the Unionists are blowing their tops.
THE TITLE of the weekend is An fiance for Socialism near three things in mind. Firs he ruggle of the working class and the ailiances it has to make. Second is how you use that alliance to break up and deteat the state. Third is to look ai the system of alliances of the ruling LO alliances up.
It's very obvious that in Britain, if we are talking about breaking up the power of the capitalist state, we have io embark on the destruction of the state in the occupied six the north of Ireland as well as simply looking. at the problem in terms of 'Britain' itself.
If you want to break alliances of the ruling class, you have to break up the alliance between the British ruling establishment in the north of Ireland: the Ulster Unionists.
If you are looking at alliances of the working class you have to see that it's necessary inside Britain to create an alliance with the Irish in Britain.
But you also have to see that the British working fundamental interest in alliance with the Irish working class itself. Even if we get to ine stage where the Irish have managed to kick the British out, and remove the partition that was imposed by the British, then it is still the case that democracy in Ireland will not be safe until the British ruling has been deteated in Britain as welll British imperialism will always be a inorn in tne side or tae development of Irish democracy working class will always nave an interest in an alliance with the Irish working class.
If you look at the picture of the struggle socialism predominantly shared by the Labour tell in blain, suen an allance is no foremost in people's minds. At best the struggle in Ireland is some sort of 'added extra'; an appendage to the struggle for socialism in Britain one whereby the struggle for socialism hampered inconveniences uke inconveniences like the Prevention of Terrorism Act. inconveniences the existence of strip searching British jails.
It has to be got across that if we are to make advances on the left then the alliance with the Irish people has to be foremost in peoples' minds.
If you read the book by Chris Mullin A Very British Coup you can see the fundamentally peculiar English variety of socialism that important sections of the Labour left are talking about and pursuing. You have in that book a scenario for a supposed victory of the Labour Left where the question of the Irish dimension of the struggle is entirely absent. It's not a problem that's considered.
Today, the newspapers have been filled this 'historic through' coming out of the LondonDublin talks. We have to think about where the Anglo-Irish deal fits into our model of socialism, discussion on where socialism in BriBecause when the last tain is going. •fundamental breakthrough' in — when the Sunningdale power sharBRITISH WITHDRAWAL from Ireland should be seen as central for creating an alliance for socialism, said MARTIN COLLINS, editor of Labour and Ireland. The latest Anglo-Irish accord is a challenge to Irish nationalism. We cannot sit back and ignore it just because Wing agreement We have to titude.
break those rule counties of But most important up the the lo bring It aown.
cher's battle Unionists'.
Sunday Times tells Two the fundamentally British Plan Paisley that newspapers as find that the Ulster grit and courage and strength.' So, there you are.
Does that by of advance? bullets, like was comments Stand what was going on.
British as Finchley' Four years later, Castle.
cursion'.
this they've invented.
The first language is traditions of breakpaid great heed to, thought the nonse were — into our getting pissed, Catholics, 1974 bombs was set up the British labour movement, and even the socialist left, iooked on the 1974 agrcement with a charitable sori vi atWhen iney looked at that agreement, they saw the SDLP was going to be introduced onto the power sharing executive; they saw the possibility of curbing some excesses of the sectarian state: thev thought that maybe this form of rule was going to be a little bit more democratic than direct of all, they looked upon the Sunningdale power sharing agreement and said 'ah well, the Ulster Unionists are our enemies, and because our enemies are opposing it then we are just going to sit back on the sidelines and see how it develops.
Woes fall in ghty re because the because Unionists have brought it down. We should just sit back and watch. We don't have any real interest in helping When I was preparing for the session today I was lookińg at some of the papers. It's very confusing at first glance to see what's going on because The Observer headline reads "Thatplan to beat rebel On the other hand, the us about an 'Anglo-Irish drive to defeat the IRA'.
supposedly serious newspapers have completely opposite understandings of what is going on!
6 The nationalists don't need permission to stick up was quoted in the saying 'Thatcher will people are not miners or Argentinians. They have Quite clearly our enemies ase opposing this deal.
mean we nave something to gain by sitting on sidelines or pretending it's some kind We shouldn't make the mistake of underestimating what has actually happened. In 1981 Margaret Thatcher strikers. She said she couldn't unders'Northern Ireland' she said, 'is as fundamentally she's meeting with Garret Fitzgerald in Hillsbrough The last time he visited the north it was described as a 'border inwho e To understand what's going on in supposed Anglo Irish dialogue appears difficult. You have to come to grips with a new language word of the einos aescribing Protestantism. The ethos that has to be respected and was not what we traditions of Ulster a religious, racist, ideology about going out on 12 July yelling abuse and maybe even throwing stones through their windows, through their front doors.
Now there is something different we are told. It is a tradition which has its roots in a very religious dedication which has to be respected. So notion what LoyalismUnionism is about has been around by this new word, a 'Protestant ethos' which is somehow ferent from Unionism and Loyalism There's another word and that's 'alienation'. Properly speaking, exclusion of the nationalist popula tion of the six counties from sphere of life - be it economic life through job discrimination, be cultural life through the banning of the Irish flag, of the Irish language and exclusion from the political pro cess by means of a gerry mandered electoral system.
The 'alienation' which Thatcher and FitzGerald talk about is the Sinn Fein vote and the resistance of the nationalist population of the North. The word has been twisted round and used the to present a different picture.
turned agenda'.
Garrett FitzGerald is to put items 'ondif- the agenda of dialogue.' Not that they are going to do anything about the sectarianism of the UDR. Not that they are going to do anything about strip searching but somehow it's a big victory that you every are able to 'put matters on the agenda' and maybe put some suggestions forward that might or might not be listened to.
necessary to invent this new language and why it's necessary to go through process Dublin and London. Thatcher has blem whatsoever.
Then we have another notion 'the The great achievement of nationalists, million an Anglo Irish You have to look at why it was talking might. woken up to the fact that there is fundamentally no solution to the pro of 'northern Ireland'. None There is no solution militarily. Neither side can win. Half a million cannot defeat Loyalists, when added to 20,000 armed unionist paramilitaries the weight of the army and so on.
Equally it's impossible for the British to win, even given their vas fire power. They can't impose a solu tion in the six counties of the north because the nationalist population have thrown up a militant Republican leadership which will not go back to the old ways of being governed, wil not submit to sectarian majority rule The roots of resistance of the na tionalist people are so deep that it canbe crushed with any military
Socialist Action BACKE 22 November 1985
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Irish street signs or display the Irish Tricolour. They are doing it already. 9