The Newsletter, vol. 9 no. 414

Trump in Salisbury continues to seek and secure diplomatic recognition from various European powers before declaring their "independence' from Britain.

'Independence' for the white minority as everyone knows is a fraud. What Smith wants is closer economic, political and military ties with South Africa, the Portuguese-dominated regimes of Mozambique and Angola and the white-mercenary-backed regime of Tshombe in the Congo.

In his tactical moves he is being assisted by the disgusting behaviour of Wilson and Bottomley, who talk about one man-one vote in Rhodesia but do everything to strengthen Smith's position.

BLUFF CALLED

At the Commonwealth Prime Ministers' Conference Wilson pleaded for time to tame Smith. Then he sent Bottomley to Salisbury to persuade Smith not to be too beastly to the Africans.

Bottomley got nothing. Smith was calling Wilson's bluff, and the Tories cheered him on.

The next step was when Smith decided to defy Whitehall openly by appointing a diplomatic representative to Lisbon.

Smith: for closer ties with South Africa In justification of his policy, Smith quoted the precedent of Pretoria (South Africa) where he was allowed diplomatic representation by the British government after the Central African Federation was dissolved.

There is every prospect that Lisbon will grant diplomatic recognition to Rhodesia, despite the Foreign Office pressure. If this happens, then other European powers will follow.

France, in particular, would only be too glad to do so.

Smith is not the least scared by Mr. Wilson's talk of 'sanctions' and the 'use of force'.

PUT ON SQUEEZE

He can always rely on his supporters in the Tory Party and the Foreign Office to put the squeeze on the Labour government and bring Wilson into line.

At the same time, the racialist policies of the government have encouraged the belief in Rhodesia that if it does come to a showdown. Wilson will not forget to remember the colour of his skin.

Having capitulated to the bankers, big businessmen, property developers and steel barons, is there any reason why Wilson and his right-wing friends should not willingly bow to the trigger-happy racialists in Salisbury? It is the logic of capitulation.

summarise briefly the main decisions which delegates voted for. Support the government's Immigration Bill, which means encourage racialism and fascism all over the country.

Support the United States bombing of North and South Vietnam, which means encourage the warmongers and the ultra-reactionary United States imperialists, who believe that it is necessary to destroy a country of 30 million people in order to temporarily preserve America's capitalist economy. Legislation against the trade unions, the very organisations who founded the Labour Party to represent them in Parliament.

These policies strengthen Toryism immeasurably. They are Tory policies, voted for by delegates at a Labour conference. The bulk of the constituency Party votes were cast in favour of these policies. In other words, the conference swung even further to the right than the government of Harold Wilson. How can anyone in his right senses disguise the implications of these issues?

Since the Tories are strengthened, monopoly capitalism is strengthened, and the working class finds itself leaderless at the hour of its most critical need. Parliamentary legislation against the trade unions will enjoy the full support of the Tory Party. They will not vote the government out on this issue. Tory support If members of the Tory Party had been present at the Labour Party Conference they would have voted whole-heartedly with the platform on such matters.

Legislation against the unions means: (a) Wages and working conditions are now political issues, since, in order to improve them, the working class will have to fight against the state machine. (b) All struggles of the working class, therefore, will tend to be transformed into political struggles. (c) Although Labour's rightwing conference voted to support Tory policies, it has now set in motion a series of events which must inevitably develop a powerful movement to the left, but this movement to the left is not just a Labour Party question. Jnion opposition It will occur above all in the factories and the trade unions. Already the Amalgamated Engineering Union shop stewards for the Birmingham East District, covering a large number of factories engaged in the production of motor car accessories, voted at their meeting on September 30, calling:

'on the Executive Council to oppose with every means at the disposal of the union, any attempts by the government to bring in legislation directed against strikes.

This is indicative of what will be the attitude of trade unionists everywhere. Who is to lead this great and powerful movement?

Not "Tribune' , which speaks out of both corners of its mouth at the same time. The only powerful voice of opposition raised at Blackpool was the 2,000-strong demonstration of the Young Socialists, whose slogans and banners clearly warned of the dangers ahead.

"Tribune' did nothing. permitted the left to be disarmed at the conference and it now refuses to give a lead to the Members of Parliament who may want to fight. Should these left Members of Parliament vote or not vote against Wilson's government? They should certainly vote against it if it advocates legislation along the lines we have described above. It is better to bring down the government on these issues than to support it under conditions where it betrays the working class and strengthens the Tory Party.

Bring them down!

The Newsletter says unequivocably-all left MPs must vote to bring down this Labour government on such issues. Loyalty to Labour is fundamentally different from loyalty to Toryism. Wilson is a Tory disguised as a member of of the Labour Party. Remember MacDonald. In the next session of Parliament it is your duty to vote to bring this government down.

This does not mean in any way support the Tories, who may want a General Election. You have no choice. The fight for socialist policies in the Labour Party and the fight for a General Election are inseparable.

Either you adopt this struggle or take your responsibility for an even greater betrayal than 1931.

clattered through th AbI sundav as tank streets of Djakarta and tracer bullets probed the night sky, the 20-year-old rule of President Sukarno ended as dramatically as it had begun.

After an abortive coup by sympathisers of the PKI (Indonesian Communist Party) in the army and palace guard led by Colonel Untung, and the abduction of six leading rightwing military figures, including General Yani, the C-in-C, Generals Nasution and Sujarto struck back, arrested Sukarno and established a scarcely veiled military dictatorship.

The Stalinists, having been beaten in Djakarta, have now fled to Central Java, where guerrilla war and peasant uprisings have been reported.

Not neutral The air force, though not involved in the coup, is not neutral, and Stalinist influence is strong in its ranks.

Entire divisions of the Indonesian Army have defected to the rebels and the elite right-wing Siliwangi Division sent to crush the rebels in Central Java is meeting stiff resistance.

Indonesia is now plunged into civil war. In order to understand the causes of the present conflict and prognosticate its outcome, an analysis of Indonesian Stalinism is indispensable.

No other politician in Asia owed as much as Sukarno did to the opportunism and adventurism of international Stalinism.

