In
Memoriam
Stuart
Monro
June 15, 1938 - September 7, 2017
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RCPB(ML) is so very sad to let everyone know that our comrade Stuart
Monro passed away on the evening of Thursday, September 7. Stuart
collapsed suddenly after having suffered from heart problems for many
years. Though he had been ill, his passing came as a profound shock to
all who knew him. We convey our deep condolences to Charlotte, his wife
and comrade, who was with him when he died, to his daughter Anna, and
to all his family and wide circle of friends.
Stuart Monro studied drama at Bristol University and film at the London
School of Film. He was making a film in 1970 when he met the forerunner
organisation of RCPB(ML), and realised that he could never look back,
becoming politically active and dedicating his film-making to the
progress of humanity and a new world.
Charlotte had also been a Party activist from her youth and worked in
the health service, and Stuart and Charlotte were married in 1981.
Charlotte has written: "He has given so much to people, to our times,
to our movements. His films, his wisdom, and his great love and loyalty
to people, and his humour. And what he has given will live on in all of
us." And Anna wrote: "He welcomed people in with a warm heart and such
a sparkle in his eyes."
Stuart was one of the comrades arrested and jailed on trumped-up
charges in the early 1970s when the state was attempting to smash the
emerging Marxist-Leninist movement. He stood on a progressive and
democratic platform in a number of elections in South London in the
1970s. Stuart participated in the work of the Party as a working class
and trade union organiser at this time, and was noted for his ability
to unite the workers in fighting for their rights and interests. This
quality was also notable when he became a health worker and
participated in the work to uphold health care as a right and to
safeguard the future of the health service. Stuart also participated
throughout his political life in many delegations strengthening ties in
the international communist movement.
Stuart never abandoned his film and video-making, and for the past 20
years and more he was active as an independent film maker. His films
cover a huge range, and are characterised by a humanity and a sympathy
for what is progressive. Stuart made films directly for the Party and
the international communist movement, but also covered subjects ranging
from the historical to the world around him of community, family and
friends, up to the movements of the people in their struggle for a
different and better world. Recent films had focused on the fight to
save Lewisham hospital and safeguard the future of the health service.
These films were made with the express purpose of assisting the
struggle as it unfolded, capturing the moment of the here and now. Last
year, a one-day festival of his films was staged at Morley College in
London.
Stuart had an enthusiasm for life and a questing spirit that was always
seeking to move on to answer the call of history, and to re-examine
previously held positions. Stuart also had a deep love of nature, of
the beauty of the natural and social environments. He was always
excited by new developments in the Party's work, and his generous and
engaging spirit made him loved by all. He will be greatly missed by so
many people. Stuart, your memory will always inspire us! |
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