Socialist Alternative (Malaysia)

It was founded by Ravichandren who had been a member of Socialist Party of Malaysia (PSM) but adopted the ideas of the CWI while living in the UK . On his return to Malaysia he was asked by the leadership of the PSM to choose between the two organisations and so set about forming a section of the CWI.[3]

They believe an independent working class political entity is needed to represent the aspirations and needs of the working class. But to oppose the government is not enough; a programme of demands and a clear strategy to achieve them should also be established.[2] The Socialist Alternative spokesman Yuva Balan explained a key text in Marxist thought by Friedrich Engels The Origin of the Family, Private Property and the State in a radio discussion.[5]

They appear to have a good relationship with the PSM who invited speakers from Committee for a Workers' International to speak at their conference in 2005.[6] The complement was returned in 2006 when V.Selvam, a Central Committee member and founding member of PSM was invited to speak at the conference of Socialist Alternative's sister party in Australia.[7] In 2011 Socialist Alternative took part in a campaign to defend PSM when 30 of its supporters were arrested for "reviving the ‘communism’ of the Malayan Communist Party".[8] A review of Michael Jeyakumar Devaraj’s “Malaysia at the Crossroads, a Socialist Perspective” by Peter Taaffe explains some of the differences between the two groups.[9] In an interview with The KL Review [2] the subject of relationships again came up and their spokesperson Yuva Balan emphasised that debate was not intended to discredit any party but to focus on a strategy to defeat capitalism. They continued the debate in a radio broadcast discussing Karl Marx in a Malaysian context [10]

They were invited to speak at the Youth Symposium of The Festival of Science on youth movements in the 21st century.[11]