all said they would welcome a Bill of Rights? Or how is it that the British for Ireland, whether such legislation is good, bad or indierent.
Certainly, as far as any Bill of Rights is concerned, it is indifference which would be the most likely effect. Because contrary to what Mac Giolla says, Britain has made various attempts to reform the Six Counties.
* There was the disarming of the Royal Ulster Constabulary - they are now armed again * There was the disbandment of the B Specials - there is now the Ulster Defence Regiment, many of whose memoers nave peen cnarcca ww sectarian murders.
where was me evention or nete mentto satred act - desianed to ourlaw sectarianism, but only one charge was ever brought under it.
Impossible It is true that none of these reforms were pursued with much enthusiasm; but that could not be said of other reformist schemes such as the Sunningdale agreement, which sought to introauce power-sharing. sunningdale, now ever, went the way of all other attempts to rerorm the six counues. and tne is that there is no piece of legislation which is capable or rerorming tne six Counties or bringing democracy to the It's impossible because the very establishment of that state was a denial of a fundamental democratic right the right of the Irish people. as a whole. to self-determination. Like the South African system of apartheid, the Loyalist state cannot be reformed - it can only survive or be destroyed.
The people of the Catholic ghettos have realised this for some time. They no longer plea for civil rights or sing We Shall Overcome'; the most persistent message now is a much simpler "Brits Out. But not the Official Republican Movementor me susa CommunIS! Fantasy Republican movement. LaUYCU GEOFF BELL troops who, would you believe, have done all this in the sincere belief that they were keeping the peace!
Such is the fantasy world inhabited Republican movement, and the British Communist rarty. A lantasy world in which Mac Giolla says that the Provisionals and the Irish pro-imperialist Fianna Fail party are 'allies - though it's a strange sort of ally which passes all sorts of repressive legislation in the 26 Counties and which interns, bans and raids thousands of Provisionals. Fianna Fail has indeed attacked the Provisionals with the same amount of enthusiasn Maybe this is the alliance Mac Giolla* means when he calls for 'an alliance of progress between Britain and Ireland'. On the other hand, opponents of British mocialism say there can be no such alliance until Britain is driven out of Ireland; and there can be no possibility of workers democracy and unity in Ireland until the Loyalist state is des