An arms race even more dangerous than at the height of the cold war is upon us.
The defence chiefs of the UK and Germany, have joined with that of France, to warn that families need to prepare their sons and daughters for war and the state needs to up arms spending and invest in the arms industry.
The stage is being set for an imperialist global confrontation over who, and what capitalist system controls the world economy and the profits that can be extracted.
Internal repression of protest and continuing austerity is accompanying this dash for war.
Workers in all countries are the first to suffer and will have to pay the cost while the rich just get richer laughing all the way to the bank: it really is warfare not welfare.
In Cymru, the DARC radar system is part of this build up, as are some of the 13 new weapons factories announced by the government.
Our economy and society is being militarised.
How should socialists respond to this new arms race to achieve ‘welfare not warfare’?
These are other questions will be raised by the panel and in the discussion:
Does the peace movement provide the basis for workers internationally to oppose this arms race?
Is pacifism a basic tenant of being a socialist?
How do we link the campaigns against rearming, genocide in Gaza, attacks on Cuba, Venezuela, Ukraine, countries in the middle east with stopping the arms race?
How do we reconcile the dangers of militarism and the need to preserve jobs?
How do we square support for armed national self defence, with these campaigns?
This online workshop intends to explore these issues with the intention of reviewing the extent to which our current Cymru’n Codi statement on peace may need updating:
This was our tenth workshop, all of which are working toward establishing the basis of a manifesto for consideration at the Cymru’n Codi founding congress in the Autumn of 2025. Here is the report and links to the previous workshops and the decisions made at the 10 May Cymru Radical Left Dialogue meeting that started the process of establishing Cymru’n Codi as an ecosocialist movement for Cymru and internationally.
The discussion paper that had been circulated with the meeting introduction had received considerable comment and suggested changes and these had been incorporated by the meeting. The paper will be updated based upon the points made in the workshop and remains work in progress with the comment facility left open for all members who wish to contribute.
Report of the meeting – points made in discussion and contributions
Ciaran gave an introduction outlining the shifting social understandings of disability leading up to the care versus profit situation we now have with neoliberal capitalism where a ‘disabled person is seen as an unproductive economic unit’. Ciaran produced an excellent set of PPS which are well worth spending time viewing.
21% Cymru population define themselves as disabled; 1/10 provide unpaid care; 117k sought LA adult social care or advice; impairment can does happen to all of us at some time in our life.
In Cymru austerity and the political failure to fight it has delayed and decimated support. Now covered up with a plethora of statements and intentions but no action.
Of our 10 proposed demands – ensuring that the needs of all who require support are heard and met and these needs are expressed by activists not coopted committees.
There is an overabundance of statements about what should be done but there is no money or enforcement mechanism. Too many hoops to go through to get support result in provision being all sticks and no carrots.
There is much care and support that is provided free however this is not recognised as having a similar status to formal employment, so is ignored.
A key to developing support is to separate out the impairment from disability so the latter becomes recognised as a social issue for society to address, not the individual.
Basically care and profit do not work – only those who make profit benefit. Quotas for private sector spending drove privatisation.
We thought that the Social Services and Wellbeing Act would place the emphasis on the social model of disability but it has just led to more tick boxing/bureaucracy. My local council acknowledges the “care” aspect but fails to recognise the “support” aspect. There has to be political will to change but how much control do governments have anymore? Money talks….
Private providers take what is profitable and leave the LA and NHS to pick up the pieces and provide training.
Collectively power must be in the hands of those who are disabled if a political will is going to be created. A key demand and principle has to be ‘nothing about us without us’.
The police are currently using the phrase ‘behaviour disturbance’ to justify constraint and sectioning. This power must be removed.
Sign language should be on the curriculum alongside and with the same status as other languages.
The Covid pandemic was an example of mass social murder and the is still affecting people who are being forcefully exposed and disabled – unlike the rich who can afford environmental protection.
Fel y mae llawer ohonoch yn gwybod rydym wedi bod yn gweithio tuag at lansio mudiad ecosialaidd newydd o’r enw; Cymru’n Codi.
Hyd yn hyn mae dros 200 ohonom wedi gweithio gyda’n gilydd yn drawsbleidiol, dros y ddwy flynedd ddiwethaf i ddechrau dadlau’r achos dros ddewis amgen radical i’r problemau yr ydym i gyd yn eu hwynebu. Ein nod yw cynnal cynhadledd sefydlu yn gynnar yn yr hydref a bod mewn sefyllfa i gefnogi mewn cynghrair a sefyll ymgeiswyr yn etholiadau’r Senedd ac etholiadau’r cyngor, yn ogystal â chefnogi pob ymgyrch yn gyson mewn ffyrdd sy’n bwrw ymlaen â’r nodau.
