Drivers and dockers unite on meat trade

Official IRA turns to reformism A TURN towards and a revision of relationships with called for at the Ard Fheis at the Dublin, on Saturday.

President Tomas MacGiolla told this year's relatively thinly-attended conference that unless they could break out of their current isolation and carry their policies into the trade union and labour movement, they faced failure.

While he spoke about 30 members of three disbanded Galway branches-expelled from the Officials for 'ultra-leftism' -lobbied the Ard Fheis to try to get in. The obedieve then to resiste e geneve democratic policies and methods, which has gathered momentum in the past year.

The Galway members clashed with the leadership by demanding the building of the Republican movement into a revolutionary Marxist party, committed not to the creation of a mixed economy, including small capitalists and farmers, but to a programme of nationalization of all industry without compensation and under workers' control.

also armed campaign the Labour Party Official Sinn Fein 'left' groups was movement's 67th Mansion House, mpaign WITH LONDON docks still reeling from an announcement that the South American meat trade is to switch to General Workers' Union offi- Southampton, Transport and ABOUT 70 trade unionists pined the Lambeth Council of Action demonstration against the soaring cost of living. There were delegations from Lambeth Trades Council, local UCATT, USDAW and T&GWU branches, as well as a contingent from the Young ocialists' and International Socialists' local branches.

The marchers received attentive interest as they assed through the Brixton markets and high street (see below) to a meeting at Clapham Manor Baths.

At points along the route shoppers joined in shouting "Tories Out. to overthrow Six Counties.

Both these demands were vigorously opposed by the reformist leaders of Official Sinn Fein. And at the Ard Fheis MacGiolla emphasized that nothing must be done to alienate potential supporters in the northern Unionist Party, in Fianna Fail or in Fine Gael.

The price of this backing appears to be a purge of so-called ultra-lefts and Trotskyites'. Members of the axed Galway branches believe the movement is on the threshold of full-scale conversion to the status of a social-democratic party, perhaps even with deputies in the Dail. For the time being the leadership's new emphasis on Republicans entering the trade unions and the Labour Party has rallied the strongly syndicalist Derry Republicans, who have long believed that the future of the movement and the completion of the national revolution lay with In his oration to 600 delegations on Saturday night, MacGiolla claimed 1972 had been a victorious year for imperialism. He said: "The fact that survived at all as an organization | is tremendous imperialism DAVID cials yesterday promised a top-level meeting of dockers and transport drivers early in 1973.

The promise came at a conPRICES IAN YEATS IN DUBLIN achievement when we bined machinations of to smash us." He blamed Fianna Fail for the present wave of public hostility to Sinn Fein, which he said they had consciously, fostered by giving clandestine material support to the Provisional IRA.

He said: Now that the origins of the Provisionals are being clearly exposed, and their policies are being shown to be not only futile but disastrous, I would appeal to their members who may have been misled by lies and distortions to examine our actions and policies."

Assessing the record of the Officials since the last Ard Fheis, MacGiolla said: I must emphasize that the failure of the revolutionary movement to maintain its original momentum was not due to policy failures.

We may have failed in methods and in propaganda, cies have been correct."

The crucial switch from previous vague calls for the building of a mass movement to the demand for concrete intervention in the trade union and labour movement came at the end of MacGiolla's speech. ference of London drivers' stewards in the union's headquarters. It is expected that the joint meeting will draw six members each from the T&GWU's dockers' and the drivers' trade groups.

At least 530 dockers' jobs will immediately be hit by the meat switch, which is expected to take place early in 1973.

It could also spell the closure of the Vestey organization's Thames Stevedoring Co, which employs 690 dockers and 135 tally-clerks.

Employment in the Royal docks as a whole-already threatened by the New Zealand meat producers" pull-out—would be seriously undermined.

Hence the dockers' decision at Thames Stevedoring on Friday to black ships carrying South American meat and canned goods from January 1 unless 'constructive negotiations' start by then.

Yesterday Eric Rechnitz, chairman of the London transport drivers' stewards, said he was in favour of a joint campaign with the dockers against Vestey's I've made an approach to individual stewards on the Royals with the intention of taking joint action,' he added.

The best thing, said Rechnitz, would be for the dockers to black the shipping lines and for lorry drivers to take forms of action against the Vestey group.

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Strikes taking place today and throughout the week show the enormous feeling in the working class to fight back against the Tory government.

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MINERS and tenants marched through Conisborough, Yorkshire, yesterday in support of the Labour councillors who will not implement the Tory government's Housing Finance Act.

The marchers chanted "Tories Dey!, Ret Rones Patrand Hin!

We Won't Pay!'. Contingents joined the demonstration from as far afield as Birmingham.

Edlington and Cadeby NUM branch banners were also there.

Arthur Scargill, Yorkshire National Union of Mineworkers" official, told the meeting that followed: 'We will oppose any law which attacks the living standards of the working class. 'We can mobilize the whole of the working class to bring down the Tories and put back a Labour government pledged to socialist policies.?

SHOP stewards from the laid-off Lucas Industrial Equipment factory at Fazakerley, Liverpool, yesterday backed the CAV sit-in strikers in their demand for blacking action at three other Merseyside factories.

He said that Heath and Lynch were working towards the common objective of uniting Ireland to 'surrender her independent nationhood' to the EEC. And he warned that both governments were preparing for the huge working-class struggle against poverty and unemployment which would inevitably follow Common Market entry.

He said: The Offences Against The State (Amendment) Act was not designed or needed to deal with illegal organizations. It was designed to deal with workers' protests and the publicity given to them. It is a preparation for the total police-state era which is almost upon us."

MacGiolla said that in this situation the trade unions and the Labour Party must reassess their role and take their place in the vanguard of the struggle for the reconquest of Ireland and the building of a workers' republic." • News broke yesterday that the Provisional IRA are near certain to call a Christmas ceasefire in the Six Counties. The final decision was to be made yesterday. And it was_not known if fighting would be resumed. in The are visions of fadeletel There are rumours changes which would hand power exclusively movement's political wing.