation as a dynamic and constantly changing phenomenon.

A Peculiar Nation

The Welsh are undoubtedly a peculiar nation. In fact, it could hardly be otherwise. Wales became the mining annex of the world's greatest imperial power and shared in the profits of empire, however unequally. Coal was the crude oil of its day and when the market for coal collapsed, the Welsh were left high and dry. Our response as a nation has been shaped by this remarkable roller coaster ride.

For a period of roughly 100 years, from 1848 to the 1950's, the Welsh nation voluntarily accepted union with England and to a large extend gave up any concern for nationhood. A real process of assimilation took place, on a completely voluntary basis, with the decline in the Welsh language a major symptom of this process. It is only after this period that the first real development of a nationalist sentiment began to emerge.

The Welsh are not an oppressed nation: we have not been for at least 150 years. No significant coercion has been necessary to compel the Welsh to be part of the union with England or to give up their language. The Welsh nationalist myth of the use of the 'Welsh Not' in education is simply that, a myth. For many labourist leaders and intellectuals, chief amongst them the revolting Tim Williams, these facts seal the fate of the Welsh nation forever. We have renounced nationhood and the Welsh language and ever more shall do so. The reality is quite different; the Welsh people have a choice.

The re-emergence of the Welsh national question is a symptom of the historic decline of British imperialism and of Labour dominance in Wales. As Marxists we must analyse what is progressive and what is retrogressive in this development. As a rejection of British nationalism and the centralist British state then Welsh nationalism is undoubtedly progressive; inasmuch as it argues that separation is the key question for Welsh workers, it is retrogressive.

In truth, the Plaid Cymru position in favour of an independent Wales in Europe is an uneasy compromise between different wings of the party. It is at the same time logically incoherent since it is simply not possible to be both independent and part of Europe. If they actually mean an autonomous Wales within Europe then we can agree with them, but they do not say that.

Of course it would be a mistake to restrict the growth of national sentiment to the support for Plaid Cymru. It is important to distinguish between nationalism as an ideology, expressed in the programs and platforms of nationalist movements and parties, and nationalist moods and sentiments. A national sentiment exists in Wales today which is far broader than the organised national movement. It reflects a pride in being Welsh, in the Welsh language and aspects of Welsh culture and above all in the desire for greater control on a Welsh level.

It is precisely this sentiment that Labour is trying to address with its half hearted plans for a Welsh Assembly and which Plaid Cymru are not able to address, given their fixation with independence. Welsh workers understand perfectly well that an independent Wales is simply not a viable option. We are a peripheral and marginal nation, with scant natural resources, who will remain so under any form of independence.

Of course, many good people will be drawn to Plaid Cymru out of frustration with the Labour Party in Wales. It is also very much the case that people make best use of the political resources that they find around them. Given the huge weakness of authentic socialist ideas in Wales today many people will attempt to express their radicalism through Plaid Cymru or the language movement. This means that many of the most important and dynamic elements in Welsh politics will be found in Plaid Cymru and Cymdeithas yr Iaith in the near future - we need to be talking to them.

At the same time we should not over-emphasise the importance of Plaid Cymru and the other nationalist organisations. The decisive movement in Wales remains the Labour movement, which still retains the support of a majority of the Welsh people and is, in terms of social weight, decisive. It will remain the focus for our intervention for the foreseeable future.

Our position is that Wales is neither a colony nor an oppressed nation, but this does not prevent us from addressing the Welsh national question. We view the Welsh nation as suffering specific economic and linguistic inequalities which can be best addressed by Welsh autonomy within an European federation. The problems of Wales simply cannot be solved on a Welsh level, they are the problems of Europe. At the same time, we affirm the right of the Welsh people to self-determination up to and including full separation. If the Welsh people desire independence and the British state tries to stop them we are unequivocally on the side of the Welsh people. We have no interest in defending the existing British state, which is corrupt and outmoded in every way.

