A National Convention of the Left is to be held on April 25-26-27th, 1969, and a Preparatory Commission has been formed to be responsible for it. The Convention, open to all organisations, groupings and individuals who share its broad [illegible] the left [illegible] in ideas, programmes and action. Each separate radical campaign, and socialists within the labour movement, confront the same unified system of power and priorities; a political consensus is managed in the two-party system to exclude alternative definitions. In the face of this coherent centre of power, the left's fragmentation is a continuing weakness. It has been overcome only temporarily and partially in particular campaigns and demonstrations, over Vietnam and the Bomb. But solidarity in demonstrations does not suffice [illegible].
It is intended that the Convention will establish some basis of agreement among its participants, and that in any case it will enable important differences to be clarified. To define, as socialists and radicals, the central issues of contemporary politics, against the official consensus and before the electoral cycle builds up to its next misleading climax, would itself be a positive step, and it is intended that this shall be done in a visible and convincing way.
The Convention will, as its second major task, discuss forms of action in relation to these issues. There will clearly be important differences of approach here, not least in regard to the parliamentary system, but it is hoped within the framework of some agreed definitions of issues and objectives. It is intended that the Convention's discussion of forms of action will [illegible].
The Convention will be organised by a Preparatory Commission which is open to all groups who wish to be represented. This general statement of aims is the decision of its first full meeting, and preparations therefore remain at an early stage.
To define the [illegible] of discussion, Commissions [illegible] prior to [illegible] the Convention. These Commissions, which are again open, will prepare draft documents to be submitted to the main Convention. Much of the Convention's work, in clarifying issues, programmes and forms of action, will be done by these Commissions. While the final documents to be presented to the Convention by each Commission must necessarily be brief, it is intended that a great deal of preliminary work should have gone into each of them.
Concurrently, an organising committee will be meeting, but both the Commissions and this committee will be responsible, and will regularly report back, to the full Preparatory Commission on which all groups can be equally represented.
The Convention will be held over a weekend from Friday evening April 25th. The first session, Friday evening, will be given over to the Commissions; the sessions on Saturday to a full Convention discussion of issues and programmes; the Sunday sessions will all be devoted to a discussion of forms of action.
The form of representation to the Convention has not yet been decided, but delegates are invited from any groups that wish to participate.