Dear Comrades, Please accept our solidarity with your struggle in the interest of the Indian peoples. We are convinced that your Congress will mark an important step towards the goal of fairer, more democratic and more ecological society in India. The draft of your Congress resolution shows us, that many issues of the political debate in India are similar to those in Europe, in Germany. So you might allow us to contribute some thoughts from our point of view. The struggle against austerity which is one of the main pillars of neo-liberalism is a pivotal task for the Left in Europe. Greece is the country in Europe which has suffered most from the financial crisis and EU austerity politics. 207 billion Euros were paid to help Greece, but 90 percent went into the financial market and the banks, not into the Greek household. Together with the bailout, Greece was forced to implement several neo-liberal measures like privatisation, job cuts in the public sector, heavy cuts in social services, cuts in social programmes. The consequences of this politics are disastrous: The debt ratio of Greece did not fall, but it is bigger than before. The unemployment rate increased to 25.8 percent, and more than 50 percent of the youth is unemployed. The suicide rate in Greece has increased by 45 percent. Child mortality has increased by 43 percent. Nearly two thirds of the Greek population live near or under the poverty level. One third of the Greek population could not afford heating last winter. The landslide victory of the Greek Left in January brought back hope and optimism to the people in Greece and to the Left in Europe. The new Syriza government has already started to fight the humanitarian crisis with free electricity, free meals and free health care for the poorest. They will negotiate about reducing the debts of Greece and they have stopped austerity measures. It is not clear yet, if the Left government in Greece will win their struggles, or if there will be too many compromises on their path. But it is already clear, that the fight of Syriza made big changes in Europe – except the German government, which is still stubborn – many European leaders now are forced to rethink their former politics. And we also see that a lot of solidarity is needed in this fight, and that the Left government in Greece has to get all the support it needs. This is the lesson for us: the world can be changed, if we stand up together! Another aspect that the DIE LINKE in Germany is worrying about is the rise of xenophobia and racism. The emergence of new right wing populist parties in Europe is just one aspect. We also experience in Germany a new rise of racist demonstrations against Muslims and against refugees. Not only on the streets but in social media, newspaper comments, in pubs and in chats with their neighbours, one can read and hear the rise of racist sentiments. It is not just a problem of social injustice that leads to tensions like these, and it is not a problem of the “extremist edges” of the political landscape, but it is something rooted in the middle of our society. Often the racist arguments are mixed with mistrust against democracy and media. The loss of trust in the political system combined with racism is a dangerous development. A third topic that we DIE LINKE are dealing with is the struggle against the free trade agreements like TTIP, CETA or TPP. These agreements are an assault on democracy; they are agreements downright preventing democracy. They lead to a ruthless competition for the lowest social and environment standards and create privileged rights of action for big corporations on both sides of the Atlantic. DIE LINKE will further do its utmost to thwart those plans. We ourselves will debate the questions of a Left perspective towards the future “Left Future Week” shortly after your Congress, at the end of April: How do we want to work in the future? How can we develop our society? How can we combine ecological and social needs? How can we transform a capitalist economy focused on accumulation of wealth into sustainable economy focused on prosperity for everyone? How can we democratise economy? So DIE LINKE in Germany and CPI(M) in India are discussing similar questions under the specific conditions of our countries. It is important that the Left never loses the view to the future and the vision of a better world, without exploitation, hunger, poverty and war, a just, fair and sustainable world. That is what Left policy is about. In this sense, we wish you a successful Congress with fruitful debates and a warm atmosphere. We fight similar fights all over the world. And we need to strengthen our solidarity with other Leftists all over the world. The struggles that lie ahead of us can only be won in solidarity. So, again, we send our warmest regards to our comrades in India. Comradely, Katja Kipping Bernd Riexinger