LAST WEEK Belfast city council voted in favour of asernment elections this May, or in any future elecbes to the bey hope to achieve this by making all would-be adidates for election in the North of Ireland sign a acteration opposing egiance to the British monarch.
This move is the latest a series of attacks on the ocratic rights of Sinn People's elected -sentatives the wake ificant victory cillor John McAnulty st attempts by Belfast cil to 'unelect' him.
The PD victory in what ane known as the 'ButApron has onstrated dity and necessity of sing the increasing atdemocratic The row broke out last ionists to close down the grounds that cople had erected an Stormont assembly or Westminster.
violence •swearing Irish tricolour over it. During the heaped abused tricolour.
In his response, McAnulty made an allusion the highland clearances of the eighteenth century, stating that some of his constiwould regard apron ack as a butcher's flurry hysteria erupted from the unionist benches. McAnulty was suspended indefinitely from the council chamber, thereby effectively disenfranchising the people who elected him.
The action of Belfast council is seen all the more clearly when you consider councillors have shouted threats at 'D and Sinn Fein councillors, called for the incineration of the Catholic population physically assaulted PD councillor Fergus O'Hare council chamber without any culprits being suspended.
McAnulty has refused to accent the mont of the council to suspend him indefinitely and determinedly turned up at every coun cil meeting since, only be forcibly ejected by the RUC.
These actions have been accompanied by protests all other Belfast anti-unionist councillors the suspenPD Councillor O'Hare, walk-outs counch meeligs Sinn Fein and SDLP councillors, and noisy scenes in the public gallery as police McAnulty's protesting Constituents.
The affair has attractea much publicily in PD have campaign highlight the case in the labour movement in Britain. The establishment in Belfast has been forced to back down. When McAnulty took his case to Belfast High Court, they found in his favour, declaring his indefinite legal.
Smarting their defeat, Tane vindictively insevere restrictions on the right of the meetings and set about tryensure that Sinn Fein and PD are prevented from standing in the fortheoming elections.
'butcher's apron' episode was the first attempt to ngle wack agams the ongoing attack on the imperialists the Six Counties. particularly Sinn Fein. It marks an important departure.
With the electoral advances of Sinn Fein since the hunger strikes, both the British Irish governments have adopted policy trying allow them
Socialist Action 22 February 1985
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resolution aimed at preventing Sinn Fein and 'like- inded organisations' from standing in the local