Socialist Challenge No. 282, 25 February 1983
The scan: sc-no282.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
Waterworkers must decide! FIGHT ON.
No. 282 25 February 1983 Bill Baxter from New Riverhead, North London leaves union negotiator
Ron Keating of NUPE in
no doubt about waterworkers demands.
By Pat Hickey WITH victory in sight and water workers stepping up their action, the union leaders have
devoted their energies to sitting around the ar-
bitration and conciliation service (ACAS) head-
quarters.
come of the 'independent inquiry'
The independence of
this farce was shown on
Sunday, Michael
Bett, industrial relations
board member for British
Telecoms, changed his
formula after making a
phone call.
25p Unemployed and strikers 10p
Socialist
They have been waiting for the out-
Who was that call to?
Perhaps another "independent' like government minister Tom King wn nas been pressing the Tory's pay policy since the beginning of the dispute One thing is sure, the outcome will be an insult
on strike and we've
got to vote on any
deal. We're
having no sell
out
to the struggle that the
workers have waged ove
the past 4 weeks.
The claim for com-
parability with gas and
electricity will drop out of
sight, and the only extra
cash offered will be tied to
productivity. This can on-
ly mean more job losses in
an industry which has
already lost 15 per cent of
its manual workers in the
last s vears
The full claim means
an average increase of £21,
'We voted to come out
and would cost the employers a fraction of the £300 million they have saved through productivity in the past 5 years.
The reply from WORKOLO sell-out
be 'No stand out for the full claim'!
The workers at Hampton in West London have shown how the claim needs to be fought, by building mass pickets stop scab contractors br-
inging in supplies. For the past 4 weeks management have been able to get coal in and keep the s the service running in But with the craft unions out and the problems cumulating they cannot keep it up for another month.
The message is clear. The water workers can win
there should be on the full claim.
When the National Joint Industrial Council (NJIC) meets, the union leaders
Right wing
plot to
remove Foot?
Last week's Sunday papers carried stories of a right-wing plot to remove Foot from the leadership of the Labour Party. These could not have come at a better time to damage Labour's by-election campaign in Bermondsey. have the power to call off the dispute. So far the officials have refused to give any undertaking that the membership will be allow. ed to vote on whether to accept or reject the deal.
doubt they will have the backing of Nor man 'secret ballot' Tebbit who will not be insisting on a two-thirds majority before a return to work.
But the water workers must insist on no return without SUCCULES full ballot of the members.
It is quite possible they were released for just that purpose. But it would in no way be uncharacteristic for the right to be ing such a plot. After all they plotted to turn the register agreed to at last vears Labour Party conference into a green light for witch-hunts and expulsions
They are openly plotting to drop Conference's radica policies from the HE SHCSLO
They plotted to use Foot's period of leadership not to bridge the gap between the right and left, but to launch a campaign to crush the left.
Now if they succeed in these objectives they are quite capable of plotting to ditch Foot in favour of a Like Hably COTSISTCNI Labour's represcutalive right-wing, Critical
So the coming weeks will be critical for the left The right-wing nave usec every peace treaty to prepare a new stab in the back.
Foot has fashioned the noose by which the right
plotting to hang him are If the left equivocate new defeats are inevitable. 1t a fight launched now in defence
SOCCES policies and against expulsions the right can be stopped
Labour's vote did not collapse when it was leading mass demonstraLUIS against unemployment. It collapsed when Foot tagged along behind Thatcher SDP Healy ir the Falklands war
Votes lost to Tatchell in Bermondsey are not the result of radical policies but the result of the witchhunt, endorsed by Foot, organised by the rightwing and whipped up into a smear campaign by the
nuclear
die armaceptable to AT
but it has the millions of
Blocked
The same trade union who are working friends against the Labour Party dissipated and stabbed in blocked
workers on the
Tories in industrial action.
Yet the miners showed in 1974 that exactly that
kind of action could im-
pose a bitter defeat on the
government.
right-wing are
plotting The left-wing
must start organising
Now is the time
launch a massive
paign to put unilateralism
and other radical policie
into the manifesto;
block the witch-hunt by
supporting BLES thai
refuse to expell Militant:
and to re-organise the left
around socialist cam
for
tory.
Page 2 scan of this page
No sell out. Full claim! We want the final say!
-Editorial
A Tory
landslide?
'LET'S face it - Labour's electoral prospects
are now desperate'.
Michael Meacher MP in last week's Labour
Weekly, and his view seems to be borne out
by the opinion polls - with a Tory lead over Labour of anything from 11 to 21 per cent.
The regional variations in the polls give a
clue to
South East the Tory lead is a gigantic 31 per
cent. But in Scotland Labour have a lead of 16 per cent.
In those areas which have been hard hit by unemployment, with the exception of the West Midlands, Labour support is holding up.
Elsewhere it is collapsing, against everyone's
expectations expectaly dwindle as the Fallands factor
wore off.
-ERe rory success In through massive deflation is one reason for their buoyancy in the polls. For those people
who have a job, living standards have not
fallen drastically over the past three and a half
vears. This is of course a contrast to the last
period of Labour government, when under
Healy as
drastically three years running.
But there is something more fundamental
leadership. The sharp divisions inside the par-
ty, or to put it more bluntly the sabotage of
the right wing,
electoral issues
employment. Labour is seen as weak and
divided, while the Tories are seen as a 'strong'
government.
In 1931 Labour reaped
whirlwind for the betrayal of the right wing
and the weakness and timidity of the left
leadership. The colossal victory of the Na-
tional Government in 1931 was the product of
crisis and the need for a strong lead.
Unemployment doesn't necessarily pro-
duce a shift to the left. Workers want a strong
determined lead, a leadership which can de-
fend their living standards and interests in a
time of trouble. Fewer and fewer people see
this in Foot, Healy, Shore and company.
The orice to be maid for another perioc of
Tory government will be very high. Then liv-
ing standards will fall, as wages are forced
down and the welfare state torn up. Labour
needs to go into the election on the basis of a
3RC5S campaign for the
decided at the conferences of the past few
years, including nuclear disarmament, a 35
hour week and no incomes policy. To ensure
it we need a socialist campaign for a Labour
victory. Final issue
With next weeks issue,
Challenge is ceasing publication. But don't
worry!
decided to turn all their energies towards sup-
porting a new paper being launched in the
Labour Party and the trade
Socialist Action. Many of the writers who
now contribute to Socialist Challenge will be
writing for the new paper.
After next week's final issue there will be a
oné week break and Socialist Action will ap-
pear on 16 March. Subscribers to Socialist
Challenge will have
transferred to Socialist Action, unless they in-
dicate otherwise.
JOIN THE FIGHT FOR
SOCIALISM
If you would like to be put in touch with Socialist Challenge supporters in your area or would like more information fill in the form below Name..
Address
Age.
Union/CLP (if any).
Send to: Socialist Challenge, PO Box 50. London N1 2XP
Socialist Challenge 25 February 1983
These were the words of
the meaning of these polls. In the
would
curbing inflation
Chancellor living standards fell
слеласк от crediony orune Lawou
have blunted the decisive - nuclear weapons and un-
the electoral socialist policies no 283, Socialist
Socialist Challenge supporters have
unions called their subscriptions page 2
10
15%
OR WE
STAY
OUT
DSHI
OUT
5
W HILL
THIS WAS the angry message on 20 February from over two hundred lobbiers outside the inquiry into the waterworkers 15 percent claim.
Waterworkers had coachloads from Sheffield, ford, Birmingham, Leeds and London, backed up by wives, companions and labour movement supporters.
Fury and frustration boiled over when lobbiers stormed through the doors of the Arbitration Concilation and Advisory Service, charged up the stairs
occupied room within shouting distance For fifteen minutes the conciliators were left in no doubt of the demands and mood of the chanting waterworkers.
Feelings
Eddie Riggs from the Hampton committee in sil blackeneon, his eye after police treatment, ed the lobbiers feelings to Socialist Challenge …HOdie Newall, the GMBATU union negotiator has not spoken to the members since he went into that buildi We are worried about
a sell out. He should at least find out what his members think. We employ him and he should come and listen to us
Martin Burgess from New Riverhead in North London echoed this.
We're not going back un-
WATER
WORKERS
STRIKE
FOR
FAIR PAY
LU BATU
DON'T
PULL THE
PLUG
ON US
come in their
Rotherham, Ox-
ill we get the full claim. We're in militant mood. For the first time we're really united and we're not going to be put down
Evidence of sell out circulated through the lobby.
telex trom Maurice Reed, national industrial OFFICEE OF We UNIDAU had Just been sent to regional ofticers, his in structed them to halt the water industry craft strike due to start at midnight, if the manual workers were ordered back to work over the weekend.
As the hours dragged on and no news came from
COTHECO rooms, lobbiers exchanged experiences in the cold o. the street or the more welcome warmth of a convenient pub. Scab
From Leeds and Rotherham Birmingham and London, the stories were the same. Private contracters used to clean filter beds and mend mains. Staff and management paid thousands pounds to scab. Cowboy
JUSTICE
FOR
WATER
WORKERS
WE'RE HERE JUST
TO FOR
WATER
• ARE
*. FoR! WORKERS
labour used move chlorine with scant regard
to brea! solidarity chemical workers Management blaming waterworkers for hitting domestic users but deciding to divert water from homes to industry.
and CHESTS.
Lessons
Despite all this the strike is beginning to bite
Strike committees are starting to learn valuable lessons. Flying pickets are sent out daily and plans are now afoot to concentrate these in mass pickets on the most important battle fronts like the Hampton pumping services most of London forts of strike committees has started. The first week in the life of the All London Strike Committee saw
successful solidarity demonstration and the calling of the ACAS lob-
brought down by South Yorkshire Water and Pollution Control Branch lan Drayton explained how this is used to inform pickets latest developments and gear
Impressed strike committee trom
GHBATU
NEWELL
YOU SHOULD
NOT HING
OPEN A SHOP.
SEL
OU
MBATU
DON
SELL US
DOWNTH
DRAIN
JUSTICE
FOR
WATER
other areas thought this
was an idea well worth co-
/ discussed aD
proaching local Labour
Parties and support com-
mittees to help them with
printing facilities to get
these bulletins out.
Lobby chat turned into
serious proposals as they
considered coordinating
Land-
tional level. Foundations
began to be laid to set up a
national strike coor-
dinating committee to
overcome the absence of
leadership from the na
Harry Bristow from
the London strike commit
tee summed up many of
made that
afternoon We were naive
about all sort of things
when we started this
strike. We've been able to
go a long way with help unim supports n other
U3103S NUR
who've been through thi
all before. We should hav Thing alone begin ing. We doing, this sort
should also dustries involvedother in-
Solidarity
The importance
solidarity from the
broader labour movement
was well understood that
Media
tempts to blame *out-
siders tor the occupatior
of ACAS were roundly put
down by pickets.
GMBATU
FULL Cu
WE WANT
THE
FINAL
SAYII
THE LOUTS
WORKERS
HT
The bulk of the occupiers were indeed waterworkers but they willingly embraced the involvement of 'outsiders from other unions, the Labour Party
left organisations One picket, from Coppermill Lanes pumping sta-
East London, in sisted 'We can't fight this alone. It's comg to be a tough battle and we need all the friends we can get
the labour move ment'.
Phil Symons from BirSTE 919288 sayit Wants to ry Cus all. NICHL WAIL LO CELCUS The only way round this is to unite
Warmed
Examples of solidarity on that cold Sunday aler- warmed atmosphere noon outside ACAS. Hetty Cowpe, one of the few women stewards in the industry explained how nurses hospital in Leeds provided a caravan for pickets.