Sukarno's debut in nationalist politics in 1926 as chairman of the Party Nasional Indonesia (PNI) was in fact an attempt to capitalise on the failure of Communist insurrection of 1926 against the Dutch in Java.

Balance

Representing the newly-arising (but weak Indonesian capitalist class, and fearful of the powerful and militant working class, Sukarno throughout his 40-year career has always tried, and succeeded (until last Sunday), in balancing between the working class and imperialism.

From the beginning, Sukarno had two major political objectives: to obtain political independence for Indonesia and, secondly, to control the trade union and peasant movements.

In 1929 he was arrested by the Dutch. Released in 1931 he was re-arrested in 1933 and exiled until the Japanese released him in 1942. Sukarno (centre) with his Foreign Minister Subandrio (right) and C-in-C General Yani.

The weak Indonesian capitalist class, which could hardly lead a revolutionary liberation war against the Dutch was unable to offer any resistance to the more formidable Japanese.

Sukarno, their leader, collaborated with the Japanese occupiers in the hope that the Japanese would grant his country independance When Tokio began stalling on his demands, Sukarno formed a secret alliance with the Socialists and Stalinists, who were opposed to the Japanese.

The Japanese, realising that they would lose the war, once again offered Sukarno the bait of independence. Sukarno readily agreed.

But the capitulation of Japan put an end to the negotiations and Sukarno in order to forestall

allied occupation, issued his own Declaration of Independence on August 17, 1945.

Thousands of Indonesians, who had been armed by the Japanese and formed a homeguard (Peta), now turned their weapons against the Japanese and the Indonesian Revolution began.

Recognition w Once again, inter-imperialist rivalries, this time between the British and the Dutch, helped Sukarno to secure de facto recognition and maintain his republic.

When Mountbatten, however, recognised the Netherlands government as the only legitimate authority in Indonesia and allowed Dutch troops to land, renewed fighting broke out and continued (Cont. page 4, col. 2)

7. Healy, National Secretary, SLL M. Banda, Editor, Newsletter Peter Kerrigan, Liverpool docker LEICESTER 7.30 p.m., Sunday, October 24 The Corn Exchange Speakers:

Cliff Slaughter, Editor, 'Fourth International' Dave Ashby, National Secretary, Young Socialists Jack Gale, Central Committee Member, SLL SHEFFIELD 7.30 p.m., Sunday, October The Vestry Hall, Cemetery Road (Moor End)

Speakers:

Cliff Slaughter, Editor, 'Fourth International Dave Ashby, National Secretary Young Socialists Gale, Central Committee Member, SLL GLASGOW 7.30 p.m., Sunday, November 7 Partick Burgh Hall, Lesser Hal Speakers:

Cliff Slaughter, Editor, 'Fourth International' John Robertson, Young Socialist and engineering convenor BELFAST 7.30 p.m., Sunday, Nov. 14 International Hotel, Donegall Square South Speaker:

G. Healy, National Secretary, SLL DANCE organised by members of Ceylon Section LSSP (R) to raise funds for their paper the 'Young Socialist DANCE TO 'THE BOND' Sarah Siddons School Harrow Road, London, W.2 SATURDAY, OCTOBER 9, 1965. 8 p.m.

TWO Coventry youths arrested during the 2,000-strong demonstration of Young Socialists and trade unionists in Blackpool on September 26 were fined £40 each for wearing studded belts. Described in court as

Young Socialists, the youths were alleged by the police prosecutor to have deliberately brought the 'offensive weapons' to Blackpool because the Young Socialists were expecting trouble, knowing that their slogan-shouting would upset some people. The court was told the demonstration was shouting Down With Wilson -Up With The Workers'.

THE three main unions on Turiff's Barbican site, London, —the Amalgamated Society • of Woodworkers, the Amalgamated Engineering Union and the National Federation of Building Trades Operatives - have now given official backing to the struggle for 100 per cent trade unionism on the site.

The Transport and General Workers' Union has since followed suit.

(Further report page 4)

Vol. 9, No. 414 TAN SMITH's trip to Britain, • far from being a concession to Wilson is, in fact, a move calculated to disarm the Labourites while the racialist H | drown us in a sea of words and meaningless OLD it! Before 'Tribune' and the fake-lefts phrases about what happened at the Blackpool conference of the Labour Party, we should Price 6d.

THIS WEEK International Committee of the Fourth International statement on Vietnam (see page 3). NO LEGISLATION AGAINST THE TRADE UNIONS! CLEAR OUT THE WILSONMACDONALD TRAITORS!

FIGHT FOR SOCIALIST POLICIESI LONDON p.m., Sunday, October 17 New Ambassadors Hotel Upper Woburn Place, W.C.1 (nearest tube station: Euston)

FIVE Leeds Tenants' Associations protested to the Labour-controlled City Council on Wednesday against the proposed rent increases of 4s. to 8s., which will affect 48,000 dwellings.

Spokesman for the deputation, Norman Harding, pointed out that many tenants live in houses in a terrible state of repair. Some houses built 45 years ago had been paid for time and time again.

He condemned the readiness of Labour-controlled councils to pass on increased costs to tenants and called for the immediate suspension of all interest payments.

'Councils should look to the banks, money-lenders and big business in building and building materials, he commented. It is they who have the money.

Use fortunes

Repairs and new buildings should be financed out of the fortunes they have made out of council houses?

Tenants are now demanding a joint committee of the council's housing department and Leeds Tenants' Associations to investigate all tenders, building and repair costs and interest and profits from council houses.

Associations represented in the deputation were from Cross Gates, Ireland Wood, Raynville, Cow Close and Middleton.

Page Iwo The Labour Party Conference held in Blackpool last week highlights the inability of the 'left' to face the rightward swing of the Wilson leadershir the constituency party delegates "Getter for shar in • MATTE last year.' "Will you be at the reception tomorrow night?' 'Hasn't so-and-so come in this morning?' — these were the kind of remarks exchanged every day by hundreds of delegates to the Labour Party Conference at Blackpool last week.

Many of them shuffled through the corridors and tea rooms of the Winter Gardens and carefully spent their expense allowances (or part of them), just as they have done every year for a generation and more.

