Rosa Luxemburg Conference 2024: mapping the decline of imperialism

𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙋𝙖𝙡𝙚𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙚 𝙗𝙡𝙤𝙘 𝙖𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙇𝙞𝙚𝙗𝙠𝙣𝙚𝙘𝙝𝙩-𝙇𝙪𝙭𝙚𝙢𝙗𝙪𝙧𝙜 𝘿𝙚𝙢𝙤𝙣𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣. 𝙎𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙘𝙚: 𝙕𝙚𝙩𝙠𝙞𝙣 𝙁𝙤𝙧𝙪𝙢 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙎𝙤𝙘𝙞𝙖𝙡 𝙍𝙚𝙨𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙘𝙝

Over the weekend of January 11, the daily newspaper junge Welt hosted the 30th International Rosa Luxemburg Conference in Berlin, gathering over 3,000 attendees from across Germany and other European countries, with tens of thousands more joining via live stream. Under the slogan “The last stand: How dangerous is imperialism in decline?” participants engaged in debates on crucial issues. Discussions covered the wars in Ukraine and West Asia, the growing threat of world war fueled by NATO provocations against Russia and China, the planned deployment of US medium-range missiles in Germany, and transcontinental resistance movements, particularly in Cuba and Palestine.

The program was as packed as the halls of the Wilhelmshöfe, a former iron-casting factory that shut down a decade ago and now symbolizes the gentrification potential of Wedding, a working-class neighborhood in Berlin. Inside the venue, organizations, publishers, magazines, and collectives displayed their work, while the stage hosted a series of spotlights. Opening the conference from his office in Accra, Kwesi Pratt, General Secretary of the Socialist Movement of Ghana, delivered a powerful speech. Like last year’s speaker, Theodora Pius from Tanzania, Pratt was denied a visa—an irony not lost on the audience, considering the focus of his presentation. Pratt provided insights into the effects of neocolonialism on the African continent, drawing cheers as he described West African struggles against French influence and sovereignty claims, which culminated in the founding of the West Africa Peoples Organization (WAPO).

Interventions from international participants added another dimension to the conference discussions. Clare Daly, former European parliamentary and widely remembered as the voice of reason and conscience in the European Parliament, warned against history repeating itself, stressing that the danger of war remains as real today as it was during the times of Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Liebknecht.

Emilia Neurys, a member of the Central Committee of the Cuban Communist Party, underscored the ongoing struggle against imperialism, stating that “the center of imperialism will not accept the loss of privileges without a fight,” and affirmed “unity as our main weapon.”

Closing the evening on a hopeful note, Peter Mertens, General Secretary of the Workers’ Party of Belgium, shared an inspiring message: the recent success of his party demonstrates that a politics grounded in hope, confidence, and a socialist program for the people—rooted in principles and patience—can be replicated.

The strong participation of young people was another prominent feature of the conference. The Socialist German Workers Youth (SDAJ) organized a program that brought together youth groups from IG Metall, ver.di Youth, and the youth organization of the Federation of Democratic Workers’ Associations (DIDF Youth). These young activists engaged in debates on workers’ struggles, the legitimacy of strikes, and the importance of amplifying youth voices within their organizations.

The discussions also looked into the impact of Germany’s increasing militarization on young people, addressing issues such as the already high cost of living, broken infrastructure, underfunded schools, the potential reintroduction of compulsory military service, and the recurring revelations of right-wing networks within the Bundeswehr, the German armed forces. The participants reached a unanimous conclusion: the fight against imperialism must extend into schools, universities, and workplaces. We are only strong together, the youth’s conclusion states, emphasizing the need for unity in our collective struggle.

The weekend traditionally concludes with the Liebknecht-Luxemburg Demonstration, a march to the Memorial to the Socialists at the Friedrichsfelde Municipal Central Cemetery, where participants lay red carnations to honor murdered working-class leaders Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg. This year’s event, as on previous occasions, began early in the morning with leaders of left-wing parties paying their respects.

However, the demonstration, which drew approximately 10,000 participants, faced repeated police interventions. Authorities cited alleged violations of the official guidelines given to the organizers, such as pro-Palestine chants and the display of red triangles, mistakenly identified and violently sanctioned in Germany as a symbol of the Palestinian group Hamas. Ferat Koçak, a left-wing MP in the House of Representatives who attended as a parliamentary observer, confirmed reports of police violence, including the use of tear gas and physical assaults that left at least four people injured. According to police reports, 31 arrests were made during the event.

🚩¡𝗥𝗼𝘀𝗮 𝗟𝘂𝘅𝗲𝗺𝗯𝘂𝗿𝗴 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗞𝗮𝗿𝗹 𝗟𝗶𝗲𝗯𝗸𝗻𝗲𝗰𝗵𝘁 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗲𝘀!

𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿’𝘀 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘆𝗿𝗱𝗼𝗺 𝗼𝗳 𝗥𝗼𝘀𝗮 𝗟𝘂𝘅𝗲𝗺𝗯𝘂𝗿𝗴 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗞𝗮𝗿𝗹 𝗟𝗶𝗲𝗯𝗸𝗻𝗲𝗰𝗵𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝘆 𝗯𝗿𝘂𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗽𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗯𝗿𝘂𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻. 𝗘𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿, 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘀𝗮𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗕𝗲𝗿𝗹𝗶𝗻’𝘀 𝗙𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗸𝗳𝘂𝗿𝘁 𝗚𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗙𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗱𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗵𝘀𝗳𝗲𝗹𝗱𝗲… 𝗽𝗶𝗰.𝘁𝘄𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿.𝗰𝗼𝗺/𝗳𝟯𝗱𝗹𝘁𝗝𝗸𝗶𝗚𝘂

— 𝗣𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗗𝗶𝘀𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵 (@𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘀𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵) 𝗝𝗮𝗻𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝟭𝟯, 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱

Reflecting the broader wave of repression against popular protests in Germany over the past 15 months, Benjamin Jendro of the police union seized the moment to warn about so-called “left extremism” and called for changes to the right to assembly laws. In contrast to that, the participants of the conference reaffirmed their commitment to collective resistance against far-right repression and imperialism, as inspired by Luxemburg’s and Liebknecht’s lives.