Socialism and Democracy in Europe Part 31

The close understanding of the workers, of the proletarians of every country, is necessary as well to beat back the forces of aggression and war as to prepare by a concerted action the general triumph of Socialism. The international agreement of the militant proletarians of every country will prepare the triumph of a free humanity, where the differences of cla.s.ses will have disappeared, and the difference of nations, instead of being a principle of strife and hatred, will be a principle of brotherly emulation in the universal progress of mankind.

It is in this sense and for these reasons that the Socialist party has formulated in its congresses the rule and aim of its action--international understanding of the workers; political and economic organization of the proletariat as a cla.s.s party for the conquest of government and the socialization of the means of production and exchange; that is to say, the transformation of capitalist society into a collectivist or communist society.

_II.--Program of Reforms_

The Socialist party, rejecting the policy of all or nothing, has a program of reforms whose realization it pursues forthwith.

(1) _Democratization of Public Authorities_

1. Universal direct suffrage, without distinction of s.e.x, in every election.

2. Reduction of time of residence. Votes to be cast for lists, with proportional representation, in every election.

3. Legislative measures to secure the freedom and secrecy of the vote.

4. Popular right of initiative and referendum.

5. Abolition of the Senate and Presidency of the Republic. The powers at present belonging to the President of the Republic and the Cabinet to devolve on an executive council appointed by the Parliament.

6. Legal regulation of the legislator's mandate, to be revocable by the vote of any absolute majority of his const.i.tuents on the register.

7. Admission of women to all public functions.

8. Absolute freedom of the press, and of a.s.sembly guaranteed only by the common law. Abrogation of all exceptional laws on the press.

Freedom of civil a.s.sociations.

9. Full administrative autonomy of the departments and communes, under no reservations but that of the laws guaranteeing the republican, democratic, and secular character of the State.

(2) _Complete Secularization of the State_

1. Separation of the Churches and the State; abolition of the Budget of Public Worship; freedom of public worship; prohibition of the political and collective action of the Churches against the civil laws and republican liberties.

2. Abolition of the congregations; nationalization of the property in mortmain, of every kind, belonging to them, and appropriation of it for works of social insurance and solidarity; in the interval, all industrial, agricultural, and commercial undertakings are to be forbidden to the congregations.

(3) _Democratic and Humane Organization of Justice_

1. Subst.i.tution for all the present courts, whether civil or criminal, of courts composed of a jury taken from the electoral register and judges elected under guarantees of competence; the jury to be formed by drawing lots from lists drawn up by universal suffrage.

2. Justice to be without fee. Transformation of ministerial offices into public functions. Abolition of the monopoly of the bar.

3. Examination from opposite sides at every stage and on every point.

4. Subst.i.tution for the vindictive character of the present punishments, of a system for the safe keeping and the amelioration of convicts.

5. Abolition of the death penalty.

6. Abolition of the military and naval courts.

(4) _Const.i.tution of the Family in conformity with Individual Rights_

1. Abrogation of every law establishing the civil inferiority of women and natural or adulterine children.

2. Most liberal legislation on divorce. A law sanctioning inquiry into paternity.

(5) _Civic and Technical Education_

1. Education to be free of charge at every stage.

2. Maintenance of the children in elementary schools at the expense of the public bodies.

3. For secondary and higher education, the community to pay for those of the children who on examination are p.r.o.nounced fit usefully to continue their studies.

4. Creation of a popular higher education.

5. State monopoly of education at the three stages; as a means towards this, all members of the regular and secular clergy to be forbidden to open and teach in a school.

(6) _General recasting of the System of Taxation upon Principles of Social Solidarity_

1. Abolition of every tax on articles of consumption which are primary necessaries, and of the four direct contributions;[1] accessorily, relief from taxation of all small plots of land and small professional businesses.[2]

2. Progressive income-tax, levied on each person's income as a whole, in all cases where it exceeds 3,000 francs (120).

3. Progressive tax on inheritances, the scale of progression being calculated with reference both to the amount of the inheritance and the degree of remoteness of the relationship.

4. The State to be empowered to seek a part of the revenue which it requires from certain monopolies.

(7) _Legal Protection and Regulation of Labor in Industry, Commerce, and Agriculture_

1. One day's rest per week, or prohibition of employers to exact work more than six days in seven.

2. Limitation of the working-day to eight hours; as a means towards this, vote of every regulation diminishing the length of the working-day.

3. Prohibition of the employment of children under fourteen; half-time system for young persons, productive labor being combined with instruction and education.

4. Prohibition of night-work for women and young persons. Prohibition of night-work for adult workers of all categories and in all industries where night-work is not absolutely necessary.

5. Legislation to protect home-workers.

6. Prohibition of piece-work and of truck. Legal recognition of blacklisting.