Burma Workers Party

Last updated

Burma Workers Party
Leader Thakin Chit Maung, Thakin Lwin
Founded1950
Dissolved1962
Membership (1957)3000
Ideology Communism
Marxism-Leninism

The Burma Workers Party, until 1958 the Burma Workers and Peasants Party, was a communist party in Burma, formed on 8 December 1950 by leftist elements of the Socialist Party. In December 1962 it merged with the People's Comrade Party to form the United Workers Party. In March 1964, it was among the many parties banned by decree of the Revolutionary Council. [1]

History

The founders of the BWPP were 42 leading cadres of the Socialist Party, who denounced the leadership of Ba Swe and Kyaw Nyein. These included Thakin Chit Maung, Thakin Hla Kywe, Thakin Lwin and U Ba Nyein. [1] Within the Socialist Party discussions had emerged on issues like the affiliation of the Trade Union Congress (Burma) to the World Federation of Trade Unions. Under the leadership of Thakin Lwin, the TUC(B) had steered towards an openly communist line. In the May Day rally of 1950, TUC(B) demonstrators had carried large portraits of Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels, Vladimir Lenin, Joseph Stalin and Mao Zedong. Thakin Lwin had publicly declared that TUC(B) followed the 'communist party line', but denounced the White Flag Communist Party, Red Flag Communist Party and Josip Broz Tito as 'deviationists'. Except for Thakin Lwin, a major leader amongst the founders of the BWPP was Thakin Chit Maung who was a leader of the All Burma Peasants Organisation. [2] [3] The BWPP formed a new trade union centre, the Burma Trade Union Congress (BTUC). [4] [5] [6]

The BWPP was a Marxist–Leninist party. It considered the AFPFL government as servants of imperialism. However, unlike the White Flag and Red Flag communist parties the BWPP worked as a legal political parties. [2] [3] The party was sometimes nicknamed as 'Red Socialists'. [7]

At the time of its foundation, the party had ten MPs amongst its members. In the 1951 election, the strength of the BWPP parliamentary faction increased to twelve. Ahead of the 1956 legislative election, the BWPP launched the National United Front in 1955. In the elections the NUF won 48 seats. [8]

In June 1957 Prime Minister U Nu made a deal with the BWPP to be able to defeat a no confidence vote in the parliament. [3]

The first party congress of the BWPP has held in Rangoon 27 December 1957 – 2 January 1958, during which the name 'Burma Workers Party' was adopted. At the congress 259 delegates, representing 22 districts and around 3000 party members, were present. The congress adopted five main slogans: "(1) One party our strength, one party our aim!; (2) Let us separate ourselves from Capitalists and their like; Let us form alliance with those who are true to us and our Cause!; (3) Let us define our political aim clearly and keep Democracy in view!; (4) Internal Peace through Democracy!; (5) Afro-Asian Alliance for world peace!" [3]

The congress elected various leadership committees:

After the declaration of 'Burmese Way to Socialism' by the Ne Win regime, the BWP was marginalised. At the end of 1962, the BWP and the People's Comrade Party merged into the United Workers Party. [9]

Related Research Articles

U Nu

Nu, known honorifically as U Nu or Thakin Nu, was a leading Burmese statesman, politician, nationalist, and political figure of the 20th century. He was the first Prime Minister of Burma under the provisions of the 1947 Constitution of the Union of Burma, from 4 January 1948 to 12 June 1956, again from 28 February 1957 to 28 October 1958, and finally from 4 April 1960 to 2 March 1962.

Anti-Fascist Peoples Freedom League

The Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League (AFPFL) was the dominant political alliance in Burma from 1945 until 1958 consisting of political parties and mass and class organizations.

Thakin Chit Maung

Thakin Chit Maung, also known as Widuya Thakin Chit Maung, was a veteran Burmese politician.

Ludu U Hla

Ludu U Hla was a Burmese journalist, publisher, chronicler, folklorist and social reformer whose prolific writings include a considerable number of path-breaking nonfiction works. He was married to fellow writer and journalist Ludu Daw Amar.

Articles related to Myanmar include:

Thakin Soe

Thakin Soe was a founding member of the Communist Party of Burma, formed in 1939 and a leader of Anti-Fascist Organisation. He is regarded as one of Burma's most prominent Communist leaders.

Mukerjee, party name Yebaw Phyu Win, was a Bengal-born Burmese communist leader. Ahead of the Second World War, he took employment in the Defence Department. In 1939 he joined the Burmese Communist Party. In 1946, he was included in the leadership of the All Burma Trade Union Congress.

Wa Gyi was a Burmese communist leader.