As she joined her brothers for the journey back to Leeds she summed up the message of the day 'We've come here to tell the officials we want the tull claim. It they think we can manage on anything else, out of their hats. . We don' Want a SCIOUL
Page 3 scan of this page
Solidarity with the waterworkers
family
By Bob Pennington THE WELFARE STATE may be falling apart. Unemployment may be million. declining.
sort all this out.
No, they are not going LU CiCale HUC IOUS. INU are they going to put more money into the NHS and other wasteful things like education, care of the aged and luxuries like nurseries.
Nor, you will be relieved to canl, are taey gong
your spending power. hat would onl make you better off and put more people in work.
The team: Maggie, Geoffrey, Norman, vienae- Norman, Keith and friends are just full of TUCaN OHwWe Cao trained to learn to suffer and still smile. You might
NATIONAL UNION LEADERS look set again to drag sell out from the jaws of victory. Last year ASLEF drivers were stitched up, just as soldarity was building up and the strike was getting solid. Health workers were dragged through the same sordid experience.
Waterworkers are in fighting mood to challenge another sell out. And the solidarity they need to win
A fine example was a lunchtime solidarity demonstration through Islington, North London on 17 February. Jointly orgaers strike ce mittee organised the waterat New Riverhead and Islington ColnelI workers, this attracted delegations TONE NALGO, NUPE,
Photo: G M COOKSON
Tories boost
the nuclear
rocketing to four Workers' purchasing power may be
For millions of people Tory Britain might seem to be getting grimmer and grimmer. But don't worry. Mrs Thatcher's team are going to
call that masochism. They describe it as being a seit elian responsible enterprising and aDaDC fulfilled adult'
One of their suggestions is that women should stay at home. This means SENZIE GalE resume responsibilities taken on Dy mne state ior example, responsibility for the disabled, elderly, unemployed 16-year olds.
This is sheer brilliance.
What a day it could be in the life of a woman. She can sit grandad in a chair near the telly. Then she can prop up some disabled NUR and Kings Cross ASLEF. archers, Mick Hall frot peakın 350 the East London strike committee explained We will stay out if we don't get what we want. We will in. sist that any final offer is brought back to meetings of members. We are in a stronger position now with gas and electricity workers Dennis Skinner MP gives forceful backing to waterworkers.
relative on the couch while Sne eleans house, makes the meals, looks after the kids and in between takes two or three unempioved 16-vear olds for a walk around the park.
What a 'fulfilling' pro-
DCCL. MIu WildL COHOn
Think of the money w will save on welfarism so we Call buy more cruise and Tridents.
these are
Particularly
OCLUCLS their mams and dads ar unemployed, ESUIIC of them are known to 'do in as much as a quid a week on sweets. But all that is going to end.
Geoffrey Howe, Patrick Jenkin and Nor-
Tebbit are going to Illdll
their pocket moneyan ss
their pooints out: Yr they Tebbit points out:
lined up for a dispute. They can come in behind us and ride on our backs or they can join us so that we • CULC through together This means the TUC has to get off their arses organise to back us
Bob Chaplin from the Coopermill Lanes picket line in East London plained Socialist Challenge "This march shows some of the solidari-
JUSTICE
FOR
WATER
WORKERS
ПЕРІЛАНІ
WORKERS
News
Maggie: families must look after themselves. don't save up how can they ever attord to buy a bike to go job seeking?
Geoffrey and Patrick are even more foresighted than Norman. They wan children to learn the art of saving so that when they join the dole queue the will not waste money on
but will invest part of their giros in business and wealth creation'
The new plans will also help our overworked police force. Parents will
ty between us and other workers. We need this sort of thing The longer we keep divided the longer Thatcher will keep defeating us. The waterworkers fight everybodies fight
Islington NALGO represene raly Tee isl told the rally ington council trade unions have organised todays march because we are fully behind the waterworkers. We support your fight agalns the real enemy. It's no just the Water Board but the COVCHICHE The govern-
Wate
be responsible "for-soiae
the anti-ohear behaviour their children' This could helr in two ways. If some kic COHLES they could be sent to borstal and their parents could go TO Holloway and Parkhurst.
This could be a real deterrent to all those unemployed who were thinking of having a family and at the same time would cut the unemploy-
ment have manipulated negotiatons, they threatened to dismantle YOLI ICLOUaBIE! machinery and threatened your jobs'. But the speach that really drew cheers was from MP Denis Skinner. He said:
*This week the palace of varieties discussed the water industry for the first time in years. They never bother about waterworkers unti you down tools. So they're debating this with a background o a tremendous struggle.
TCHLCHIUCI the Wilberforce inquiry in the miners strike of 1972. The
figures quite drastically
You thought Maggie's team were not too keen on immierants. How wrong can you get? They want to publicise success ASLORC
made ord sie o sian
made good" like corner shops' So presumably every immigrant will be given the money to start . a corner shop. But will there be enough corners?
You be
By C Savage
miners had been out on strike for 6 weeks and they
grip of the economy. the first time the Heath Government recognised the power of the working
class they got some posh
men together from elite class. They did this when, like you the miners were winning their strike And like the miners, the amount of money you get demands on the resistence you show before and after
With Wilberforce thes gave the miners almost all inev wanted because ther stayed on strike. And the miners pushed their
Bristol. Strike is
solid
TERRY HOSIER,
porters:
There is a 24 hou picket in Bristol and surrounding areas. HCTUONE! one mass picket. Emergen cy cover is provided, but as Inioy said oi. We decide Terry said 'under what is an emergency, not the management. Every burst water main is a boost for our morale'.
Only CLITCE AUEW craft workers are crossing the picket lines and the union has got their names
record Management strike breakers have been offered over £600 a week ex gratle payments. By contrast a collection has COTLE sympathetic office staff for the strike
suspicious of all this and think it's a return to Vic torianism Well you are right. The Tories are quite serious about chopping welfare, making you pa Tor education keeping you and your kind in you 30 aCe. They know it's the only way to build a Britain where free enterprise and profit dominate our lives ana numar Vo Ci trampled underfoot. Bu that is what Toryism is al about.
vantage and said we want more than that.
So you should go fo the full claim. Don't settl for less. They say a lot about your union being moderate I'm on Labour's executive with your leader and I can tel
is. But it's no David Basnett that count: but the strength of the people here today. You decided to strike with vote bigger than anything Thatcher ever had at the last election. The waterworkers are on the verge of a tremendous victory. Be like the miners. Demand the full claim. You're WOLLIU Bristol and District branch secretary GMBATU told Socialist Challenge sup"The union could have not asked for more support. The members have been brilliant. We are one hundred per cent solid in this area'. fund
Terry explained that WOrKer occupying works in Shepton Mallet to prevent the changing of chlorine bottles were evicted by police without a warrent. Needless to say the police have taken action against the dangerous and illegal transport of chlorine in unmarked vehicles.
Despite these problems the strike in Bristol is well Orcascu ara soleksu port had come in from th local labour HOVCHHCT with cash and resolutions from busworkers, NUF, NUT, CPSA among •LILE others.
Sociálist Challenge" 26 Febrüary 1s83 "pagé Y
Page 4 scan of this page
For conference decisions. Against witch-hunt! What I'll fight for'
streets,
bitter campaign Labour's right wing.
Labour leaders cancelled the conference and pulped the election leaflets printed on the presses of Mili-
equally dramatic.
five members of Militant's editorial board.
hands of the Tory mondsev to stand the candidate of their choice em. bodies the rank and file determination to leadership accountable to the party and which will carry out decisions of conference.
told Socialist Challenge reporter CAROL what he planned to do in parliament.
three weeks have gone for
All the odds have been against us from the outset.
For the last 15 months, LICCSOCCE SHOT-SLOB
car popular pression ba
popular And some of the mud has stuck.
Despite this, we're still showing a strong lead. The recent opinion poll results - showing the SDP only six points behind Labour just aren't mirrored in our canvasses.
nare are two things
noticed the campaign. One
your local issues.ne secone is Ine relative a sence nuclear disarmament among issues you've
LAST WEEEK the
British Rail Board an-
nounced the total
closure of engineer-
ing workshops at
Shildon in Durham,
Horwich in Greater
Manchester and
Temple Mills, East
London.
Three thousand
five hundred workers
will be thrown on the
dole heap. CHRIS
JONES and CELIA
PUGH report.
inst year the aymen
Union Railwaymen
threatened national strike
action when this closure
Dian Was proposed. BEne
British Rail Board backed
down, NUR leaders signed a out at a price.
slimdown agreement in Ju-
ly, shedding, 3,500 jobs.
Union members warned
that acceptance of volun-
redundancies would
LOLY
not prevent closure. The
blackmailer would come
back for more. How right
they were.
The pledge of national
strike action should be
taken up again. With the
election campaign to
replace Weighell coming
to a head, the time is right
for left backed candidate
Jimmy Knapp to show the
Socialist Challenge 25 February 1983
AS SOCIALIST CHALLENGE appears on the
Bermondsey voters will be passing their verdict on a by-election which has grabbed national attention. The media have waged a
against Labour, helped by
On the eve of the initial press conference the
tant. It appears the end of the campaign will be
On the day before polling, the National Executive Committee are likely to expel the
The right wing witch-hunt plays straight into the
long struggle in Berhave
During the last days of the by-election, candidate
raised. What has you're campaion been abouti
The main attack by thé opposition is to say, that Bermondsey Labour Party isn't a party of local people. I've focussed on local issues to undercut this argument.
The other issues I've taken up - and which I'm personany commuca defending are withdrawal from the Common Market, the need to provide more employment especially in areas like Bermondsey, and a one-year Tent Treeze wen Labour S returned to government. a lot of people still need to be convinced on the question of nuclear disarmament.
I ney remember the blitz and there's a feeling that we shouldn't he caught
've tried to counteract Horwich workers protest against closures members that he means to change the NUR into a fighting union.
Workers at Horwich Shildon and Temple Mills are already planning fightback.
Al a mass meeting on 18 February, the Horwich workers voted to resist the
page 4
Meeting the electorate this view by putting the case that far from making Britain more safe, nuclear
target. With cruise missiles we'll be number one target for a nuclear attack.
During the recent meeting
VOU OODOSIUOT came from so-called left - the Communist Par-
and the
Party. nac a rouen nacaltual
British Rail blackmailer comes for more
closure. Works convenor
Green said after the meeting 'I counted only eight people against the campa gn out of a meeting of 1,500. We are going to light tooth and nail and I
talking about dustrial action'
He wants joint action
News
meeting What did you
make of it?
I think that such op-
positions are the best allies
of the Tory Party. All they
Party
Throughout this cam
paign, the opposition par
ties have but forward no
positive policies. Their
campaigns nave been
backward-looking
Every single day, for WOR
IRWI
BRITISH RA
TERING
with the other threatened workshops and will be calling for from the Party has already pledged full support nationally
BR Sir Peter - Parke already welcomed parts of the Serpell Report, which pro-
the last two and a half
weeks, noe where press
conference where
outhned Labour's positive
policies what we pro-
COOKSON
Dose doing is to SOLVe LEG
problems of working class
people. Yet hardly a word
of this has appeared in the
popular press.
Photo: GM
What do you think of the
Labour Party's response to Yove decisionike theone by-election? How
election sular
leaflets affected your cam
paign?