In the sessions, they held up their hands to vote, or put Gaitskell's rejection of the conference decisions in 1960-61, especially their collaboration with the executive in witch-hunting the Young Socialists through bans and expulsions, have ensured the strengthening of the right wing.

Apart from this, it was, in fact, always a myth that the constituencies were a great reserve of left-wing strength.

Foot: Threaten

serious trouble over steel.

Victoria Station and see on Sunday nights hundreds of these people coming from the West Indies, with no homes here, no jobs, and some without friends', Barbara Castle, Jennie Lee and Anthony Greenwood were sitting behind him on the platform.

Mellish rubbed it in with a vengeance, reminding conference that the White Paper was 'a collective responsibility' and that that included Greenwood and Castle too.

Collaboration

Frank Cousins, also recruited to Wilson's government, was sitting in the audience and might also have been named.

It was this collaboration of the 'left' in Wilson's proThe yet their . policies — on Vietnam, on immigration, on legislation against the the trade unions and on nationalization of steel— were anti-socialist.

None of these MPs gave any lead as to what to do.

Foot promised 'serious trouble' if the Queen's Speech did not include steel nationalization.

Trevor Park MP echoed him in similar terms in Friday's debate.

Sidney Silverman promised to vote against the government White Paper on immigration, but said quite correctly that the Tories would, in any case, support Wilson.

Eric Heffer threatened to vote against the anti-trade union legislation, but in the next breath said one must do followed Clive Jenkins, secretary of the Association of Supervisory Stafis, Executives and Technicians, in determined opposition to the proposed anti-trade union legislation, are in a position to bring the government down. On all these issues, Wilson has betrayed 'basic and essential principles.

Even the elementary and fundamental starting point of the Labour Party as a Party, viz., the political representation of the trade union movement, let alone any socialist programme, is overthrown by Wilson, Brown and Gunter.

Impetus

With or without these • wing' MPs, an opposi accepted, in fact, the position taken by Woodrow Wyatt and himself for the past year.

Indeed, the employing class expressed confidence in the outcome of the conference before it took place, and have made it clear in their press that they are perfectly satisfied with it.

For all Mr. Wilson's protestations about never having allowed the political tune to be called by international finance, "The Times' (Monday, October 4) wrote editorally:

The two countries most likely to take fright at a Labour victory were the United States and Germany.

They should not be frightened now.' Like Wilson, "The Times' jects the argument that there is any definite 'horse-trading', October 9, 1965 October 1965 it had been abandoned only because of the precarious parliamentary majority or more fundamentally.

Like the United States and German capitalists they refer to, "The Times' leader-writers must be satisfied with the results of the proceedings. It is time that Callaghan promised steel nationalization for some time in the future, but on no other issue was any 'excuse' given for the abandonment of principles.

They were abandoned long ago, and Wilson and Brown are very definitely, without question, agents of capitalism.

Crisis clear

The value of the conference is that it has made this historical crisis very clear, for those who do not refuse to see.

"The Times' forecasts:

'Steel nationalization will doubtless remain in the programme, though perpetually receding like a desert mirage.' The 'achievement of the overnment in saving the ound', says "The Times', 'is the ort of triumph that can be

SHOP stewards at BMC's Birmingham factories have sacrificed the recent victory over mini-shift working and the associated ban on overtime. They have agreed to end the bans in return for an end to the shorttime working imposed by the firm on Monday.

(Further report page 4)

By JOHN TRADE unionists are to the - of Aden against British imp The i General Petroleum Workers' Union began an "indefinite' strike on Wednesday following the refusal of the British authorities to release their general secretary, Muhammed Salih Aulaqui. He had been in prison since Sunday, when police dragged him from his bed.

Many hundreds of others are also in prison, some for breaking the curfew imposed last Saturday. Others had been demonstrating against the British government's policy and the suspension of the constitution.

And so, true to the tradition of Labour governments, Wilson continues a policy of repression in the interests of the remnants of the British Empire.

The base at Aden is needed, both as a staging post in case of military action further east of Suez, and to protect-from U.S. influence more than anything else -the oilfields of the Persian Gulf.

With the growth of the Adeni working class, partly from the Yemen, the demand for independence has become stronger.

Idea failed

The idea of the South Arabian Federation was to dilute this political development with the help of the more backward sheikdoms of the Protectorate.

This attempt was a complete failure. Even those Aden politicians who might have wanted to compromise with Whitehall are unable to voice their opinions because of the strength of feeling among the workers.

The Labour Party leaders were not long ago condemning Tory policy as repressive.

Now we have the spectacle of Anthony Greenwood, formerly of the Movement for Colonial CRAWFORD fore in the fight of the workers rialism.

Freedom, conducting an open fight against this struggle for national independence.

The excuse that the nationalists are "terrorists in the pay of the Egyptians' is irrelevant.

It is the British government which is terrorising the Adeni people, to hold on to its military installations.

The British labour movement must condemn completely the attacks on the trade unionists of Aden, and demand the withdrawal of all British forces immediately.

strike unionists freed SPANISH authorities have released three trade unionists and a lawyer arrested in Madrid after allegedly attending the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions in July. The men, whose arrest is reported on page 3, had just completed a five-day hunger strike.

This strike, the pressure from trade unions, particularly the International Federation of Metalworkers, and strike threats from workers in the factories where the men are employed, forced the authorities to free them. Over 700 of these workers signed a petition demanding the men's release.

cards into boxes, blithely giving big majorities to policies which ensured that this conference was certainly NOT the same in its political meaning as those held in past years.

By the Thursday and Friday, a growing number of delegates were freely dropping phrases like hypocritical', 'hopeless', 'mealy-mouthed'.

Unprepared

Some, who had remained sober at the beginning of the week got very deliberately drunk in reaction against the votes on immigration and Vietnam.

All of this reflected the complete unpreparedness of the opposition to Wilson and Brown at the conference, and the bankruptcy of the old left' policies.

Many "left-wing' idealists came away with doubts even about staying in the Labour Party.

