Corbyn as Labour Party leader is huge victory for Britain
Jeremy Corbyn's smashing victory as the new Labour Party leader with 59.5 per cent of the party's votes cast is no straw in the wind. The Podemos in Spain and Syriza in Greece have already shown that left-wing politics is popular with the people. This is part of a swing to the left by the European people buffeted and weakened by years of austerity forced on them by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Bank and European Central Bank (ECB). The Syriza had to buckle under pressure from the ECB, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French president Francois Hollande.
Corbyn's campaign focussed on an anti-austerity programme. He alone, of all the British leaders, has promised that a Labour government in 2020 will scrap tuition fees, re-nationalise the railways and the energy sector, scrap the "Trident" programme and withdraw from the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO). Corbyn's first act after the election was to address a large gathering in support of refugees at Parliament square. Could any prime minister in India dream of taking such a step? In spite of India's extreme poverty, not only will the NDA and Congress sell off public sector units like the poor sell their ornaments, they will consider proposals like re-nationalisation of public sector units a red rag to the omnipotent corporate sector.
Corbyn was one of the first opponents of the proposal of a coalition attack on the Saddam Hussein government in Iraq. He mocked prime minister Tony Blair's claim that Britain could be nuked in 45 minutes. The coalition troops which captured Iraq could find no nuclear reactors or stored radioactive materials. But Tony "Iraq" Blair mocked Corbyn for his politics of "Alice in Wonderland". Now it is clear that it is Blair who is "Alice".
Now the Labour Party, Podemos and Syriza will have to coordinate in a sustained effort to democratise the European Union (EU). The Syriza government in Greece was forced by the ECB to privatise 50 per cent of its public assets, modify its civil justice system, and insure "no political interference" in the economy. In short, the Greeks have been disempowered. After Corbyn's amazing victory, "austerity" will now be a non-starter in Britain. It is clear that this will remain the central issue until the 2020 general election.
Corbyn is an old friend. We were together in the World Social Forum, including WSF Mumbai in 2004, of which I was one of the organisers. He spent a number of days at our home, met intellectuals and activists in the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), and was especially interested in the political economy of India and it's terribly high poverty rate estimated at 78 per cent at that time. It is about nine per cent lesser now.
When I was in Britain, Corbyn sent us to meet the great Tony Benn who was the life and conscience of the non-party socialist left in Britain. Benn also had an Indian link as his daughter-in-law was Indian. The landslide victory for Corbyn as the Labour leader was understandably deplored by New Labour. It had to be.
Corbyn intends to reverse all pro-corporate policies, including those that are pro-foreign capital and the hated austerity programme with an updated agenda. Benn must be smiling in his grave. Corbyn is also seeking to move away from the imperialist policies of the NATO by promising to move Britain out of that organisation. At the moment, this is a huge victory. It may well turn out to be a deep-rooted democratic revolution.