Mae’r blaned yn llosgi, mae hil-laddiad yn cael ei gyflawni’n ddyddiol, mae ein dyfodol yn cael ei gymryd oddi wrthym, i gyd i wneud y cyfoethog yn gyfoethocach, tra eu bod yn noddi gwleidyddiaeth casineb i danseilio unrhyw wrthwynebiad
Rydych chi’n gwybod nad oes rhaid iddo fod fel hyn.
Nid yn unig y gallwn ymgyrchu a gwrthsefyll yr ymosodiadau hyn – gallwn hefyd fynd gam mawr ymhellach a dechrau cynnig, dadlau o blaid, a hyd yn oed ddechrau gweithredu camau gweithredu a pholisïau a all atal camfanteisio a chynyddu elw yn ei draciau.
Mae’n bosibl cymryd rheolaeth gyhoeddus ar y cyd dros gyfoeth a gwerth yr hyn rydym yn ei gynhyrchu a’i ddefnyddio yn lle hynny i ddiwallu gwir anghenion pobl, y blaned, mewn heddwch ac nid er elw.
Mewn gwirionedd gallwn ddechrau gwneud hyn yng Nghymru, fel ysbrydoliaeth i weithwyr yn rhyngwladol.
Gallwn er enghraifft: ddod â thoriadau llymder i ben; anelu at allyriadau sero net erbyn 2030; rhoi diwedd ar dlodi; rhoi terfyn ar bob gormes a hiliaeth; sicrhau bod pawb sydd â nam yn cael eu galluogi; sicrhau tai i bawb; rheoli rhenti a throi allan; cyflawni dysgu gydol oes am ddim i bawb; cadw GIG sy’n eiddo cyhoeddus sy’n darparu am ddim pan fo angen; dod â’r holl gyfleustodau a thrafnidiaeth ar unwaith o dan reolaeth gyhoeddus gyfunol. Gallwn adeiladu economi lwyddiannus drwy ddiwallu’r anghenion hyn.
Ar ben hynny, yn rhyngwladol, gallwn fel cymdeithas a gwlad, sefyll yn erbyn hil-laddiad, cefnogi erlyn troseddwyr rhyfel, sicrhau bod ffoaduriaid a’r rhai sydd angen lloches yn cael eu trin â pharch a dynoliaeth, a chefnogi diplomyddiaeth dros heddwch yn hytrach na’u hailgodi ar gyfer rhyfel. Gallwn weithio gyda phleidiau eraill yn y DU ac yn rhyngwladol i gyflawni hyn.
Gallwn yng Nghymru fwrw ymlaen â’r holl gamau hyn a mwy pe baem hefyd yn annibynnol.
As many of you know, we have been working toward launching a new ecosocialist movement; Cymru’n Codi (Cymru Rising).
So far over 200 of us have worked together, cross-party, over the last two years to start to make the case for a radical alternative to the problems we all face. We aim to have a founding conference in the early autumn and be in a position to support in alliance and stand candidates in the Senedd elections and council elections, as well as constantly support all campaigns in ways that take the aims forward.
The planet is burning, genocide is being carried out daily, our futures are being taken from us, all to make the rich richer, while they sponsor the politics of hate to undermine any opposition.
You know it does not have to be like this.
Not only can we campaign and resist these attacks – we also can go a big step further and start to propose, argue for, and even start to implement actions and policies that can stop exploitation and profit maximising in its tracks.
It is possible to take collective public control of the wealth and value of what we produce and use it instead to meet the real needs of people, the planet, in peace and not for profit.
In fact we can start to do this in Cymru, as an inspiration for workers internationally.
We can for example: end austerity cuts; aim for net zero emissions by 2030; end poverty; end all oppression and racism; ensure all who are impaired are enabled; ensure housing for all; control rents and evictions; achieve free life long learning for all; keep a publicly owned NHS that delivers free at the point of need; bring all utilities and transport immediately under collective public control. We can build a successful economy by meeting these needs.
Moreover, internationally, we can as a society and country, take a stand against genocide, support the prosecution of war criminals, ensure refugees and those that need asylum are treated with respect and humanity, and support diplomacy for peace as opposed to rearming for war. We can work with other parties in the UK and internationally to achieve this.
We can in Cymru take all these actions forward and more if we were also independent.
Cymru'n Codi - Cymru Rising 