Socialist Challenge No. 167, 9 October 1980
The scan: sc-n167-oct-09-1980.pdf (PDF, Marxists Internet Archive)
Uncorrected machine reading of the whole issue. This text was read by machine (Apple Vision OCR) from the scan and has not been corrected or cut into articles. Each page gives the headlines first, then the columns in order, so one article runs on into the next. Expect misread words. Use it to find things; quote from the scan.
Page 1 scan of this page
Challenge GARDNER'S OCCUPY
No.167 9 October 1980
INSIDE
Fight for Jobs
We interview Gardner's workers in occupation -
pages 8/9
Labour party
The conference and its
aftermath - pages 2/3 Spare Rib's
100th issue Interview with the collec-
tive - pages 12/13
Iran/Iraq War
Declaration from the
Fourth International -
page 6
The
Bevanites
Julian Atkinson takes a hard look at the Labour left
of the Fifties - page 5
Poland Assessment of the General
Strike - page 11
Socialist
20p TWO
the second in the plant every day.
.This is the first time during
that WULACIS ua larsebldl Have stoog up to recucancy The occupying.
determination the Gardner's workers was expressed bs
AUEW member who Dianl. LOld nauenee
recognised finally stopped, one's vou c vermene m nanc IVOW Tew workers are come what ine others din't have the guts to do
steelworkers, engineers ana une miner Thatcher would have had to give in. T' teae same unith the
leaving it until now without a fight. They should tu ve starteu nemae us soor
Thatcher's government came in.
They should stop arguing among themselve Wet rahi to the end. This plant will fight. against
Jaruners stands chatenge the labour movement. It shows the forward
nent can be fought
It exposes the complete inactivity of the trade union
thousand four engineering workers at Gardner's,
largest engineering plant in Manchester, have occupied their plant in a determined effort to prevent the 590 redundancies which management are demanding.
The occupation has prevented management from moving machinery and carrying out their 're-organisation' plan. The whole workforce is
Tory the
John Lefley, Foundry works at the -DoCLalIs
want
some-
nowsane leaders who crocodile unemployment DI CUISCIy HOLHE Last Tuesday's meeting
of the AUEW retused even Gardner's.
Secretary John Boyd told a three-person delegation that discussed because it 'hadn't whole cone trousuorooer oro-
COTes Unemploy- let the Gardner's delega- boya wouldn t even tion use the phone to ring the plant!
It is vital the Gardner's
RIGHT TO WORK
Engineering workers take
action to save jobs
hundred
GARY
have cried but done
Solidarity -ехесиние discuss against the flood of redun AUEW General dancies.
should be taken into ever
committee. must flood in.
be taken
10 Oct: FIGHT FOR THE
Friday 10 Oct Brighton
PICKET THE TORY
CONFERENCE
All IMG and Socialist Challenge supporters to assemble at The Level Drive (directly up
from the Palace Pier) 10am onwards by the Socialist Challenge van workers don't stand alone • Their example must be ham- turn ine mered ho or the coh and demonstration
country Gardner's can start to turn the tide
asamsl unc lorc.
The fight for solidarity
Resolutions or redundancy. support and financial hel
And the Gardner's fight
on The Friday's demonstration outside the Tory party con- for them.
French anti-Nazi
league needed to
counter bombings
From Charles Lister in Paris FOUR people have now died from the bomb which exploded outside a crowded synagogue in Paris on Friday. Anther nine people were injured.
It was the bloodiest terrorist action that France has experienced since the Second World War, and follows a mounting campaign of fascist attacks in France this summer.
These gunning
Talas oUa Lers
Munich.
Caledov
oreanisstions the police 'heroic'
in France.
UNIS
tional.
SIlICG
MinISTOr described government
fortnight ago.
cluding ference and be used to help
November are self-defence assoC atina a massive show of strength
As the Gardner's workers say, they are fighting the principle its
DUSU They fighting for the whole working class.
riga nola
whole labour movement must fight itself the PLO
Israelis nians, community
oreansaton:
TeSCISm
of one of
manamas
included the machine of and war memorials, together with
and uS van .ne muroas in rans las week accec to ine recont dearos from fascist bombs in Bologna and
of thousands joined demonstrations
Jewisn ane eut-wine trance strength of the protests have pu the Giscard government and th police on the spot.
Many now want to know why
OTCIO at inTitrating ana dismantling groups like Diader- Meinh Morgenst on, bol would-be French
to consiotoy wiegtararicobs
ven aanne tose responsi Jeui-aio soomWu0oe1 Jos
The most notorious cases are
ho yn oi hi of Henri Curiel, a revolu-
founding Egyptiar movement, bolaman, a rousi Jew who was sympathetic to the Fouth Interna
The Henri Curiel Associatior
that there have heen 15 nd racist attacks in France ove latest outrages the Interio Bonnet, Gunstan nest SLaCKS 'tasteless pranks by nostalgics'.
ORGaason for police and
in terences composition of the membership of
of the main fascist organis the Federation for Nationa hich has rena d tseit Europear (FANE) European and Nationalist (FNE) after FANE was banned E
Le Monde estimates that a fifth
F cops. The plain clothe that the Interio ponce unter saye Minister has had for some time a ST OT MOMDeSONC 30 cops, some of them
high-ranking officers.
There are widespread demand: for the minister's resignation.
* * *
While there is an evident nee for a united anti-fascist ranco, aione ue unes or me Ant OSSU CV00080 ZRR recognised by all those who are
targets of the Nazi attacks
which involved in organising Jewis! art unronunator ant-oem tSi with ant-Consm onis naverorokel out between zealots who chan 'Only solution, return to Zion' and those who chant 'Jews and Arab
The Israeli government is doing this EXDIOIL DIVISIOn statina on the weekend: The ter Torist oraanisations operating France and other European coun-
with Arab of murderers calling
This lie, which covers for th oppressior Palesti can only isolate the Jewish
forces ot the lett and immigrant
WUCH
The Revolutionary Communist League (LCR), the French sectiol
Fourth International, was the organisations respond to the Nazi
the fight for a united suuroab. ant-Tascist TrOnT
Page 2 scan of this page
Labour's left strides
By Paul Smith, Alan Freeman, and Phil Hearse
Blackpool was a disaster.
The reasons for their common conclusion are listed in
October editorial. It notes that the conference passed mandatory reselection and the widening
franchise leader, right wing and the trade union leaders into cisarray.
The conference rejected
kind of incomes policy,_ ally callea Ior wilnarawal Iron. the EEC, 35-hour week without IOSS pay, and scrapping Britain's nuclear wcasulls.
Although the attempt to widen the franchise was thwarted by the trade union leaderships refusal to permit conference to decide on method to implement this
the best delaying tactic available was a fresh conference in January.
Explode
This means that debate
movement at large,
time to patch up its wounds.
These decisions will seen as a signal to militants contemplating struggle against the Tories that they
demand and win vass
significant sec
ions of the Labour left in ac tion. and that there is a good chance of imposing their demands on a future Labour government.
This is what has upset the Daily Mirror and the Financial Times.
At the Trades Union Congress, the Labour left saw the adoption of its platform, the 'Alternative Economic Strategy'. Even Callaghan said he could support its approach.
At that time, no section of the trade union leadership openly identified with ignt against une Healey wing in the Labour
leadership. 1isicau. they passed a resolution for a five-year incomes policy
View from the
Imperial Hotel
BLACKPOOL's Imperial Hotel was
the favourite watering
anybody who was anybody during
the Labour Party conference.
for instance, Denis Healey and John
Silken, contenders for Jim's crown.
Mid-week through the conference
both these gentlemen were approached
by steelworker Ray who behaved in a
most grovelling
their autograph. So sure of their own im-
portance were they that Denis and John
were only too happy to oblige. John went
as far as to ask the name of
scribble 'To Ray from John Silken'.
Ray then backed
heroes touching his forelock, and wrote
on the prized bit of paper: 'We the under.
signed demand the immediate abdica-
tion of Jim Callaghan.' The petition with
the auspicious signatures
rouna tne bar at une imperial.
Everybody knew it
neither Denis nor
honest as to put what they really believed
in print.
Socialist Challenge
Question: What have the Daily Mirror and the Financial Times in common? Answer: Both say that the Labour Party's week in
under future government. ine allacks after the TUC Congress were HOL conceived of the right. be disciplined for rocking the 1uc boat which was steering by trom anv controntation with the
LAURIE SPARHA
the
Dhoto:
on the electoral college the Tories. The 'no action' deal dominating the forced the Labour sharpen its attack on the TU right. the They had to step up their appeals to the unions; secondly they had to tie their fight to a much clearer set of policies, tailored to win support in the unions - a plan of hole for
Like,
TWO
fashion and asked for
This fan and
away from his
was passed was a joke for
Jonn could De after
9 October 1980 Page 2
Labour action which Challenge has argued for. on Channe
purge was registered Chapple was to proach at Blackpool. Summ-
Wing up on the debate about the control of consensus away Tony Benn made a dramatic
appeal to the ERIC HEFFER - proposing the NEC's motion
leadership, TUC nim in the Blackpool Winte left to Gardens.
He said that with the approach unions on many issues and did they not agree ulal to get government achion on these control of the manifesto was required? HIS
THE Imperia-was also one venues for the crêche provided by the Labour Party for conference delegates. A progressive move, you might think. Not really, for a charge of between £25-40 was levied for any parent wishing to use the facilities.
quotes which show the minded thinking of the Labour right:
'I support the status quo on constitutional questions' - Terry Duffy speaking
vampaign ou Labour meeting on Monday night.
'No one on this platform supports the status quo' — Shirley Williams speaking at the same meeting on the issue of consitutional reforms.
MR. DUFFY was also the subject of the most popular badge at the conference. It appeared on Thursday morning,
Duffy had refused to AUEW delegation to decide whether or not the block vote should be cast for or
Labour Party.
- forward
~ Socialist just too consistently union DIOCK
A significant step forward of the manifesto.
for this ap- But his year
manifesto, ficials,
trade union didate Bob
up with the many of the issues ference. other for the left,
trade union
how to relain
exercise socialist should be in
with him
democratic
appeal came taken into the unions.
of the clear-
Victory tant.
the day of a large allow the Margaret underwear.
late, and the trade vote killed the motion on democratic control
of meetings wl me regona committees the combines, the district of
culaure rallies with AUEW presidential can-
Wright, partly paid off. The left in the con-
completely behind Benn, managed to link
union • vote on most important Labour's con-
words, defeats delivered by the unions block vote, were not at all the diet of this year's conference.
A link up between the left be fought. in the Labour Party and the leadership pape policies
the last constitutional changes far in the Labour Party in 1918.
that link up is the overriding and deepen In the
the sighted of Labour's lefts.
Some folk have been say- tacks ing it is the amount of in fluence that the trade unions ranks vote that is the problem for through the block alive and
Their answer is to their toll. dismantle the block vote. This notion should be emphaticalThis po bot was dramatically bureaucratic behest. of the maximum trade unior
fight for democracy must be
against the proposed means of electing
The next day the badge was adorning the chests of hundreds of delegates. It
TWO more quotes from the CLV meeting
'There is an element of fanaticism in the party which wants no compromise'
Shirley Williams. 'It's time the com-
hunting speech by right winger Andrew Faulds at the conference, the left winger Reg Race MP applied a nice touch when he opened a fringe meeting the same
'Fellow infiltrators,
SEXIST of the conference was the Mili-
Throughout the proceedings sup. porters or inis journar were seling copies
poster which portrayed Thatcher in grotesque
Few delegates seemed to be buying
SMILES and grimaces: the platform looks on
The Labour Party conference has passed left reformist policies - • Labour's left ship and implement their programme thev need the sup port of the most important trade unions. It
that the battle decide the fate of Labour's left wing and its policies must
The trap is that for some future Labour Government will be
as the present union leadership go.
meantime Tory attacks on the working class will continue unabated, and the danger increases that these at-
will go unanswered.
While the fighting spirit in the
is, for moment, well, retreats would eventually take
A victory for the left in the unions in the fight against this positions of the Labour lefts
policies are either inadequate of just wrong, like the sup-
out, in the course of the strug-
left to apply socialist policies
- voted against all proposals.
discussion
now practised a wonderful thing?
Such a course will bring the movement slap up against the right-wing leadership of the trade unions. And they are the key log jam to any ad vance for the left Joint Labour Party/ trade against Tories is the call of Socialist Chale Ansed hatchers the campaign against missile madness shows how opposition to the missiles can be turned into action against me ones necame co ference against the cuts offers a similar perspective.
The same approach is vital on unemployment. The ocCurato! of the Gardner's factory in Manchester against 10b lOSS must be the focal point for a massive campaign of support and solidarity at every level within the labour movement.
Mons atones and Tore
demonstration, and Labour Co-ordinating Com
ideal launching pads for th
pay. big national gather-
Labour's conference to
of LP conference electing the Header
whole of the workers' movebarometers of public opinion,' he claim ed. But what public opinion? Terry supplied the answer: 'What I am glad about is that the CBI view is now playing our
LAST thought on the union block vote
AUEW were mandated on the principle of
DuL Once me coolwo contro the conference the question arose, did the mandate still apply when it came to working out the details of the election.
