FIVE COLOMBIAN PROGRESSIVE groups converged last August 10-11 to establish a united democratic and anti-imperialist front under the Inter­na­tio­nal Lea­gue of Peop­les’ Struggle (ILPS).

According to Prof. Jose Ma. Sison, chairperson of the ILPS’ International Coordinating Committee, the assembly’s theme for social justice is timely and apt especially after the FARC (Fuerza Arma­da Revo­lucio­na­rio de la Co­lom­bia) gave up on the armed struggle in exchange for a few political concessions from the country’s reactionary state. Nothing will come out of the signed agreements between the FARC and the Colombian government, social justice cannot be realized under the dominance of US imperialism and the reactionary classes, and the oppression and exploitation of the people are escalating, said Prof. Sison. FARC entered into a final peace agreement last 2016, in exchange for three positions in the parliament and amnesty for all its fighters.

Furtheron, Prof. Sison said that united progressive groups are in the position to describe the history and current circumstances of the people of Colombia. The imperialist powers are once more in a period of intensifying economic competition and political rivalry among them and are escalating their oppression and exploitation of the peoples of the world. “Acting according to their narrow selfish interests, they are unwittingly goading the proletariat and people to rise up and liberate themselves.”

Particularly in Latin America, “the US has reactionary allies and plenty of political and economic assets to use against the anti-imperialist, democratic and revolutionary forces and the people,” and at the same time preventing Chinese capital incursion into what it has “long regarded as its own backyard.” But governments no less, like those of Cuba and Venezuela, have continued to stand up against US intervention. US efforts to impose its dominance in Latin America will intensify, Sison said.
Thus, the people “must be ready for the intensification of various forms of struggle between US imperialism and the peoples of Latin America…In the next five to 10 years, we shall see the unprecedented bursting of the economic and political bubbles of the world capitalist system and the unprecedented rise of people´s resistance,” Sison added.

ILPS-Colombia consists of La Cor­po­racion pa­ra Inves­ti­gacion y la Educacion Po­pu­lar, El Movi­mi­en­to por la Defen­sa de los De­rechos del Pueb­lo, El Movi­mi­en­to por la Consti­tu­yen­te Po­pu­lar, el Co­lectivo Nacio­nal Sin­dical Cla­sis­ta “Guil­ler­mo Marín” and Orga­nizacion de Muje­res del Pueb­lo de Co­lom­bia.
It is now part of the 200 member-organizations in 40 countries in five continents which continue to strive for and strengthen unity, cooperation and coordination of the anti-imperialist and democratic struggles throughout the world by developing actions around 17 multisectoral concerns.