The Struggle Pakistan
The Struggle is a Trotskyist, left-wing organization in Pakistan whose main theoretician was Lal Khan. The paper organ or magazine known as طبقاتی جہدوجہد has been published by the organization for last 42 years.
Formation
The origins of the Struggle Group trace back to November 1980 in the Netherlands, when several Pakistani leftist activists Farooq Tariq, Tanvir Gondal, Muhammed Amjad, and Ayub Gorya fled Pakistan to escape the repression of General Zia-ul-Haq and found themselves in Amsterdam. While in exile, they discussed strategies to challenge Zia’s military regime and developed the concept for a progressive organization they named the Struggle Group, aimed at sustaining political activism abroad.That same month, the group launched a monthly Urdu magazine, Jeddojehad. The publication soon gained a following among the Pakistani diaspora and featured contributions from poets such as Habib Jalib, Ahmad Faraz, and Faiz Ahmed Faiz, who wrote revolutionary and anti-dictatorship poetry. In December 1984, the magazine published Main Baaghi Hoon by Khalid Javaid Jan, a poem that became well known for its defiant tone and was recited in underground protests against the Zia regime.
While in exile, the Struggle Group organized demonstrations against military rule, including a mass funeral for Zulfikar Ali Bhutto outside the Pakistani embassy in the Netherlands, attended by nearly 500 people. Some participants threw stones at the embassy windows, and Farooq Tariq was briefly arrested by Dutch police. Their activism, along with attempts by Pakistani authorities to have them detained, increased their profile among leftist and progressive movements in Europe. They also campaigned on labor rights, anti-racism, immigrant issues, and anti-nuclear policies in collaboration with European leftist parties. During this period, the group developed links with the Committee for a Workers' International, a Trotskyist international network.
Pakistan work and splits
In 1986, the Struggle group started working from Pakistani soil when Farooq Tariq and Lal Khan returned to Pakistan. The Struggle followed a strategy known as Entryism, a theory that small militant groups should join mainstream workers’ parties in order to pull them to the left. The strategy is employed in an attempt to expand influence and was advocated by Trotsky. The Struggle at this stage was the official section of CWI in Pakistan and thus worked within PPP.CWI and 1990s split
In the early 1990s, the Committee for a Workers' International split over the question of Entryism. Peter Taaffe, a prominent member of its English section, advocated an Open Turn toward building an independent workers’ organization. Ted Grant opposed this, supporting continued work within mainstream workers’ parties. The Struggle also divided along these lines. Farooq Tariq and about a dozen members followed Taaffe’s approach, forming an independent political party for workers in Pakistan. The faction led by Lal Khan remained in the PPP, applying the entryist strategy first advocated by Leon Trotsky.IMT and 2016 split
In 2016, The Struggle experienced a significant split over disagreements regarding the party's orientation and approach. A faction led by Adam Pal formed the Lal Salaam organization, arguing that The Struggle had become stagnant and out of touch with evolving political realities. Lal Salaam stated that the leadership had fallen into a routine, repeating ideas and slogans they considered outdated and no longer relevant to the current political landscape. They argued this had hindered the organization's ability to adapt and effectively engage with the working class.The Struggle attributed the split to what it described as the IMT's "total degeneration and sectarianism" as well as the "bureaucratic behavior" of its leadership. It maintained that these factors, rather than differences in political orientation, were the primary reasons for its departure.
ISL and 2023 split
At the end of 2021, a delegation from The Struggle attended the first congress of the International Socialist League and subsequently affiliated with the organization. The ISL describes itself as a revolutionary international bringing together parties and activists from different traditions, committed to "healthy democratic centralism" and united action in class struggles worldwide.In 2022, debates arose within the ISL over the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The Socialist Laborers Party of Turkey left the ISL, arguing that its emphasis on the “defeat of Russia” aligned with NATO’s goals, and stating that socialists should oppose their own imperialist states. The discussions also led to a split in The Struggle. One faction remained affiliated with the ISL, while the other advocated a return to entryist tactics. Members of the latter have accused The Struggle’s leadership of moving away from Ted Grant’s political tradition and toward a “New Left” approach influenced by Morenoism. The ISL and The Struggle leadership reject this characterization, maintaining that their affiliation reflects a commitment to a broad revolutionary project uniting diverse socialist traditions.