Yes, according to Terry Duffy, who — without consultation with his delegates
No, said Clive Jenkins of ASTMS who took the issue to his delegation where a
was held on which way vote. Jenkins persuaded them to vote No to both. Isn't Labour Party democracy as
Page 3 scan of this page
Organising to strike out the Tories
What next for the
A HOST of new sponsors were signed during the week Blackpool. for Labour Party Rank and File Trade Unionists' conference to be held in Leeds on 1 November.
The conference, called by the Labour Co-ordinating
wil discuss action against unemployment, and the in the labour movement.
hree members of the new Labour Party national ecutive have agreed to back the conference Huckfield, Dennis Skinner, By Alan Freeman HOW DID we win? How did the right snatch victory from us? How can we win it back again? These questions dominated the minds and discussions of winger at the Party conference on Friday afternoon.
the media thought Labour Party national executive committee was the villain of the piece at Blackpool, Eric Heffer had news for them. He acknowledged that it was the constituency Labour parties which had made the running. to run as fast as we can to keep up. Heffer said.
Manifesto
It was the Campaign for Labour Party Democracy (CLPD)
Rank and File Mobilising Committee which organised the constituency par-
These bodies must be kept qoina and strengthened prior to the January special conference.
But there was a second, and probably more decisive, reason for our victories. This was the beginning of a fight inside the unions, which Benn exploited to the full in his summary on the manifesto issue. But there are major problems.
We can't win in the union leaderships alone. must be organised and linked up with the party rank and file. This. call was notably absent from the speeches and perspectives of nearly all the PLP left leaders. Same Duffy
Secondly, to action. The Duffy AUEW Blackpool must be wages Cold War; he ducks out of the fight on jobs and pay; Derek Robinson; and democracy for the same reason - he doesn't want to fight the Tories.
But this means that the labour left must show that they will stand beside the AUEW rank and file in struggle when Duffy deserts them. This means a commitment to action now, not in 1984.
The kind of left we need means a break with the traditions of the last 50 years.
Is Benn giving moved farther to the left than ever before. But by drawing a line against using industrial muscle to unseat the government, he is ruling out the only perspective that can alliance between party and union rank and file needed to consummate his own victory.
These weaknesses show that strong revolutionary now more important than ever. It can give a real backbone to a class strug-
and Neil Kinnock. Other MPs who nave sponsorea include up Ron Brown, Alf Dubs, at done
the Ernie Roberts, and Reg Race.
One discussion at the conference will focus on how the Labour left organises in the trade umons. in tals contest lu is a good sign that a number trades 1caulll have backed the initiative.
These include: Lawrence Daly, general secretary of the National Union Mineworkers; Jack ex- nard arix, assistant ge Brai nard assistant Les serical y Union of Public Employees; the every Blackpool Labour
that
'We have had and the The union rank and file we need a commitment connection between
and Duffy at
spelled out: he
The sold out SCIS 'OUT this lead? He has tories.
working
cement the hour of need. What recognised
the far organisation is
Socialist
and Bob Wright, general secretary Alec Engineering Union.
Flannery.
tion Committee, and a fringe meeing held at the Party conference by the com. mittee underlined the impor tance of the left organising in unionists the unions.
Dennis meeting: five years to get Tories. Every step must be Collins, lo ao ine Jou lines are general parliament.'
National
Labour left?
TONY BENN: his failure to call for industrial action against the government can undermine his victory
gle left in both the unions and the Party. Despite Benn's joking attacks on the splintered state of the far left, they were decisive in the conference vic-
Only those who place trust in the organised strength of the
class alone, and dedicate themselves to Its complete victory, can be relied on to stay with it in its
this fact prevents wider layer of Dy a lar militants is the continued disunity of
left itself. Socialist Workers Party had been present with ts industrial weight added to that of
Challenge and if Socialist
-Labour Party
assistant of the tional November et another of the spoi
Labour three
to work'
Skinner told the for, and, 'We can't wait for rid of the There strike, every supported now delegates fee
drawn outside ty.
Such determination now W1.
presented their lines through a single paper single organisation their ears.
The underlying
its torms is in being sintered into tribune the LCC. chaos,
CLPD, groups —
needs to be organised on a nabasis, and the trades ULULLISE. conference can make an important contribution.
The conference will have SCOSLUIS 'Unemployment and the right what demands and nolicies the left should fight Organise in the unions 'Now we will be plenty time for discussion, and the will be £1.25.
The venue is Leeds UniversiFurther details from the Labour Co-ordinatin Com-
Photo:
LAURIE SPARHAM
Challenge and Socialist Organiser had
• virtually identical and a instead of two, Benn's jibes would have fallen on deaf
reality would then have emerged: parliamentarism in all
crisis, disarray and wing the countless other little with the only clear basis for tary a real re-unification offered by the programme and perspectives of socialist
What they said:
Benn 1 'ONE idea about how we abolish the House of Lords is that it should be the task of the women's movement. Because the House of Lords, hereditary principle, never had, until a few years ago any women members.
'So perhaps it quirements of positive discrimination to decamp a thousand socialist women onto the House of Lords to vote it out of existence!
Tony Benn at the Tribune fringe meeting, 1 October
Wright 'WE'VE got to publish and we've got to generate; not just a movement on the democratic basis, because accountability can only have one useful product. And that is that we challenge on policies, challenge on foreign policies, on policies dealing with the ownership of industry, the standards of our social services and health
'But above all those challenges have to be based on a socialist objective to change and transform this society and to bring an end to the system which creates unemployment and poverty in the midst of plenty?
Bob Wright at a Labour Co-ordinating Committee meeting, 30 September
Benn 2 'IF we look at the history of the post-war years those who have defended themselves most successfully, regained their freedom or fought anti-colonial battles most successfully have not been those with nuclear weapons.
"They have been where determined citizens have banded together and resolved, by guerilla warfare, to resist, attack, and break free.'
Tony Benn at LCC meeting, 30 September Skinner I WANT the manifesto carried out. That is a very moderate aspiration.'
Dennis skinner at a Democracy meeting, 28 September
Clarke 'WHAT we are up against is blind loyalty. People say: "I know better than you because | have been in government." They say they know better than you because they are on a platform - and then you have to wash out the platform they walk on.' Eric Clarke, National Union of Mineworkers and NEC, speaking at CLPD meeting, 28 September
Foot 'I'M sure you asked yourselves what is that old bugger doing sitting on this platform? What is he going to say? I must admit I asked myself the same questions.'
Michael Foot, speaking at Tribune meeting, 1 October Benn 3 'THIS country is, in my opinion, run by the Prime Minister, one or two other ministers, plus the permanent officials, plus the military, plus the security services. The power they influence over cabinets, as well as parliament, make parliamentary democracy something of a charade. Tony Benn, speaking at an Institute of Workers' Control meeting, 28 September Soley 'THE unfinished business of the House of Commons is the creation of a united Ireland. That is also the un. finished business of the labour movement.' Clive Soley MP, at a meeting called by the Parliamen-
Labour Party September
Socialist Challenge 9 October
being based on the
would reach some of the re-
who have
Photo: GM COOKSON (Socialist Challenge)
Campaign for Labour Party
Northern Ireland Group, 30
Page 3
Page 4 scan of this page
A personal view of Blackpool
By Geoff Bell
ference in books they will make.
The conference so ‹ramatic. important, and in the end, hilarating. unal I was political occasion which dwarfs any gathering that the British labour movement has held for many, many years.
The extent of the sensation that the Winter Gardens 1980 has shifted the terrain on which the British Word Gras camped
For a while little happened at the conference to suggest it would turn out to be so memorable. The first two days were mundane and for
the conference, rather sombre.
of radical resolutions were passed — on economic strategy, educanon, low pay - out tney carried with them a suggestion Ur unically. Vote
Every available forecast was that on the crucial issue of democratic reform of the Labour Party the left would lose. Such defeat would mean that Labour MPs and the party leader would carry
as they had done in the past and happily ignore the conference decisions because
parlamcharlans would remain unaccountable to the
their constituency party.
The pre-conference edition of the bulletin of the Labour Victory Campaign Labour
'CLV comes to this Conference stronger than ever,' was the Cratill.
The first indication that these words were bluster came on Sunday night when
Amalgamated Union Engineering Workers' delega tion voted by 18 to 17 to back the left-wing candidates for the national executive.
This decision was portrayed by AUEW president Terry Duffy as the result of accidental voting. member of the delegation, and at the same meeting the delegation agreed to vote
all three of democratic reforms being proposed.
With million votes in the possession Duffy and fellow right winger
eneral secretary John Boyd
his seemec bear out prophecies of victory for the right. Bitter
Ironically, it was
CLV's own rally on Monday night that provided
SLOTECSU hint yet that the
right would not have an unquis meeting tre the ang of The stars of Three Shirley Williams
David owen. and
Rodgers. They did
behave as if they had it all
sewn up. They were bitter, at times hysterical.
compared the left fascists. Owen
predicted it would be a 'bad
week'. Rodgers admitted he
was 'always reluctant to come Socialist Challenge 9 October 1980
THE DEBACLE
THERE will be history books written about what happened at the Labour Party conBlackpool last week. Exciting
exfor of
to Labour conferences'.
The worries, even despair, evident at the meeting given substance the next day when the results of the election TOT national ecutive were announced. The left slightly increased its majority. 'NEC - worse the was the morbid
CYCH ment from the daily bulletin of the CLV The reaction of the left, as of seen at a meeting held under
Co-ordinating Committee on Tuesday night, was Although the discussion was entitled 'Which way Forward for the Left?' blatform speakers had a grea
the Chris Mullin of Tribune
suggested that the constituenthe withhold their affiliation fees Labour Parties
if the reforms weren't passed which seemed meone drowning clutching at straws.
Bill Tony Benn gave a jovial not speech but one which had lit-
le to offer for the Audrey Wise, speaker, had failed to win a place on the NEC and was openly disheartened And then came Wednesday. Wednesday, 1 October, Page 4
LABOUR
The conference erupts as the vote on extending the leadership franchise is announced
1980. Remember that date.
Some day, exam were will be asked about Wednes day, 1 October at Blackpool's Winter Gardens.
CA- The session
emergency motions on public spending and housing cuts. It than was dominated by the com- and by Ted Knight, ambeth council, blockbusting earned him a near standing the Labour ovation.
muted Passed none of ine
'We cannot declared, and went on to call for 'massive industria action on cuts to force the govern should not retreat, Even the NEC like so- restrain the ference. jected. The motion was re- motion jected. . terms of a ried.
left.
Only 35 minutes were alloted
members of the Labour Party were to the lett of botn the parliamentary leadership and
Labour Party
OF THE
RIGHT
issue.
The motion, British withdrawal, subject began with previous night a MPs had pleaded anger CLP summed up leader of val alliclilal speech which get ten votes'
lost,
wait,' he fighting.
The Common Market At to force it out'. Shirle could not floor of con-
Its plea to remit the most part of it'.
was couraged
Next, a debate on Ireland. ject of
banter.
Whichever,
rejected.
ty.
the week
tions
There especially day.
The
waiting Ior
Labour decide, • earlier the
Proffitt, from
Photo:
LAU
saying
McCluskie the national executive on this behalf
calling for shouted 25. of another remittal request from the NEC. The
number of the delegates backing the motion to agree to remit and as one MP put it, trust the
party if it mandatory Finally, goes to the floor you'll only
The pressure was rejected and when the vote was taken between 150-200 CLPs voted in favour. The resolution was
but the unexpected sup-
Phe let eces on its feet had
left was on its feet and
resolutions on the followed. had been of the week Williams had said that if Labour were to stanc on a withdrawal ticket at the next election 'I shall have no the most
Whether this state- the discouraged delegates to vote for withdrawal was the sub-
some bar-room of merit.'
Williams' blackmail was contemptuouswas carried by a large majori- resolution
leader Jim
Callaghan, who had earlier in
Stated his oppo
conference, head bowed.
With one or two excep-
the pected. What was voting went as expected. different was the atmosphere.
was militancy from the consti tuency section, curiously ab sent the first two days
of mood, and not just this or that motion being passed head of steam was building up, steam which hissed at the right wing of the party as if to say get off our backs , we the rank and file of the Labour Party are going to have our Fighting
Wednesday afternoon was what everyone was
- the resolutions on democratic reform of the
Party. These would Tony Benn had said • in the week, 'Whether
Labour Party will be dominated by the parliamen tary leadership or controlled by the rank and file'
First came mandatory reselection of MPs. Russell
black delegate Lewisham CLP, came to the rostrom to pour scorn
'the clique of the parliamentary party.
Led.
Russell Profitt
clique is middle class, this clique is essentially male, this clique is completely white.
Right-wing MP Joe Ashton rose to the defence of his colleagues, but in a way which only condemned them in the eyes of the majority b!
that 25 MPs would join Roy Jenkins' centre par
y if the motion were passec The retort came when San
summed of the NEC you to the anonymous then,'
The next debate, on who should control the writing of the manifesto, got off to a
start because resuryone was card vote on
of the card vote re-seccuon chairperson Lena Jaeger put the delegates out of their misery 'For the motion, 3,609,000. Against the
motion. 3.5... ' the rest was
drowned out by the cheers o the delegates.
Cheers
Mandatory rese ecio
won, and although that had been half-expected it was deserving of celebration.
ony benn wound up the debate on the manifesto with
of conference He began by proclaiming: 'In my heart I'm a Chartist...the annual parliament idea has a lot
He ended by saying: "The conference must be given the power that goes with responsibility.
