Executive Committee Meeting, May 7-8, 2017

Dear comrades, on Monday the Party Executive Committee (PEC) received our top candidate and Land representative from Schleswig-Holstein, Marianne Kolter. A big "thank you" to both of our top candidates and to all the comrades who prepared the election campaign in Schleswig-Holstein. We could gain due to a good campaign based on our key issues.

Respectable results in Schleswig-Holstein. Only 5 more days till the end of election campaign in NRW!

The arrow points upwards. With 3.8 percent (2012: 2.3 percent) our comrades from Schleswig-Holstein achieved a respectable result. While voter turnout increased, absolute votes for us almost doubled: from 29.868 votes at last Land parliamentary elections to 55.833 votes on Sunday. In Kiel, Flensburg and Lubeck, we gained well above 5 percent. In the case of first-time voters and voters under 34 years, we gained around 7 percent. This development is encouraging on the way to enter Land parliament in 2022.

We also want to get a better score at next Sunday's elections in NRW (North Rhine Westphalia). Schleswig-Holstein has proven that the strategy of the Social Democrats to keep DIE LINKE out of state parliament does not prove successful and is ultimately playing into the Conservatives hands. Polls in NRW see us consistently above 5 percent. This is a good starting position but it will be a tight race. We again have to count on increasing voter turnout. It is therefore all the more important to reach as many people and potential voters as possible, especially during the last week and the last 48 hours in order to reach the score predicted by surveys or even higher. Now, until May the 14th it's all about NRW. Together we will turn this election into a success!

The current party membership development is encouraging as well: 1722 new members have joined DIE LINKE only in the first quarter of 2017. NRW has a large share in this. Over 7000 comrades are now members of DIE LINKE in NRW. Congratulation!

The Party Executive Committee adopted a resolution on the outcome of the French presidential election: it is very gratifying that right-wing extremist Marine Le Pen could be prevented from becoming president of France. However, 34 percent of approval is a warning sing for France and Europe.

The 8th of May shall become a national holiday and memorial day. We have decided to include this requirement in our election programme for the Bundestag election.

The Party Executive Committee adopted a position on Turkish policy. Among others, we ask the German government to stop the cooperation with the coming Erdogan dictatorship and to support the "No" forces in Turkey instead. We say that no money must flow to Erdogan and the EU's pre-accession aid to the Turkish government has to be stopped. Secondly, the Bundeswehr must be withdrawn immediately and the construction of a tank factory by the German armament manufacture Rheinmetall must be stopped. Thirdly, the refugee deal with Turkey, which makes Europe and Germany vulnerable to blackmail, must be stopped and replaced by a fair and solidary system of refugee reception in the EU.

DIE LINKE supports the demonstration of remedy providers on the 24th of June 2017 in Berlin. We combine this with our health policy programme: health must not become a commodity and health care must be oriented towards the needs of people and not towards profit.

The Party Executive Committee is preparing the party congress in Hanover from 9th to 11th of June and found an agreement on the motions received so far. The allocation of delegates for the congresses as well as for the Federal Committee 2018 to 2019 was decided.

Hans Modrow reported from the Council of Elders, the detailed version of which can be found in the 2nd document for the Congress. The report of the EL among other things draws attention to current anti-NATO protest and to the upcoming EL summer university.

The 10th anniversary of DIE LINKE is coming: On the 16th of June, the Party Executive Committee will hold a festive event at 6:00 pm in front and inside of Volksbühne theater in Berlin. The event is open to the public.

The Party Executive Committee decided to continue the participation in the press and party festivals of the Portuguese Communist Party, the French Communist Party, The Communist Party of Spain, the Belgian Labour Party and the Communist Party of Austria in 2017.

In solidarity,

Matthias Höhn