International Working Union of Socialist Parties
Encyclopedia
The International Working Union of Socialist Parties (IWUSP; also known as 2½ International or the Vienna International; , IASP) was a political international
for the co-operation of socialist
parties.
, Austria
by ten parties, including the Independent Social Democratic Party of Germany
(USPD), the French Section of the Workers' International
(SFIO), the Independent Labour Party
(ILP), the Social Democratic Party of Switzerland
(SPS), the Social Democratic Party of Austria
(SPÖ), and the Federation of Romanian Socialist Parties
(FPSR, successor to the Socialist Party of Romania
). In April 1921, it was joined by the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party
. The Maximalist
faction of the Italian Socialist Party
(PSI) also joined.
of the SPÖ; other prominent members were Victor Adler
, Otto Bauer
and Julius Martov
. The group was heavily influenced by Austromarxism
. It published Nachrichten der Internationalen Arbeitsgemeinschaft Sozialistischen Parteien ("News of IWUSP"). Poale Zion
(labour Zionist) leaders David Ben Gurion and Shlomo Kaplansky
were active in the movement behind the Two and a Half International.
Second International nor the Communist
and pro-Soviet
Third International
as alternatives for affiliation. The IWUSP criticized the other two Internationals for what it perceived to be dogma
tism, and advocated that more consideration should be given to the particularities of the political situation in each country. It worked for the unification of the Second and Third Internationals. From April 2 to April 5, 1922 a meeting was held in Berlin
with delegations from the three different international bodies to discuss a merger, but unity could not be achieved and the Comintern withdrew from the talks.
(SPD), a member of the Second International. Discouraged by the intransigent position of the Third International, at the joint congress with the Second International held in Hamburg
in May 1923 IWUSP merged with it to form the Labour and Socialist International
. Some, such as the FPSR, refused to join the new body.
In the 1930s, a similar effort was made to create an international between the reformism of the Second and the Stalinism
of the Third, as the London Bureau
of left-wing socialist parties. Sometimes called the "Three-and-a-Half International", it involved many of the same parties.
Political international
A political international is a trans-national organisation of political parties or activists. The international works together on points of agreement to co-ordinate activity....
for the co-operation of socialist
Socialism
Socialism is an economic system characterized by social ownership of the means of production and cooperative management of the economy; or a political philosophy advocating such a system. "Social ownership" may refer to any one of, or a combination of, the following: cooperative enterprises,...
parties.
History
IWUSP was founded on February 27, 1921 at a conference in ViennaVienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
by ten parties, including the Independent Social Democratic Party of Germany
Independent Social Democratic Party of Germany
The Independent Social Democratic Party of Germany was a short-lived political party in Germany during the Second Reich and the Weimar Republic. The organization was established in 1917 as the result of a split of left wing members of the Social Democratic Party of Germany...
(USPD), the French Section of the Workers' International
Section française de l'Internationale ouvrière
The French Section of the Workers' International , founded in 1905, was a French socialist political party, designed as the local section of the Second International...
(SFIO), the Independent Labour Party
Independent Labour Party
The Independent Labour Party was a socialist political party in Britain established in 1893. The ILP was affiliated to the Labour Party from 1906 to 1932, when it voted to leave...
(ILP), the Social Democratic Party of Switzerland
Social Democratic Party of Switzerland
The Social Democratic Party of Switzerland is the largest centre-left political party in Switzerland....
(SPS), the Social Democratic Party of Austria
Social Democratic Party of Austria
The Social Democratic Party of Austria is one of the oldest political parties in Austria. The SPÖ is one of the two major parties in Austria, and has ties to trade unions and the Austrian Chamber of Labour. The SPÖ is among the few mainstream European social-democratic parties that have preserved...
(SPÖ), and the Federation of Romanian Socialist Parties
Romanian Social Democratic Party (defunct)
The Romanian Social Democratic Party was a social-democratic political party in Romania. It published the magazine România Muncitoare, and later Socialismul, Lumea Nouă, and Libertatea.-Early party:...
(FPSR, successor to the Socialist Party of Romania
Socialist Party of Romania
The Socialist Party of Romania was a Romanian socialist political party, created on December 11, 1918 by members of the Romanian Social Democratic Party , after the latter emerged from clandestinity...
). In April 1921, it was joined by the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party
Spanish Socialist Workers' Party
The Spanish Socialist Workers' Party is a social-democratic political party in Spain. Its political position is Centre-left. The PSOE is the former ruling party of Spain, until beaten in the elections of November 2011 and the second oldest, exceeded only by the Partido Carlista, founded in...