The motion, which would have given the conference the right to decide the manifesto,
was lost. Yet it was a small majority much Sorrowe than had been expected, and here again hint that perhaps, on the third question, the election of the party leader, the right wing might not have the success that was predicted.
Parasites
The first discussion was on the principle of widening
franchise that the unions and the CLPs • would have some say, as well as the Mrs, • should be the party leader. 'It is,' said Eric Heffer, up behalf of the NEC 'a very moderate proposal. But because it threatened une monopoly of power exercised The crunch issue of the come conterence
It was a sweet and joyful
when Lena Jaeger announced the figures of the vote which took the election out of the sole hands of the
Tony Benn hurriedly pop ped another lozenger into his mouth to control his excitement. Ine constituency delegates rose to their feet like one huge tidal wave sweeping all before it.
At that moment it was ob vious that the rest of the conference would be something of an anti-climax. So it prov-
The block vote prevented the details of how the leader would be elected from being decided. That such a decision will now take place in three months time will oring nue comfort to cac right wing.
Wave
On their behalf the CLV's final bulletin described the events at Blackpool as a disastrous week' AS DCH nis Skinner said at one of the fringe meetings: "That's what hurts the right wing. They don't like losing. They squeal.'
The last words belong to Tony Benn. for it would be churlish to deny that if this conference was a triumph for hey on believe the laboas
believe labour movement is on the eve of a
step forward,' Benn sala al ine start or tue weck.
Despite the left victories Blackpool's Winter Gardens there is no guarantee of that, but it is the case that a path was cleared for such a step forward; a path that had
Photo: Andrew Wiard (Report)
Sam McCluskey
been blocked by, among others, the weeds and parasites of the labour right.
Those will grow and
breed again, fertilised as
are by the IMF, the
millionaire and
behind them the capitalist
class. ¡ney will nave to me
trampled underfoot if the
Labour Party is to even approach the implementa-
tion of the type of
socialism that was talked about at Blackpool.
But only spiteful
would deny that
Blackpoo! grand
place to be last week
Page 5 scan of this page
THE BEVANITES
BEVANISM largest movement that the Labour left has produced. It response to the failures of the 1945-51 government.
If on the one side the Attlee administration had put through a series of vital and radical reforms, on the other it naa insuluted wage licezes. put unofficial strikers in jail. fought the cold • wal from Greece to Malaya, poured compensation into the pockets of capitalists decaying industries had been nationalised. LaTur left from 1945 to 19h0 response was scarcely visible to naked eye. It was the Korean War, or rather its economic consequences, that catalysed a left reaction.
Mood
The Labour lefts of the late '40s were amazingly starry-eyed about the USA. Tribune never was distinguish fully between socialism and the New Deal and described Truman's victory In 194> as a greal victory for American labour' and for 'the common people over the world'.
When the Korean War started, the vast majority of the Labour left and South lined
the USA Korea. Michael Foot argued that US soldiers were ' dying to uphold Labour tarly principle'. Woodrow Wyatt, then a regular contnoutor lo Tribune, suggested that NONLI Korea should have nuclear bombs dropped on it.
This mood changed when it became apparent that US policy Was not just content with role it asinking
Korea was thinking about attempting the sallit mission in China.
There was also a realsation that the scale of rearmament for most of the left, ana certainly Devall favour of some rearmament
- threatened the social gains made by Labour. Gaitskell Was NATO and was determined to rearm as soon as possible even if this meant less housing and weltare.
Leftism
In April 1951 Gaitskell introduced a budget that doubled arms expenditure and imposed charges in the health
service. The Tories were exultant and the Labour left rainer druc consultuency Labour Parties were
enraged. Three ministers
resigned: Bevan, Harold
Wilson, and John Freeman.
The Bevanites, became called, produced
pamphlet, called One
Only, which sold a staggering
100,000
weeks.
Atlee called an election in 1951 and
lowered the temperature
the might within the Partv. But
Labour lost the election and
the battle was bound to heat
up.
The issue which sparked
the next big explosion
that Bevan and 57 Labour
MPs dared to vote against the
Tory defence proposals
March 1952.
ed a vicious witch-hunt and in
CO Del
forced to cease
regular meetings.
The right-wing MPs were
convinced that Bevanism
meant electoral disaster
Jenkins argued a case which is
close to that recently raised by
the right: "The electorate
extremely conservative-
minaea and we can nicver wil.
except with the kind
represented by
the
order to analyse
Bevanism.
current around him.
in
they
Way
IEW
this right-wing leadership.'
of But the real fire-power of
the right came from the trade union leaders who hated any suggestion of Deakin ot the TGWU prohibited communists from holding ottice in the union. A similar sanitation envisaged within Labour Party. Lawther of the Miners' Union gives a flavour of their politics when he acMPs cused the Bevanites their tempting
and munists did'.
Roy The left was attempting to
counter the drift away from
policies that the Thinkers'was the Gaitskellites of at- were called, were engineering.
the The base of the Bevanites
Rise and tall of
the tribunite left
SINCE 1973, and particularly since the end of the 1974-79 Labour government, we have seen a resurgence of the Labour left. In
the strengths weaknesses of the political approach of the new Labour left it is useful to go back and look at the fate of its political precursor -
Here ANDREW JENKINS looks at the Labour left's most illustrious hero and the Bevanite stars Dick Crossman, Harold Wilson and Anthony Greenwood. Behind Crossman, wife Jennie Lee and a youthful Tony Benn.
was the membership in the period 1951-53. control was 1952 the left won five of the had six constituency places NEC, and all six in 1953.
operation The Bevanite revolt took the up a variety of issues. It op posed German ana proposca a more lauica manifesto for Labour. It was 'at- concerned, but divided, over the issue of nuclear weapons The Bevanites com- "Brain. (panels of MPs available for Hesto would fown Halls) up and down th and socialist Coull y Wilson spoke to conferences 'New of Amalgamated Engineering Union members.
on the
Labour Party-
Bevan's
CLPs whose Teached aocak This shown when on the dicussed the
vice
rearmament
tervention in the strike. In
held hundreds They
meet in Bevan had beer Bevan and
. regulations tillic They placed the emphasis pallalculary pally
and elections for the NEC Peggy Duff, who was working
Tribune at the time, joked subversion. that the Brains Trust was so effective in pushing their candidates that some of us ever
possibility charging a fee for this ser of
The most important single continued activity of the Bevanites, and the least typical, was their in
1955 dock the the
evanites had had an abysm record on trade union mat-
had supported 'socialist' wages policies and dockers in even a 'socialist' wage freeze.
Minister pamphlets of Labour in 1951 when seven Tribune
dockers' leaders gates were put in prison under war- This
until mass Then he went along with and
went along with
the ITOl the
for TGWU leader Deakin. in see. ing the problem as communist
Things had changed bi January 1955 , Bevan was no longer a minister. The decline
the constituency parties, which with ups and downs has
to this day; had There was new radicalisation in the unions and Bevan had to get a base in
unions he become leader of the Labour
This time Deakin was denounced for slandering the
calling them com munists. Meetings were held
produced and sold the dock
intervention prefigures the activity a new
credible Labour would have to carry out.
Socialist Challenge
The collapse of Bevanism came from its political and organisational inadequacies. After the ban on meetings l 1952, the Bevanites, or rather leaders, met in secret. The so- smal their called 'First XI' met weekly for a civilised meal at Dick Crossman's where the elite discussed Ine "Second XI was made up of
ministers and few other activists like Ralph Mili. band and Geoffrey Drain of NALGO.
H-Bomb
The Second XI organised
Brains TUSU and other events but had little communication with leaders. The lack of organisa-
typities the parliamentary side of Bevanism and was convenient for leaders were impatient of any tion of real rank and file con-
The disintegration Bevanism began in 1954. Bevan resigned fron the shadow cabinet because of Attlee's support for the cold war alliance SEATO. Wilson, Tallel than backing Bevan, replaced him, with the sup
Crossman. By Wige
1955 Crossman and came out in favour 01 the nuclear weapons, which, they argued, would enable conscripton to be scrapped
Bevan was ambiguous on
He was against testing the H-bomb but was
multilateral disarmament and for staying in NATO. 1957 the H-Bomb Campaign Committee held a meeting of 5,000 in Trafalgar Square.
Lessons
A new left was emerging both inside and outside th unions that did not relate first
to Parliament the entered year
conference that year Bevan spoke for the NEC and lambasted unilateralists
Conference, he argued, should • no send foreign secretary 'Naked into the con-
ference chamber'. . To ban the bomb and reject alliances was 'an emotional spasm'. For once the headline
of the Daily Telegraph got it right. 'Bevan into Bevin'. (Ernest Bevin was the right-
will Labour foreign secretary in the Attlee government).
The lessons of Bevanism
are relevant today.
Bevanism to gain any real im-
pact inside the Party it would
have needed relate consistently to trade union strug
gles and to those who were
politically involved outsid
the declining CLPs. It needed
to organise its supporters in-
side both the Labour Party
and the unions
This would have led to
political debates that would
nave clarinea wilal socialists
should have
lave put the left MPs und
greater control of the rank
and file. All this would have
been a dramatic break from
the traditional methods
social democracy. Shackle
The Bevanites trod
another path. Their warped
came in 1964 when
Wilson, Crossman, Foot
Wigg, Davies, Barbara Castle
neerwood
formed rawled to the Americans O government that
Vietnam and tried to shackle
the unions at home.
'Bevanism' powe
had all the weaknesses of
without a single one of it:
9 October 1980 Page 5
Page 6 scan of this page
Carter, Thatcher - hands off Iran!
THE Iraqi invasion of Iran is a new attack on the Iranian revolution. It can only boost the imperialists' attempts to crush the revolution and impose its own revolutionary terror.
Washington London and Paris profess 'neutrality' up their forces in the region under COVCT the 1laul attack. threatening to intervene militarily under the pretext that 'economic interests' are threatened.
Any such intervention under the guise of defending oll any other pretext would be nothing else than an armed attack on the Iranian revolution, Just uke te пор-
American raid at Tobas to free the hostages.
Socialists in Iran and throughout the world should condemn the Iraqi military offensive and demand the immediate and withdrawal of all Iraqi forces from Iran.
They should denounce manoeuvres of Washington, don and Paris and demand the immediate and withdrawal of the imperialist naval reets Irom me vull. also condemn the selling
to Saudi Arabia and beast anus warn against the danger of further imperialist actions, under or imperialst manas wl me nanian Revolution!'
Coups
Irag has provided sanctuary for officers and soldiers loyal to the old Iranian TORTOV organised under the Oveissi, Palizban and Bakhtiar.
They are trying to form a 'white supported and armed by imally. per aram. These exiled counte
These exiled revo ntionaries could ink up in ans coup attempt with plotters in the Iranian army and the old state apparatus, not all of whom were uncovered the foiling preparations in June.
By Brian Grogan
THE Iranian
offensive against Iraq
has brought into
open the
alliance bent
destroying the Iranian
revolution.
The Gulf states and
Jordan, which had already
been covertly aiding the
Iraqi war effort,
openly threatening to join
it, while the fighting spirit
of the Iranian people has
caught the imperialists off
guard
When the
calculated the effects of the
US cutting off from Iran the parts lor hardware inherited from the
Shah, they forgot to take into
account the response
Iranian masses.
Khorramshahr, Abadan, and Ahwaz the Iraqi
troops are encountering fierce
house-to-house resistance
the people of these
engage in combat
the regular Iranian army
As Tne Sunday acknowledged: "At the front,
alongside Marxists and nationalists. Inis also apples to the oppressed minorites. The Arabs of have by no means seen Iraq régime have been against the Iraq rulers, which is hardly any wonder when it
was the areas, led by the oil wo
the oil workers. who were in the vanguard of the movement which over-
Socialist Challenge
counter-
while building
and inspired attempt to their
overgrow
crushing
to the
unconditional
tion. the Lon- military heirarchy,
unconditional reactionary officers.
Il lak 1 ney snould
of im- for the right of
: the slogan declaration of
qi claim to be their saviour. of 20 million'. and leadership of
tion OI militas and the election/
tion against the Shah.
coup
counter-
the
unholy are now
Iraqis
of the
cities
alongside
Times
threw the Shah.
Khuzestan More important has been
the decision of liberators. leadership.
fighting ped fighting the
forces as soon as the rao ar my crossed the border ICOOILS in Iraq renew against the Baathist regime in
9 October 1980 Page 6
AN edited version of a state-
ment issued by the United
Secretariat of the Fourth Inter-
national on 3 October
We fight alongside the Khomeini
Many imperialistoverthrow it.
Until the workers and peasants can replace the present capitalist regim vith a government of their own an!
Khomeini-Bant Sadr government would signal the
of the masses and of the gains of the Iranian revolution:
But military defence of the pre
not mean political support for it or
the Islamic Republic. In fact the policies of the present regime have undermined the most effective defence of the revolu-
riddled with plotters, rather than purging all the
used troops to suppress those national minorities struggling
self-determination, sive' bloody military assault on the Kurdish people. A forthright
the right to self-determination of the oppressed nationalities would generate enormous enthusiasm from the 50 per cent of
who are non-Persians, well as undermining further the Ira-
We support the call for an 'army
most effective through the forma-
aemocraucally of rank and tie committees in the armed lorces. as occurred in the February revolu-
similarly une best way to accoc. the gains of the revolution would be through the independent organisa• tion of the toiling masses in workers shoras and peasants committees.
