[p. 198]
March 23, 1954
Dear Comrades,
We are in receipt of the letter of Comrade Tilak accompanied by the copy of a letter which Cannon sent you.
The IS at the meeting of March 14 — that is, before receiving these two letters and the proposal they contained of a postponement of the World Congress — had decided to address all members of the IEC and to ask them to launch an invitation to all the groups which have split from the International to participate in the 4th World Congress. We are sending to Comrade Tilak and Colvin, members of the IEC, the proposal of the IS.
On our part, we do not see any reason to go back now on this procedure nor above all to decide to postpone the World Congress. First of all, in our capacity as the IS, we are formally bound by the decisions of the 13th and 14th Plenums of the IEC. The letter of Cannon is quite explicit in the real aims that he seeks; to flatter again your organization in order to win it over to his faction, while all the time he goes on with "organization of the revolt" in the sections with his Committee of the Fourth International. If he wishes to postpone the Congress, it is not at all in order later to make possible "a single Congress," regarding which on his own admission he has hardly any faith, but solely in order in the meantime to further strengthen his faction, to change the relationship of forces in his favour and to sow confusion and indecision amidst our own ranks. All this is said in a very clear, and we might say even cynical, manner.
We do not believe that the International should help these maneuvers in any manner whatsoever.
The tone and content of Cannon's letter are for us a further proof of the unbelievable Machiavellism of the man and of his desperate effort to break up the International by spreading slander, confusion and suspicion and by exploiting all weaknesses in our movement. The way in which he exploits and presents the case of your minority — which you well know — as well as his revolting references to the "existence of a secret faction of Pablo" inside your organization, must make perfectly clear to you his techniques in the unprincipled factional struggle to which he has lent himself.
Other more important reasons make impossible, in our opinion, the postponement of the WC at the present moment. The majority of our sections have already made very advanced preparations to secure their representation at the WC, and cannot cancel them without material losses and upsetting of their plans of work. For example, the delegates of our Latin American sections have had to purchase their places on the steamers in advance, and some of them will shortly be on the way.
But in our opinion by far the most important reason is the following: The crisis in the International has posed a series of political and organizational problems vital for the future of our movement and only an assembly which is as representative as possible of the International can provide a solution to these problems. To permit the prolongation of the present situation, with such a crisis in the International, a weakened leadership, and in the context of an international situation that does not cease to be disquieting, that would be the greatest irresponsibility on our part. To Cannon, this is not of importance, considering that he is opposed to the structure as a world party of our movement. Cannon speaks of an IS of usurpers and of its irremovable secretaries. He of course does this slanderously and demagogically, knowing perfectly well the monstrosity of such a falsehood. But for our part we declare that it is impossible of us to assume our functions as members of the IS and IEC any longer, in the absence of the holding of the WC fixed for June.
It is necessary that all our sections fully shoulder this responsibility and decide supremely in an international assembly both on the future policy and leadership of the International. This is now their strictest duty. They must do this as soon as possible in the interests of our movement. Whether this assembly of June should be called the 4th World Congress, or an international conference in view of the concrete proposals of the Cannonites, and it be decided that another Conference or Congress should be held later, this is a matter which this June Assembly itself with full knowledge of the facts, can decide. But it is primary that such an international assembly representative of our movement meet in the first place.
For all these reasons we insist again on the appeal we have so often made to assist without fail in the meeting of June. You will submit your proposals there and assume your full responsibilities along with the other representatives of the sections.
With our fraternal greetings,
The IS