I don't think the decimy
leaflets has helped my
ULC bit. And
I'm opposed to purges in-
side the party
I would like, though
to thank evervone who's
helped during the cam-
paign. There's been a good
response from the activists
outside Bermondsey. But
we still need lots of help poses cutting the railway
bone.
Fighting workshop closures is the beginning of the resistance to Serpell Messages of uppo should be sent to:
Wor Committee. Horwich LoCO Works, Horwich, Lancashire.
during the final days of the campaign, and particularly on polling day itself.
Yvnen you tinally do get to parliament, what are going to be concentrating on?
I will concentrate on the policies I've been campaigning around And I want to join the Campaign Group of MPs
They're fighting the supremacy of conference policies against the witch-nant. believe MPs have to link with the party parliament and that's just what they're trying to
Broad Left in
conference
By Pat Hickey a new way.
failures of the AUEW broad left were a bench mark for many of the delegates. They stressed the importance Broad Lefts being campaigning bodies, and not becoming simply 'voting machines
The best part of the was understanding that fight in the unions and in the Labour Party were not seperate struggles but were the same fight.
The discussion paper from Phil Holt centred on the issue of the election o delegates to the luc and this the paper was a bi Labour's NEC But weak
It said that 'Delega tions should have at least half lay members elected by conference or by the relevant democratic process.
There seems reason to limit elections to half of the delegations. The right will fight just vigorously against DrODosa they against the election of all delegates which was lert out of the An important paper was need mandate all delegates to
do During this elec we've had to pick up pieces of years neglect by Labour's r wing Apart from campaig press, the biggest fa we've fighting OCCI apathy — disillusionn about the ability Labour to improve the of working class peopl by-election shown me the importa
for establishing a grou
MPs who wi camp: and accounte party fongre
accountability, campaign outsid help rebuild Labo mass base working class.
THE BROAD Lefts Organising Committee c ference on 19 February attracted 106 delega from most of the main trade unions in Briti In a wide-ranging discussion, which dr on experiences from many different unio delegates constantly returned to the theme the need for the left in the unions to organis
Labour Party Conter EC and TU
Tess, the polioposals in
less, proposals ir
of paper for limiting
power of the officials advancing that of the delegates are very goo It would go a long towards ending the pre
its misuse of votes the manipulation of the bl
to elect right VULC NECs whose main air frustrate Confere decisions.
Overall, the confere was a definite advance is to be welcomed by left. The organising mittee, which will me big Building a new left in unions will depend on l closely the left can tie Guestons or echoca fight soci: policies little
In that regard Aitken's campaign in BETPU for gen secretary was this will from which BLOC
learn.
The conference sh ed the opportunities
the building campaig
left in the unions. We n unite to seize these opp tunities.
Page 5 scan of this page
prison
By Valerie Coultas ON WEDNESDAY 15 February thirty six women from the Greenham were sent to prison for fourteen days, after refusing to be bound over to keep the peace.
as the women stood on their chairs singing peace songs, as police surrounded them. The previous day hundreds of women, and a smattering of men, had come from all over the country to express their solidarity. sang peace songs, cooked pancakes and danced.
Six of the forty two women agreed to be bound OYCE DUL all pleaded not
Suit invasion te
invasion the missile silos at the RAF base on New Year's Day was aimed at keeping the peace not breaking it. Nelly Logan, at 72 the eldest of the group, said that after living through two world wars I just can't sit by and see these dangerous weapons being made.
Indeed if ever there was a trial where une sympathy of the public is with the detendants this was it The day before the trial, 1,000 women marched in solidarity in Manchester
The first day of the march in Sweden: As Soon trial saw sympathy as the sentence. women in the Isle of Wight and Wales came out on the streets to set up vigils and
at the sentences. By Thursday Holloway prison was being picketed. US draft dodgers chose to start their prison sentence to coincide with the Greenham verdict to highlight international solidarity.
Neither is it simply an
Labour CND laun-
ches Manifesto
Campaign
Labour CND decided at its annual general meeting on Saturday 19 February to launch a national campaign to ensure that Labour's full commitment to unilatera nuclear disarmament is included in the campaign document that will form the basis for Labour's election manifesto.
The largest AGM ever, with over 300 delegates, representing well over one hundred Constituency Labour Parties. agreed that if this commitment is fudged they will campaign for a special Labour Party conference to be convened to unhold the 1982 conTerence decision
Dame Judith Hart MP
that the Campaign's document would now be delayed till March, making
Outrage at
Greenham
sentences
Common peace camp
The trial, at Newbury Court, ended in chaos
They too
active minority that supports the demands of the
Common Women as the popular
would have believe. The opinion polls vary, but the opposition to the siting of cruise missiles in this country is a majori-
WOlICH. larger majority than, Action
The women of Greenham Common forced Francis Pom to admit that the British government had no control over launching of the missiles. They forced Thatcher to organise cabinet shuffle to put whiz kid Heseltine in charge of the anti-CND campaign.
Now mey are upping the stakes by calling for a women's dav of action al over the country on May 24th. This will provide an opportunity for the arguments on cruise to be taken up housing estates, schools and factories.
Socialist Challenge supporters should be acit more difficult to force changes before a possible June election.
But Labour CND will
and then to build up a nass Ve head against any fudge.
The AGM also became one of the first national abour Party campaigning groups to retuse to ap
for registration on the NEC's register of nonaffiliated organisations.
Stop the missiles
BE NOME
GAOLED
FOR KER
Women picket Holloway prison after sentences.
tively involving themselves
Greenham Common support groups and turn-
this day and all the other
Common women call for into
mobilisation of women.
the labour movement
Greenham
Newbury. one POLLY VITTORINI was
the day's activities.
arrested.
We started our blockade at the green gate, where the police were vers
There more than WC expected, and so it was not very long at all before we were warned that unless we stopped sitting in all that mud we may have to be arrested.
Due to our lack of resources we decided to
Flaming torches
flickered through the
centre of Manchester
on Monday evening
as 1,000 women mar-
ched through the
rush hour traffic to
show their support
for the Greenham
Common women in
court in Newbury.
All day we'd been on a
vigil in St Péters Square,
Manchester's Speakers
can give backing and supto these actions but the most important battle to be fought in the coming over Labour Party decisions. Will the labour movement really back up the militancy and courage of these women by taking
Getting arrested at
The day that Michael Heseltine went to
of our supporters, arrested at nearby Greenham. Here she describes
We arrived at Greenham at 10am; four of us in a car from Swansea after a three hour drive, still unsure of what we were going to do, except that we were not, definitely not, going to get
blockade one at a time. So lay in the road while others around me protectively and held my be both cautioned and arrested, so for me the worst part was just waiting until the long arm of pulled me up by the sleeve he charge we learned later, was obstruction of the highway.
Manchester supports Greenham
Corner, and after the march women staved al night and all the next day.
On Monday night looked as much like Greenham Common you could get in the centre flickered with night lights, massive woollen web stretched across the grass to create a . cosy corner
night, and women stayed to sing fter the dancin had died down.
industrial action to stop
the missiles? Will the
Labour Party stick to its
conference decisions and
keeD unilateralism in the
manifesto?
For details of Greenham sup-
groups and activities
phone Valerie Coultas
01-359 8371
In the police van I wat-
ched as eight of my sisters
were hauled un and fumed
as we were told that
couldn't sit on the filthy
seats because WC were
filthy.
We spent the rest of the
day in a cell. For eight
hours we sat in a seven
IOO1 square Cel EURO
shouted across to the other
90 women who were penn.
dayat various times of the
Despite our protests we
were only given one cup of
warm water each, SO we
mostly sang and wrote a
letter to Heseltine. Later
our spirits were quite low
-WYC - recieved
through the window about
all the excitement we were
missing.
Now the moral of this story is that 60 women are
Newbury on 18 April, anc oing to tried in your support is greatly needed. Be there
We've show that an appeal to women to mobilise against the missiles can tremendously broaden the nuclear Astons en
Actions LILY CILICILL. ours in Manchester have to of a big city. The bushes be supported by every one who wants to stop the missiles.
where a brazier burned all Phone Deirdre or Clem
061-224 5959 for details of Manchester activities.
CND Diary
CND St Challenge
SOCART
DUONCETOR sena To
protest campaign.
stocks at their distribution points.
which is
jecting to the cost.
PETROL it seems is not
material the Tories are stockpiling
other strategic
WOLLE between
already been placed
shing Il missiles than are
for this is the launchers may be
but not Pershing reloads.
*23 Feb-2nd March Welsh Peace Week
we park street Street, Wolverhampton. 8.30 - 5.30
don. Details from 37 Cowley Rd
*Sat 26 Feb Labour LPYS Conference in Glasgow.
10.30
film "The Truth Game' at 9.00pm on ITV
*Wed 2 March Film
IS DELOR
Fieldway Crescent, N
cmema baiston. oncon
AUEW Halls, West Regent St., Glasgow
Base. details
Torpedo factory nr.
Nuclear Fuels 12.00-1.00
0993-842480
10-633 0133 ext. 22 * Sat 12 March North London CND start 11.00 Labour Party Conference.
Restaurant, Perth
Scotland.) * Thurs
largrave Hall. Hargrave Roa
, Oxford
* Sun 20 March Faslane Peace Camp Festiva
Factory (mixed)
mon to Burghfield via followed by
Park.
Mitchell Theatre Glaspow
Marv College
stable and Somerset Stephen Hugget Tel: Plymouth 268724
Ушаде
will be a regular column in giving a round up of useful facts, news and dates of forthcoming events in the Anti-Nuclear movement. The listing of events is free and the details should reach us by the Wednesday, one week before
CND Diary Socialist
Challenge, PO Box 50, London N1 2XP.
A NEW HAZARD looms for Anti-Nuclear protestors. The German 'Green' Party have got wind of a plan to stockpile Plastic Bullets for use against anti-nuclear protestors. Following the example of Swiss militants, they are about to launch a massive
ment isn't doing Too badly for itsele month ago news leaked out that the government was stockpiling petrol for use after a nuclear war. It does this by a rather clever mechanism. larger petrol distributors are orced to hold late
This scheme, already in operation, only leaked out because the government is in the process of extending it to the smaller distributors, and they're ob.