Such independent organisation
Baghdad.
the Kurdish stop- Saudi Arabia Teheran colours. and
revealed that offensive •usually the US
International*
would help block any coup attempt by reactionary forces and help to workers and open the road to a farmers' government in Iran. Alliances The Baghdad regime has the 1975 treaty between itself and the Shah as its pretext for an attack on Iran. But this treaty itself signall ed a turn by Baghdad I towards collaboration with the Shah.
The Shah
the division waterway. and renunciation of Arab sovereignty over three islands in the Gulf seized by the Shah in 1971.
Iraq agreed to halt all aid to the rebels in Baluchistan, and those in Dhofar fighting Sultan Oman. It also stopped its propaganda emirates and the Arab minorities in
revolutionary charter!
Since the overthrow of the Shah, Baghdad has distanced itself from the USSR and sought closer ties with Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states The Iraqi regime hopes to take advantage of the weakening of the Iralian military power to strengthen it own role in the Gulf area Its other objectives weakening and overthrowing Iranian government it it can, as well as sealing off the influence of the revolution from Imperialism's support these aims was reflected in the Wall Street Journal which wrote: 'With
Lensol Washington would clearly welcome any role that the Iraqis might play in
The Iranian people enter the war
This further threat to Sad- install" dam Hussein is probably why
and Jordan lest the have decided to reveal their spreads
the Gulf.'
The Guardian on Monday Iranian
'powerful and
respectabic voices In following the
... are now arguing
CANKARA
TURKEY
SYRIA
LEBANON® DAMASCUS BEIRUT
ISRAEL /JORDAN
used SUDAN
'subver- © KHARTOUM Gulf
ETHIOPIA
ADDIS
stabilising the Persian Gulf.' a ferocious dictatorship against the include masses the national minorities.
real problems lies in an alliance with its own the Iranian revolution, not military for opposition, and though le throw of its own Baathist dictatorship ne Baghdad and imperialism for a swift proved thanks largely to the mobilisations openly for an armed strike to Western goverment in Iran moderate
the Shiite infection epidemic
The determination of the
people to defend the gains of their revolution is not
COLESC CHOSCH by Khomeini and Bani-Sadr,
TEHRAN
BAGHDAD
IRAQ SAUDI RIYADH
UNION OF ARAB
ARABIA ¡SANAO A.R
ABABA
of the Iraq's Baathist regime exercises
perialism including its religious and
The solution to the Iraqi masses'
hopes of both Defend unfounded, tion.
the rulers in Teheran. The lat-
ter are concerned to beet up
capitalist officer corps,
ing raised to 'normalise' rela-
tions with US imperialism
supposedly to get the flow of
spare parts re-started.
Such a development could
only lead towards a counter-
revolutionary coup.
U. S. S. R.
IRAN OMAN F D. P.R.
FASH SHA AB
Ocean
Iranian masses against the attack. The designs of imin the region can countered by urgently raising the following demands throughout the international labour movement: traqi troops out now Imperialist hands off Iran Full support for the efforts of the Iranian masses to defeat the hand of reaction
the Iranian revoluThe coresponse of the and response masses that place for socialists is in support of the battle to defend Iran. This is where to fight for the extension of the revolutionary process and against attempts to consolidate the colast sale and army li Iran.
Page 7 scan of this page
Iran/Iraq war: 'take no side'
Benn gets his facts wrong
Confused attitude to Rank and
File groups
I AM partially heartened by
Sauce of oransa InsIde NALdU withın the NaOO Action Group (25 Sept):
would be more firmly ed if attitude was duplicated in other
umons. lil lata L0. UC monest. your antuce to Rank and File groups Otner unions is typified by arianism and utter confusion
The history speaks for itself. In Dow te leaders
Nt e civ servants unions (CPSA/SCPS)
hat is initiated a split - and lucil sal valk allu accuscu k a r grouos or sectamarismn
ralle o mount joint electoral candidates! This
is surely an
am Your ariel by tn NAG
clearly SilOWS that some members or tne Internauonal Marxist Group are aware the bankruptcy - gh Brong vi tism and of 'blocking
appalling Stalinists and only slightly less abDall? class laboratonst Labourle Kino
yer win the Nus ang rade sill dinere to serie
to sterile
o nel bio vin ad
refuse reunite respective RöF - I1 SOC o dl oser aVror LO •O SO
There is no way excuses can be offered on the lines
ore prie or s ince®
principle •OTRANS&On renau. constant - and that principle is the united front.
The only possibility that immediately strikes that the IMG is
• wracked internal lonalısm stavic principle can be adhered to
curtaaes. alcase and sort yourselves out with regard to the R&F. Either be in or out, but at least main.
principlea stance And try to be a little mor CUrsIstCHL — In unc civi ser• vice Or exami e Medder Tape nop arouna like a cat on hot bricks
have you i iside ] R&F so that you can help us build
genuine ligniback that Lontr oln se asr (on Labour Is In Dower Broad Left will do) Think about it and join the R&F groups! ~ NEVL DHSS 'WHAT is history but a tale agreed ироп?' said (I think)
Bonaparte. There
Sure UNO. facts. Tony Benn's CUIsC, count of the development of the
Mobilising Committee Jor Labour would be less of a 'tale' like the actual history if he had a clearer grasp of the facts.
In his interview with Pat Kane and Hugh Richards (25 Sept) he says: 'All of a sudden, much to my surprise, there was the
the deveoomen Committee... When the Militant tendency came in to the Mobilising Committee all of a sudden began to come alive.
account bears resemblance to the reality. sron ine jact inal ine Moolsing Committee did not die when Militant joined, it is the opposite of the truth.
BY WHAT dialectical process did Brian
Grogan TEANO the
revolutionary socialists must take sides
in the Iranian/Iraq conflict? (25 Sept).
There is not even a whisper of a Marxist
analysis of the nature of the regimes of
the two countries.
He writes that the aim of the Iraqi at-
tack is to roll 'back the gains of the Ira-
revolution.' Have
Khomeini and his
very successfully
outside help?
Of course we hold no brief for the
murderous Baathist regime in Baghdad.
But if
Khomeini as big a
threat as Hussein
chauvinism.
The result misunderstanding nature of the war. You may Washington, despite say Lild .ICI niculraly. assecet glad 2 OOlL the Iraqi attack on
she may even this by means etermine: character of the conflict.
nIere : 15 a war verweet LWO DOlCeDs governments; they are fighting for similar. goals. Each
the discontents
ierlorics wy puccally Dennennas national minorities oppress
The facts: Militant's involvethe first ment came after
Committee was launched. ас- been formal
tokenistic to the point _of being nominal involvement.
Democracy ple: Militant took 50 of the first and more broadsheet -
of its UrSUlACN 17000). broadsheet (which carried an article and very LPYS, completee
Militant, took 200 copies Mobilising first, none of the second. Less than
the ordered by Militant supporters in the provinces; none, know, of the second.
Apart The paper Militant has only
had occasional lukewarm articles the Mobilising Militant has nol been prominently in organising the local
conclusion that tional not Ayatollah mullahs done this themselves without
Hussein has slaughtered comYour coverage of the Middle East war implicitly backs Iran, gives critical support to Khomeini, and thus slides towards social
Baghdad the Kurds and Arabs of Iran). About this
you sae ohi.
• workers, ories ts, alla nanoma annotacs the lt nave a var. They ain from such a war shoul support neither chauvinists and ansionists in Baghdad noi r asal Coule Dalls l enran. Thei Snolle overlatow them both.
About that too you are
Farce ma tse raa lack cole spel danger toi the revolutionary masses nh ey the Iranian will doubless s defend them But you demand more: that alulasi aromen reume Mobilising tion); It has bevolvement,
In short, ror exam.
about one for each
and just enough (l olal sale:
It took 75 of the second
people). The Mobilising dominated nv tribution was of the occult first broadsheet were
do and say.
Uj course
the Mobilising embodiment Committee. involved short of resources.
-Letters
munists and Kurds, Khomeini has not been backward in persecuting Iran's naminorities. Hundreds, thousands of Baluchis, janis, and Arabs have fallen victim to Great Iranian chauvinism and obscurantism.
True, in Iraq Hussein has not yet forced women back behind the chador; nor is there any evidence of adulterers being stoned or thieves having their hands chopped off. But | am sure that Brian would not claim these as 'gains of the Iranian revolution.'
On the surface at least Iraq's war .aims appear to be only the return of terYet the Khomeini regime has done JUSL • •lussen to orovoke me walr which endangers the Iranian
like Hussein, lashes to the treadmill of racial
You even offer advice to make your
by democrati and freeing. the Arabs of Khuzestan. As were some socialist fighting a revolutionary war, , and whose onl sin was to ricently, to tree and Khuzestani Aldos. bc vou nol know ina ats to oppress Arabs that y on the plains of
Khomeini is no less ares or heerenian re threat to toeli adversary Baghdad. meetings (with perhaps one excep-
places it has not been involved at all, even to the extent of its people turning up.
Militant involved
itself just enough to keep contact with the "Tribunite/Bennite Left' activity" Por ers aspe it i stod aide. O LOo its sup- the
soccEric Committee WOTA for
that k unless Benn thinks Militant has an
influence labour movement irrespective of what its members and publications
Militant's formal support has added to the appeal of
Committee as the socialist of •united left, which is something, I suppose. But it is not much. And Militant is not
may. not , Kurds. Azerba
Shi-ite LUrE
both countries
region aflame.
Wilhelm advanced almost lo mne cares or renoorao.
The Bolsheviks understood that the gains of the people before the October Revolution, Bolshevik soldiers uelenaca uie approacnes Ii COna wu tienver But une mOSt urgent need, said Lenin, was throw out the
of the workers and peasants In power Then not only the auss an sorge oul uie ks dõnovannn vonc able to say to the German
cease return home and fight like US lUl. hocrauoll
The people of the Gulf „ e od ceve! overthrow the capitalists •55 and Baghdac ecure a just and democrați Socialist balcils. demand neither revolullon пот peace пот
Strange also is Tony Benn's choice of the Socialist Campaign
Labour Victory (and Women's Fightback, which it initiated) to illustrate his perception that there has been a 'great splinter
inside and the Labour Party. The SCL V initiated
Mobilising _Committee and, together with the the Campaign
Labour Party Democracy, "carried' the major weight of its uniting and organising work, both at the centre of the campaign and inrougnoul ine country
But comrade Benn or his advisors may just have noticed that the SCLV forms the revolutionary
wing of the Mobilising committee...
JOHN O'MAHONY (SCLV Steering Committee)
ritory seized by the Shah in 1975. There
be CIA involvemeni behind the Iraqi attack but as yet we have no evidence for this. We cannot base our political positions on conjec-
The correct slogan for revolutionary
raise no imperialist intervention in the Iranian-Iragi war. We must call on the masses of
their arms against their oppressive regimes and to set up organs of genuine popular control. This would act as a revolutionary spark which would set the whole of the
CHARLIE VAN GELDEREN, London
Oppose
Iran/
Iraq
war
IF THE masses OT TOE East today are politically dominated by religious ideologies arcel TESUIT OT TAE unprincipled policies pur sued by the Soviet Union and its supporters in the wommunist rardes since
Unfortunately Brian Grogan's aTtiCle , 'Hand: off Iran' (25 Sept) adapts the prevailin ideologies and spreads il fusions -. i anomeini s woont ardcr Kurds was called off anc nationar TIGLA orantec them and the Arabs of Khuzestan', and so on.
Identical Marxists do not take as their criterion for sup. port a regime s policies but its social baso Socially both Iran anc Wou ceinoesan eppan tially identical. Both countries are dominated bourgeoisie which cannot rule directly through democratic in stitutions ane neree e bolSterS TSAn through Bonapartist mediators military clique in Iraq ane demagogic religious hierarchy led by Khomeini in Iran.
For the moment the Iraqi Baathist clique have
nas not yet been able tc
Marxists therefore do Not take sides in tne wran.
the workers ano melr alfe BOTT regimes establist peasants overuren. DOTER countries. The demo. cratic demand for tional self-determinatior part 1081 fight against Khomeini and the Baathists.
Minority
!f US or other imperialist forces wivdde Hran MARYISTR would fight against them would only reinforce oresenu SOCIeT strengthen the hold of reactionary the masses. But the demand TO Ine right of self-determination for tional minorities would sul stanle
LF HOLLEY, Bath
Socialist Challenge
Democrats
with a
capital D
IN THI interview on the
USA (2 October) Tony Ben
CADI COSC : the support
Icaucr Democrati
•ocalst (OsOr; Michael Com
mittee (DSOC)
Harrington Benn draw
s and the eriy aye
activitie
formation
British Labou Party, and
contrasts uns winn ine Dosi
tion of the Trotskyists in the
USA who see party
labour being formed
pendently the
vchucrauc ral
T aKROW.
main impetus for the forma-
tion of the Labour Party at
the turn of the century came
nd the rank and file of th grouj
forn vul cauclals or uic ubereis
narrincton of us worke that
ie malonv support the Democrats, therefore
workers don't vulal about s or 6 Der all anu orobaol : cent vote
Tor Ine Democrate in the primaries - but Harringtor
the
Democrats are a party of big
Capital.
It is entirely different form CLADONI Party walde for its cantac leadership
the Democratic party
Harrington supports varty orte cass enemy. He camas Carl f was comm ir- campaigned for Carter
employment,
ani militariack,
wucH s black Tuns.