Others depressed themselves with the thought of the hopelessness of removing the 'block vote' of the big unions, which had gone formidably to the right on all issues.

If the issues are seen clearly in the light of a Marxist analysis, instead of through a mist of gloomy impressions or ideals, then it will, in fact, be possible to see a way forward.

First of all, the delegates from Constituency Labour Parties did not vote overwhelmingly to the left. When the platform won support for its racialist measures to restrict immigration, they were opposed by the Transport and General Workers' Union, and a number of small unions, so that even on this issue, one-third of the constituency votes were cast for the White Paper, i.e., they can be said to be to the right of the Liberal Party!

There is not the slightest doubt that the failure of the constituency parties to oppose and This is one of the great lessons that will have to be learned in Britain: the conservative reformism and hostility to Marxism of the Labour Party answers the needs of rightward-moving Party members; the only way to defeat this is to fight for Marxism, for revolutionary politics.

Any idea of 'broad left-wing resistance movements' independent of this fight for Marxism will end up in the marsh, and the right will emerge strengthened. Right dominated This is why the right wing, Wilson, Brown, Callaghan, Gunter and Stewart, were able to dominate the conference so completely. They had taken on to the platform with them, as voluntary hostages, all the darlings of the traditional 'left'.

The situation in which Robert Mellish made his remarks in support of the White Paper summed up this relationship. While the 'Tribune'-ites and leftwingers' in the Constituency delegations were booing themselves hoarse as he came out with his speech 'Go down to capitalist policies, which lay behind the atmosphere at Blackpool, where so many 'left' delegates expressed an admiring despair at the extent to which the right wing controlled and stage-managed the conference.

The Standing Orders' Committee and the platform easily managed the delegates whom they wanted to speak.

Those delegates were wrong who interpreted this as a sign of the great strength of the right. What happened was this: last year, Wilson and company took oflice at a time of great economic crisis; it was in the interests of world capitalism to settle these difficulties because a collapse of the pound threatened them internationally.

'Lefts' recruited But the assistance was given on the understanding that anti-working-class policies would be carried out. The Tories were happy to leave the job to a Labour government.

To make his task easier, Wilson recruited a number of 'left-wingers' to his Cabinet.

Meanwhile, the 'left' ', including the Communist Party, and even some who call themselves Marxists and Trotskyists of the milder sort, assured us that the government had its good sides, was even a 'left' government, and must be conditionally supported.

Dilemma

This 'loyalty to Labour' has now placed them all on the horns of a terrible dilemma. Michael Foot and other speakers at the "Tribune' meeting at Blackpool expressed this:

above all, they said, the Labour government must not be endangered; and nothing to endanger government.

No opposition He, too, is safe if he goes only this far, because the Tories will not oppose Wilson on this either.

John Mendelson, who moved the opposition motion on Vietnam, refused to commit himself on his vote in the Commons, but on the Sunday before conference, he did say, according to "The Times', that 'if he thought the government were running counter to basic George Brown: McLeod's description of his Plan is 'wide of the mark'.

and essential principles, there might be nothing for it but to see that they continued no longer in office'.

The 41 MPs who have declared their opposition to the Immigration White Paper, all those who oppose the U.S. war in Vietnam, all those who insist on steel nationalization, and all those who movement will be built, and its success will eventually be assured by the building of an alternative leadership, but these MPs can act in such a way as to give a powerful impetus to the movement.

If they make it unequivocally plain that they will refuse support to the government unless it abandons capitalist policies, they will give great strength to the opposition in the trade unions.

This will mean the removal of the Wilson-Brown leadership.

All the pleas of loyalty have become a formula for avoiding this necessity. The movement must insist that those who claim to be left-wingers take their stand: with Wilson and his capitalist policies, or against him. All those who refuse to decide are conniving at another 1931.

Confidence

After the conference, Desmond Donnelly hailed it as a very good conference. From his point of view, he is right, and can claim that the platform Is Britain Going? preferring the explanation that Wilson only did what could be expected of him in any case.

Quite so, Labour didn't need to be bought in 1964.

As the same paper, reliable guide to ruling class opinion, had commented on the eve of the conference, the Labour leadership has arrived at the end of its time as a supposedly 'socialist' party.

'Doctrinal' echoes Echoes of this 'doctrine' would appear at the conference, and we would have to see if Alice Bacon and her septuagenarian friend—part of the right wing Cousins: Name omitted by Mellish in Immigration debate.

more freely celebrated • at a Lord Mayor's banquet in the City of London than at a Labour conference. Solidarity with the international banking community is not part of the socialist scheme of things'.

Wide of mark As for George Brown's 'plan', they say:

'Mr. McLeod's description of the plan as a "socialist manifesto" could not have been more wide of the mark.' This clarity of the issues, and the inevitability of big class struggles in industry, which will receive a political character from the very beginning because of the intended government legislation, open the door to the building of a real socialist alternative leadership around the Young Socialists and the Socialist Labour 'It will be built in the context of a growing mass movement against the Labour government and its policies. This is the challenge to the 'left' in the Labour Party and the trade unions.

Their old loyalties and alternatives will not do; they will now be testea in • une nre class se teste, industrial and clas Industra political. which dominated the conference.

Most timely reading for British socialists, this book places the development of British politics in correct historic perspective. Here Trotsky, writing on the eve of the General Strike of 1926, employs his great revolutionary experience to analyse and explain the ideological and moral concepts of the ruling classes and their servants in the Labour bureaucracy.

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Statement by the international Committee of the Fourth Internatio October THE International ComPakistan conflict, in the withdrawal of Singapore from Malaysia, and in the political overturn in Indonesia. depth of imperialism's crisis, which lies behind the war.

Just because the conflict in threaten, if it survives, the very existence of human life,

HAROLD WILSON returned to London from Blackpool to face Mr. lan Smith, Prime Minister of Southern Rhodesia.

Smith, urged on by the small minority of white settlers in Southern Rhodesia, has come to London to demand independence for Rhodesia. Independence under his terms would vest power firmly in the hands of the quarter of a million whites and leave the 3,500,000 Africans without any representation.

There is widespread belief that Wilson will 'stand firm' against this reactionary minority.

