The French another setback last week with the release of Pierre Rousset, a leading militant of the former Communist League (French section of the Fourth International).
Rousset was arrested in the Paris headquarters of the League at 6.00 a.m. on the morning after the 21 June demonstration against the fascist "New Order' grouping, which led to the banning of both groups a week later. Charged with possession of arms and ammunition, he had been held in jail until his court appearance last Friday.
Rousset used his appearance as a means of counter-attack. He exposed the way in which the police had operated, pointing out that the raid on the headquarters had been conducted without a search warrant, that he had not been allowed to accompany the police during their searches, and that the bookshop had been totally wrecked. He explained that the cans of petrol, iron bars, helmets, etc. found were needed for self-defence, giving examples of atStatement by the Belfast Ten Defence Committee The trial of ten people charged with causing bomb explosions in London las March opens in Winchester on 10 September.
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NAME local headquarters of the League. As for the fact that two ancient rifles were discovered during police search of the building, Rousset denied all knowledge of these. But he called as a witness Pierre Frank, another leading member of the former League, who told the court that they had been left several days before the demonstration by an unidentified young man. A full enquiry into all the circumstances was being carried out. Another witness, Michel Rocard of the Unified Socialist Party. testified that a young-man had tried to leave similar weapons at the headquarters of his organisation at about the same time and that it was obviously a provocation.
Rousset was facing a possible sentence of from three to ten years, as well as the implementation of an eight months suspended sentence incurred last year. But in the event he was given a mere two months, and as this was less than the period for which he had already been detained he was released immediately. was undoubtedly a slap in the face for the Government and revealed yet in the wake of the new spate of bombings rules that out. That the trial is taking place in the garrison town of Winchester, before a jury which has been subjected to a vast anti-irish propaganda campaign to reinforce the normal prejudices of the citizens of such a place, also makes it impossible.
Proof of what the ten can expect in the present atmosphere is provided by the recent verdict of the Coroner's jury in London which brought in a verdict of "wilful murder' on the unfortunate middle. aged man who died of a weak heart after ine March expiosions - a verdict which flew in the face of the medical evidence. A fair trial is ruled out for another reason, too: a great deal of circumstantial evidence exists that the ten are the victims of a frame-up by the police. They were arrested at London airport on the morning or the day that the major explosions occurred. Either the ten are not responsible for the police, who expiosIon:
PICKETS GET MORE the ranks of the ruling class. RACIST OUTBURST Meanwhile, recent events in and around the city of Marseilles have once again shown the correctness of the stand taken by the League against New Order in June. Since the murder of a bus-driver by a deranged Algerian a fortnight ago, there has been an outburst of racist attacks against North African workers. Half-a-dozen have been shot dead or wounded. In one case a car drew up at a bus-stop and a 16 year-old Arab youth was gunned down; in another, a block of flats inhabited by immigrant workers was sprayed with machine-gun bullets. In Toulouse last week, men of the 9th Parachute Regiment went out "Arab bashing and beat up several immigrant workers.
As for the forces behind these developments, Sunday Times reporter A LOT Terry had absolutely no doubts. Writing in his paper Sunday, he had this to say: The situation is being exploited by the right wing New Order group whose just off Marseilles main street, La Canebière, now houses a apparently knew enough about the bomb. ings to arrest the 'culprits' in advance, knew aso in aevance abou une bomo but deliberately let them explode. There is no third explanation. It is an admitted fact that the police could have cleared the areas before the actual explosions but cant excusine unemssives by Diamme d "human error' by a policeman.
The Littlejohn affair has since provided evidence that the British Government used gangsters to organise provocations - in duding setting off bombs in Dublin last December to nelp tne cynch Government push repressive legislation through the Dail. Evidence exists that the British army has organised plain clothes assassination squads in the North of Ireland. There is no reason why the same sort of tactics shouldn't have been used to manipulate public opinion in Britain itself.
The Belfast Ten Defence Committee remains convinced that tnose on trial ir Winchester are victims of a frame-up. UnNAME....
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BELFAST 10 demo