the ng. They tegie strategic
been secretly buying in key metals and minerals. Several South African companies have been approached with orders for chrome, manganese and
materials, The concensus is that £10m and E15m have
ED FACES at the Pentagon. Casper Weir
urger's annual report to Congress let slip that th Americans have ordered three times more Per
called for by NATO'S
'modernisation' plans. NATO is supposed to be has ordered 3l missiles in he most rikely, baton
ordered 311 missiles. The most likely reason blanned to have
relaunch' capability. If so the Pentagon is goin to have difficulties with its numbers game at Geneva, since it insists on counting SS-20 reloads,
*Fri 25 Feb. Picket of Tarmac Construction Ltd. who have a major contract at Greenham Common. London
W1 and Head Office Birch
Fri 25 Feb-Sun 6 Mar Hounslow Council/Hounslow CND Anti-Nuclear Week. Details from 01-577 3429 *Sat/Sun 26-27 Feb Conference Against Sizewell 'B', Blackfriars Settlement, Nelson Square, Waterloo, Lon-
CND fringe meeting at Scottist * Sat 26 Feb Swansea March from Town Hall to Guild Hall followed by Rally with Euro-MP's. March start *Mon 28 Feb Showing of John Pilger's anti-nuclear
'8 Minutes to Midnight' organis Islington Central Library,
* March 3-10 Film 'From Hitler to Marx' at the Ri * Sat 5 March Scottish TUC CND Conference. 10an * Sun 6 March Women's blockade of Faslane Naval
10am-4pm. Tel: 041 221 1177 on Saturdays for * Sun 6 March Peace Chain from Marconi 'Stingray'
Neston to Capenhurst British plant. Arrive 10.30 Link' from Rally at Cavenhurst at 3.00 * March 6-8 'Stop the Arms Race' (STAR) Women's Peace Demonstration in Brussels. Details Margot Mille * March 10/11 Picket of Royal Aeronautical Societ seminar on Electronic Warfare. Details from Ann on around the bunkers. Assemble mill i Bastored is. *Sour Party Conference. 12.30-mind Sindso
Windso * March 7-19 (provisional). Distribution of Strathclyde Regional Council anti-nuclear broadsheet to every home in the region. (This covers half of the population of
17 March "The War Game' showing a , London N19
March 19/20 Oxford YCND march from Oxford t Greenham Common. For details contact Oxford YCND
* Wed 23 March 7.00-8.00 Surround the Town Halli support of the Peace camp and in opposition to Civi *Thur 31 Mar 12 hour blockade of Greenham Common (women only) and Burghfield Royal Ordinance * 10 Burg mid via cainion Stars Com
/ a festival at Aldermaston * Sat 2 April Scottish CND March in Glasgow. Starts in George Square and ends at Carnival in Kelvingrove *8-10 April Nuclear Free North Atlantic Conference *Sat 30 April East London Labour Movement Conference Against Cruise and Trident, to be held in Queen * May March from Truro to Exeter via Plymouth, Barn
(only for
*Sat 7 May, Youth CND Festival for Peace. Starts at Ham with a demonstration from Embankment marching to Brockwell Park. Bands, speakers and a festival
Socialist Challenge 25 February 1983 - page.5
Page 6 scan of this page
THE NUCLEAR
THIRTY FIVE BILLION POUNDS. That's estimated cost of the new generation of ten
power stations nuclear planned by the Central Electricity Generating Board (CEGB) with the full support of government. The billion pound cost of the Trident system is small in comparison.
These power stations will employ Pressurised Water Reactors (PWRs) - the type used in the Three Mile disaster in the United States where radioactive core came close to melting through its concrete ANDY MILLER BRIAN LAWTON explain why we shouldn't accept a nuclear future.
The first of the PWR reactors is to be sited at Sizewell in Suffolk. The inquiry taking place there is intended to give PWRs a clean bill of health. The CEGB SUCHE an £2½million on the presentation of its case. It is so confident that it will go ahead that it has already bulldozed the site.
If it goes ahead the PWR will in-
crease the nuclear generating capacity by 3½ times. That increase represents the energy equivalent of 35 million tons of coal - the entire annual pro-
of the Scottish,
CHELON
Midland, Kent and
coalfields employing a total of 60,000
miners.
The CEGB is embarking on this
programme at a time when there is
already a 29 percent excess capacity in
England and Wales. This is set to rise
to 42 per cent as new plant comes on
stream between now and 1983.
It is clear that if the Tories and
CEGB get their way the future racing
the miners is a grim one; the wholesale
destruction of the industry and its
reduction to a handful of super-pits,
which they no doubt intend to sell off
to their business friends.
The PWR programme won't just
prevent a massive threat to miners
jobs. It will increase the danger to all
working people.
nuclear power
developed the press talked about elec-
tricity beoming 'too cheap to meter'
Today the nuclear dream has gone
sour - but still the electricity board
puts huge sums of money into telling
is that nuclear power is safe, cheap
and that we can't do without it. All of
these claims are untrue.
Is it safe? No form of nuclear
power is safe.
greater inbuilt danger
Pressurised Water
pressurised water as a coolant. Leaks
in the cooling system can cause the
water to flash to steam and a dramatic
rise in the temperature in the reactor's
core. Thiss a permanent danger
because water at high pressure is ex-
tremely corrosive.
In theory back-up systems exist to cope with a loss of coolant pressure. At Three Mile Island these systems failed to work properly. This type of accident had been thought impossible. According to the American satety
iocialist Challenge 25 February 1983
the
the
ten
authorities
Island dent failures occured.
the PWR reactor.
container. corrosion,
and
tive material over countryside.
estimated
steam turbine generators.
months following
the power station.
Welsh, Lancashire
only just begun.
radioactive gas and water.
The
catastrophe
anyway.
its cloak of secrecy.
dustry PWR
power
was first DECULCAL.
itself out of the market.
pensive than electricity fired
make nuclear Some types have a CICADGE than others. from coal.
Reactors use
anti-nuclear
figures they
investment page 6
golden rule' only one operating failure could occur within the operating system at any one time. But at Three Mile Island six indepen-
Three Mile Island (TMI) also revealed another inbuilt hazard in the
A metal called zirconium is used as a cladding for the rods of nuclear fuel in the reactor
Zirconium is very resistant but it also reacts with steam to produce highly explosive hydrogen gas. This happened at TMI when a large hydrogen bubble formed inside the containment vessel. threatened an explosion which would have led to a massive leak of radioac-
the surrounding
And if all this wasn't enough, design faults in some PWRs have led to leaks of highly radioactive coolant water into the water used to power
No one knows what the final cost of the TMI accident will be. In the six
the accident the rate of deaths of babies below the age of one double in a ten mile radius of
The two million people who live within a fifty mile radius of the plant have been hit by radiation equivalent to 300,000 chest X-rays. The effects of this could take years to show. These two million people live with the increased danger of cancer hanging over their heads. Four years on, the work of clearing up has
The TMI station is filled with hundreds of gallons of
Three Mile Island was a lucky escape and not an isolated incident.
US Safety Information
has disclosed that of the 2,000 ac-
cidents investigated in 1979, no fewer
thatn 32 could have ended in the
of the core melting
through the containment vessel.
Since 1979 no new PWRs have
been built in the USA. The fall in
orders for new stations had begun
four years before. TMI set the seal on
a decline that would have taken place
This is not to say that the British
safety record has been better - the
British nuclear industry has simply
been more successful in maintaining
The Confederation of British Inenthusiastically backs programme. But American
bosses have decided to back out. They
did so at the height of the energy crisis
when oil prices were at their peak — a
time when the prospects for nuclear
should have been at their Nuclear power had priced
Independent studies in America
have shown that electricity produced
from PWRs is 25 per cent more ex-
from coalpower stations. In Britain, the
CEGB bosses have used every trick in
the book and a few more besides to
generation than generating electricity That's not just the view of a few critics. A select commit-
tee of the House of Commons,
less, came close to accusing the CEGB
of lying when it said that the cost
had presented were
*highly misleading as a guide to past
decisions and entirely
useless for appraising future ones.
The Monopolies Commission ac-
cused the CEBG of 'producing invest-
ment appraisals which are seriously
defective and liable to mislead'. The
Electricity Consumers Council accus-
NIGHTMARE
ed the Board of producing 'appraisals systematically biased in favour of nuclear power'
The CEGB is Britain's biggest corporation. Its vast assets are meant to be managed in the interests of working people. The lengths to which the CEĞB have been prepared to go in cooking the books show that nothing could be further from the truth
Far from being cheaper than electricity from coal, nuclear power is around 40 per cent more expensive.
Just a coincidence?
TONY ADAMS died of acute
myeloid leukaemia last month.
He used to work at the Magnox
nuclear power station
Sizewell. He the third
nuclear power worker there to
die from Leukaemia.
Dr John Bonnel said that
Tony's death was pure chance
and that there was no evidence
of a direct link between death
from cancer and exposure to
radioactivity at the plant.
Dr Bonnel will be one of the presenting evidence
'experts
to the Sizewell B enquiry.
Oh yes. I nearly forgot to
mention it - John Bonnel is
the chief medical advisor for
the CEGB!
INTO THE SUN! ROCKET IT
LET'S
LET'S BURY IT
UNDER THE
POLAR CAPS..
By the CEGBs Drax A, a coal-fired station built in the 1970's is considerably more cost effective than nuclear stations built at the same time. Yet, CEGB planners, no more coal-fired stations will be built.
Do we need nuclear power? The last fall-back argument from the pro-nuclear lobby is that we need nuclear power to fill the 'energy gap' as our energy needs increase and finite fossil fuels such as oil and gas run out. But this argument rebounds on itself. Firstly because depends on uranium — which is itself in very limited supply. It is estimated that currently known enough to last for forty years. will be prohibitively expensive at just the time when, we are told, we'll be needing nuclear power the most are banking on the development of a SUCW Breeder Reactor (FBR). In theory the type or reacio!
FBR produces more fuel than it consumes. Sounds too good to be true? It
The FBR will dangerous reactor yet. It uses as its fuel plutonium which is also what is used in nuclear weapons. The coolant is liquid sodium which explodes on contact with air or water. the main catch is that the plutonium 'bred by the reactors needs to be reprocessed
— a highly dangerous and risky pro-
PUT IT
UNDER THE OCEAN FLOOR.
own admission
according the reactor. surance policy
close existing
nuclear power
Uranium will be running out, or
The government and the CEGB
the Fast
be the most falling
This was
previous year
Cover-up
went wrong
unent.
by
LETS STICK
IT DOWN
THE SALT MINES.
Besides this the methods of reprocessing tried at industrial level give rise to large plutonium losses which could exceed the gains made in
Far from being the prudent in
its supporters try to make out, the PWR programme is a reckless gamble. While they plan to
mines and halt the development of new ones, the Tories are banking on a technology which may never even work.
Nuclear power can only be used to produce electricity. Electricity itself only produces only 11 percent of energy used — the nuclear contribution currently represents a tiny 1½ per cent. This is what has been achieved after 25 years and at a cost of f20 billion. The PWR programme costing £35 billion will increase the proportion to 7 per cent (based on current levels of consumption). If energy consumption increases as the CEGB planners continue to insist, nuclear power will make a marginal contribution - at a huge cost.
Over the last ten years electricity consumption has been continuously
The CEGB planners insist that there is a rising demand. Con-
sumption fell by an average of one pe
cent a year between 1973 and 1980
despite continued enomic growth. The recession had caused an
even greater fall - in 1980 consump tion was down 5 percent on the
How nuclear
TOP officials at British Nuclear Fuels Ltd decided from the start cover the facts about redioactive leak frem their Wind scale plant because they feared repercussions moment in the site's develop
Even when they were urger officials from the GoverTment's Health and Safety tive to make no 1803 they still sald nothing, although by staying silent they contravened the spirit of the Nuclear Inatalia.
LET'S BLOW
A STORAGE
SHAFT INTO
BEDROCK
WITH A NUCLEAR
BOMB!
Page 7 scan of this page
The CEGB is in danger of finding itself in a Catch 22 situation. As it borrows to finance the increasing capital burden of power stations it doesn't need and which operate at uneconomic levels, and as interest payments mount, it will be forced to push up prices — in turn there will be a fall in demand for electricity.
So why is it that the CEGB and the Tories are going for PWR? Two reasons. Firstly, because that's what the bosses of the British nuclear industry want. They want to get in to the export market for nuclear power stations.
The British nuclear industry consists of two giant engineering corporations - GEC and Northern Engineering Industries. Originally tempted to develop their own type of reactor the Advance Gas-cooled Reactor (AGR)
The first AGR was Dungeness in 1965. It is still not working. The return for the massive investment in the AGR has been the intermittent output of electricity from the two (out of five) stations which have worked, whose four reactors averaged roughly 30 per design capacity since 1976.