Presumably campaigns for Carter now.
PHIL WARD, London Wrong means not ENDs
AM Socialist Challenge's attitude to the positions put forward by the Campaign for European
Nuclear Disarmament
Two 01 criticisms put forward by Redmond O'Neill in his pamphlet Don't die Tor Thatcher ar8 • L8T does not call for Britain out of NATO and does not take a unilateral ap. •TOCCn
However in the pamphie Protest and Survive EP Homosen says that 'each national peace movement proceed directly to contost tue nuc ear wendons deployed by its own state by NATO Warsaw
obligations... Its demands upon its own state for disarma. ment will imaterar. (my emphasis).
The pamphlet also says 'We offer no advanlael CLOSERNA the Warsaw alliance. Our objectives must be to.. ultimately, dissolve both great power alliances'.
True there is continual referal to gradual-
appeals governments which all seem pretty lame - thus
demand ontlen of NATO' is not put forward
If my interpretation of Protest and right, I think that we should criticise its orientation
waaie-cias.
OGr8OnAGS Instand seing the need to use in. dustiral and mass action to force governments abandon nuclear weapons.
LES HARTOP, Coventry
9 October 1980 Page 7
Page 8 scan of this page
THE BATTLE FO IMPORT CONTROLS OR M
Clyde worked
over Heath
By Patrick Sikorski
fight redundancies.
media and the courts on pickets and strike leaders.
solidarity in the labour movement.
Occupations are
property.
when you return our future to us.'
Under the 1970-74 Tory there
tion at that time takeover of Upper Clyde Shipbuilders.
and sell the others to private firms.
cupied. took part had takeover of the yards.
On 18 August, €500,000 came
ment.
controlled the
under stewards.
of other jobs depended on them.
held up and down the country.
The
talked of strike action.
struggle spreading.
'lameduck' policy
smashed.
yards, and in
The work-in ended.
boon the beginning of the end.
Socialist Chailenge 9 October 1980
The day Upper
OCCUPATIONS are the best way to
By seizing their factory, workers. koop themselves together, instead of being scattered to their homes. Solidarity can be organised against the attacks of the
police and the
Delegations can be despatched to build
effective than pickets in stopping the removal by management of supplies, machinery, and
If they are occupying, workers can say: 'Wo will return your possessions to you,
government, were over a hundred occupations against redundancies and as part of militant wages struggles. The classic occupa-
was the workers'
UCS was a consortium of five Glasgow shipyards which the Tories tried to break up. They wanted to close two of the yards decision was announced on 29 July, 1971, and the next day all the yards were oc-
A demonstration of 30,000 the previous month, accompanied by a one-day general strike in Glasgow in which 150,000 workers
IF WERE LAME
DUCKS
THE TORIES ARE
DEAD
DUCKS
pavea tue way for
70,000 marched in to the work-in's funds.
Overnight UCS was at the head of a national movement against the Tory govern-
The occupation was not a conventional one. The workers took charge of the plant,
gate, excluded the quidator, and prevented the movement of machinery. They also paid sacked workers under fightingupervision nished to shipp
supervision
The work-in had a tremendous impact. The shipyards were at the heart of the Scottish economy, the workers were in a strategic position, and tens of thousands
The shop stewards seized the chance to build a political movement to throw out the Tories. Hundreds of meetings were
August demonstration united the Scottish working class behind the demand to kick out the Tories. The Scottish miners
But as in the steel strike this year, the TUC did everything possible to prevent the
Nevertheless of the Tories
The government was forced to shell out f35m for restructuring three of the four
October 1972 Marathon Manufacturing took over the fourth yard
Heath struggled on for another two years before the miners' strike in 1974iadministered the coup de grace. UCS had
can
had
real number people, Illally The
entitled
the increase
The rate depends fundamentally rate of profit. When profits high, industry are built, put back into workers are hired.
For building societies, abroad.
As profit weaker firms go bankrupt. firms start to less profitable Unemployment rates in Britain
seven years.
According
the lowest ever recorded
points VUL.
ding stocks. Employment sharply. drastic
the world economic
historic decline of British and
tor over a nunarca ycars.
story. The using policies of as a desperate the working class. the cessive
the organised
Fear
introduced
proposals for
the unions.
The Thatcherism savage use the
restricting was
firms and individuals -firms will bankrupicles
the stronger, firms.
w1l weaken organisation Page 8
By Paul Lawson
WHEN the last Tory government left office in 1974, the official unemployment figure 600,000. In 1979, at the end of the government which followed, unemployment
climbed to just under 1.5m.. unemployment is over 2m (8,500 jobs having been lost in the last week alone).
These figures are well kno to be gross underestimates of thi
out of work particularly women, who are unemployed do not sign on because they are not
Whatever the precise figures,
unemployment has been huge. What is the cause
of employment on the are expands New idle blant Is action, new
When the rate of profit goes down, industrialists and owners
it becomes more profitable to
to the government or invest
rates down, Big close cown inel operations.
Hould. Prot11 have fallen dramatically over the past six or
to the Bank of
pany profits in Britain are now
mere 3.5 per cent. As the review
have responded by curbing their spen-
fixed investment and
fall profits result from a combination of the
crisis and the
tialism, which has been going on
The collapse of British firms' profitability is not the end of the
Tory government is unemployment weapon against
mid-1960s governments have attempted to break the power ot
workers movement. in order to busn down Ilving standards and boost profits.
Harold Wilson's government
treezt 1966. It followed it up with Barbara Castle's 'In Place of Strife'
curbing Since then there have been a sorry succession of wages policies and attempts to reform
distinctive feature of its particularly of 'monetarist' policies. The Tories hope that by
credit
he availability of bank loans t
weaker Photo: PETE GRANT
go to the wall. As rocket, they hope
capital will be concentralca
more profitable
At the same time the Tories are keeping their fingers crossed that the fear of unemployment
trade union and wage
demands.
Thus unemployment is result of a combination crisis of world capitalism, decline of British capitalism, and deliberate policies the government
This shows the absurdity of the argument lal damental cause of job loss is a flood of imports. time, as the volume of world ane canc. imports are ports are falling faster than ex. ports. Threats
The most popular demand in the labour movement to defeat unemployment is the call for import controls.
fact that this demand fails to ad dress the real unemployed, there are major objections Irom a point of view
in the long term, port controls cannot work. Any attempt to substantially reduce
would inevitably result in retalia-
the other capitalist countries possibility of a new trade war. I consequents disastrous etwith consequent fects on employment. Labour government 1964-1970 did implement what amounted to an import control
LIC charge of 15 per cent introduced
in 1967. This had to be dropper because of the
Wilson received of
INLIV
was Labour Today
the of the the
pursued
the fun-
At the present
both exports and
but imApart from the
cause
working class
im-
Morning Star
with the
disastrous The of
impending workable, the OLIC RIGHT to Workers stop for a minute's silence in Southall at the place where the cops killed Blair Peach
Ford Dagenham workers lobby the TUC for import controls - aimed at other Ford workers in Europe
capitalist countries. port control strategy. It is an at-
Apart from being un- tempt to save British jobs at the
expense of foreign workers. It , lnere is a morc run damental objection to the
HAHT FOP
RIGHT T
Page 9 scan of this page
Gardners occupy "against all redundancies"
Such proposals reach a high oint of absurdity when workers rom multinational company ke Ford simultaneously agree rith the proposal to build inter. ational links with other Ford orkers in West Europe against ontinent-wide attacks by Ford management — and at the same me call for import controls, resumably to keep out cars made by those Ford 'orkers!
Absurd
It becomes even more absurd hen Ford cars in Britain are ssembled with components nade abroad. The import concol argument falls to bits.
Most importantly, the fight or import controls - for examle the campaign launched by ze leadership of the Transport nd General Workers' Union i a substitute for a fighting proramme against unemployment ow. What would such a camaign amount to?
Unemployment has be ought now, irrespective of the ory-lerm swalesy defeat it.
occupation against hreat of redundancy. The whole
movement has to back
very les treath of redundans.
ivery threat redundancy hould be met by similar action.
Both the Labour Party and nany unions are in favour of the 5-hour week no loss of
1 JOBS
SS ACTION
pay, coupled with a ban on over
The trade unions demand that bankrupt firms be nationalised under workers' control.
and imp emented. mediately create the basis for a class-wide fight unemployment. But that can only happen if we start from the position that unemployment 1s caused by their crisis; the crisis of capitalism which no worker is responsible for.
Fiat workers in Italy have responded in way so ferocious was reaction to the threat of redundancies that in the past. week
brought LuCy have government!
Struggle
capitalism's crisis. then
and the 3-or LICal azallist
plannea economy worked
JuSt trade union organisation, divide working unemployed against employea full-time against the part-time, against men, unskilled. This is what can happen unless we unite and fight.
the demands outlined above we should emblazon on our banner the fight against discriminatory lay-offs — no selling of the jobs When the employers women, part-time prentices and school leavers,
but begin threatening every worker's job.
should
against exactiv the right
their
down the
Rate 1C° Ine seated with contempt thich nad been sucking p
but people: the workers women • skilled versus the
people. sack workers
it's
workforce
'SOMEONE has to show the Tories that they can't get away with it'.
That's the sentiment of the 2,500
Gardner's diesel engine plant in Eccles, Manchester. The plant was occupied last Friday to fight 590 redun-
threatened by manage-
Gardner's must win. It's not just to save 590 jobs - actions like this are an example to the whole trade union movement. It could be the beginning of a national fightback against unemployment.
JUDE WOODWARD talked the Gardner's workers about their
management sposed Tom Macafee, Gardner's convenor, addresses the
we were taking me the plant at 4.30 on switchboard straight away AN as to tac factory sion put out reports that the Thursday mass meeting had
vote was closer than it had WOrKTOrCE
ana mn ours uncy naa bec working hard to swing the
GARDNER & SONS LTD
How Gardner's are fighting redundancy - interview with AUEW convenor.
the
morts in the veiline bian.
lUat DISA Taclo
police to been trouble at th all lics to sell pcopic up against Us.
Gardner workers
from the management,
backlash from
especially the clerical sec tion
Organise
APEX members in the plant have refused to sup. port the action. But the best
to pressures is to build up
the
into ine trade union movemento insold and sieve Coddingham
one th best organised sections the site.
They say it all: 'There's only two • sets or peopie againsi
the con tee ment 5. once the ice tea
the place, they'll have Sm
grouble getting back. going properly organised.
Solidarity
"Then we'll have to go for solidarity throughout
Hawker Siddeleys At Meries, Blackstone
Siddeley, venol already Iney l support us whalevel action we take, strike or sit-
especiall IVlalarc alcady sent out Icucis 0 ai Ine trade union movement, vising them at every stage
Socialist Challenge
Photo: KEVIN COEN
and letters,
seen the AUEW na- willis wok. conal committee. ano we're
to back us.
Proud
Mike Brightman steward the milling •evarmen ane d
says: 'We're hoping
ding delegation chione
meeting workers on Wednesday, just down int tpac
'We're hoping that they'll all take strength from
all district is enough" slogan We want it to catch
oispute will turn ane nice against redundancies and
will pick up our
"The important thing to get across is that the sit-in is
revealees. just • тогсее тестповтcies. We're against the principle of job los
'We're
sweat for we've got here. f the support that i exists in the unions across _country IS TOrthcoming we could turn the tide and become a mini -UCS
Macafee should have the last word: 'The TUC are enough. The quicker they withdraw from the T-bone
and beaujolais vironment and see
Photo: KEVIN COEN
said enemy ight
will be for all of us , the better
Support and donations
Macates Convenor, L Gardner & Sons, Satard. Tel 061-789 22/03. nara
9 October 1980 Page 9
Page 10 scan of this page
It's our future-no to missile madness'
conference against the misslies
THE resolution passed
at the Labour Party conference in favour of unilateral nuclear disar-
Tomondous boost to
the campaian the missiles.
doubt, the big OT the labour movement are the key to stopping the siting of Cruise missiles in Britain and spending £5,000m on Trident.
CAm pargners against the missiles are planning a labour move-
conference for some time in February.
Sponsorship of the conference so far include:
MPs Eric Heffer, Jo Richardson, Ron Leighton, Reg Race. Stuart Holland, Ernie Roberts, Alf Dubs, Dennis Skinner, Martir.
Stany. med Judith Hart, Stan Frank Allaun, Joan Maynard, Tony Benn.
Labour Party (tteo),
Trade unions
region (Gen
o'Briel 'EC TAGWU Bir
The gren go dun a san
Arthur Scaril pres Yorks NUMI." 'TO ENSURE the success of the new look Socialist Challenge we must take it more directly into the class struggle, making an effort to reach those who.need our politics, struggle more effectively against all forms of oppression.
INIS IS what wrote in a letter to Socialist Challenge last week. And unlike many people who offer others good advice, the Wolves comrades have been busy over the summer putting their words into practice!
They write: summer Wolverhampton made a decision to maintain the level of its regular sales 60 copies rather than use the excuse of holidays to reduce that number.