The Shan State Communist Party was a communist party in Shan State, Burma. The party was founded in 1956 by Moh Heng, a commander of the Communist Party of Burma in Lawksawk, in protest of a decision by the CPB leadership to reject the creation of a separate party committee for Shan State.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Myanmar)

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is a ministry in the government of Myanmar responsible for the country's foreign relations. It also operates embassies and consulates in 44 countries. It is headed by Wunna Maung Lwin, appointed by millitary leader Min Aung Hlaing

Thakin Lwin was a Burmese politician and trade unionist, writer and journalist. He was a leading member of the anti-colonial Dobama Asiayone movement, a parliamentarian, the president of the Trade Union Congress (Burma) and a prominent leader of the Burma Workers and Peasants Party.

The Burma Socialist Party, initially known as the People's Freedom (Socialist) Party or PF(S)P, was a political party in Burma. It was the dominant party in Burmese politics after 1948, and the dominant political force inside the Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League.

The Trade Union Congress (Burma) was a central trade union organization in Burma. The TUC(B) was founded by the Socialist Party in November 1945, in an attempt to counter the influence of the communist-led All Burma Trade Union Congress. Ba Cho was the President of TUC(B). The TUC(B) was an affiliate of the governing Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League.

The Burma Trade Union Congress was a central trade union organization in Burma. The BTUC was founded in December 1950 as the trade union wing of the Burma Workers and Peasants Party. BTUC was formed after a split away from the Trade Union Congress (Burma). Thakin Lwin, former Minister of Labour (1948-1949), served as the president of BTUC. BTUC was affiliated to the World Federation of Trade Unions.

Communist Party (Burma)

The Communist Party (Burma), sometimes referred to as the Red Flag Communist Party, was a communist party in Burma. The party was formed after a more radical faction broke away from the Communist Party of Burma in 1946. In the same year, it began a protracted armed insurgency; first against British rule, then against the Burmese government. The party was led by Thakin Soe, a firebrand communist leader. In the mid to late 1970s, the party lost influence and was militarily defeated after the capture of Thakin Soe in 1978.

Amar Nag alias Yebaw Tun Maung or U Hla (1917–1968), was one of the founding leaders of the communist movement in Burma. Dr. Nag was active in the struggle for Burmese independence. He was an important leader of the Communist Party of Burma, but was killed in an ambush in 1968.

Thakin Kyaw Tun, or Thakin Kyaw Dun was a Burmese politician.

Kyaw Nyein

Kyaw Nyein, called honorifically U Kyaw Nyein (Burmese: ဦးကျော်ငြိမ်း;pronounced [ʔú t͡ɕɔ̀ ɲeɪɴ], was a Burmese lawyer and anti-colonial revolutionary, a leader in Burma’s struggle for independence and prominent politician in the first decade after the country gained sovereignty from Britain. He held multiple minister portfolios in the government of Prime Minister U Nu, served as General Secretary of the ruling political alliance, Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League, and was joint General Secretary of the Burma Socialist Party BSP.

Communist insurgency in Myanmar

The communist insurgency in Myanmar was a conflict fought primarily by the Communist Party of Burma and the Communist Party (Burma) from 1948 to 1988. The conflict ended when the armed wing of the Communist Party of Burma disbanded following the Fall of Communism and the ousting of the Burmese socialist dictatorship.

References

  1. 1 2 Bečka, Jan (1995) "Burma Workers' and Peasants' Party (BWPP)" Historical Dictionary of Myanmar Scarecrow Press, Metuchen, New Jersey, p. 55, ISBN   0-8108-2840-5
  2. 1 2 Fleischmann, Klaus. Die Kommunistische Partei Birmas - Von den Anfängen bis zur Gegenwart. Hamburg: Institut für Asienkunde, 1989. p. 165.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Josey, Alex. The Political Significance of the Burma Workers Party in Pacific Affairs, Vol. 31, No. 4. (Dec. 1958), pp. 372-379.
  4. ↑ Rose, Saul. Socialism in Southern Asia. London: Oxford University Press, 1959. p. 117
  5. ↑ Vincent Boudreau (30 April 2009). Resisting Dictatorship: Repression and Protest in Southeast Asia. Cambridge University Press. p. 46. ISBN   978-0-521-10961-1.
  6. ↑ Tin Maung Maung Than (2007). State Dominance in Myanmar: The Political Economy of Industrialization. Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. p. 104. ISBN   978-981-230-371-4.
  7. ↑ "Burmanet » Agence France Presse: Veteran socialist Myanmar freedom fighter Chit Maung dies at 90". Archived from the original on 14 October 2007. Retrieved 7 October 2007.
  8. ↑ Fleischmann, Klaus. Die Kommunistische Partei Birmas - Von den Anfängen bis zur Gegenwart. Hamburg: Institut für Asienkunde, 1989. p. 166.
  9. ↑ Schism and Secession: The Split Parties [ permanent dead link ]
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.