The language question is of key importance in Wales. The broadest and most successful political campaigns of the nationalist movement have been around the language. It motivates some of the most radical sections of the movement, organised within Cymdeithas yr Iaith, who maintain a healthy distrust of Plaid Cymru's parliamentarism. At the same time the language engenders a deep mistrust from sections of the non-Welsh speaking working class. We stand for a democratic solution to the language question, which ensures equal status for the Welsh language in all walks of life. Given the enormous preponderance and weight of the English language, this must involve the positive promotion of Welsh in disproportion to the number of its speakers. We must, of course, assure those who do not speak the language that it will not be forced upon them.

The attitude of many people within the Labour Party to the Welsh language is nothing less than appalling. This ranges from indifference to outright hostility and is often cloaked in a fake internationalism, such as that of the Ogwr Labour councillor who declared: 'The Welsh language is a nauseating irrelevance to an internationalist like me.' It is also often stated that the less languages there exist, the better, since a multiplicity of languages is a barrier to human communication. Proponents of this view conveniently forget that the reason the world's main languages enjoy their dominance is that they are the languages of the world's main oppressor nations. Our approach does not begin from an abstract premise but from the concrete needs and aspirations of those who speak minority languages.

Many socialists still have a real problem with addressing the national question and insist on counterposing class and nation with the immortal words: 'You need a class analysis, comrade!' In truth, a class analysis has to incorporate all the questions which face the working class, such as those of gender, race, sexual orientation and nation. Anything less is not a class analysis at all, since it does not apply to large sections of the working class.

Neither is raising demands for an Assembly and in defence of the Welsh language a concession to nationalism. Quite the reverse in fact: the nationalist movement will grow to the extent that the Labour movement does not address the question. We oppose nationalism, not because everything about it is bad but because it simply does not offer a path to the national and social liberation of the Welsh people.

The hopes and aspirations of many small nations have been bitterly disappointed by the reformist and Stalinist politicians who claim to speak in their name. Against this, we affirm a different vision of socialism, where a national future is guaranteed for all those nations who desire it. In discussing the fate of the Jewish nation in 1930's, Leon Trotsky described it thus

In the sphere of the national question there must be no restraint; on the contrary there must be an all-sided material assistance for the cultural needs of all nationalities and ethnic groups. If this or that national group is doomed to disappear (in the national sense) then this must proceed in the same way as a natural process, but never as a consequence of any territorial, economic, or administrative difficulties.

It is on this basis that the fundamental slogan of Marxism remains: Workers of all countries, unite!

The Demand for an Assembly

Almost all the forces currently supporting a Welsh Assembly see it as a stable constitutional reform, which will be granted by Westminster. Some of the best of them also see it as a chance to re-invigorate Welsh politics. For us, this is the crux of the matter. We understand that no reform of the current British state is going to solve the problems of the Welsh working class. This will require a head on confrontation with capitalism and the overthrow of the British state.

There are at present massive illusions in what a Welsh Assembly, even with legislative powers, can achieve. We must be careful not to foster these illusions in any way. However, the mass of people will not give up their illusions simply because a small group of Marxists tell them so. They will have to go through the experience of testing out their ideas in practice and we must go through that experience with them. This is why we support the limited demands for an Assembly, without sharing the illusions, and try to push the struggle as far as possible.

In so doing, we aim to draw people as much as possible into active politics, awakening their criticism of their politicians and strengthening their control over the actions of the ruling class. Support for an Assembly reflects a deepening distrust of the British state on the part of many Welsh workers - this is a healthy attitude which we seek to deepen. On this basis, our demand is for a Constituent Welsh Assembly. By this we mean an Assembly which has full power to decide on all aspects of its functioning and its international relations, without being subject to any veto from Westminster. The Assembly should freely decide what powers it transfers to a British or European level. This position is the same as that of the recently formed Scottish Socialist Alliance (SSA), whose aims state:

5. The SSA stands for the right of the people of Scotland, Wales, Ireland and England to self-determination and will fight for a sovereign Scottish Parliament which has the right to decide which powers to retain in Scotland and to determine its relationship with the rest of Britain and Europe.