'We increased our sales' points in the town centre, outside the railway station, at factory gates and, most significantly, in bi
Socialist Challenge 9 October 1980
New Statesman
Socialist Challenge -
don't get left behind!
vastly,
in order to brought Wolverhampton IMG 125
'At the beginning of the IMG branch
per
burgh,
Page 10
(oovitan C The Bomb plot of nuclear attack used in Square Leg. Open circles indicate airbursts which in general cause little tallout; black circles show droundbursts which are responsible for most of the fallout. The man has been copied from a variety of official sources including maps on display at the Basingstoke and Wanstead bunkers which were open to the press last week. Almost all of the bombs 'used' were in the range of ½ to 3 Megaton — or from 25 to 150 times the power of the weapon which devastated Hiroshima. Broadly speaking, these are the sorts of warheads currently fitted to Soviet missiles targetted on Western Europe
The attack came in two phases: a first strike very quickly after the attack warning, between noon and 12.10; a second strike drifted in from 1pm to 3pm. The shaded area on the diagram represents the limits of fallout after 3 hours, although the intensity of radiation in this zone would range from the mild to the quickh lethal. Around each bomb site would be a zone of blast damage and a 'main fire zone' which would in urban areas often turn into a firestorm. For a 2MT groundburst on a clear day (which this was), heavy blast damage would extend to 3 miles, with a main fire zone of 6½ miles radius.
THE secret map used in operation 'Square Leg', showing the likely targets for Soviet missiles, and the area affected immediately by fall out.
the pubs. Our pub sales have increased especially in Bilston steelworks' closures have resulted in 2000 redundancies. 'Even with our own reduced numbers and the Polytechnic vacation. our efforts increased sales, order - first to 100 per week and then to and new readers and contacts. 'We recruited 3 new members over the
'There is no reason why sales of the Challenge should drop over the summer.
We have used this period to re-assess our sales and to double our order between July and September.
Wolverhampton is not the only branch which has increased its sales style' paper brought increased orders from Manchester, Sheffield, Cardiff, Leicester, Brent, Haringey. Don't get left behind!
Nukes
9 Haverh
where the
an increased
SOLDIER special the 'new the neutron
EdinHackney, and
brown paper?
POST WAR BRITAIN
action. has taken
The
those
against
take demonstation
Side There organisations youtr nuclear Some, of view
Tv arive They
ment. for Nuclear
Energy Students
and youth
have together TORCE missiles. Anger
against the eld a Revolution Missiles Speakers:
Japan)
wearing suits to protect them against
bomb.
Could you make one out of whitewash and
AT THE end of the anti-missile march in Blackpool on
28 September, Gillian Whitworth speaking from the
platform said: 'It is the future of youth that Thatcher
is signing away when she orders her Cruise missiles.'
Certainly youth are at the front when it comes to
Revolution Youth the lead with a proposal to set up Youth against the Missiles.
says that it wants to unite all
youth fight for their future. It will
organising Youth the Missiles groups, and aims to build large youth contingents to
part in the Glasgow
tober and the London CND demonstration on 26 Oc.
are several among campaigning for disarmament like Peace, start from the point
that every the world is to blame for the current war
depend on the United Nations to bring about peace and disarma
some hope
There is the Campaign
Disarmament; Student Against Nuclear
and School against the Bomb have emerged over the past few month
Revo ution Youth argues that these groups
thousands of other presently not affiliated to any organisation
to be brought into against Thatcher's
In Manchester, Youth
Missiles has 60-strong picket of the BBC in order to protest gainst the suppression o
Game, originally made as a BBC film.
Preston. Rock against Nukes dance was a
with local youth turning up.
sponsored mp a Youth against see
against campaign, TaL-
RALLY AGAINST THE
MISSILES!
Thursday 23 October, 7.30pm
SAKAI (Revolutionary Communist League,
DOUG JENNESS (Socialist Workers Party, USA)
TARIQ ALI (International Marxist Group)
DICK WITHECOMBE (Manchester Against Missiles)
Representative of REVOLUTION YOUTH
Conway Hall, Red Lion Square, London WC1. Adm. 75p (50p unwaged)
Organised by International Marxist Group, British section of
the Fourth International
tracted 50 local youth and set up a school students'
Similar moves in other parts of the country tell the same story packed meetings, anger turning in to commitment to action, enthusiasm and fighting spirit.
Fight
Youth organised against missiles in this way have great political Worldlice in the ment against the war drive. And the way which Revolution Youth is seeking to organise sets a good example to the wider campaign against Thatcher's missile madness.
This movement will be a vital part of the fight against the whole range of the Tories' policies
Our allies in
шло cam paign against Carter's anc Thatcher's war machine don't stop at Dover. They are involved in every strug. gle being waged through. out the world against big business and its military backers.
The resources of the In.
: Group thrown behind Obviously we should argue for such groups to be af filiated to the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament.
Our aim is the broadest possible movement
• the missiles The youth action campaign allows the fullest scope for
people to express their concerns and their militancy. And that is the best basis to win youth to the fight against the war drive.
I won't
die for
Thatcher
STOP
CRUISE
MISSILES
Page 11 scan of this page
concentrates its forces
By Oliver MacDonald THE one-hour general strike in Poland last Friday, organised by the new independent trade union centre Solidarnosc, marks the end of
month's intense forts to consolidate the forces of the new workers' movement.
The strike, called to protest against the government'S failure to grant the full wage increases won in August and
•t. the new union, was a resounding sucwooo
All the areas , of Solidarnosc strength were solidly involved called out stopped work: and
were many indications of
Rozanski (recently
Labour Focus on Eastern Europe).
Thur 9 Oct
BIRMINGHAM.
Oliver MacDonald
Steve Griftiths. Committee
Room 1, Digbeth
Hall, 7pm.
Wed 15 Oct
BRENT. Tessa
Gelderen (IMG) debates
Graham Taylor (CP, per-
sonal capacity). 7.30pm An-
son Hall, Anson Rd, NW2.
Tues 14 Oct
WOLVERHAMPTON
(town). wlIn Richard
Rozanski and Oliver Mac-
Donald.
Poland: 'Solidarity Union leaders give a press conference
Poland: Solidarmosc
broad and deep syr movement working population as a whole Conservative estimates of the suren in
millon ciner estates co muci
level of support, workforce et- represents the most r Lauc ulul County di any time in the nistory orme muer ond wolk• class movement. the and the scope of the mass move ment in August it is not suprising.
Wilal las Decil coval cund une last lew has been the organising and consolidating this force
in sul se Outside the Gdansk region, its utmost to restrict the organised membership of
Forums on Poland
Socialist Challenge forums on Poland featuring Steve Griffiths and Richard
returned Poland) and Oliver MacDonald (editor of
Thur 16 Oct With WOLVERHAMPTON and With Richard Poly Students Union, 1pm.
Civic Organised by the Socialist Society.
Wed 29 Oct van YORK. University ing with Richard Rozanski.
Ring Tony on 413258 for details.
Fri 31 Oct PLYMOUTH.
With Richard Rozanski.
the to prevent the new union from be
Whip was banking on purely pr alla to resporu coreichilly to latiulia poncles. easlly
and from another.
Cortic Kremlin
COn•
of Stalinism
Yugoslav-type local safety valves aulas davas for the bureaucratic system.
Dossiolta within the union
disciplined move- including Lech
would be wise national leadership. ference of delegates
the new nation-wide organisation won the day.
indicates that will not be able to destroy
social upheavals. apparatus of mains
from andapacity
the Soviet Rozanski. Ilcialcu
DUl LIC
Committee meeting approachec
- even-
who right Polytechnic. For
within a strategic framework
trol over the On Kania leadership
International
vigorous
Eternal
arverica
easily divided one region
In these ways the new union
nosc? And
union
Dual us
Human centausca.
Plan
argued for
The success of Friday's strike
Line oure luc ad the August victory without profound
There power re• in bace ony because lc
, of course, does have Tener rom al The only way Pravda has indepen-
and anti-sociais e reze doctrine justifying military inva-
Union was re
of statements was almost certaini not a preparation for military ac gress
orarede hangin the
new plan.
Polish bureaucracy as the Centra
Wallls strengthen the position of those
against
indepen Kremlin manoeuvit MUSI political
full bureaucratic con- vI callscu cain estroy
tries. resistance from hardline elements
in the bureaucracy centralised
coming
ithin the bureaucra
as tunkey to de aole to make uit sort of terorus necessary to gall some political authority , and to take the political intitative.
ine most inportani probler for Solidarnosc now will be th
a daily paper.. why not Solidar crucial, is the need for ehe nere
to come forward with its own programme for beatin defending workers' living stan-
In the continuing economic
workers who
and social problems nave nor deer overconc
mendantes new uniteder
• a e
unese problemics • overcone s
own compreensive plan behind
demanding that the government adopt the plan
If the government resists the sonearnose nrogramme me ner ди гроти якомі сол could demand that both
• otor.
delegates
The books of the ministiries opened to give the the facts which to
the workers themselves the righ to decide. a new convulsive socia.
Line only obstacie to sucn é the decisive one - is
power workers unal oestacie with the a o socor from the workers of other coun-
Arguments for Socialism
Nuclear disarmament -East and West?
By Brian Grogan SOCIALIST Challenge stands for unilateral nuclear disarmament and the immediate, unconditional withdrawal NATO. We oppose general calls for 'world disarmament' Or West'. We don't think socialists in the USSR should oppose the 'Russian bomb'.
are quite different.
nature. It's a matter of life and death for capitalist profits to defend overseas investment and markets. This is what lies behind the invasion of Iran, and the propping up of dictatorial regimes in Central Acica
American imperialism threatening war against the Soviet Union or China. But in the long. run the restoration of capitalism in these countries is exactly what the imperialists are working to achieve
evitable unless we disarm our capitalist rulers and establish a socialist democracy.
privileged bureaucracy caste represented by the Kremlin has usurped political power from the working class. But the economy of the USSR is based on state planning. There is no drive for profits leading to aggression and ex-
that the USA lags behind the Soviet Union in nuclear weaponry.
myth was exploded by US defence experts. Possession of nuclear weapons by the USSR makes war less likely not
bureaucrats to halt the arms race. against war and imperialism is not simply military hardward but the militant mobilisations of the masses.
defeated the most powerful military nation in history.
the masses around the world the defeat imperialism. Thei policy of peaceful coexistence undermines the success of anti-capitalist mass movements.
monstrous repression of all dissent do not present a glowing example of socialism to the workers in the West or the Third World.
USSR must go hand in hand with political hostility to the Kremlin bureaucrats and a perspective of political revolution to overthrow them.
tradictory, as was claimed by George Kerevan (Letters, 1
Soviet nuclear weapons industry is the prime material base for the military wing of the Soviet bureaucracy.'
power over the working class.
the Soviet Union, far from 'striking at the privileged caste in the Soviet Union', would prepared a massive victory for imperialism. It would further aid attempts at capitalist restoration.
justified. Socialists would argue today for its reduction
and peasants.
nuclear disarmament.
of Britain from
disarmament 'East and
The social and economic systems of East and West
The capitalist economic system is expansionist by
expand
may not be immediately
War and capitalism go hand in hand. War is in-
The Soviet Union is not a socialist democracy. The
The possession of nulcear weapons by the Soviet Union is overwhelmingly defensive. It is simploy not true
Even. in last week's Thames TV documentary this
But it would be fatal to rely on the Moscow
The best defence
In Vietnam, for example, a badly-armed population
The Soviet bureaucrats do not use the active suport of
The special privileges of the bureaucracy and its
That is why defence of the military capcity of the
These two aspects of socialist policy are not con-
October). It is quite wrong of George to argue: 'The
The power of the Soviet bureaucrats, including the military wing, derives from its monopoly of political
The call for the renunciation of nuclear weapons by
The vast defence spending of the USSR is totally un-
to raise the standards of living of the RUssian workers
A revolutionary government which did this could call imperialism's bluff on arms limitation and expose who are the real war-mongers. Maybe this iw what George was driving at. But it is not the same as calling for Soviet
Socialist Challenge 9 October 1980 Page 11
Page 12 scan of this page
Rib women's liberation
Ispare
spare Rib
All o girl needs is a guru Three women: acting organst eit
spare
Socialist Challenge 9 October 1980
movement BOID.
How is Spare Rib sold today? We sell 25,000 copies of each issue through our distributors. Subscriptions account for about 25 per cent of
our tota l sales.
dISU mail CoDIcs lu individual
wonlel CCLILICS and on ior selling And about 200 copies go to a distributor America. hope to sell more there soon.
What's attitude
VOUT other women's magazines? What do you think Women's Voice winlea obviously taken a leaf out of vour maracinGr Some members of the collective did get a bit annoyed when they thought Women's Voice was,
appearance, copying Rib too closely. Partly 1 think we should be flattered if other ma Cavne copy our though of course there is a pro. biem it what another magazine is trying to suggesi is a similari-
approach and content when this isn't the case.
Women's Voice more onerter i wonlcl palu work, wuelcas we walll to look at women's lives in their entirety; to look as much women at home, at sexuality,
oh proseni chine ane
presenting wonter media
HOLTS who go out to work.
Do you think you could be accused of going the other way though, oT naving too much about nealtn,
CHeGUILUTe and not enough about women who do go out to work?
All women work — not just at
spare
To School Page 12
spare
with
members of the collective.
Woodward
Valerie Coultas spoke to
RUTHIE PETRIE and ROISIN
women's paid work. But no,
think we' ve been lax at all Looking through We Rib's content index, ing that we've written much about women LIULC to work than aboul any ornel sud ject. What SR politically of maKe other areas of our lives which the left generally continues to ignore.
