Opinion of Ho Chi Minh

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Orwell was never a Communist of any description and after his experiences in Spain was noted for his active hostility towards Communists. He was a member of the Independent Labour Party* in the 1930s and it's through the ILP link that he fought for the POUM in Spain. Orwell left the ILP in 1939 in response to the pacifist line it took over the war. He was subsequently a Labour supporter, though his activities never went beyond a bit of canvassing in 1945 (despite a suggestion that he should stand as a candidate in a 'hopeless' seat in the London suburbs). When he informed on suspected Communists in the late 40s he did so with no shame and actually regarded it as his patriotic duty. Americans might be interested to learn that he regarded Henry Wallace as a crypto-communist and hoped he would perform badly in the 1948 Presidential election.

_{*The ILP was a very left wing socialist party but was never even properly Marxist let alone Communist; attempts by fellow travellers to take it over had actually been thwarted in the 1920s. It was opposed to capitalism, but mostly on the grounds that capitalism was immoral.}