Page - 193 - in Otto Bauer (1881–1938) - Thinker and Politician

the ‘thirdway’ to socialism 193 supporttheideaofAnschluss,anditfoundlittlesupportfromtheAustrianpro- letariat.Nonetheless, Bauer’s attempts towin the sdapmajoritywere rewar- ded: on 1November 1918, the party assembly declaredAustria’sAnschluss to theGermanempireasoneofitsobjectivesandanecessarycomponentforthe successofrevolutioninAustria.Giventhedefeatthepartyleadershadsuffered against theEntentecountries in their struggle forAnschlussenshrined in the Treatyof Saint-Germain-en-Laye signedon21October 1919, it is unsurprising that revolutionary enthusiasm cooled off in the Social-Democratic sections. AccordingtoBauer,thebanonAnschlusswassynonymouswithweakeningthe positionoftheAustrianworkingclass–granted,hewasnotwrongonthis.61 Bauerneverresignedhimself tothe ideathatAustriamightremainoutside ofGermany.TheAnschlussquestionwasmoreenshrined inhis revolutionary theory than onemight assume based on his statements alone. His polemic against a proponent of the ‘new left’ in 1920 is telling in this respect: Bauer attempted to prove that the revolution had not yet fulfilled the targets of a bourgeois revolution and could therefore not set itself any socialist goals.62 He gave Anschluss the special, missionary task of consolidating the demo- craticpolitical systemthathadbeenestablishedwiththeproclamationof the republic. Thiswasprecisely thepolitical objective that the SocialDemocrats set for therevolutioninAustria.63Asacase inpoint, thepartycongressof the sdapdeclaredthatpreservingpeaceandthestruggle fordemocracywerethe primaryobjectivesof theworkers’party.Thepositionof theSocialDemocrats at the timedidnot deviate fromofficial statementsmadeby representatives of theparties thatbelongedtotheSecondInternational.At the1920congress, theyadoptedaresolutionwhichcondemnedtheBolshevikexperimentandthe introductionof theproletariandictatorship.The resolution spokeof aneces- sitytowinpoliticalpowerbydemocraticmeansandparliamentwasanointed apivotal role inthestruggle.64 Thistactichadnorealisticchanceofsuccess inthesocio-politicalsituation at the time. The year 1919 signalled the beginning of an era: the bourgeois parties pushed the proletariat onto the defensive, the petty bourgeoisie and peasantrymobilisedagainst theworkingclass, the influenceof SocialDemo- cracyinthemilitaryevaporated,andparamilitaryorganisationswerefounded. Thefallof theCommunistgovernments inBavariaandHungaryhadnosmall 61 SeeBauer1920b,p.253. 62 Ibid. 63 Löwsharesthispointofview–seeLöw1980,p.43. 64 SeeCongressprotocols of theSecond International, Vol. 2, inDocuments, Programmes, Protocols,pp.38–9.