On Show
Spare
Spare Rib is birthday
style,
showing produced.
Events such
much setting up of
women's retuge for tereo women lntsis, tnepassing of the Equal Pay and Sex SNLS the National Front at its most visible in 1977; and the revolution in lran are recorded.
So. too. are events ••ce nio as a macazuic. becoming a collective in sex- 1973; being Ireland •oscenes in ducing special issues - a
I don't
Spare issue? it's strik- We wanted but not a Tory. prommenl in paid the Labour attempts is to parliamentary
significant most interests ticularly givel democracy Diale
celebrating its
with a special exhibition, recording the magazine's history and
women how the journal is
as the visual issue
the first schools inasco, one tueo
bat- with fiction, poetry, and articles writing in 1980.
The exmioition shows how Spare Rib ap lu asaulot
proaches money. left and the liberation how Spare Rib attempts those though ho women concerned with
exhibition the Cockpit
banned in Princeton St,
being London WCI.
1977; 30 Octobei
TTOW December, 10am-8pm.
si 100 months of
There Why did you decide to in terview Tony Benn in the 100th
members to mictvicw man? pontical ficulc.
The left wing
Party the voice because us, parthe debates women. now taking
mean someone In it. find
100th Tony National paign lobby,
Decade and one on
women's could
feminism. 8S0
advertising relationship aratudes to te weet
women's ment and movement;
speak blems. magazine.
weak 1n strategically Gallery.
Holborn,
It 10 g to spare
Rib
was only one dissenter. Did you think that
Colecuvt wouldn't want us to talk to a
No, I just expected you to be hostile to the Labour Party
of its record on No,
We don't blanketly support the Labour Party, but that doesn't
wouldn't interview We wanted to something abOl Benn's view on feminism and the women's movement.
Benn spoke at the Abortion Cam, urging women
tor u theo e ste work ers
, he emphasised that ODOUI Party was 'umbrella organisation' that
incorporate many strands of opinion including
What do you think the
should be bet the women s move the Labour Party now and in the future? I think this does raise huge pro-
Because the far left Britain, me quite important that feminists take the decisior to work around left Labour Party concerns and that woulo mean injecting into it a feminist anlaysis on questions such as
spare
housing, education, heaith..
But don't you think there's also a dangel • of the militant tradition of British feminism CeLul incorporated into the Labour Party?
to see that as a real danger 'd have to subscribe to Benn's
that the women's movement is lust one amone many minority groups pursuing its own ends into a cul-de-sac
I don't see any possibility of the women's movement subsuming itself to the _Labou Party the concept of autonomv is too •strong Iol that; the women's movement is too diverse and the Labour Party is too obviously lacking in its consideration of feminism for any kind of mass alliance to be made.
But isn't there a case for arguing that the women's movement in its old form faces kind .crisis National conferences don't occul ally more. Feminist literature is very popular but that doesn't mean that lots of women are actively cam paigning as they used to. kind of passive feminism seems to exist.
Feminism has spread its concernemn comav cecOs. Du the movement has lost some of its identity. Some older women in the movement seem a little nostalgic for the past, but
Rib
POGETHER
Page 13 scan of this page
Ruth Petrie (left) and Roisin Boid: 'We feel we're speaking on behalf of an autonomous women's
movement' don't think we can look Dack warus.
What about your relationship to the campaigns of the women's Wellell, abortion campaign, for example. Do you decide Whether you will support d particular campaign? As far as I know Spare Rib has
stated explicitly that was going to take up a certain campaign. ourselves as a women's libera-
magazine it's understood that it is part of our function to do so — if women are involved in an action, then we cover it.
For example, Eileen Fariweather's article A DOTtion: the feelings behind slogans' (SR 87) was a long time being planned. discussed verv caretullv when it should be published.
I know you think we didn't give enough coverage to the Corrie campaign, but ТОТООР ПОСР ЗМ О Рези in a new way. We wanted to WELC bivalences towards honed to attract more women to the campaign that way.
But on Socialist Challenge we did take a decision to campaign against thought it was a really big attack on women s riahts In Britain. Our campaign news column was chock-a-block full each week With paign news, new groups were everywhere.
Spare Rib did not report on the campaign in this way. We tried to cover abortion from different angles, and it
quite successful. seems ironic that a socialist paper should report more Hoot a reminor camedoll than e followed SpazeR
followed Spare very closely because we needed inspiration ourselves. Eileen's arti-
spare Rib
cle was the feature article during the en-
problem with coverage, for example over the the campaign, how can this be
expressed? used the feminism' earlier — we're often surprised people don't write to us more expressing their views on certain articles and issues. •allu do from our and if lots of people had written to us about the Corrie camwould have had to discuss a change in our way way
criticism didn't come.
Spare Rib doesn't claim to the
movement. We are not the only We
to. When I (Ruthie) first went on the collective ago, I wanted to see Spare Rib a more spot-on Marxist feminist we But l've
one of its strengths is that it retlects the diversity women's movement, which inWe cludes a notion, for example,
of male power being very domiHalil.
But which movement are Tony Benn's minority more talking about
ment of women which accepts feminist ideas? cam- Do you think
majority of these women in up the broader movement ac-
cept notions power? How does Spare Rib as a collective reconcile this view of 'male power' the reign of Margaret Thatcher?
It I think the broad movement of
women doesn't use a term like 'male power' any more than they like "class day-to-day lives I've no doubt that clearly and react against male privilege and domination.
spare Rib
major asking If there is a
Corrie made
'passive
path.
in Dower fects of ideology on all But it is true that
direction
readers, argued
like Ditch the Bitch'
not as a Tory.
But that
employing
have access this policy?
three years behalf
learnt that lective might
autonomous voice of the Wouldn't
Marxist journal, You
There?
the vast
'male
with
'patriarchy'
do a term
I'm not clear what you're
about reconciling our view with Thatcher. Obviously we don't support her and have
It. Nor do we support a clear aligned notion of the essential woman who needs to return to the true
Thatcher as a token woman
demonstrates the ef journal nothing Spare Rib has about USIE because slogans IMG organises
they are anti-women. They attack Thatcher as a woman and But t
women
What about your policy of left-wing groups on the col women in movement.
Why do you have to reflect We feel that we're speaking on women's movement and that to tain have aligned women on the col-
threaten that
that have been the case with the International Rib?
Group's Not Socialist Woman?
Have wanted And in the 100th issue... * Decades - interviews with women aged 10, 20, 30, up to 100 finding out how they came into con-
* The domestication of women - excerpts from Barbara Roger's book about development policies
* Nichole's Diary — a woman's diary, letters, and poems during the years she had cancer, describing the support she had from her women friends, as well as her experiences as a lesbian. * Women in the Temperance Movement.
Available from your newsagent, price 40p, or directly from: Spare Rib, 27 Clerkenwell Close,
G. M
non-aligned women to for ine Would you Speak
Actually we did have non-
the editorial board in the early stages of the journal, quite a few. But a movement is different from a party. If the
its own women's there would undemocratic exclualng NOTaligned women because the
around certain political ideas.
exclude aligned the collective implies that they're not part of the autonomous women s
Spare Rib has never refused
the opinions women in left-wing groups. But as part of the women's movement we also work around cer-
polluca. and autonomy is one of them.
would vou let a woman who was a member of the Labour Party work on Spare
automatically. We'd have to discuss it when it came
Women power in the Labour Party By Judith Arkwright 'EQUAL pay, equal opportunity, equal power' is the title of a conference to be held this Saturday, organis-ed by the women's
committee of the Campaign for
Party Democracy.
Discussions will centre on a consultative paper positive discrimination for women in the Labour Party
If women had more say
Ine Labou ralL) and MPs were more accountable
would not have nad those 55 Labour ayes for th
Bill.
Maybe, too we would be on
La part really championed the need of women tion of electing more women
Using the law for
women's rights at
work
By Denny Fitzpatrick ANNA Coote's article on positive action for women's rights (25 September) compared the demands of the TUC Congress for positive action with the affirmative action programme in the United States, which puts a legal responsibility on employers to draw up goals and targets for women's employment.
This has greatly unionists who have fought to get women into jobs
which were previously men's preserve.
and the National Campaign for Civil Liberties in Bri-
tain are not pushing for any such legal enforcement
the unions and the employers. ing unions and management together to try and find areas of agreement for positive action.
TUC conference on 18 November asks: 'Is a positive
action programme necessary, and if so what form
should it take? ference uses the affirmative action programme in
the US as a model but comments:
tradition
evidence that an enforceable programme tends to
the implications of the programme.'
Once again voluntary
favourable. The document adds:
the activity of trades unionists is not explained.
and the laws that were passed.
discrimination to
Discrimination Act
An amendment to
tain to take action.
So, too,
ment practices and set targets to increase
representation of women.
can itself be a powerful stimulus
women's rights
struggle.
Socialist Challenge
parliament after all Thatcher woman. It'sa cucson vi u women determining Wildl policies we want anti-Corrie cam. paign shor red how effective action on the The Equal Pay and Discrimination Acts have so many one Call sc right through them!
What is needed is a fight in the Labour Party and the
discrimination for in training an os, a a law giving women the right to choose over abortion. a strong
among the rank and file tr fight for these policies conterence is or
at Conway Hall, Red Lion Perate London Heather Gebler on 01-458 1501 aided women and trade
However, as Anna Coote pointed out, the TUC
They favour voluntary agreements between
The NCCL conference next spring aims at bring-
The
The discussion document for the TUC con-
rish tradition printers cod terr
voluntarism, create widespread feelings of resentment - on the part of women who feel that things are not going fast enough, and the men who feel threatened by
agreements are 'The time is not right for changes in the law. ' Why we can't fight for positive action to be backed by both the law and
The equality legislation of the 70s has been ineffectual because of the inadequate backing of the trade unions, who simply relied on the government
What the legislation omitted was the recognition that women need special measures of positive
offset our oppression. The sex expressly forbids such
the section of the Sex Discrimination Act dealing with positive action, to recognise that women suffer from past discrimina. tion and need special measures to offset this, could be an important step in encouraging women in Bri-
would an amendment making it obligatory for management to review their employ-
the
The law can be a stimulus but not a substitute for action. Of course, it is trade union pressure and the struggles of women that will ultimately count. But the fight for legislation for affirmative action
Such a law would be a lever which all women and trades. unionists could use in the fight for
If the labour movement is to prevent women from taking the brunt of the current recession positive action will need to be a crucial part of that
9 October 1980 Page 13
Page 14 scan of this page
What's Left SC Events
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Page 14
Discrimination
against blacks -
it's official
By Philip Lindsay WITH a High Court decision preventing an investigation of the work. ings of the immigration laws, the govern. ment will feel even more confident in mounting a major attack on black people with its proposed Nationality Act.
organisations and the left have been saying for years: immigration laws are racist.
Commission operation of the 1971 Immigration Act. Counsel for the Home Office told the court: 'The whole system of immigration control is based upon discrimination. people will be discriminated against on the grounds of race or nationality and it is the function of certain officials to ensure that discrimination is effective.' with official discrimination, i.e. racism. Mr Justice Woolf agreed, no doubt sounding the death knell for the commission for those black people who still have any faith in this discredited outfit.
The Nationality White Paper, become law, seeks to deprive black people of several basic human rights. It proposes three classes of citizenship law. Only one class, those who have close links with the UK and those who could be expected to identify
right of entry. with parents and grandparents born here
in the colonies, such as Antigua, Hong Kong and Gibraltar. These people, enough to be governed by Britain, and exploited for apparently not good enough to have the same rights as others, mainly white citizens.
1.5m people in former colonies who opted for Britisl passports.
These people, become stateless by doing so, without citizenship of any country.
stateless people who were granted British citizenship under the 1964 British Nationality Act. And it seeks to deny citizenship to people who are born in Britain if the government doesn't like the colour parents' skin.
political and union activity by arguing that citizenship could not be claimed by people of 'dubious reputa tion', those supposedly 'working against the interests of this country' and those loyalty to it'. or speaks out against injustice is regarded in this light by the Tories.
Marriage that citizenship is only conferred on a spouse if that person has already been accepted for settlement.
Britain stay there, and that black people in Britain are forced to lve in tear. In as many cases as the govern ment can get away with, they will be deported. people by the immigration authorities.
for hours following raids on Bestway shops in London. An elderly black man was deported without even being allowed to return home.
ed when police vans with dogs converged on a factory. Inis is wilal ine home unrice means by discrimination 'effective'.
bosses and their government to scapegoat black people for the capitalist crisis. workers against black people
threat posed by the White Paper and put into practice the Labour Party's call for the repeal of the 1971 Immigration Act.
the most disadvantaged sections of working people, and building links with labour movement will be in the best position to fight all attacks on working people.
Home News
The High Court hearing confirmed what black
The Home Office took legal moves to prevent the
for Racial Equality looking into the
'It is of the essence of the Immigration Act that
The CRE, he added, had no business interfering
which is likely to
- an illegal measure under international
This class of people will be overwhelmingly white,
Denied the right of entry will be 'British citizens'
whose countries are good
labour or used for military purposes,
The third class, who are also denied entry, are ove
who were told they would not could well end up
The White Paper also wants to exclude previously
of their
The paper aims at intimidating people involved in
Of course, anyone who so much as goes on strike
provisions would also be tightened so
The Tories' aim is to ensure that blacks outside
There has been increasing harassment of black
In July over 30 people were seized and locked up
In another raid 50 immigrant workers were grabb-
making
Behind the racist campaign is the desire of the
They hope to turn white
The labour movement has to organise against the
By carring out such a campaign in the interests of
black organisations, the
By Pete Grant JOHN Deason, secretary of the Right to Work campaign, was arrested in Ealing on Saturday. Police moved in after one of a small group of fascists who had been heckling the jobs marchers rushed froward and started a fight.