. The Maximalist
Maximum programme
In Marxist theory, a maximum programme consists of a series of demands which will achieve socialism.The concept of a maximum programme comes from the Erfurt Programme of the SPD, later mirrored by much of the Socialist International. The maximum is contrasted with a minimum programme of immediate...
faction of the Italian Socialist Party
Italian Socialist Party
The Italian Socialist Party was a socialist and later social-democratic political party in Italy founded in Genoa in 1892.Once the dominant leftist party in Italy, it was eclipsed in status by the Italian Communist Party following World War II...
(PSI) also joined.
Members
The secretary of IWUSP was the Austrian Friedrich AdlerFriedrich Adler (1879-1960)
Friedrich Wolfgang Adler was an Austrian politician, lobbyist and revolutionary. He is perhaps best known for his assassination of Count Karl von Stürgkh in 1916....
of the SPÖ; other prominent members were Victor Adler
Victor Adler
----Victor Adler was an Austrian Social Democratic leader.Born in Prague, Adler received a university degree in Vienna in 1881. He founded the Socialist movement in Austria and created the Marxist journals Gleicheit in 1886 and Arbeiter-Zeitung in 1889...
, Otto Bauer
Otto Bauer
Otto Bauer was an Austrian Social Democrat who is considered one of the leading thinkers of the left socialist Austro-Marxist tendency...
and Julius Martov
Julius Martov
Julius Martov or L. Martov was born in Constantinople in 1873...
. The group was heavily influenced by Austromarxism
Austromarxism
Austromarxism was a Marxist theoretical current, led by Victor Adler, Otto Bauer, Karl Renner and Max Adler, members of the Social Democratic Workers' Party of Austria during the late decades of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy and the First Austrian Republic...
. It published Nachrichten der Internationalen Arbeitsgemeinschaft Sozialistischen Parteien ("News of IWUSP"). Poale Zion
Poale Zion
Poale Zion was a Movement of Marxist Zionist Jewish workers circles founded in various cities of the Russian Empire about the turn of the century after the Bund rejected Zionism in 1901.-Formation and early years:Poale Zion parties and organisations were started across the Jewish diaspora in the...
(labour Zionist) leaders David Ben Gurion and Shlomo Kaplansky
Shlomo Kaplansky
Shlomo Kaplansky was a Labour Zionist politician, who served as the Secretary of the World Union of Poalei Zion. During the 1920's he was a leading advocate of a bi-national state in Palestine....
were active in the movement behind the Two and a Half International.
Ideology
The founders of IWUSP were parties that saw neither the reformistReformism
Reformism is the belief that gradual democratic changes in a society can ultimately change a society's fundamental economic relations and political structures...
Second International nor the Communist
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
and pro-Soviet
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
Third International
Comintern
The Communist International, abbreviated as Comintern, also known as the Third International, was an international communist organization initiated in Moscow during March 1919...
as alternatives for affiliation. The IWUSP criticized the other two Internationals for what it perceived to be dogma
Dogma
Dogma is the established belief or doctrine held by a religion, or a particular group or organization. It is authoritative and not to be disputed, doubted, or diverged from, by the practitioners or believers...
tism, and advocated that more consideration should be given to the particularities of the political situation in each country. It worked for the unification of the Second and Third Internationals. From April 2 to April 5, 1922 a meeting was held in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
with delegations from the three different international bodies to discuss a merger, but unity could not be achieved and the Comintern withdrew from the talks.
Dissolution
In Germany on September 24, 1922, the USPD, one of the main components of IWUSP, merged with the Social Democratic Party of GermanySocial Democratic Party of Germany
The Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany...
(SPD), a member of the Second International. Discouraged by the intransigent position of the Third International, at the joint congress with the Second International held in Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
in May 1923 IWUSP merged with it to form the Labour and Socialist International
Labour and Socialist International
The Labour and Socialist International was an international organization of socialist and labour parties, active between 1923 and 1940. The LSI was a forerunner of the present-day Socialist International....
. Some, such as the FPSR, refused to join the new body.
In the 1930s, a similar effort was made to create an international between the reformism of the Second and the Stalinism
Stalinism
Stalinism refers to the ideology that Joseph Stalin conceived and implemented in the Soviet Union, and is generally considered a branch of Marxist–Leninist ideology but considered by some historians to be a significant deviation from this philosophy...
of the Third, as the London Bureau
International Revolutionary Marxist Centre
The International Revolutionary Marxist Centre was an international association of left-socialist parties. The member-parties rejected both mainstream social democracy and the Third International.-Organizational history:...
of left-wing socialist parties. Sometimes called the "Three-and-a-Half International", it involved many of the same parties.
External links
- Archive of the International Working Union of Socialist Parties
- A Communist view on the Conference of the Three Internationals
- The Second and Third Internationals and the Vienna Union The proceedings of the Berlin conference