Münzenberg who would hereafter, until his murder in 1940, be mainly involved in anti-fascist work as Europe darkened into the ‘midnight of the century’ on the upcoming First International Anti-Fascist Congress held in Berlin in March, 1929 with Henri Barbusse as patron.

‘The Forthcoming Anti-Fascist Congress in Berlin’ by Willi Münzenberg from International Press Correspondence. Vol. 9 No. 9. February 27, 1929.

The First International Anti-Fascist Congress has been convened by the Committee for the Organisation of an Anti-Fascist Congress, under the Presidency of Henri Barbusse, for the 9th and 10th of March in Berlin. The Congress acquires particularly great importance precisely at the present time. In Italy, Poland, Lithuania and the Balkan countries the fascist regime oppresses more than 100 million people, robs the workers of their right of combination, either in trade unions or in their own political party, persecutes the revolutionary workers, imprisons them, deports them and foully murders hundreds of them. The fascist regime has raged in all countries with special terror and brutality against the revolutionary workers. In the course of the fascist dictatorship many thousand years’ hard labour have been imposed; many hundreds have been banished, hundreds killed. Fascism has today become an international danger for the international working class.

The Congress which has been convened will take place at a time when the fight against fascism is a specially urgent and pressing task. In Yugoslavia King Alexander has carried out a fascist coup d’etat, and his monarchist dictatorship is supported today by the fascist generals uad the governmental means and methods of the fascist regime. Flanked and supported by Italian fascism and by the papacy, which is today. closely allied with the fascist regime, the Austrian Government is promoting and supporting the development and strengthening of the Austrian fascist Heimwehr (Home defence) against the Austrian workers.

The fascist Heimwehr have heavy guns placed at their disposal from the State arsenals and now feel strong enough to hold a demonstration in the historical demonstration place of the Vienna working class.

In Switzerland, the Federal Council of the “most democratic Republic of the world”, is refusing the right of asylum to emigrants expelled by Mussolini and tolerates all fascist machinations in the Italian portion of Switzerland.

In Great Britain the leading captains of industry and banking circles directly and indirectly support the fascist organisations.

Against this international alliance of the fascist dictators there must be set up the international fighting front of all anti-fascist forces. To set up this united common front of all anti-fascist forces is the first and foremost task of the forthcoming International Anti-Fascist Congress.

That this Congress is being called at an appropriate time is proved by the response which the Congress has evoked in all countries and in all anti-fascist circles. In almost all European countries broad anti-fascist committees and organisations have been formed which are carrying out a big campaign for the purpose of popularising the Congress and for the fight against fascism.

Particular activity is displayed by the anti-fascist committees and organisations in Austria, where alongside of Communists and non-party workers a strong group of social democrats is taking part in the anti-fascist campaign.

In Czechoslovakia sixty big demonstrations of the anti-fascist committees are taking place in the next few weeks.

In Great Britain there have already taken place mass meetings of anti-fascist committees in support of the Congress.

In France, Belgium, Holland, Germany, in all other countries broad anti-fascist committees are being formed or are already active.

But the convocation of the Anti-Fascist Congress has met with a response extending far beyond the European countries. A mass demonstration has just been held in New York. Future demonstrations in support of the Anti-Fascist Congress are to be held in Philadelphia, San Francisco, Los Angeles and other big towns in America.

According to the reports at present to hand from the various countries there will be present at the Congress ten delgates from England, twenty from France, ten from Belgium, two from the United States, ten from the Balkan countries, fifteen from Poland, twenty-five to thirty from Italy, five from Spain, two from the Argentine, fifteen from Czechoslovakia, ten from Switzerland, ten from Austria, fifty from Germany etc.

Among the delegates who have been reported are workers who have been elected at big anti-fascist demonstrations, factory delegates, Communists, non-party workers, social democrats, Left democrats and intellectuals who are conducting a fight against fascism in their own country.

Eminent leaders and fighters in the anti-fascist movement have consented to deliver the chief reports at this Congress. Thus Henri Barbusse will speak on “Fascism Imperialism and the war danger.” The well-known leader of the Italian peasants, Miglioli, is to speak on the position of the workers, the peasants and the intellectuals in the fascist countries. It is the task of all workers and all anti-fascist groups and circles to mobilise now in all countries all forces for the Congress and for a broad anti-fascist campaign.

In connection with the Congress there must take place in all countries big meetings and demonstrations against fascism, and when the delegates of the international anti-fascist front meet on the 10th March in Berlin, millions of workers in all countries must demonstrate under the slogans of the anti-Fascist Congress: Down with Fascism! “Up with the revolutionary united front against the fascist dictatorship!”

International Press Correspondence, widely known as”Inprecorr” was published by the Executive Committee of the Communist International (ECCI) regularly in German and English, occasionally in many other languages, beginning in 1921 and lasting in English until 1938. Inprecorr’s role was to supply translated articles to the English-speaking press of the International from the Comintern’s different sections, as well as news and statements from the ECCI. Many ‘Daily Worker’ and ‘Communist’ articles originated in Inprecorr, and it also published articles by American comrades for use in other countries. It was published at least weekly, and often thrice weekly.

PDF of full issue: https://www.marxists.org/history/international/comintern/inprecor/1929/v09n09-feb-22-1929-inprecor.pdf