Seven more marchers word alrested melee which the police behaved brutally
The 200 Right to Work
TrOM marcuer. Soutt Have Wales arouch concon en routE the or are con-
Brighton,
der on ration is to
Describing Tests, nov, wno nao mar Cheo trom explained: 'A cop told me
Gay men arrested for kissing rested for men were arrested kissing at a picket of the film Cruising outside the London Pavillion cinema on 28 September. with insulting behaviour tike have been charged ry lo cause c orcacl LIC peace are oostucume Ln e highway.
Cruising is seen by the gay community as all allack gay peopic misre •resentin nomosexual After contagious dessease. the a Stare. released in the United was significant number of attacks on gays trom people wno nao seen it.
The result of a conviction
behaviour kissing prevent open displays i affection by peopic il ally Situation walek
Arrests and harassment of gays have recently increased
Manchestel Hull Stockport Chester, and London.
Further information Jrom. ways Against the run
7 Pickwick Court London SE9 4SA.
Right to Wotk marcher arrested in Ealing
- Police attack
Right to Work
marchers
to move on and then punchee me i we somacu Hear me in me fall to the round and then tried tr kick me ur ider a moving The driver vart. only six Inches trom my head.'
Another marcher, steelworker We've come from South Wales with trouble
got to the Metropolitan area — just like the last time when we were at-
DON'T
DIE
FOR
HOW TO STOP GE
'Don't Die for Thatcher -How the wissiles. New bocals Challenge pamphlet by
A NEW PAMPHLET has been produced by Socialist Challenge supnorters emoloved in Posi Office Communications.
Articles deal with Tory TOT munications industry;
Photo: PETE GRANT
The marchers went on Acton protest a
station
and
demand the immediate
volcast LuSe arrested
London
fresh from their visit to
Eton chant
ch. the
the "Tory.
controlled Ealing council refused to let the
chers use schoo
for their meal break
the temple stepped in to pro.
vide food for the The marchers stopped at
the Southall where Blair Wat
and observe a minute's silence.
THATCHER
MISSILES
Redmond O'Neill pric 20p from "The
, 328 Upper St, cookshoo London N1. Add 10p p&p.
the role of nationalised industries • and Ine case for workers control. Copies are available from
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Page 15 scan of this page
Overpaid British
workers? Forget
it!
By Phil Hearse BRITISH workers are among the worst paid in the industrial world. That's the finding of an investigation by the ment consultants Inbucon.
Their investigation analysed average in-
therefore the
rigures seem excessively
avolaso..
as well worker's
buy one for a friend.
buy them a subscription.
Local govern-
ment staff back
Lambeth
conference
BY Carolyn Sikorski UNANIMOUS backing to the conference against cuts called by Lambeth council was given by Nalgo Action Group supporters at a conference on 27-28 September.
the annual conference of NAG, the rank and file group in the workers' union, was the largest for several years.
A mode recomition was adopted which seeks commit NALGO branches
industrial il avione saint agains
branches and shop stewarus commilices
conierence recoonise mat watte cola and other local authority
were stage
industrial action their
For a successful struggle
to make *principled and determined
alongside the trade
NALGO members nousing architects departments are threatened
work
undermine anti-cuts SUBSIC.
Unfortunately a majoritv or sociaust workers rarLy NAU supporters al lne conference amendment for the sharing under of all available work which was lui allaticu lo cupey DOSLS,
manage-
wages. The figure given for average British wages is way above the average industrial wage here. the figures sho w.the general trend,
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local government
I ne proposai, wnich wa. lost, would fight for worksharing which
By Alan Bạll 'THE option of raising rates no longer exists. option left is confrontation'
Ted Knight, Lambeth council.
That was Knight's message at a press week, to publicise ference called by council and the local ment Intens in against local authority aing culs. The conterence is to be held on November Camden Town Hall.
Knight was repeating message he gave at the Labour rarty received a standing ovation.
Environment
Michael Heseltine is threatening deduct £9m Lambeth's funds, and a similar
ONE RECEIVRS THE DISTINCT IMPRESSION OF
message: British
are at the bot-
tom of the pile
the figures
TOR
comes:
Nest Germany
Denmark
£10,476; 240; LIU
n.TTo UDA
Canada rin and
£8,804; Australia
Japan E7
United Kingdom
£7,266
Living costs in Britain
are very near the top of
the league.
Only Nor-
way. and West vacan, Germi
are there cities where it Is
live
than in London. with a year's
could involve all workers in
affected departments all NALGO
members The recent
LOLY of the dockers was in
derence or unis oracibie.
The conference decided
mınimum
and a Ilat rate wage in-
amendment to the next
claim was defeated.
It was agreed to call for Workes
Against Missiles
norun or relana. DUDOOT
was given for the building of
committees throughout the union. inadeBUT unere Wds
quate discussion of com-
rehensive policies to equip NAG members to fight for
these issues over the coming
vear.
STRIKE AGAINST CUTS
borougns
The only Lambeth
Stewees phasised: leader of
about local but results
this the con- vices on Lambeth monetarism.'
governborough
spen- to the rapidly
at which were the and which where trades unionists
Party members to take up:
minister
mittee to be from conference to systematic campaign to
Home News
YOU DON'T TELL YOU
Right in there!
Socialist chester
Challenge team on fight, sup for proposed JOUE Coll ference • Cruise the paper's ex.
into yve groups L8m Detr Con ference
successful
Our team, augmented from to time by dropping in to help fo was companied WILI •notostencI ane placed at the disposal of duplicating TacHites entire left as one delegate remarked the least we raised
FRONT'S DAY
Led on main streets checked by police
them.
told,
support or unel election,
giver e RF is putting a loi of effort into the election
The fascists' would like Derek Day to call on you and
meone should take him up.
sum from 20 or more inner city lulabs
Brian Martin of the council shop committee oull 'This dispute is not democracy, from the Tory government's vindictive com mitment to sacriice local ser-
the altar of need
On Monday night Lambeth Trades Council added its name
growing list of sponsors for the conference. I Council:
'Calls passed the following motions
proposed by Socialist Challenge supporter:
we urge other and Labour
'We call for a steering com-
set up trom tie carry out See
PEPHAPE ITI
THE DOCTOR SPOCK BOOKS!
SOCIALIST CHALLENGE was right in there at Blackpool, helping the left to win and taking. up the issues that some of them
Ve were there fighting ighting for us? technological level of the left's input!
As well elpin produce the we managed to find time for our wn dai which sha•oca ue ovadiocales after Duffy particularly sabotaged the extension of the franchise. takes Our total expenses came to £350: this was ony bay ottset • amers anod badges we sold back even stronger special nom about 120 from y to help cover itr
Our thanks this week to:
Jim Lomax £12.50 P Ward Burnley supporter 720.1 1 Avery spanisr 10.00 1.00 Joerna
P Stanton 5.00 D Sunnett M Cooper 4.78 Manchester IMG
Total £101.19
THE STREETS of Hoxton in East London became the centre of a sizeable police operation last Sunday morning. Cars park.
had their numbers COTTOULOU and the owners were woken up and asked to move
Police what was going on wer
candidate for a Hackner
The collaboration between the police and the NF which
demonstration secret meant there was little oppo 00 fascists marching through the stree It is also an area which ha The march was preceeded by a rally on Tuesday of last week anc
leaflet election adress carries this offera ty pou
blems you may have, ring him on 01-739 2187. Maybe so
for action against cuts. The steering committee should be mandated to call a turinel conterence organise action in support of councillors penalised by the Tories. a to the Labour Party NEC's refi ¡usal to support the Lambeth conference and for backing from the leading Doales of the Labou be effective, Lambeth Trades Lalletu
on the NEC of the Labour Party and the TUC to back the Local Government in Crisis conterence. 6e eclare their support for any action it organises both locally and nationally against cuts and all at. tacks on local government. back page for.con. ference details.
in the
Unions
Uproar in Ireland over
By Kate Holman,
NUJ Equality Working Party THE National Union of Journalists' policy on
abortion was established at the union's annual conference in 1976. It remains among the most progresive policies adopted by any union, but the NÚJ's all-male executive is doing its best to defy it.
The policy NEC 'instructs LITe ouve the free Aboron on recest an urges 8no
participate
in local and nation te.
achieve right'
the exyedl TELUSCO nor : frace unon cor by the National Abortion ference jointly organised
Campai Abortion
Rights Campaign. This brought
the 1979 NUJ annual con ference, which reaffirm.
union's woman's right to choose
'sudden the policy has now come TROI Cutalla re ane ane resulted TEnE ecutive's latest bout
dipping and diving All at Ville some iournalists in soura orleano rosioned from the NUJ allegedly
opposition to the unions stand on abor-
resignations novel more than a tiny minority
of Irish delegates, where
a large number of male
agreed campaign
abortion from among
NUJ policies
• then cooker Un a vereal TOr mula clearly intended
the hostile Irish
members NEO
that the
recognised 'the difficulty
of organising a campaigr
for a change in the lan
Ireland
without
the Irish members'
Socialist
tional Marxist Group
rossonconct
London N1 2X1
the IMG and its activities fill in the box below.
Name.
A oresss..
Union...
Organising
Union's abortion policy
added that 'no resolution caline specifically for changes
Irish law abortion
while Sand
The already been embarrass
the the Irish Women's Right to Choose Group
decriminalising abortion
There is certainly support for a , change in the law in Ireland but the NUJ leaders have coldly
their tighting conalton: women there.
According to Irish members are
bound by union just like Bri
NUJ tall members here be selec-
ting policies WISU journalists?
While the union's
not force anyone to campaign per
for abortion, §hould Irish some fluence of the
Church be allowed
nade in Britain
, on the left
union
two countries. Some see
one union as a hangover
from colonialists; others
gard it a
lational lir
Many feel that even if abou tion is not the right issue
it about This
Irish feminists in the NU
would be
more isolatea m conom
ting Church and State if
they were cut off from
Britain
Women in the union
have made
they feel on the issue
Journals s Aodinst
rie group was acuve n
defeating the Corrie Bill
this year and a stream of
led the
union's Equality Working
Party has greeted the ex.
latest
backdown.
The most convincing
response will be an over
of the union's wheimins s policy
next year's
annuai converonico
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THIS week a terrible and lasting blow has been struck at the nation's housing stock
The Tories' law to force councils to sell off council houses is now in force, and the government has launched a huge advertising campaign to encourage
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on a mass scale to privately rented housing disaster. Higher nomeets would outcolle
/hat will be the result
le great Tory council hou most rip off goes ahead?
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* young people will have muct less chance of getting counci flats or houses. They will have
put overcrowded
* The elderly and disabl ed will have to wait longer for the special they need.
* Houses flats will be sold. will loose their better housing stock, the accommodation will become synonymous with poor quality.
i natener wants britain lo become a democracv'
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Housing should be a fundamental human right. In a society
prices, private housing is it TaCI burden for ordinary
If the whole of the country's housing stock reverts to the private sector people to gain banks, estate gage companics, building societies parasites who make huge profits from human misery.
The sales houses sums up Tory Britain Bividualism and selfreliance Behind the all the vital services and provision of the
Confernece, Rm 103,
would be a and he the will go into
Waiting lists will soar
expensive sub-standaro
accommodation
rather thar "Councils
counci
property ownin
Britain where their own But what is the reality
owner-occupiers, at their present
people. under attack.
the only is also an councils. will beine agents, mort- ten aney and - all those
of council NATORICS banner should
community are the cuts
Local Government in
Crisis
National Labour and trade union
conference Saturday 1 November, 10.30am For credentials write to: Local Government in Crisis
Lambeth Town Hall, London
MARCH
AGAINST
MISSILE
MADNESS
Sunday 26 Oct
Don't let Heseltine get up your nose
The sale of council houses
altack local While in the short will benefit tinan cially from house sales, they will lose out in the long run as income from rent dries up.
The sale of council houses IT'S is one more reason why trade
and socialists support the connerence caled by Lambeth council to fight
Unity
Tories' restrictions tion;
adequate benefits.
Female
now labour
10 October: Women
against the Tories
By Judith Arkwright
now widely accepted that the Tory government's policies will hit women hardest - the attack on mater-
rights in the Employment Act; the
support for abortheir policies on social security, and in-
family increasing twice the rate of unemployment
The picket of the Tory Par •ty conerence on 10 Uctober
supported by many movement tions, will be a demonstration
Assemble 11am Hyde Park Rally 2.30pm Trafalgar Square Organised by CND of the hatred which •code fool tor tais covert ment.
Women Against Tories contingent on picket has b called in order to point out the in which
muting women. is importan ThaT
the , fightback to take up the struggle for our rights.
is by wick
Pam Corr NUT executive: Vàl Dunn. Na.
Baker AX. ecutive: Eileen Fairweather,
Bystron,
fond Our Unions citee
womer don't this
let's tell them Gover For women's rights, not right. wing women
← Socialist Challenge No. 166, 3 October 1980Socialist Challenge No. 168, 16 October 1980 →