The Political Background

ireland The first of two articles way he could see, at that stage, of using his growing strength to challenge the employers and the government.

Above all it is necessary to understand, not only that the middle-class leaders inevitably betray this movement from below, but something else.

The political crisis which opened up with O'Neill's resignation and the split in the Unionist Party brought in its train a series of objective struggles in which the class issues will inevitably come to the fore, and in which great opportunities arise for the development of united working-class actions and the development of a Marxist leadership in Britain as well as in Ireland.

If we approach the question from another angle, this becomes clear. What is the rede man, one job' or • Slogan •.. one house'? What is the content of the demand for ending discrimination in education ?

JOBS SCARCE

For the working class, the 'jobs' question is a matter of more jobs. But capitalism has entered a phase internationally -and even more certainly withın declining British capiscarcer and not more plentiful. talısm-where jobs must get Thus, if the Northern Ireland and British government 'promise' to implement the reforms demanded by the civil rights movement, what can this mean?

Unemployment in Northern Ireland is at this time seven and a half per cent, or three times the rate in Britain.

The ruling class is patently incapable of controlling the social contradictions and establishing 'law and order'.

Hence the 'normal' problems of reducing the labour force in capitalism as a whole are much worse In / Northern Ireland. These promises, like all the promises of Tories and all the promises of Wilson and the reformists, are a lie and a fraud.

Northern Ireland's problems, even more obviously than those of Britain, require socialist solutions.

LESSON

Bitter struggles, in which the workers of Belfast and Derry are unable to resolve even the smallest day-to-day questions without armed clashes with the forces of the state, will force this lesson upon these workers in a very short time.

To fight for these policies against all diversions the task of Marxists in this situaIt was because of the middle-class orientation of the initial leadership of the civil rights movement that the Catholic workers found themselves apparently facing. the prospect of wholesale death and destruction by August of this year.

The Royal Ulster Constabulary and the B-Specials (consisting largely of extremist right-wing elements, some of them followers of the Protestant Reverend Ian Paisley) used their government status and their arms to carry out brutal attacks on the Catholic workers' quarters. Whole streets were burned down and several deaths occurred.

NOT ORGANIZED Against these odds the unprepared workers fought bravely, but the independent fighung capacity of the working Lass had never been organized, of course, by the civil rights leaders, even of the so-called 'left wing'.

The 'state capitalists' of the 'International Socialism' group, and others like McCann, who constitute this 'left wing', then found themselves unable to oppose the intervention of British troops.

Their supporters say: 'Without the troops there would have been a pogrom (i.e. a violent attack and killing of Catholics)'.

They forget, first, that this "pogrom' is now about to be organized by the troops and the Royal Ulster Constabulary and B-Specials who are part of the same state machine; and, second, that their own politics of liquidation into civil rights, instead of independent mobilization of the strength of the working class, created the conditions for Wilson's troops to intervene.

Now the Cameron Report on the events between October 1968 and April 1969, together with the witch-hunt of the capitalist press, led by the 'Daily Mail, is turned on McCann, Toman, Devlin and Farrell, of the student 'People's Democracy' section of the Civil Rights movement.

No effort must be spared in the labour movement of Britain and Ireland to defend them and all the Irish militants against whom the attack is directed.

The Labour government must be told to keep its hands off any of the workers and civil rights members whom the Unionists want to make scapegoats for their own historical bankruptcy.

But the lessons must be learned.

These 'left wingers' , among them revisionist supporters of 6078 TZ The Union Jacks were out in this Protestant area when the troops moved illusions about 'protection' from the army are being dispelled as state forces T.V. PROGRAMMES BBC-1 9.15 a.m. 12.23 p.m., For Schools. 1.0-1.25, Bob Yn Dri. 1.30, Watch With Mother. 1.45-1.53, News and Weather. 2.5-2.35, For Schools. 3.45, Malcolm Muggeridge. 4.20, Play School. 4.40, Jackanory. 4.55, Wacky Races and Space Kidettes. 5.15, Monster Music Mash. 5.44, Babar. 5.50, News and Weather.

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order to convince tion of BBC-2 11.00-11.20, groups like the 'state capitalists', considered that the further development of capitalism in Ireland gave the opportunity for a reform movement (civil rignts).

In this way the Catholic section of the working class would begin to develop consciousness, so it was thought.

Instead, the revolutionary nature of the problems facing the Irish workers, Catholic and Protestant, was the essence of the question, and required a socialist, revolutionary, not a reformist programme and preparation; a working-class organization, not a liquidation into the middle-class organization (civil rights) with a reformist programme.

The situation was and and Protestant workers.

All regions as BBC the following times:

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Northern Ireland: 6.0-6.45 p.m., Scene Around Six, News and Weather. 11.42, Northern Ireland News Headlines.

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donderry Riots 8.00, 8.00, 8.45, 9.10, 10.45, building up to a revolutionary Therefore, as soon as the workers show even a small example of their strength and combativity, counter-revolutionary reprisals are prepared by the Unionists.

Unable to prepare for revolution, the 'lefts', because of their revolutionary words, and because they are useful as a scapegoat, fall victim in the witch-hunt to these reprisals.

The working-class movement will defend them, because the attack on them is essentially the ruling class's first preparatory blow in tightening the grip of repression in Ireland.

To be continued tomorrow.

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