From For a Lasting Peace, for a People’s Democracy!
No. 27 (87), July, 1950

Editorial: Latest Step of Tito Clique to Restore Capitalism in Yugoslavia

A few days ago the Skupshtina in Yugoslavia enacted a law annulling the nationalisation of enterprises and placing the management of industrial enterprises, railways, ore-workings and mines in the hands of so-called “labour collective”. Thus the Tito clique has taken another step towards resorting capitalism in Yugoslavia.

As is known, the Tito clique never gave serious thought to building Socialism in Yugoslavia. It had to adopt measures such as nationalisation of industry and transport to mislead the working people and to establish itself in power.

After the Tito clique effected its counter-revolutionary coup and seized complete power, the State sector of Yugoslav economy ceased to be people’s property. The Yugoslav fascists used the nationalised enterprises as a means of exploiting the working class, i.e., of using surplus value extracted from the workers for the purpose of enlarging and maintaining the fascist army and the Rankovic police apparatus for suppressing the people.

The Tito clique subordinated the country both economically and politically to the Anglo-American imperialists.

And now the Yugoslav fascists are making a further step along the path of restoring capitalism and are openly annulling the nationalisation of industry. What reasons forced the Tito clique to hand over industry, ore-workings and railways to private enterprise?

The reasons for these Tito measures are as follows: (1) Utter failure of the so-called Five-Year Plan, failure of the organisation of “planned economy”, which the Titoite propagandists had lauded to the heavens; (2) The demand of the Anglo-American imperialists for the restoration in Yugoslavia of private ownership in the means of production, for development of private enterprise.

Yugoslav economy is experiencing a decline. It suffices to say that many pits yield no coal because miners are refusing to work. A similar state of affairs prevails in the non-ferrous ore-workings. The reason for the decline in Yugoslav economy is the treacherous, adventurous anti-people’s policy of the Tito clique and the growing resistance of the working class to the policy. Yugoslav workers see that they are toiling for the benefit of the Tito satraps, of the Anglo-American imperialists who buy at absurdly low prices the timber, copper, lead, antimony, and other natural wealth of the country. Only by means of widespread forced labour in the guise of so-called “voluntary brigades” has the Tito clique succeeded in partially meeting the demands of the Anglo-American trusts for supplies of strategic raw materials.

Now the Anglo-American ruling circles have placed a direct task before the Tito clique: to open up every possibility for the further penetration of foreign capital into the economy of the country, to clear the way for complete restoration of capitalism in Yugoslavia.

But can the Yugoslav fascists immediately, by means of a single decree, completely restore private ownership in industry?

Of course not.

They cannot, because to do so would mean provoking a direct revolt on the part of the working class, would mean a spontaneous explosion.

The Tito clique decided on another, a round-about way, by means of which it hopes to deceive the workers.

By their demagogic talk about abolishing bureaucracy, “enhancing the role” of the working class, transferring enterprises, railways and mines to the “labour collectives”, stupid, ignorant talk about “the dying of the State” and a “rapid switch to Communism”, Tito and company are throwing out a smoke screen under the cover of which they are turning the enterprises over to their protégés.

In this Tito undertaking there is nothing new or original: it resembles in every detail the fascist cooperative system of Mussolini. The Italian fascists also formed so-called “labour corporations”, “drawing” workers into the management of industry. But this was simply a cloak to screen the imperialist essence of Italian fascism. It is quite clear that in the conditions of a fascist State such as Yugoslavia is industry, and with it the entire economy, will be managed as before by the Tito clique – the servant of Anglo-American imperialism.

Like every other fascist regime, the Tito regime seeks to disguise its capitalist make-up by means of “Socialist” slogans. But this reveals not the strength, but the weakness of fascism. It will be impossible to conceal from the peoples of Yugoslavia, that private enterprise has been given rein in their country, that private ownership has been openly restored, and that their country has been placed under complete control of the American monopolies. This cannot take place without further intensified exploitation of the working class, with the inevitable result that the indignation of the working people will grow more and more, and that it will organise a rebuff. As a result, the Tito clique will have to resort to still greater terror and repressive measures.

As for “theoretical” statements of Yugoslav fascist chiefs, they can only be characterised as the ravings of lunatics. The “speech”, delivered by the blockhead and ignoramus Tito, about the new law is an eclectic hash and consists of bits of Hitler, Ford and Mussolini statements strung together, a mingling of their “ideas” with those of the anarchists, trotskyites and other enemies of the working class and filled with rabid Churchill anti-Sovietism.

To declared that the “functions of the State are dying away in Yugoslavia”. Actually, the economic functions of the State are being restricted in Yugoslavia, restricted for the purpose of openly restoring private ownership in the means and instruments of production. The abandonment by the State of the function of organising economy is designed to secure that, in the conditions of anarchy of production now being revived, the factories, ore workings and railways will pass into the hands of exploiting elements. Such is the iron logic of economic relations. But in Yugoslavia, the Tito clique is developing, in every way, the military-police functions of the fascist State with the aim of suppressing the masses of the people.

Tito declared that “State ownership was the lowest form of public ownership”. In this, too, there is nothing new. It has been always said by the bourgeoisie, the upholders of private ownership in the means of production. It can be said in passing that Mr. Churchill, representing the most reactionary circles of British imperialism, uses this same argument in his opposition to so-called “nationalisation” in Britain.

The Class essence of the latest Tito clique undertakings will be more easily discerned when one hears how they are lauded by the Anglo-American imperialists. This praise fully expose the Tito clique, exposes its vile designs aimed at the complete restoration of capitalism in Yugoslavia.

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