New issue of Arabic communist magazine – The African Revolution

We are pleased to announce the publication of the fifteenth issue of Freedom and Communism, the Arabic-language magazine of the Revolutionary Communist International. This issue focuses on the crimes of imperialism and revolutionary struggles on the African continent. Click here to download a pdf of the full magazine in Arabic.

Fifty years ago this year, a revolution rocked Ethiopia, overthrowing the semi-feudal despotism of Emperor Haile Selassie. As elsewhere on the African continent in the post-World War II period (including Somalia, Mozambique and Angola), the revolution culminated in the elimination of landlordism as well as capitalism, and began the process of building a nationalised planned economy. But rather than sparking a continent-wide socialist revolution, Ethiopia took on the same distorted characteristics as Russia's Stalinist regime. In this issue, we take a look at the particular historical circumstances that gave the Ethiopian Revolution this character.

In the anti-colonial struggles that rocked Africa after World War II, one name in particular stands out: Frantz Fanon, author of The Wretched of the Earth. This text is regularly cited as a guide for anti-imperialist struggles around the world, but often falls victim to academic 'postcolonial' interpretations. This issue therefore includes a Marxist critique of The Wretched of the Earth, explaining the strengths and weaknesses of Fanon’s ideas.

A series of recent coups across West Africa has highlighted the hatred that exists towards French imperialism, which until the mid-20th century kept the region under its colonial control and still maintained its hegemony until the present. In this issue we look at the crimes of French imperialism, specifically in Cameroon. The article tackles the legacy of French imperialism’s colonial war in Cameroon, how their methods have changed, and the lessons of the anti-imperialist struggle for today.

We also publish a new translation of Lenin's foundational essay ‘Where to Begin?’, improving on the inaccurate translation of this seminal text that is currently available to Arabic-speaking readers. In ‘Where to Begin?’, Lenin outlined many of the tactics and methods that played a key role in building the forces of the communist movement in Russia.

Africa today is a powder keg that has witnessed mass movements, coups and wars that have erupted across the length and breadth of the continent. The lessons of this rich revolutionary history are very important for African communists today. The need for genuine communist internationalism, present on every continent, has never been greater.

For this reason, Alan Woods dedicates this issue's editorial (available here in English) to the need for a new communist international. The article also explains why we recently founded a new Revolutionary Communist International to take the struggle for communism to every corner of the globe.

Click here to read issue 15 of Freedom and Communism.