maoistroad: Austria - long live militant antifscism! Demonstration report: Steel-town against fascism!

The demonstration against the fascist congress of the „defenders of europe“ on the 28. of october in Linz (Austria), was an important victory of the struggling antifascist forces. The demonstrators could resist against the attacs and the division attempts of the police and a huge part of the demontration could be united on an struggling antifascist line.

Around 2000 antifascists joined the demonstration against the congress of the „defenders of europe“. This congress was organised with the help of the ÖVP and was defended by hundreds of policemen (a few of them with dogs squadrons) and a police helicopter. It was a congress of the most important parlamentary and non-parlamentary fascist forces of german speaking area, and also leading representatives of the catholic church announced to be there. The fascists also mobilised their street trupps, which tried to attac the antifascist forces, but without success. In contrary some antifascist forces managed it to spread confusion by fireing stinking bombs in the fascists congress hall. The plan of the fascists, to hold the congress in the „outpack“ of Upper Austria, to be undisturbed, faild totally by the reason of huge antifascist mobilisation.

Before the demonstration the reformist forces tried to split up the demonstrators in „pacifist“ and „militant“ ones, which was written down in the „action consensus“. This means that all the militant forces should be excluded of the demonstration. This divisive plan could be stopped by the united antifascist forces.

When the police tried to attack and to split up the demonstration, the attacked antifascists resisted and also many other demonstrators defended with huge self-sacrificing spirit the attacked ones. This struggle shows us, that big parts of the masses want to go the path of active struggle and do not search for reconciliation with the police. It also shows to us, that the antifascist struggle needs an clear and struggling leadership, which is not moving back, but developes the offensive!

This attack of the police could not lead to an withdrawal of the antifascists, in contrary, it strengthened them, increased the number of struggling antifascist forces and put the slogan „steel town against fascism“ as the main slogan of the demonstration.

The demonstration also showed the crisis of reformism. The effort to isolate the struggling forces from the demonstration failed all along the line. But the resolut forces could be strenghtened and could represent an classconscious line in antifascist struggle.

It have to be clear for all consequent antifascist forces how important the experiances of this demonstration are for a new uprising of antifascism in Austria. The demonstration proved in praxis that revisionism in bancrott and the time for the offensive of struggling antifascists has come.

We call all activists and antifascists to use this victory for developing in every part of Austria the offensive in the antifascist struggle.