As costs went through and work fell years behind schedule, the programme which originally had been hailed 'the breakthrough of all time' had become by 1973 'a catastrophe we must repeat' according to the CEGB boss at the time.
The nuclear industry bosses were forced to recognise that backed a non-runner. To get to the race they had to back but not with their own money. ing made killing from white elephant, they now tricity.consumers to put The need for such a large ordering programme is dictated not by energy needs but by the needs of the nuclear construction industry have a guaranteed market.
For the Tories the gramme offers another considerable benefit.
Cabinet minute. nuclear gramme would have the advantage of removing a substantial portion eletricity production from the dangers of disruption by industrial action by
CANT WE
FEED IT
TO THE
STARVING
MILLIONS?
TO BREED OR NOT TO BREED,
they at-
started
have cent of their
ine Tool
gicalesl
not
they had
back inPWR — The Tories Hav- power
the AGR
want elecup the stake.
who have to
PWR pro-
leaked
of
deaths
scale reactor in 1957.
The National
blamed 260
TOrC deaths
accident.
Windscale
the
Europe.
THAT IS THE QUESTION...
coal miners or transport workers?
hope that nuclear Winema break ne strength of some of the most powerful sections of the working class. They're not just out for revenge, they know
and to
to the
chiefs
Windscale
AT LEAST 13 people are now
known to have died from the
effects of the fire at the Wind-
Radiological
Protection Board published a
report last week which which
cases of thyroid much
cancer, 13 of them fatal, and
from other
cancers on the results of the
produced
plutonium and the fire, which
burned for two days, released
radioactive iodine into the air
spread over
England, Wales and parts of
So far, this has been Bri-
tain's worst nuclear disaster.
that if they want to carry through their programme of destroying our unions and driving down living standards they have to take on the miners and railworkers.
The Electricity Board chiefs have shown themselves one hundred per cent loyal to the interests of their the shareholders of the GEC and NEI une bosses and bankers, to
the Tories. To do that they have shown themselves quite willing
ewall, cook the books, bend
facts and when it suits them tell outright lies. In theory the CEGB
are accountable but record under successive Labour governments shows this is a myth.
For instance, they didn't reveal the full extent of a major leak radioactivity from Windscale in 1977. They kept an internal development review outlining their future strategy a secret trom the Labour government. The plans for the PWR programme were laid before the Tories came to power - the CEGB simply omitted to send a copy of the document outlining its strategy to the energy minister Tony Benn.
There are alternatives to a nuclear
Alternatives that can safeguard jobs and resources. start there is energy conservation. It is estimated that if the capital costs of a nuclear power station were spent on insulation it would save three times as ever produce. it would also produce energy the station would thousands of jobs. The view that economic growth automatically requires ever increasing energy supplies simply does not hold up. could also be spent on more efficient coal-fired plant. The most modern coal-fired stations have achieved a 25 per cent increase in fuel economy.
The biggest potential for savings is in the use combined heat and power (CHP). A normal power station is about 30 per cent efficient -the remaining 70 percent of the
URANIUM
generated heat goes up the chimney or into the cooling water. use of this waste heat to heat houses and factories close to the station, increasing the overall efficiency from 30 to 70 per cent. CHP provides 20.7 per cent of the power used in West Germany, 29 per cent in Belgium and 35.8 per cent in Denmark. Britain has only one CHP station at Battersea
their
of
This is part of what could be achieved under a sane energy policy. That's the kind of policy that the electricity board bosses and the top civil For a servants at the Department of Energy
can't and won't develop. They are too closely tied to the interests of the bosses and know only too well on which side their bread is buttered. Instead of the chaos of the current energy policies what is needed is a workers which puts the needs of working people first.
Money The development of such a plan
will mean overcoming the combined opposition of CEGB chiefs, top civil servants and the bosses of the nuclear industry. To do that a Labour government will have to link up with workers in the energy workers of GEC and NEI-Parsons. The alternative is to be forced into a corner by the nuclear hierarchy. This is what. happened
FOR
BEGINNERS
0.d.
CHP makes Torness and ment nave sa
to nuclear Moscow.
With
gap hypothermia.
plan for energy. A policy will
dustries.
profits of
industry, with the
gramme.
when the
Labour government decided to give the go ahead for two new AGRs at
Heysham. These two reactors will be the most expensive in the world to date. They weren't need. ed — the AGRs had already proved a disaster. The government's justifica tion, as given by Tony Benn, was that the alternative being pressed for was a £25 billion programme of PWRs. must be learnt. What we need is a strategy to unite workers in the energy and ancillary industries. For too long many sections of the labour move-
the ove nuclear power Or they have left the field clear for right wingers like Frank Chapple who claims that opposition
power is inspired by the proposed PWR programme the Tories have thrown the gauntlet to the labour movement. It's time for us to face up to the challenge.
Nuclear power isn't safe, it isn't cheap and it won't close the energy
There is one energy gap that the PWR programme certainly won't solve - that's the gap which results each and every year in thousands of old people dying of the cold. The tragedy is that the vast expenditure in money and human skill and effort will mean more old people dying from
It will mean more families cut off for non-payment of electricity bills. It
mean tens of thousands more jobs lost in the coal and transport in-
This is the inevitable result of the twisted logic of a system that puts the
La few before the jobs, welfare and lives of the vast majority.
This is the facing all
ULUSUCU
working people if the Torie
But there is an alternative. 1983 can also be the year when opposition to nuclear power begins in earnest.
Socialist Challenge 25 February 1983 pag
Page 8 scan of this page
Where you can
buy Socialist
Challenge
Scotland town books, King St. For more int
For more info contact John aul Youngson, is Forrest Crescent, Hamilton.
Wales CARDIFF: every Sat in Bute Town Salisbury Aoaavallable 1-0-8 Books, NEWPORT: every Sat in town centre
every Sat • TALBOT:
England Bondon Sad, and saturday 2pkse London Road aths. Phon 20298 for more deta BIRKENHEAD: SC Cleveland A sc on sale or the BIRMINGHAM
BRISTOL: SCon Tie Tiat, Hole in at Fourth Idea Ground', Haymarket. More info Bos BURNEY SCA
available from
Ham-1 pm.
Pederian Preine and 10.30 12.04 Bookshi W LIVERPOOL: SC
BOLTO MANCHESTER Corton
markets 1lam-12.30 Sats Bookshop. Tel: 061-236 4905 for fur
And West Ga lays 11-12. Phon nsfield 65321
Local supporicrS
outside Newcastle University between 0-25
Oute Yor SCire Bank, High St
Fargate 10.30-12.30pm.
INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY
Revolution/Socialist Challenge Celebration Rally Come to the rally and hear speakers invited from
Greenham Common YOUTH OND •re and Nicaragua El Salvador
Palestine
for Women's Liberation and Socialism. Displays, films and
Friday. 4 March 1983, 7.00pm County Hall, London SE1 (Waterloo Tube)
Socialist Challenge, 25 February 1983. page 8
• Bar Post O on Sale Marker Sc Say Cp, Mese old every Satur
483 890 : 11-1 every
ncal beat
London
EALING: sold Thur. Ealin
HACKNEY: SC
us c/o PO Bos John at 359 ondon E8 2NF or phone HOUNSLOW:
i am scare any shu nony
Britton tube Thur mornings outsi and Fr NEWHAM: SC
rket Sat at noon.
WEMBLEY: SC sales Fri 6.45am at Bookshops BRADFORD POUT Holyhead
Idea Book BRIGHTON: The Public House, Lit BIRMINGHAM: Other Bookshop Fullmarks, 110 Chelten
City Co-op * Bookshop, 335 MILTON KEYNES: Overat Books. OXFORD: EOA Books, • 34 Cowley The Other Boks
Bookmarks
and High
McConville's NOTTINGHAM: Mushroom Books, SOUTHAMPTON: October Books, Onel: Community Books, WalmWomen Against Apartheid
A reply to Tariq Ali
Against
PR
Socialist Challenge should be congratulated for opening up its pages for a serious debate on the issue of proportional representation (PR). This topic is bound to be of importance for the labour movement in Britain in the 1980s. Unfortunately, Tariq All's personal contribution to this debate in last week's Socialist Challenge leaves a lot to be desired.
Tarig ignores the two most In DOrLanE areuments against PR and produces oniv weak areuments in it. defence. In our pamphlet
PR is undemocratic on at least two counts.*
First, the introduction of PR in Britain is very
mean monster constituencies with 300,000 ог more electors In these circumstances it will be very difficult for the candidates and elected MPs to maintain close and informed AnKS with the local communities.
Furthermore, it would be very difficult to ensure that an MP was held accountable to the local par-
organisation and its membership Power
de-select CaEdidates would shift even
away trON grassroots of the political parties to the regional and national offices and the full-time apparatchniks.
Second, the introduction of PR would mean permanent coalition government, the complexion of which may have no relationship the
electorate. Tariq argue that the Labour and parties are in fact 'coalitions' between right and left in each party, and he mentions the Lib-Lab pact. he ignores, however, that these COCHLOES have a good chance of being removed at ine next election under the system of first-pastthe- post. Deals
Under PR character ot government and the actual coalition LICS, are tormed ov deals behind closed doors at the CCHILIC. after the election. and without reference to the electorate. It is
PUSSI have a Prime Minister as part of coalition government who's own party has a very small slice of the vote. (The ultra-right has disproportionate intluence in Israel under PR for these reasons.) PR reduces the power of people to determine the sort of argument that they would like.
Let us turn to Tariq's own arguments. He says that we are "opportunist SOUSE OL OBAMANEROE the inct tin favour of wa the fact that Labour
Tarig would turn to page 27 or our pamphlet he would find that we do mention that Labour in favour of PR from 1918
Debate
By Peter Hain and
Geoff Hodgson to 1926 — or to be more accurate, the 'Alternative Vote' system which most ra advocates now oppos e since it is not fully pro portional.
Tariq blames the existence of SHared South Africa on their
of first-past-theWe find this arguPost. ment somewhat unusual for someone who claims to be a Marxist. Apartheid is
legacy of Dutch and British imperialism. Furthermore their system "first-past-the-post' is for whites only hardly the SOIL or electoral system that we would advocate!
In his interview, Taria makes much of the point that under a PR system you would have a Labour Party compelled to a mass base'. We find this LCOHICHE Presumably, Tariq has
in mind a process in which a party is automatically inclined to create mass campaign and maintain majority supPort.
Catapult
If this rather mechanistic argument was correct then it would apply to the
existing system for partie
vhich had a chance of win ning power.
True the Liberal Party community-based campaign of sorts. But, , on the other hand, the SDP tried
catapult itself into power through the mass media. ignoring the long
tiring process building up mass
And as the prospect of another majority Labour government did the Labour Party Tind waned from 1979 to 1982 CHLOVI CH itself automatically comDerer to turn to the masses?
Shortcut
Of course not. Tariq's PR world is just as likely to
razzle-dazzle than genuine
campaigns and mass action. PR is no
shortcut politics.
Notably, Tariq fails to specil which system of PR he advocates: STV, the list system, the additional member Every system of PR has defects but he can avoid these pro blems by failing to nail his colours to tne mast. it Is surely a bit cavalier to con10888318221
Peter Hain speaks at Tribune rally. the existing system without specifying an alternative.
Finally, we agree entirely with Tariq that Labour government would
Teast so hes cept off the
least 50 per electorate (and a great deal of will and determination)
get through radical measures like unilateralism and public ownership of the top 25 companies. However, this COC -HOI mean should go along with PR
Friday 4th March:
7.30pm -
Saturday 5ch March:
11.45am -
in Marxism'
2.00pm-
5.15pm-
That would be like converting Judaism just because we think that pork is bad for you To obtain majorit support, the Labour zeT should argue for mass
policies in Labour's Proleading referendums on key issues such as the cruise missiles, industrial democracy, etc.
