BELOW WE are printing excerpts from a - speech given by McALISKEY in London when she visited Britain along with Kathy Tohill and other members of the Relatives for Justice delegation. The delegation was visiting this country, to expose the present show trials in Northern Ireland.
FOR 15 YEARS I have been trying to explain what is happening in Northern Ireland to people in Britain. Politicians have a standard comment about the level of violence. why the violence exists, and how we have worked with it for 15 years.
I have a problem of W C have kept it to the minimal level that it has been for 15 years! It is difficult for me to relate to these people Spain Women's week of action with five themes -women and the crisis, the right to a job, abortion, BERNADETTE They have a problem understanding because words take on enLUCY different violence, law and order, all mean entiredifferent things to us who live Northern International Women's Day protest outside Armagh in 1980 anti-militarism and violence against women. There will be demonstrations in Barcelona and Madrid and the Comissiones Obreros are promoting a Charter for women's rights.
Italy Women Against the Crisis coordination in Turin have produced a leaflet for use in local towns. Women from a printing firm will launch a petition against raising Ireland than they mean to the people who govern us.
When we started out demanding civil rights, an coud ooportunity lo vulc for equal employment and for an equal right to have a roof over our heads, we had no idea that son that we are todaythat are today. But, we got there by a very logical process. The "supergrass' trials and what passes for courts and law and order in Northern development that political process.
In the beginning people said that we ought to do things within the law. We didn't have a natural aversion to the law, but every time we looked like winning, anything What was legal changed it. the retirement age of Belgium Women Against the Crisis demonstration n Brussels, supported b he FGTB and CSC trad union federations and the Socialist Party and Catholic trade unions.
France Women's rights minister, Yvette Roudy will meet other European ministers. There is a League for kignts seminal to relale the concerns of women to 'Europe and the Future' The CFDT trade union federation will organise forums on job equality. yesterday, became illegal today. We started exercis. ing the freedoms we had within the law - like the Ireecom speech, organisation and information We found that if we used them erectively lney ehavious likely to lead to translated You are allowed freedom breach of the peace' ot organisation if don't allowed freedom of speech if you use it to back up the Grue alle ministration. But if say fre dom of sinkch te don't think the system works' then that is no longer freedom of speech - that is incitement.
Difficult It is behaviour likely to cause breach of the peace' and is likely to get your neau smasncu move police officer. Now this may be difficult for white people understand but when we come over from Northern Ireland we are at home in the black community. They suffer, they know what we are suffering. They know some basic rules about that we know.
ln a demonstration vou always know who is making the demand for justice by the direction that the police are taking. Whether that is in Brixton, Ireland, New York or whatever. If standing in can see the back of policeman's head, then you are probably wrong CRECHE • Delegation to Armagh March, bus from Glasgow Women and Ireland Grou contact Alexis Scott 041 241 delegation travel to Armagh prison return Monday 12 March, details from London Armagh Coordinating Group, 374 Gras y's Inn Rd, WC1. Tel 01 289 3878. • GLC open day 8 March, noon to 8pm, County Hal London SE Stalls iterature. ums exao ions discussions. Creche facilities. When battle commences policemen do not walk backwards when they charthey told us to use the democratic We used it way back in 1918 and we used it when Bobby Sands was dying. Sinn rein nave usea il since There is a problem with ine democrane process you elect people which the government think are not suitable they will scurry like rats into the House of Commons and pass a law saying you are allowed to elect people of your choice as long as vou do not elect people of the wrong type. Entitled If you elect those people then they will pretend that you didn't. Lovers of British democracy believe we are entitled to want freedom. But they say we must abide within the law operate the 'democratic' channels. If Common and a woman trade unionist who has been TrICON. NAW IX WvtOrI House, Elwood St, Londor • London School of Economics women's group workshops and entertainment, 7 March, 2-4pm workshops, evening disco, , 8 March 11-4 wOrKSIODs. evening anti-sexist cabaret. LSE Houghton St, London WC2. All events mixed except disco. io March do derage Town Hillingdon Hall, ring 0895 37361 for details • Birmingham women only event • Marco. with stalk and discussions, videos on E Salvador and Greenham. only that was possible.
They have taken away all our stand on the wrong side of the law. Six thousand peo ple have been processed through the Diplock courts in ten years We have problem acting within the law because they change it all the time and they have taken their politics into the courts. we Comes on aeroack Terrorism in the eyes of the British government is organisation against the state.
Kathy Tohill and I are referred to by the loyalists as the 'seed beds of terrorism'. This is because we breed them. It is because we are women. We live in a
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Photo• DEREK SOFIRS Women's Day. What's on?
AcTiON Bernadette McAliskey canvasses during the general election, Dublin 1982