Eighteen building workers, members of the T&GWU and UCATT, are appearing in court this Thursday (15 March) charged with 'offences relating to incidents which occurred during picketing in last year's building strike. It has taken police five months to bring charges: which include intimidation, assault, and conspiracy. But the unions are dragging their feet. 'NEW AREA' Shrewsbury, where the incidents in question took place, is a 'new' area for militancy in the building trade. The use of flying pickets in the strike was very effective in the area. But of course the biggest industry locally is steel. Shotton steelworks is being closed down soon, and with it a town will virtually die. These conditions have been picked to try out the new attack on picketing. The Industrial Relations Act cannot be used for this job again. It would spark off too big a response in the rest of the working class, By selective and careful use of the law and police the Tory government hope to get round that.
THE UNIONS The picketing that took place was part of the official policy of the local action committee. So the unions are concerned to get the conspiracy charges dropped, because it will remove their responsibility. No doubt they want a deal with the police to drop that charge and plead guilty to the rest. Instead of using the strength of their membership, they offer lawyers to make this deal.
But deals will not do. Unless we make an all-out effort lo defeat this attack, it will return time and time again. The use of the police flying anti-picket squad against dockers in Hull last Tuesday has already shown this. RANK AND FILE The court appearance on Thursday is just the beginning. It is a good sign already that Shotton Steelworks is stopping for the day, and that the Merseyside dockers are also stopping work and sending a contingent to the demonstration, The Building Workers Charter conference last Saturday also pledged full solidarity with the Shrewsbury workers, and it encouraged Birmingham building workers to hold a one-day strike and send a coach to Shrewsbury. The International Marxist Group is sending a coach from London, and also holding a series of building site meetings to mobilise support for the Shrewsbury 18.
But even all this is not enough. The charges laid against these workers are as dangerous an attack as the jailing of the five dockers last summer. But there has still been no real response in many areas in the labour movement.
What is necessary now is for every section of the labour movement to take up this attack. Resolutions should be passed through all union branches pledging solidarity and sending donations. The demonstration on 15 March must be only the start of a campaign of meetings, demonstrations and stoppages until the charges are dropped completely.
Rush donations to: Building Workers Social Fund, c/o M.R. Williams, Ilford Centre, Ocean View, Carmel, Holywell, Flintshire.
The report of the Building Workers Charter conference which took place last Saturday, 10 March, has had to be held over till our next issue. It is hoped by this means to begin to break down the restricted electoralist approach Which has always dominated NUS elections. Unfortunately the current President Digby Jacks and his Executive have refused to put out any publicity for the hustings through NUS channels. All students unions are, however, invited to send as many representatives as possible; phone the Students Union at Southampton (0703) 57991 for further details.
STOKE NEWINGTON FIVE A large protest march and mass meeting is planned by the newly formed Stoke Newington Five Solidarity Committee for 12 May in London, to coincide with the appeals of the four convicted last December and to act as a focus for the campaign to demand the release of all five (Jake Prescott, John Barker, Jim Greenfield, Anna Mendelson, and Hilary Creek).
The Solidarity Committee has been initiated by two of the defendants acquitted after the five month trial at the Old Bailey, Angela Weir and Kate McLean, and is supported by the other acquitted defendants, the families of those convicted, and the Five themselves. A national speaking tour of the acquitted defendants, together with local speakers from groups whose own experience of State oppression leads them to support the campaign, is planned to lead up to the demonstration.
A statement on the background to the trial has also been produced. Help is urgently needed to distribute this throughout the country, and also to arrange meetings for speakers from the committee, raise money to finance the committee's work, etc. All offers of help to: Stoke Newington Five Solidarity Committee, 54 Harcombe Road, London, N.16.
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