In this way a Labour government can build ma-
CRITIQUE CONFERENCE
MARX AFTER STALIN
Marxism after Stalinism - Hillel Ticktin, Nigel Harris et al.
10.00am - Stalinism, Historical Materialism and Marxist method - Chris
Arthur, Scott Meikle. Jonathan Rée Workshops: Scott Meikle "Stalinist method and the alternative': David H. Ruben The Nature of Historical Materialist Explanation'; Chris Arthur "Stalinism and Dialectics"; Norman Geras "Marx and human nature': Roy Edgley The problem of violence'; Simon Clarke 'Idealism and materialism
Workshops: Bob Sutcliffe Marxism, Stalinism and underdevelopment"; Mike Davies 'Marxism in America': Baruch Hirson 'Marxism and the National Question': Middle East forum on What a Nationalist Party has borrowed from the Stalinist model - a case study': Neil Harding "Lenin's Marxism and its legacy on the Soviet state': David Law "Trotsky's Marxism': Paddy O'Donnell "Marxism. Stalinism and psychology': Sandy Smith 'Planning after Stalin'; Kate Marshall Feminism or Marxism?' Plenary: Open forum on the 'USSR in the World System'.
FRI.4th. SAT. 5th. March 1983
UNIVERSITY of LONDON UNION (U.L.U.).
MALET STREET Tel. 041-339-5267
Photo: GM Cookson
jority support for radical policies, and legitimate its actions. Such a scenario is more likey than one unde PR which. by its natur leads to fudge, mudge anc moderation and which is supported by the centre-right device marginalise the labour movement. * Proportional Misreprese
Road, London
WCIX 8DY 21 ine. pop.
Page 9 scan of this page
EXT SATURDAY the Labour Committe on Ireland's conference looks at the sue of plastic bullets. The LCI see nat stopping this or that weapon is not le end of the problem. Labour must be roken from Tory policies which adocate a military solution to the Irish ituation rithdrawal. The lastic Bullets conference, MARTIN OLLINS explains why the left should rgue for troops out.
IN WEST GERMANY,
Green Party Laye scovered the police are ockpiling British-style astic bullets for use ainst anti-nuclear DIUsters. How do arms anufacturers test out apons for putting down ›litical unrest. They need
produce deos or stage dramatic constructions they ive a living advert on the reets of Belfast and erry. What better way to st out a baton round and
curacy? 55,834
der bullets WE CALC it on Irish people. The ›date was the plastic let. By the end of 1981,
had been tried ,669 times. Thirteen aths later there is a new odel LIC nich does its job tter.
Ireland sting ground for many ads of state repression knock out gasses, inter-
8110 torture, ychological warfare,
techni'riot shields' and en the agressive style of
SPG. MARA stake, these will be used
We've already en the SPG, the rest di C come. The Labour Left s every interest in putig an end to these tests.
IF Reagan can't put his use missiles in Britain,
here trish ne neutrality,
Irish neutrality, ready compromised embership of the EEC ider from the itish and the Americans
get Ireland into NATO. 1e Irish working class is
sisting force a pressure.
sisting ley don't have any more terest in joining NATO an we do belonging to it.
workers have been ut up ane avidea by une itish through Partition nich weakens Irish CND well. To get rid of Parti-
the British troops ust be removed.
WHERE can AUEW embers be found dead in my barracks without the 1ion doing anything ›out it? Where can union embers raising political sues risk being taken out
unnon premises oy armreactionar thugs and Id to lay off? The answer in the North of Ireland. nd the reason is that the tion bureaucracy in the
Nine reasons
for Troops Out'
and start calling for British organiser of the
North is the most reactionary the
DELIVE UHOE bureaucracy whole.
we are not discuss Ireland in the
because *alienates the Northern membership But the peoDie who arussienated most
discussion about Ireland is ine rignt wing. They know they can count on a solid block of support for themselves, and do WaLL TONK LOSESS We have heard of one major union where an investigation cedures found one official into voting
Lo De acting as a one person block vote filling in ballot papers for the entire membership. The left has everything breaking this cosy alliance between the union right wing and its loyalist counterparts. Committing
unions policy of withdrawal from Ireland would certainly de the trick.
4.THE Labour left says it
no illusions the of the army if a CHE CLEV really left government started implement socialist policies. The dark figures around the right and their secret armies" have made their in-
give a toss for parliamen
work against them.
But one section of the already tried it out, in the British class reactionary USICI
Workers' Council strike in
sevenues.
Unionists openly defied the British parliament using their own private ar-
What is more, they mies. persuaded the regular army to let them get away with it.
These forces will be the stounter revolution in Brie troopers
The power of the Irish civil rents movement made a start by splitting the ruling classes' political party into two - the Conservatives
Britain and the Unionists in ine vortn
Getting the troops out of Ireland is the only way itself and cut it the sass the ruling class port which Unionists have from loyalist workers. What better way of trying
make sure socialist poncies coula be put to practice than by starting to fight to get the troops out now?
5. RIGHT from the early days ot 'democracy'
Britain, we ve had our rights taken aWay the pretext that it was a
'temporary' uccessal y measure caused by the refusal of the Irish to play the game
The Prevention of Terrorism Act which increases police powers to stop and search. to hold people for days without reason, to break into peoples homes without warrants, looks less temporary every time it is renewed.
These attacks democratic rights will go on as long as the Labour Party goes on backing Tory policies the oc-
6. WHO was the SDP membel Parliament who quit the party over its
campaign against Prevention of
British withdrawal from Ireland?
Not reported in the British press, but widely covered
Ireland. posedly the Islington MP Michael O'Halloran.
leit the Labour Party to Join the SDP when the struggle of the left for accountability
him, of MPs only to find the SDP ZUE couldn't stomach him elmer. couldn't have been because of his strug-
SEESE because Shirles Williams said he hadn't been to a single SDP meeting.
The gross opportunisi O Halloran got his come uppance in the end. It is inconceivable any Labour Party would adopt hum as a candidate again.
But how many right wing MPs are kept in their positions they can make an appeal to the Irish
the constituency who think the left says nothing about the Irish question or British withdrawal?
7. WHEN the British fleet sailed off to do battle in the South Atlantic, there was a big diplomatic cam-
Plastic Bullets Conference fringe meeting
'FOR A SOCIALIST REPUBLIC
JOHN MacANULTY who is a Peoples' Democracy
councillor from Belfast talks about the fight for
socialist policies in Ireland. He welcomes the campaign
against plastic bullets and argues that British socialists
should stop backing Prior's Northern Ireland
Assembly and work towards getting the troops out.
Small Assembly Hall, ground floor UMIST, at
comerence menoreak
Supported by: Socialist Challenge, Socialist
Organiser and Revolution.
LABOUR COMMITTEE ON IRELAND ANNUAL CONFERENCE/AGM April 23rd, 10.30am, County Hall, London.
News
paign to make sure they could count on the backing all the Western European powers. Where
weak link? In was Ene Ireland of course.
Not evel the read tionary Haughey government could cling to office if it was seen to back Britain against Argentina whose claim to sovereignty oveted in trelans win up ported in Ireland in same way as Irish ereignty against British interference. In Dublin, the Argentine consul even had volunteers asking if they could join up.
The Labour left wanted to stop the fleet. one da have been to heen should have been to
-STIBES invasion diplomatically. The Irish
share with WOrKCIS US interest in opposing British imperialism all around the world. If they could get the British troops out of their country, it would British blow against the
whose impact would be felt everywhere, CLOSE Datal
Our fight for socialist policies gressively more possible to win as blows are struck against the ruling class from all quarters. Getting
TOODS which we can help in, is an important part or tal.
8. WE hear lots about the lefts' alternative economic strategy. But what about the lefts" alternative foreign policy? policy unat alms not al restorig
tha glorious days of gand
diplomacy British Empire, but of
altogether, just like the Trident missiles.
We have already seen that unilateral disarmament is a big potential vote Know that a boority of winner Labour. people want the Irish pro-
lem solved and think Bri tain should get out.
Ken Livingstone dic
second choice as man of
the year because he kept his mouth shut on important questions like Ireland. He had something to say. Labour must say it too get the troops out now!
9. Did you know that it costs over every year to maintain the British military presence in Ireland?
Edmund Baluka
must be freed
By Oliver MacDonald
Poland that Edmund
left.
Baluka has played a historic role in the life of the Polish working class. He led the workers' strikes in Szcezcin in 1970-71 that brought down the Gomulka regime and laid the foundations for the tradition of independent working class action that re-emerged in August 1980
the strike movemen that gave birth to Solidarity
Forced into exile in the carly 1970s, Baluka lived for a number of years in Britain, working in a Manchester factory. In the late 1970s he moved lo Paris and, with the help Marxists there, he produc
ed a bulletin championing
workers rights socialist ideas
he rethned integally to
Poland - the demand of the Szczecin strike COHE mittee in August 1980 that ne be allowed to return by the anorities. or
the authorities regained hi • job the
Warsk shipyard, his old work-place and was ver active in the working class movement there until the military of 13 December. He was then interned for many months.
While all the other internees in
BAN PLASTIC BULLETS CONFERENCE
SATURDAY 26th FEBRUARY Over the last week news has arrived from Baluka is gravely ill in prison after four weeks on hunger strike. His case demands urgent action from the entire
eventually released, Baluka was not. Instead he was arrested in the camp and held in the notorious Szczecin Kaszubska prison in complete isolation. He remains there to this day.
Baluka one of the very tow original mence to be held in jail under arrest. ine orner two group are the seven top leaders of Solidarity and the five prominent KOR activities who played an influential role in Solidarity.
Organise
Baluka himself was not a leader of Solidarity, but the police nave special reason for singling him out. He formed socialist party in Szczecin 33BAI BAIHPSOUDEE for the workers to organise
socialist programme. The
of the
values coating the
value creating separate party outside
Solidarity and Solidarity itself did - not TOBILE adhere to a socialist programme
But the regime saw the that Baluka posed and also noted the enormous per
UMIST, BARNES WALLIS BUILDING SACKVILLE STREET, MANCHESTER 1 Starts 10.30am. Last minute registration on door.
sonal authority he still commanded amongst the Szczecin workers. This
respect was enhanced • and his courageous intransigent leadership amongst the internees. Baluka also leaders of the 1970-91 leaders of the
in the working class movement. For these reasons, the police want to break him and smear him with lies and slanders in the media through a show-trial.
The projected trial of SKOR activists must be a key focus of protests by the labour movement in Britain Baluka must be given letta prothe more the left, because he will gain little the more
publicity in the mass media here in comparison with the other two cases.
Edmund Baluka was a founding sponso Labour Focus on Eastern SETTO! COUCCEE those of us who knew him on the real conditions of the working class Poland He helped, in the late er she to bring together different stranos or socialist opinion here in a common effort to
Eastern Europe. That uni-
needed now in his defence.
Protest letters and telegrams calling for his release should be sent to: The Governor, Areszt Sledczy, U1. Kaszubska, Szczecin; Poland Socialist Challenge 25 February 1983 - page 9
Page 10 scan of this page
Social Democracy in France From Mollet to Mitterrand
This week in our series on social
democracy, Chris Bertram looks at
French social democracy in the post war
period. He shows how after taking over
from Leon Blum, Guy Mollet led it from
one disaster to anther. He then looks at
how Mitterand revived its-fortunes and
shows what has happened since the
election of the Mitterand government in
1981.