It is confidently predicted in the capitalist press that should Smith declare independence unilaterally in defiance of London, Wilson will take economic action to bring Rhodesia to heel.

But such a move on Wilson's part will have nothing to do with socialism.

A 'hard line' against Smith will have the full support of the Tory leadership and of big business* and the City of London.

Identical policies

The policies of Sir Alec Douglas-Home, the last Tory Prime Minister, were identical to Wilson's plans for Rhodesia.

The main plan is to pass on, after a suitable period of time, political power to the Africans; 'suitable time' in which 'responsible leaders' can be trained for the positions of government and administration which will ensure the safeguarding of imperialist inyestment in this part of Africa.

Smith's policy-of a continuation of the dominance of the Africans by the small white minority--could cause an explosion throughout the continent and cuts across the general interests of imperialism.

Smith will come to London in a weak position. Much of the trade, industry and finance of Rhodesia is firmly vested in White minority police manhandle women who demonstrated against the banishment of nationalist leader loshua Nkomo, in April 1964, in Salisbury, Southern Rhodesia. Smith wants to maintain this rule of the the hands of City London.

By far the most important crop for Rhodesia is tobacco.

Tobacco trade

Out of last year's crop, which weighed 250 million pounds, half was sold in Britain. With a general over-production of tobacco throughout the world it would be virtually impossible for Smith, in the absence of this market, to dispose of his crop at current market prices.

Over one-third of Southern Rhodesia's total income goes into exports and of this, one quarter goes to Britain.

Of Rhodesia's imports, 30 per cent come from Britain.

From the economic point view, there is little prospect Rhodesia being able to 'go alone'.

But Wilson, too, is faced with problems. For him to stand out against Smith might bring the risk of a unilateral declaration of independence from the white settler-dominated government in Salisbury, which could receive the support of South Africa and Portugal. This would most certainly provoke a violent reaction from many Africans.

On the other hand, for Wilson to back Smith and accept his conditions for indewhite minority.

pendence would bring opposition from the majority of Commonwealth Prime Ministers. They could not openly side with such a flagrantly racialist policy, which would threaten their own positions.

Perhaps the most likely outcome will be a rotten compromise.

Saving face

The Daily Express' last week suggested that Wilson was still hoping to negotiate a settlement with Smith which would allow the latter to save face with his extremist followers at home.

The same day, "The Times' reported that Wilson was considering a compromise plan which would create two Houses of Parliament in Salisbury, giving Africans representation in one, but leaving power firmly in the hands of the minority.

No socialist policies Whatever the outcome of these behind-the-scenes deals, Wilson can have no socialist policies for the African continent, with its hunger, poverty, malnutrition and disease.

The acceptance of the racialist White Paper on immigration at Blackpool last week makes this clear. Only a new leadership, based on an international socialist programme can offer any solutions to the problems facing the workers and peasants of Africa.

• mittee of the Fourth International salutes the workers and peasants of Vietnam in their struggle to expel the U.s. imperialist forces from Vietnam, and calls upon all its sections to campaign for working-class action in every country against the imperialists.

This imperialist war of extermination has developed step by step with the deepening crisis of the capitalist system. There is an inevitable tendency towards war as a solution for capitalism's economic difficulties.

The current development of the crisis now involves the physical wiping out of whole sections of the world's population in the colonial and semi-colonial countries.

Since the bombing of North Vietnam began in early 1965, this economic, political and military crisis has broken out in the IndiaIt is no longer a question of stopping the bombing in Vietnam, nor even only of the ending of the Vietnam war through defeat of the capitalist forces; South-East Asia now represents an enormous testing-ground for the continuance of the very existence of imperialism.

Unly the international action of the working class, mobilised by Marxist parties fighting for the reconstruction of the Fourth International, can defeat the ruling classes of the imperialist countries and abolish the threat of war.

The danger of a world war has been increased because of the role of the Soviet bureaucracy, international Stalinism, and the official working-class leaderships all over the world.

In Britain, the social-democratic leaders of the Labour Party have provided the main support for U.S. imperialism in the Vietnam war, in Malaysia, and in India.

The Labour Party Conference rejected by a large majority even a resolution against the bombing of North Vietnam and for negotiations with the National Liberation Front.

The Communist Party in Britain has liquidated itself on this question into an utterly ineffective pacifist protest movement.

In France, the Stalinists have equally capitulated to the imperialists, calling for 'pressure' to help de Gaulle develop his 'policy of peace and neutralism in South Vietnam' (L'Humanité).

This policy of preventing the working class from carrying out any independent action against imperialist war is indissolubly linked with the role of the Stalinists and the reformists in discinlining the working class through capitalist state domination over the trade unions.

In France the Stalinists and social-democrats have connived actively through the trade unions under their control, at the implementation of the 'Fifth Plan' of de Gaulle, and in Britain the Labour Party Conference has sanctioned the early introduction of state legislation by the Labour government to restrict the trade unions and workers in the struggle against the employers.

The fight to build Marxist revolutionary parties, capable of leading the working class to power, can be won only through the defeat of these traditional leaderships.

Pacifism has always been an instrument of the ruling class, especially in conditions of war or the imminence of war.

In the imperialist epoch of an endangering of the concontinuous wars and revolu- quests of the Russian and tions, pacifism has become Chinese Revolutions in increasingly and open! world war. bankrupt. Its complete Only the programme of failure in the situation re- the Fourth International has sulting from the Vietnam given the working class the war, despite the existence of perspective of resolving its great feeling and capacity for crisis of leadership, as the action in many countries, key to resolving the crisis of particularly the United States humanity, expressed as it is and Britain, is to be ex- in the constant tendency of plained precisely by the very the capitalist system to Australian dockers USIRALIAN dockers, • like their British brothers, are facing a direct attack on their democracy and conditions by the capitalist class.

This week a Bill aimed at breaking the power of the Australian Waterside Workers' Federation is to go before the Senate.

Last week the House of Representatives in Canberra passed the Bill by 57 votes to 44, and rejected a Labour motion for the nationalization of the dock industry.