The European Dimension

Given the centrality of Maastricht and moves to a Single European Currency, this slogan should be linked to the demand: Should Wales adopt the Maastricht Treaty - let the Welsh Assembly decide! The importance of Maastricht in relation to a Welsh Assembly cannot be over emphasised. Given the Tories' little-Englander campaign against the European Union it is far too easy to respond with a glibly pro-European line. But the Europe currently being constructed by the French and German governments is not our Europe, it is the Europe of big capital, the Europe of our enemies.

Through their support for Maastricht both the Labour Party and Plaid Cymru are leading the Welsh people straight into a hurricane of unprecedented ferocity. Implementation of Maastricht will be nothing short of a catastrophe for Wales, given our reliance on social spending and public sector employment

Both Plaid Cymru and the Labour Party cover their tracks by promising to sign up to the Social Chapter of the treaty. Events in countries which are already signatories to this chapter, such as France, should make it clear that its value is virtually nil. Plaid make the additional demand for direct representation for Wales on the Council of Ministers. Once more, while the dynamics of European integration are dictated by the banks and finance institutions, this really has very little meaning.

Whatever type of Welsh Assembly is finally established, we will demand that it discusses and rejects the Maastricht Treaty!

A Truly Representative Assembly

Against those in the Labour Party who wish to control the Assembly from the outset by undemocratic means we affirm the need for a truly representative Assembly. In practice, this means elections using proportional representation and positive action measures to promote the involvement of women and youth. Along with the usual arguments in favour of PR, we should keep in mind that it will facilitate the participation of any new socialist party in the future.

The gross under-representation of women in Welsh politics is plain for all to see. One woman MP out of 38 and at a local government level, only l7 per cent of councillors are women. Women find their paths blocked at every turn: by the reactionary male dominated culture within political parties, which favours white, male, middle class candidates; by low pay and lack of financial independence; by the pressure of a double working day and by the responsibilities of childcare. This situation is self-perpetuating and will only be altered by positive action in favour of women, in order to counteract the deep inequalities which currently exist.

A representative Assembly must also reach out to the youth of Wales. Working class youth have borne the brunt of the Tory offensive in the last 17 years and left stranded by all the political parties. After being kicked in the teeth so often, it is little wonder that many sink into despair, disillusion, drug-abuse and crime. At very least, we should demand the right to vote at 16. Old enough to work, or rot on the dole, old enough to vote!

The Need to Mobilise

The whole idea of re-invigorating Welsh politics around a struggle for a Constituent Assembly is premised on one thing - struggle. The kind of Assembly we want will never be granted by Westminster, not even by a Labour government. The Labour bureaucrats will do everything in their power to stop such a struggle developing. Against this, our task is to facilitate this development as much as possible, if only on a small scale at first.

The prospect of a broad re-mobilisation of the Labour movement may seem very unlikely at present but last year's events in France show how quickly the situation can change. We are undoubtedly living through a reactionary period in world politics. Two decades of defeats have left workers cynical and demoralised in Wales and throughout Europe. The collapse of the Stalinist states has discredited not only those bureaucratic regimes but the idea of socialism in general.

Without a turn in the sentiment of a broad mass of workers, no slogans, however correct, will change the situation. But this turn can, and will, arrive and will be best facilitated by the election of a Labour government. In the interim we face a preparatory period of propaganda and education, preparing ourselves and those around us for the struggles ahead.

In Summary

Our work around the Assembly should focus on four key elements:

(1) Development and promotion of our own position, popularised by the slogan: For Welsh Self-Government! Linked to this will be the demand for the Welsh Assembly to decide on Maastricht.

(2) Active participation in campaigns which promote lesser powers, crucially Welsh Labour Action, without sharing or fostering any illusions.

(3) The promotion of discussion around the politics of a Welsh Assembly, which should include dialogue with people outside the Labour Party, principally those in Plaid Cymru, Cymdeithas yr Iaith and the Communist Party of Britain.

(4) Exploring every avenue to facilitate active mobilisations around the demand for an Assembly.

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