MAY 10 1981 was a day of celebration for millions of French workers. In Paris crowds surged to the Bastille, the city was deafened by the sound of car horns, Francois Mitterand had won.
Today there is little notion that by cause for celebration. The together a mishmash government elected in the aHu COHHIULISE. a.ILwake of Mitterand's vic- gaullist parties an elec:ory has not brought with torally effective coalition t the promised change. could be built.
Instead, the workers of Renault and Citroen find Unfortunately for :hemselves fighting Mollet, his party was comgovernment that heir real standard of liv- has C UEN ing together apart at the seams, with the Fourth
Women find that, out The SFIO gave of deference to 'religious its wholehearted support families", the cost LO IG colontanst wars In abortion is not met by the Indochina and Algeria.
Opposition within the parSocial Security.
Conscripts find they was repeatedly crush nust spend a year in d the SFIO found itse uniform, as opposed to the Instee chine finee promised six months. unstable France is developing its coalitions. own neutron bomb in the The war in Algeria imace of the 'Russian plicated Mollet and his hreat cabinet torture and
Many have been hocked by this apparent tere Sino, ras Moleos urn-around. The leftist Mollet's hetoric of the mid-1970s Justice Minister vas deceptive, with its talk 1958 General de
'workers self- Gaulle seized power in a nanagement" and 'break- semi-legal coup d'etat. ng the powe of big The weak and inadequte
Government of the Fourth
pital h we scratcn tnt underneath ale urface find, ICOUDI had been
the ver- dispensed with by the viage, a bad old social- trench ruling class. lemocratic party. Gaulle, who had been ex-
pected ULOSCCULC the war wisengags ferom Mess disengaged
Algeria. The majority of SFIO deputies voted sup-
.French Socialism port for de Gaulle and for finished the Second World constitution that War in a mess. The Com- looked like an elective dicnunist Party, because of tatorship. The handful of
active Resistance record, had become the HUH LOUIS who voted gainst the new najor party of the French regime, such as Francois
Socialist Party (SFIO) was working class. The Mitterand, amount of political credit won no small weak and internally divid- for themselves in the long
with the ageing Leon term 3lum losing the leadership The dying SFIO con o Guy Mollet. Mollet and tinued to disintegrate. On tis faction used Marxist the left a series of clubs anguage bul only to hide and associations pronetr rabid nationalism liferated instead of parties ind anti-communism. was in the
Following -Ene expul- almost unique position of ion of Communist being a figure who could ninisters from the govern- unite the left-wing groupnent in 1947 with the ings but. when he ran for onset of the 'Cold War", President in 1965 no-one -rench social democracy expected him to do well. leveloped a strategy based As it happened Miton ine so-called 'third- terand forced de Gaulle in 'orce'. This was based on a to a humiliating second
VISK OON
Advance Salvador guerrillas
New Issue of IVP price 65p. Obtainable from The
Other Bookshop.
Soçialist Challenge, ,25 February 1983 page.10
round run-off. It seemed only a matter of before the reformist left
wo However to power
However in 1968 the career of Francois Mitterand was interupted by
sound of tear gas grenade and marching ICC. Without asking the permission of their reformist leaders the
WO KIES class followed the lead o students and staged one of the largest general strikes in historv.
Pathetic
Against this background Mitterand, suggesting. .he be made caretaker President, appeared rather pathetic.
He had chosen his monCur Dady Lieerane the trade union leaderships SCULLCUELO Tes oe ocel
with the workers demobilised, de Gaulle hammered the lett in snap election Humiliation was repeated in 1969 when the SFIO Presidential candidate, Gaston Deferre. recieved only five per cent OBIe vore. New se e inay Con-
Socialist Party was born HICH out of the ruins of the orio and une tert wing clubs. Soon Michel Rocard would lead part of the leftist PSU into the new party.
Mitterand had understood that 'third force' politics was dead. The Socialists needed the
Mitterand: his government is fast moving to the right.
-AL F T OVE CELA CHANS
LOTEL
POUR LE
CANDID AI
COMT UR
DE LA GAUCHE
POUR LAPPUCATION DU
pRICh
Campaigning for the Union of the Left.
Communist Party for torate who three reasons. Firstly, the Thirdly,
HUISLI C CCO EL system meant pressive that an agreement on organisation of the transicas voucs was Irn • ana ineir control of the perative. most important
Secondly, Mitterand contederation. wanted access to that 20 could be used either to per cent plus of the elec- DONCC the
voted Com-
the
austrial
CP
union
the CGT,
CCOHOHI
policies of Socialist
against them.
Using the language of class struggle, the Union of the Left came within a hair's breadth of victory ir the 1974 Presidential elec tions. The narrowness of Leit cons vent y mad e the
confident that they would win in 1978. Fearful
Then months before the elections the CP caucas teariu that they were losing support to the Socialist Party, launched a series of violent attacks on the social democrats. Although the allegations that the Socialists were seeking to water down their commitments as their chance of forming a government
closer WCHI without truth, the attacks of the CP led to electoral defeat.
Austerity
The balance sheet of the Socialist
governmen two years after May 1981 is not a good one ior the working class, for women
for France's racial minorities. Despite the limited nationalisations ana some real progress In the area of the notorious State Securits Court, BLEG watchword has been austerity
Prime Minister Mauroy, with the help of Fitth Republie technocrat Jacques Delors, has been
concerned to maintain onciners confidence' This has meant a policy of price and wage restraint that constrains wages Tamel more unan prices
.Working class resistance is contained by the union leaderships; th CGT Force Ouvriere. When the SP leadership realised that
CGT EReTE anaerc policy over Poland could шластие шле авіту о the Stalinist leadership to hold back
struggle, they toned their criticisms. Unemploymen
and rising price are the
order of the day for th French working class.
Policy
The government's foreign policy been unashamedly atlanticist True, Mitterand endorses the Socialist International's perspective of a third between Havana and Washington for Latin America and ap.
SETe OLCHE Regis Debray to advise him would be wrong to see this as more than a recognition that imperialism must find a political solution to the problems of Central America.
Any illusions on this SCOT E are dispelled if wo look at the French role in Africa. Paratrooners dl Ci busy *defending the na tional interest all over Djibouti, the Ivory Coast Senegal and Gabon. Finally we should mention their commitment ad te Sorel -TUNCaI their hostility the Union and their OCCaS ingly pro-NATO stance.
Opposition
It might have been expected that the traditiona 'left' of the Socialist Par
the CERES, have put up some opposition these policies. The CERES has long been an advocate of central planning opposed to the market economy and has awars BeeI stridently anti-American its
But the SUICISE -DOCV anti-Americanism is the DLOUUCL CXLCHC tionalism and CERES leader Chevenement firmly integrated into the government.
eSLe GaV advocate of self
Rocard, is now demanding Hanasemcs -MIChe -urHe are Dever auaoks on the living standards of ine working class. He is aided and encouraged by Edmond Maire, leader of the CFDT
The Communist Party remains silent, locked into the government. The WOLKERS CE Oenant Renault have taken on the
offensive in the ZEESLEE EM face of victimisation and racism. he working clas can force the government to make the bosses pay for the crisis, to keep its promises abortion and
service. In the process however it must Die caew cadense ta represents and fights for HES LC Cs.
Page 11 scan of this page
The women of Iran
Reviewed by Ros Young INTERNATIONAL Women's Day in Tehran in 1979 saw 20,000 women demonstrate for equal rights with men. This was a few months after the success of one of the most important anti-imperialist revolutions this century, coming to power of its leadership, Ayatollah Khomeini and the Islamic clergy.
terms of the massive population and the ousting of the Shah's brutal dictatorship and US domination in the region.
Women had been part of this revolution.
However the new regime's decree on the abolish of the Family Protection Act and for the compulsory wearing of hejab (Islamic dress) was the alarm signar tor tae beguning of a wave of represSOl deals! WU LICI Lilal continues today.
In the last three years VY ULLICH have been systematically driven out or ine workrorce into une home where their position as third GaSs citizens is regulated by the Islamic codes on, COOLEC! things, marriage and GIVOLe.
So why did women (and workers UCaDalLS and the left) mobilise behind Khomeini and the clergy?
This is one ot the main and OBeSORS GOKCE analysed in *Women of
I his series of CAcellent result opa pers were the
much research and interviews with women in Iran. They were brougnt togetner unrougn the personal involvement
Dolaya Afshar and Sima Bahar in the Hallal WOLC S movement, and they explore the situation of women Iran and the contradictions in their support TOH Islamic fundamentalism.
Farah Azari, in 'Islams Appeal to Women — Illusions and Realty survev's Islam's attitudes women, from what is written in the Koran, Shi'ite history and myths to the present day Islamic law codes.
She also gives a critique of the main Iranian neoteneans in recent
Nicaragua Benefit
Fun, celebration and solidarity themes of the highly successful Evening for Nicaragua organised by the Solidarity Campaign on Sunday 13 February and compèred by socialist comic Andy De La Tour (see photo).
The Shaftesbury West End, witness a thrilling assortment of song, comedy, drama and readings from a spectrum of notables including Uraguayan singer Daniel Viglietti: comics French and Saunders; Thompson and the Johnson Brothers; poet Benjamin Zephaniah and Christie, Maggie Steed and Alfred Molina. The Nicaraguan greetings from the revolutionary government of Nicaragua with a special message to Britain's unemployed Greenham Common.
to Nicaragua for jects that's 100 percent United States Government has sent in over two years!
by Channel 4 later in the spring. Don't miss it.
The conflict with fundamentalist Islam
and the
It was a revolution that shook the world in
mobilisations of the
Gulf
years who have had an
CLLOLHLOLS U11
organisations such as the
Mojahedin and the
educated young in general.
An example is Dr
Shariati and his theories of
Islamic socialism and
denunciations ot 'western
feminism'.
baDc. Ol SCA-
uality Azari brings
togetner sexua repression
women's oppression and
the puritanical nature of
the Islamic regime's
*crusade against sexuality
ana picasure Rooted
She looks at how this is
not only rooted in the
-TH010E Islam, but
also at the reaction against
uie accaeuce oi western
domination experienced
under the Shah's regime.
Soraya Afshar
ploes the economic base
for the revival of Islam.
Through original research
she explains that Islam, as
a mercantile ideology
the merchant
TOOLeC
class and the bazaar
They provided the base
for the clergy's coming to
power and this is directly
related to women's
economic position in the
society.
Sima Bahar gives
historical background to
the women's movement
and Soraya
presents an outline of the
attitudes of the Iranian left
to the women's question.
These are
CALL CHICY
portant for an understan-
ding of why, before 1979,
there was no autonomous
women's movement.
They raise fun-
damental
Issue
relevance to the interna-
were me
Nicaraguan
Theatre, in London's was packed to the seams to
(Photon)
Hiexei oayle, Mayall,
musicians Emma
Carlos Augusto Guarita
performers Julie
Ambassador brought
and the
The evening raised over E15,000, to be sent education and health pro-
more than the Photo:
Highlights of the evening will be televised
Iranian women face increasing repression tional women's struggle -do we fight for women's rights before. independence or socialism or do we begin now?
As the left in Iran said *Let's solve the problem of democracy and ten we will get to women's issues*. STOCV Con ereco ar as autonompus women's movement only splits the anti-imperialist, working class movement.