The new law will prevent the union from recruiting dock labour and set up an independent authority to do the job. It also aims to de-register the union in certain cases, leaving the way open for another union or unions.

MOST MILITANT Australian dockers are one of the most militant sections of that country's working class. Recently its members refused to handle goods being sent to SOUTHERN JUSTICE AS Hella Pick reported in last Friday's 'Guardian': 'Once again Southern justice has taken its course.' She was referring to the case of the 55-year-old deputy sheriff, Thomas Coleman, who walked away free from a Hanyville, Alabama, court last week after being found not guilty of gunning down a student clergyman-civil rights worker, 26year-old Jonathan Daniels.

The all-white jury, some of whom were said to be relations of Coleman, shook hands with the defendant after the verdict.

The jury had been chosen from a community which is 81 per cent Negro, and has been the scene of many civil rights and Ku Klux Klan demonstrations.

Daniels and a Roman Catholic priest were arrested several weeks ago after a civil rights demonstration. They were imprisoned, then released.

They both walked from the jail to a store to buy soft South-East Asia and its international implications involve a threat to the very existence of capitalism, and are not simply an occasion for 'humanist' protest; the pacifists, now sustained above all by the Stalinists, play the role of holding back the struggle against imperialist war.

The consequence of the peaceful co-existence strategy of the Stalinists is thus a complete identification with the counter - revolutionary activities of the pacifists, and laced with legislation aid the imperialist war in Vietnam.

Such actions on local and national levels have brought home clearly the class issues involved.

'WHO WILL CONTROL?' Prime Minister, Robert Menzies, in the House of Representatives debate, said: 'Who is to control peace in this vital industry, the Communists or the government?' He claimed that the legislation was not an attack on trade unionism, this was a special case.

ONCE AGAINdrinks. Minutes later Daniels was dead, and the priest critically wounded.

Coleman claimed that both men were armed and that he shot them in self defence.

NO WEAPONS A young Negro woman had claimed in court that neither men had any weapons, and, in fact, none were ever found.

Alabama's Attorney General said the case should be held over until the priest was well enough to give evidence, but a local judge went ahead with the case.

The ludicrous outcome of this case, and the insane hatred of the middle-class white population was illustrated by the excitement generated by evidence that Daniels had kissed a Negro girl on the lips when he was released from jail.

To further damn his character, the defence produced Daniels' underpants in court— they were red! through war, starvation, and economic chaos.

In every country Trotskyists, in the struggle to reconstruct the Fourth International, preparing for the international conference of the International Committee in 1966, will organise : 100 per cent support for the liberation struggle of the Vietnamese people.

They will oppose the class-collaboration policies of the Stalinists and reformists.

Every blow struck against the imperialists in their own countries is a blow in favour of the Vietcong against the U.S. imperialist armies.

It is in the course of such struggles that parties of the Fourth International will be built, parties capable of leading the workers to final victory over the imperialists.

International Committee of the Fourth International 3.10.65 Answering the Opposition he asked: 'When has nationalization ended strikes?' In Britain, experience had shown that this had not stopped them.

In fact, by their struggle over the years, the dockers have gained one of the benefits that nationalization would bring— the right to recruit who they want, where and when they want.

TIGHTEN UP Just as the Wilson government rejects any call by the British docker for nationalization, so the Australian capitalists have to 'tighten up' to face capitalism's crisis. One of their first steps is to look for ways of modernising and speeding up their most important industry. This means the employers must have control of the hiring and firing of men.

One of the last straws before law was put before Parliament was the refusal of the dockers to give evidence before the Australian equivalent of the recently held Devlin Commission. Like its British counterpart, this inquiry was into the conditions and terms of employment on the docks.

SUPPORT DOCKERS

Leader of the Labour Opposition, Mr. Arthur Calwell said the legislation was anti-Labour, anti - union, anti - Australian, and, he added, it would be ineffective against communism on the waterfront (!)

The fight of the Australian dockers must receive every possible support from British trade unionists, who will, almost certainly, be facing legal action against strikes. The struggles of the British and Australian workers are closely linked-they are part of the international offensive against imperialism.

police headquarters Madrid made a series of arrests of workers in September.

First arrests On September 1 both Jesus Gonzalez Quesada (45) of the Municipal Transport Company and Mariano Nuero, a 36-yearold steel worker, employed in the Boettischer and Navarre factories, were arrested.

A week later, on September 11, police made further arrests. They detained Antonio Nogues (38), a worker in the Telefunken factories, and 32-year-old lawyer, Fernandez Montesinos Garcia.

Garcia is the nephew of the spanish poet, Garcia Lorca, and son of the socialist mayor of Granada, who was shot by Franco police at the beginning of the Civil War.

Reasons for the arrests have not been given to the press, although it is understood that the detainees underwent extensive questioning about a petition from the transport workers of Madrid-with more than 4,000 signatureswhich demanded a wage increase.

Questioned about Congress They were asked whether they had attended the Congress of the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions at Amsterdam in early July, where they would have been able to discuss with delegations of workers from Europe and America about the plight of the Spanish workers.

Jesus Gonzales is a member of the committee of the Madrid Transport Company, elected by the workers.

Antonio Nogues is a member of the Committee of the Telefunken factory, elected by the workers.

Mariano Nuero is committee member of the Boettischer and Navarro, elected by the workers.

Manuel Fernandez Montesinos Garcia is a lawyer at the bar in Madrid and has often defended workers in their disputes with the employers.

Demand release

The Workers' Trade Union Alliance asks for all telegrams demanding the release of the four men to be sent to the Minister of Justice Mr. Oriol and to the Minister of Movimiento Mr. Solis.

Industrial Pago tenants

Sham at Austin's, Longbridge, and at Tractor and Transmissions, Washwood Heath, by the Birmingham Fedoration of Young Socialists and the local branch of the Socialist Labour League.

Last Friday it was announced that at these two factories, along with other British Motor Corporation plants in Birmingham and Oxford, workers were to go on short time for an unspecified number of weeks.

This bombshell was launched immediately on top of the back-slapping and rosy forecasts of future prosperity at the Blackpool Labour Party Conference.

