demonstrations at Wapping.
Mike Hicks could be got out.
Another member of the Hicks family to address the marchers was Mike's brother, Pat - himself a transport branch secretary. Pat Hicks won big applause as he appealed for extending "They may lock Michael up, but they can't lock up his ideas' he said.
Along with members of the Hicks family, the best received speaker at the rally was Tony Wind explained that he was there in support of the Chesterfield women, who'd turned out in force for the special leg of the growth of the movement to defeat Murdoch is the single most important_ polițical development in Britain today' Benn said. He lambasted the scab titles, saying they're produced with 50 per cent scab per cent metropolitan police Benn explained that the those who rule in this country is that it helps to divide us men from women, emloyed from unemployed. black from white.
We're here in Wapping not just to support the printers and their families. Here we re rebuilding the labour movement from the bottom up. What Murdoch's trying to of lhatcher and the police is to crush that movement. That's why Mike Hicks is in jail, that's why Terry French is in jail' he conTHOUSANDS OF marchers converged on the Wapping fortress last Saturday in the biggest show of force for some time in the 11-month dispute. At the head of the Tower Hill leg of the demonstration was Rosemary Hicks, wife of Mike Hicks, a member of the SOGAT national executive committee, jailed on 5 December. Hicks, who is closely identified with the dispute, was sentenced to twelve months imprisonment, eight of them suspended, for an incident alleged to have occurred during one of the regular peaceful Saturday night Rosemary was one of the speakers at the end-ofmarch rally. She thanked everyone for turning out and expressed her confidence that, with united action, cluded to huge applause. applause.
Another speaker to take up defence of Mike Hicks and victimised miner Terry French was MP, Jeremy Corbyn. ' 'We've got a message for the TUC and Labour leadership' Corbyn said. 'If we stand aside and allow them to walk over us they wil walk over miners national executive has also called for the 'immeulale Ielease 0l ivilkc Hicks All the speakers captured the new mood of confidence of the sacked printers - both in the battle to free Mike Hicks and for jobs recognition.
On Thursday, December, an inter-union all four unions involved discussed how to escalate the dispute. A resolution was adopted calling for recalled TUC in light of the general council's refusal to implement congress policy on Wapping.
The meeting called for a week of action leading up to a major demonstration on 24 January to mark the first anniversary of the dispute.
The TUC will be called on to support the action campaign. Speakers at the 24 January demonstration will include Brenda Dean, Tony Dubbins, Ron Todd and Tony Benn. Printers leaders were confidently predicting that the rally would be chaired by Mike Hicks. dockers in 1972 (Photo: Morning Star).