The result was that when the attacks on WORner were launched, women and the left were in a much weaker poston te fight it. At worst groups like the Tudeh party (communist) capitulated to the regime on the question of women's rights.
Together, these papers are an invaluable contribution to the debate on the viding a great dean of im- revorunon DO aa Cal sight into Iran, before and after the revolution.
Politically, the authors place the of women clearly in the context of Iranian society as a
0
-RVEN→
R
Andy de la Tour
International.
whole and the Khomeini regime's attacks on the national minorities, especially the Kurds, the working class and unions.
also examine the differences in the situation of Iranian women, both in class terms and also nationally and regionally The criticism's of the pre seet leeg) are gien ls of
given in the context of the history •of botn tre brutdi repressiol by the Shah and of western domination.
Equip
This book should be read by all on the left and in the women's movement here. Hopelly li will clear of misconceptions prevalent on the lett as to the nature of the Islamic regime and wi colus wu e oerte understanding of the dynamics the anti-
mperialist struggle - tha
hen successful it does no in itself automatically guarantee democratic
rights to women, workers and so on, let alone lead to socialism
It is also of relevance to us in Britain, in the light of
growing attacks gommeni women Thatcher's
Azari ends on an optimistic note when she exD auEs SUTCE desnite repression, for the first time in iran the questiot of women's rights has become a major issue.
The experience of being repressed violently women since the revolution has resulted in a new awateres. women themselves as women, and
growing recognition ot the need for an
women's autau eus movement.
Women of ran - The con flict with fundamentalis Islam' is edited by nzur ana ouousnea ov unace Press, London. Available
Other Bookshop 320 Upper Street, London N (01-226 0571) price £4.30
Sheffield action
By Martin Hill OVER 300 PEOPLE demonstrated through the centre of Sheffield on February. The march, organised by the Sheffield Asian Youth Movement was a protest against the threatened deportation of Ranjit Chakravorty, Bengali who has lived in Sheffield since 1977.
Ranjit came to Britain as student and has now been o Tered a tull time job as a social
DeSOle MIS aBe ErG invaluable help he has given to the • Crys. Bengali
anc interpreung.
Ottice claim ne has *illegally overstaved" in Britain
The campaign against Ranjit's deportation has met with wide backing
FighE
Racisme
TORY HOME Secretary William Whitelaw renewed the
COVERE ments commitment to 'strict immigration control' in the 15 February parliamentary debate
new immigration rules. These regulate the nOVOmCH of husbands and fiances of British women, shifting the responsibility onto the couple to prove that the marriage is genuine
Arranged il be placed cur es
be placed under brutal spotlich -a S1 immigration officials and families will continue to be
Home Office Minister David Waddington reveal ea cor coveramenriten tions to make immigration an lection issue wen he summed up the debate hope that plenty of people
the COUntY will Tememoe! during the
Sunday 27
March
12 noon
Assemble
Jubilee
Gardens
near
Waterloo
Station
• Unite the divided families now
against deportation
Council and from SaDom ocaM Ps
The threat to Ranjit ha fuelled the anger over racis attacks on
-molal CORI indifalle • DOLCE crence ane narrassment
Racist graffiti were found after side and ther piade of worship- Shirland d pigs head was left out No police acmon nas Deen taxer either case One family was hospitalised when Ped throug pellets were drop
their letter r box.
YY LICH HILLCCH OULE LaNca a restaurant tre Donce
Were SSDcOsY COWo aT
pear. When they arrived the
arrested the asian waiter who tried to defend himself
drivers been racially attacked. One lost the
. Again, the signi or one eye only arrest has been a taxi driver assaulted by a customer who refused to pay.
FIGHT RACISM badges 25p each ( + 16p p&p); 20p for orders of 20-50; 15p
for 50 or more. Send cash cheque with order (payable Socialist Challenge) to: SC Badges PO Box 50, London NI 2XP.
Root out the racists
course of the next election LAEL Labour- Party now siecceatoreoea cn British Nationality Act. We have kept our faith with the electorate and brought immigration down'.
-RESI -HT'CSTS ChOW nOM urgent is the demonstration organised
• Campor s Adai z
March in London
Campaigning for the demonstration demands will be vital to defeat Tor
and build Labou government
carry out its promises. Dozens of trade union and ROOur Party branches have pledged support for and this should be built on in the remaining weeks
Carl Demonstration: Repeal Immigration and Nationality
Gardens, London.
DEMOUSTRATE
CAMPAIGN AGAINST RACIST LAWS
•Repeal the Immigration and Nationality Acts
• Stop race checks Stop racist deportations
Socialist Challenge - 25 February 1983 page 11
Page 12 scan of this page
By Mandy Moore
membership and 'sanitised' campaign's recent Annual General Meeting.
At its first meeting the new executive backed the Hendon South resolution to the London Region annual meeting the Labour Party, which embodies the principles of the Manchester Withington' amendement, twice rejected by the AGM. Mistaken
The new executive says
the decision of the AGM was ambiguous resolution passed is quite clear: It would be mistaken and dangerous to
incorporate into the Labour Party constitution the restrictions and requirements placed upon
groups contained in the
Manchester Withington amendment. 'accordingLPD should not ses that this AGM believes that
such proposals, but in-
tead should campaign fo and support only those proposals which seek completely reverse the
sit in sackings
By Vera McElhone TWENT GIGHT miners Wednesday from Merthyr Wales staged a sit in south
Monday 21 February
cluding Dutfield, South Wales UNIOR VICE resident
poistered as a newspaper with the Post ofice rudusned by Cardina Enterorises. PO Box Su. London Na Printed By East End Offset (TU) Ltd, London E2.
Socialist
Challenge
Militant five face expulsion
STOP THIS
WITCH-HUNT
NOW!
CLPD executive flouts
conference decisions
THE NEW executive committee of the Campaign for Labour Party Democracy has over-ference. turned the decisions of its own rank and file
HIS TO campaign for register proposal rejected by the
1982 decision which seek establish and sateguard PETE rights of groups ....(eg the Greenwich amendment.
The Greenwich amendment says that anyone can
Labour Party who supports the Party's aims and does not stand candidates against it The CA ecutive is turning its back the two-pronged strategy which the AGM voted for - outright opposition to the register with a Greenwich-style anenee a second dro ng. The AGM rejected a LCOIULIOLI
that inhere cremine ders
coming year CLPD should campaign for two alternative proposals, both which would replace the NEC's register. One of these to be on the lines of the amendment incorporated into the Manchester Withington resolution, the other being the constitutional amendment submitted by Green-
Miners strike over
February, when an area threatened closure Sane the pit.
The Coal Board is renny to open up nest refusing invest seams the south Wales
refused to come up until miners executive had a against
wich CLP to the 1982 con-
The new executive is to
implem based pro ed
attack based
Greenwich and second on
a yet unwritten 'fallback
position'. Clear
It is now clear that the
new executive
ride roughshod over the
democratically-decided
POnCIeS OICLPD. To en-
sure this can be done, six
co-options were made to
those co-opted
voting rights. All of them, register slate at the A&M, although the
were defeated in the elec-
tions. On top of that, the
EC also appointed 28
'keypersons' all of
whom again have
voting rights on the EC
Now the total
members exceeds
those elected by the AGM!
Only five of the co-options
are women.
CLPD about
democracy in the Labour
Party - what the hell has
happened the
democracy of CLPD? 23 special meeting the day after the sit in to discus: CECOORSE
from Tower, Mardy and Penrhiwceiber pits have
to cal on une executy
support the fight
closure.
THE LABOUR PARTY'S National Executive Committee is set to expel five Militant editors on the eve of the Bermondsey by-election.
The party's organisation subcommittee has already decided to recommend expulsion the NEC when it meets as our as the NEC discusses theit to press. Even case. right-winger John GOVIS DUSTY BEVIESLE wreck Labour's election prospects by standing against Tatchell Bermondsey while still a
Socialist Challenge
supporters beaten up TWO Socialist Challenge a fracture of the leg so bad
supporters were viciously
attacked in Oldham 1dSl week for wearins CND badges. John ilcox, member of the NUR, and Tony Wilson a member of the AUEW were attacked by skinheads in a fish and
chip shop.
John suffered cuts and bruises, but Tony received
employers should be charitable
voluntary organisations'.
behalf of humanity in general.
will recognise
deduct contributions from shareholders to send to our Fund Drive.
fulfilled adults Challenge, its readers or the working people.
Labour Party member The expulsions, if they go ahead, will be the first serious test of the opposi tion to the witch-hunt. . All the signs are that the right wing wants to draw feed. most effective defence which the Militant has so far rejected is likely to be a firm stand by the constituency OCTECT Terusing to that the bone came through his skin. Tony will be in hospital for three weeks and off work for up to three months.
Get well messages etc sent Tony Lees and Fawcett firmary, Oldham.
Socialist Challenge POND DRIVE B
proposing encouraged contributions relying employees to pay their contributions to
organisation which is of the opinion that the working class should voluntarily overthrow the Tories, which we think would be a very charitable act on
Somehow we are very doubtful that the Tories
our charitable status. And we are very sceptical about the idea that employers will
their workers
So we do not think that the Thatcher team's proposals for making us all 'enterprising and
are going to benefit Socialist
So that means we are back to our own form of 'self help' and what the team calls 'self reliance Only you and your money can keep this paper go-
corner:
The clearly has further expulsions in mind, so that the Militant 5 will be the test case.
The three parties in which Militant editors are members Hammersmion Islington
North and Norwood, which are likely to reject any attempt to impose expulsions on them
Hornsey Labour Party has shown that such attempts can be resisted, in preventin so far Tand Ali's ejection. But much more is now at stake and if the NEC decides to press ahead it may well attempt to disaffiliate these CLPs, even in the middle of election preparations. They too will therefore be in the firing line.
These events make it critical for our readers to back the initiatives taken Witch-hunt Labour Agains the
LAW organising a campaign to commit CLPs and 117. dividuals, in a large adver tisement InDune. refuse to recognise expul-
No Tory charity for Socialist Challenge
in store for you
donation.
Bath
Mooney.
Manchester
Outer West London
SIS BOLOR
Blanco-White
Huddersfield
LIVeIDOOI
Middlesborough
Leeds
Cardiff
Oxford
Heme
Lambeth
Swansea
Leicester
Leamington
A Derdeen
total
total so far
rive zor the chop: clockwise from the top left hand
Peter Taffe Ted Grant, Walsh Keith Dickinson
sions and to defend those
taking this stand
STISTO approach the
Militant-led Labour Steer-
ing Committe: ACCUSE
Witch-hunts for joint ac-
tion in defence of the five
and Is to fringe
meetings at the upcoming
regiona Labour Part
conferences, all of which
have anti-witch-hunt mo-
tions on the agenda.
If your CLP or ward
has not yet sponsored the
advertisement, ensure that
they do now. If your GMC
has already taken a posi-
tion against the witch.
your CONCE can
take the necessary action.
If you are a delegate to
regional Labour Party
conference, or can attend
to help the anti-witch-hunt
campaign by distributing
leaflets and helping with
the fringe meetings, please
LIC cretary: Keith Lichma
don N16 (Telephone 802
1709). ing. And when you see what Thatcher's team have - reda page unree - 1121 150 well worth your while to send us an immediate
£26.25 2.00 5.00
157.00 170.00 80.00 40.00 35.00
40.00 94.00
120.00 25 200.00 40.00 50.00
70.00 £1666.75 COLOS.
← Socialist Challenge No. 281, 16 February 1983Socialist Challenge No. 283, 4 March 1983 →