NECESSARY

BMC management say that short-time working has been made necessary in order to free bigger supplies of engines and other components for the company's overseas factories. Predictably they also blame workers for 'disruptive' strikes and in particular for the victorious struggle of night workers against the Friday night mini-shift.

These factors, say the management, were all contributory ¡causes' leading to the present situation.

At Monday's factory-gate meeting at Longbridge, YS and SLL speakers urged workers to unite in resisting the attack on trade union conditions by the Wilson government and the rightwing union leadership.

They instanced Gunter's so-called 'trouble-shooting' committee, the object of which was to 'investigate' strikes and get rid of the militant workers they called trouble-makers.

'Only a few weeks ago the BMC is claiming that business was Police attack Barbican will eventually smash the unions by law. They must.?

The speaker was a sergeant from the City of London police as he used his horse to clear pickets from Turiff's Barbican site — scene of last Friday's near-pitched battle between strikers and "blacklegs'.

Pickets include many of the 380 men sacked en block after they struck in support of site carpenters, who had also been dismissed for striking against the employment of two non-union carpenters by a subcontractor.

Six men "arrested during scuffles last Friday were later each fined £5.

After the mass sacking Turiff's promptly engaged other men to maintain work.

Commission

The original sackings took place on September 24 and the Disputes Commission recommended resumption of work without discrimination.

The firm, with over 100 fresh, unorganised workers, refused to implement this recommendation.

Another commission then considered the dispute on October 1, but failed to agree.

Last Monday the dispute was being discussed by the committee of the National Joint Council for the Building Industry.

Pickets are from the Amalgamated Society of Woodworkers, the Transport and General Workers' Union and the Amalgamated Union of Building Trade Workers.

Deputations from strikers went to their respective unions on Monday to demand that the strike be made official.

Messages of support and donations to this strike should be sent to T. McAuliffe, 13 Carleton Road, Holloway, N.7.

Registered at the G.P.O. as a newspaper Published by The Newsletter, 186A Clapham High Street, London, S.W.4 180 Clapham High Street, London. S.w.4 Printed by Plough Press Ltd. (TU), By Our Birmingham Correspondent booming,' declared one speaker.

'Now we are told workers have to go on short time with loss of pay. Surely, if there is a shortage of components as stated, you would expect to work overtime, not short time. They have the temerity to blame the night-shift workers. But the BMC plan production and they should be brought to account for this situation. The truth is that capitalism cannot plan for the benefit of workers.' A young speaker said:

'Car workers know that it is only through the threat of unofficial action that their standard of living has been won and maintained.

REMOVE RIGHT WING *The working class can fight for socialist policies only if they remove this right-wing leadership of the labour and trade union movement. These people have completely capitulated to the employing class of this country and are carrying out Tory policies, as the Young Socialists warned that they would before the last General Election!

A shop steward at Austin's expressed the opinion that shorttime working was being operated by the BMC because of a shortage of orders. He rejected the excuse that it was necessary to divert engines and components to overseas factories instead of using them for car assembly here. Short-time working began on Monday, with about 10,000 workers in . Birmingham and Oxford affected. A joint meeting of shop stewards and management was taking place at Longbridge while the factory-gate meeting was in progress.

SUKARNO

for 41 years.

In December 1949, under the terms of the Hague Agreement, sovereignty was formally transferred to the Republican government.

'Independence' brought new perils and problems: a declining economy; massive inflation; secessionist moves in Sumatra, Celebes and Amboina; growing unemployment and an ever-increasing wave of peasantworker unrest reflected in the unprecedented growth of the Communist Party - the largest outside China and Russia.

Factories occupied In 1960, for example, thousands of workers occupied foreign-owned factories and the army moved in to eject them.

In 1965 trade unions took over U.S. factories and rubber estates and when the army intervened, the trade unions refused to yield.

Sukarno, wishing to avoid a showdown, ordered the army to arm the trade unions and let the unions guard the U.S. enterprises!

In the final analysis, however, Sukarno could always count on Stalinist support.

D. N. Aidit, leader and theoretician of the Party, supports China, but follows a Popular Front line at home. Falsely claiming that Indonesia is too backward to support a dictatorship of the working class, he advocates mutual co-operation and full support for the 'guided democracy' of Sukarno.

Played out

But the capitalist class of Indonesia have now realised that 'Sukarnoism' is played out and that a straight confrontation with the KPI and the trade unions is unpostponable.

This policy leads directly to civil war and military dictatorssip.

Instead of calling the working class to action, the Stalinists try to confine the struggle to a palace coup.

The Indonesian Revolution will rise again-but Stalinism-never! charges. Instead he spoke of wages campaigns won by the 'Blue' Union and white (TGWU) rank and file together, of the prominent part played , by the NASD in the struggle for the five-day week in London, and on the stand of the 'Blue' Union on weekend working.

Unfortunately, the TGWU has no policy on week-end working, the NASD have to their credit and we take our hats off to them, Dash commented a far cry this from the 'deserters' and 'splitters' of the night before!

Challenge

In the 15 minutes that was allowed for discussion Dash was challenged to repeat and explain his attack on 'Blue' Union members the previous night.

He claimed, of course, that he had not been accurately quoted, but that he did believe that men should not have changed unions. It was true, he said, that 'some TGWU officials are sometimes reluctant to listen to the men' but 'if one house has fleas you don't abandon it and run off to another'.

This did not go down well with the 'Blue' Union dockers. One of them declared:

*3,000 of us joined the 'Blue' in this port 10 years ago and we're staying in the Blue'. We didn't run away and we're not crawling back. The TGWU leadership in this port was created by the gaffers?

Asked whether the 'Blue' Union should recruit in the north today, Dash was noncommittal.

I can't say anything whether you are going to

J Workers' Liaison Committee and a prominent ACK DASH, leader of the London Port Communist Party member, spoke at two meetings here this week-end.

At a meeting of University students on Saturday night he launched a bitter attack on the National Amalgamated Stevedores and Dockers 'Blue' Union, denouncing the men who joined it in 1954 as 'deserters' who had run away from the fight in the Transport and General Workers' Union.

