Martin Collins reports from Clondalkin THE CLONDALKIN north of Dublin was packed to capacity on Friday as more than 400 workers from the small town met to fight for the lives of two hunger strikers and the paper mill - their main industry.
Leaders of four of the biggest industrial unions were called to account for the lack of effective national action which has allowed the struggle for the mill to reopen to drag on for two years.
Action committee leader Paul Billings described the broken promises and dealing that has forced two of the strikers to put their lives on the line for the town's future. Right from the start. Clondalkin discuss selling their jobs. however large, would still mean the death of the town.
Their militant action in occupying forced the governing Fianna Fail party to purchase but before elections, the commitments to resume production were hedged around and broken by the incoming coalition government. The complicity Labour coalition partners in the betrayal of Clondalkin workers is straining the already tense relationship between the unions and the party to breaking point.
Willie Atlee, general secretary of the Federated Workers' Union of Ireland said his first loyalty was to his class. he said, would define how long he would remain a member of the Labour Party. It had been proved that once Labour is in coalition, it is trapped by the Gael's monetarism. It can do nothing for working people.
pressure from months of inactivity. One after the other, workers took the floor to contrast these words with the lack of action. Not one union leader gave the commitment to fight for half day strike called by Dublin Trades Councils to be extended to national strike action to bring the government down and win the As local leaders of political parties writhed IWU Spate and Brian Nolan, kept their lonely vigil in the sleeping mill. The action committee said 'a fuse will explode throughout Ireland if these men are allowed to die'. As the fuse burns, & furious rush to find a private buyer in Canada or Britain goes Phone messages of support to the Action Co ttee: 0001-570-7 • At Sinn Fein's 78th Ard Fheis (conference), policies and leaders continued to move leftwards.
Full report from Dublin next week.
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reopening of the workers refused to Redundanci the mill despite promises to local people made of What the Labour leaders did now, the ranks does not make up for • The fuse goes to a bomb. That bomb You're most welcome Sign here... and here Now just one small ritual and that's it are opposed to it, as are the gay and women's com munity, and wilat we neec to convert those elements of formal opposition into actual concrete unstoppable opposition. We don't feel that this is a of legislation that should be condoned in the UK.
•ORMAC "I am not now, nor have I ever been, a friend of Tariq Ali..." Sat 19 Nov, Sir William Collins Campaign Against the National Conference Charrington St, London NW:
National march and rally Sat 21 Jan, Brockwell Park, London
Socialist Action 18 November 1983 I support in-
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