At a meeting of dockers on lavished praise on the rank-and-file of the 'Blue' Union.

But at neither meeting did he show the way to defeat the Devlin Report.

Speaking to the student audience, Dash outlined the history of the dockers' struggles since the fight for the Dockers' Tanner in 1889.

But his only reference to the growth of the 'Blue' Union in the north, which commenced with the Hull filling strike of 1954, was to speak of the 'regrettable fratricidal struggle of brother against brother'.

Challenged on this, and on the record of the 'Blue' Union in the north, Dash then spoke of 'deserters' who were entitled to hold office in the Transport and General Workers' Union but had 'run away' and left men like himself to carry on the fight. He claimed that it was the spread of the 'Blue' Union which had led to non-unionism in the port of Liverpool.

'Split'

Northern men should have abided by the Bridlington Agreement, Dash went on. The 'Blue' Union should have obeyed the Trades Union Congress ruling and not recruited in areas where it had no previous influence. This action, he said, had split the working class and benefited the employers.

To the dockers next day, of course, he did not repeat these A NEWSLETTER REPORTER Hull, Sunday, October 3 Sunday morning, however, he cruit or not ... if 'Blue' members recruit and find themselves in conflict with their executive, that's something they have to fight out. I can't say anything on that. Stay in the union you're a member of.' Communist Party supporters hastened to say that this was an 'academic question' and that it was wrong to go over "past history'. But this claim will not fool militant dockers who know very well the significance of their past struggles in relation to the fight that faces them today.

Significant

It is significant also that at the university meeting Dash claimed that the recommendation in Devlin for closer relations between union officials and rank and file dockers was put to the Devlin Commission by Dash himself. 'I have the verbatim report of my, evidence to prove that, he told the students.

But he did not repeat this to the dockers. And no wonder. For militant dockers here know that such a proposal will be used by the employers to get tighter control over the militants by right-wing officials. Nothing could prove more clearly than this that Dash and the Communist Party have'no intentions of fighting these officials.

Indeed, the 11-point charter of the London Liaison Committee was described by Dash as a plan which would benefit everybody. 'Unfortunately (!) it will even bring benefits to the employer, declared Dash.

Truth

He did not explain why the government found it necessary to launch such attacks on the working class when, with a little thought, it is possible to produce wonderful plans which Will benefit worker and boss alike.

The truth is that the Devlin Report is a part of the attempt to streamline British capitalism and discipline the working class in order to solve the problems of capitalism at the workers' expense.

The Tories and employers are using the union and Labour leaders to soften up the working class for huge attacks on their living • standards and working conditions.

Only answer The Devlin Report has to be seen together with the proceedings at this year's TUC and Labour Party conferences.

The only answer to this attack from the capitalist state is the outright rejection of the Devlin Report and a political fight against the Labour leaders for the nationalization of the docks industry.

Dash and the Communist Party have belatedly announced their opposition to Devlin. But Hull and Liverpool dockers arrived at this conclusion a long time ago-as was made clear by one militant docker immediately Dash finished speaking:

'Why not a national campaign now to reject Devlin and fight for the nationalization of the docks industry?' he demanded.

AEI workers ban overtime Newsletter Reporter switchgear works in Willesden, London, held a four-day overtime ban last week-end, to back up their demand that the one day's extra holiday, to which they are entitled under the 'package deal', should be staggered, with workers able to individually choose when they should take it.

Next year the agreement entitles engineering workers to two days, and the following year, to a week.

'Paper work'

Shop • stewards have been negotiating since March on the staggered holiday issue.

The firm claimed that staggering would involve 'too much paper work'. Shop stewards point out that already the firm's staff workers are granted nine days which they can take off, with pay, whenever they choose.

When stewards held firm at the last negotiating meeting, a representative of the Employers' Federation is reported to have admitted that the 'administrative difficulties', which the management had claimed, would not really arise.

Following this, a meeting of stewards called the overtime ban to coincide with the firm's stock-taking. Response to the ban was strong, and the Association of Supervisory Staffs, Executives and Technicians members, who already have the staggered holiday concession, supported the ban in order to back the stewards. So did many apprentices, who are not organised.

'Peaceful'

AEI shop stewards have long been proud of the 'peaceful' record of the factory. Some issues of piecework rates have been negotiated for as long as three or four years.

They are now beginning to realise that purely "peaceful' negotiations may not get them very far.

Many AEI workers believe that more than the right of freedom of choice of days off is involved; and that AEI are very much concerned with testing out trade union organisation. Fight against winter schedule men at the Hanwell garage, London, staged a one-day strike in protest against the new schedules, which are to be introduced by the London Transport Board.

Not one person reported for duty and seven other garages curtailed their routes, to avoid covering the 'black' routes. The garage will strike again this Saturday.

After the strikes had been called, three full-time Transport and General Workers' Union officials, attended two special meetings and instructed the men to call ofi the strikes. • This demand was unanimously rejected.

REDUCTION

The schedules are part of the area traffic scheme, through which the London Transport Board are altering the whole working of routes in the West Division of London, extending, cutting, and introducing new routes, Newsletter Correspondent A NUMBER of tenants in a northwest London road have begun withholding rents in order to compel the landiords to carry out essential repairs.

They live in flats and basements in condemned houses in a South Kilburn road. The large local Tenants' Association complains that the houses have damp walls, rotten woodwork and leaking roofs. They claim that the landlords have had six years, since they took over the property, to put it in decent condition, and are still not doing needed repairs.

The Association's secretary showed our reporter a list of what needs attention in the houses. (This list has been sent the owners and to the Town Clerk of Brent.)

Nearly all the rooms have rising damp in the walls, particularly the basements. Roots are leaking and owners' repairs' consist simply of corrugated metal sheets, the statement alleges.

One tenant, who pays £5 for a basement flat, can only use one room, since the floorboards in the other are rotted and dangerous. Next door, a number of families share a lavatory which is completely exposed. In addition, the water-mains tap is broken.

NO HOT WATER In one basement flat the landlords have installed a bath, for which privilege the tenant pays another 10s. a week-but no hot water is laid on!

Other complaints, the secretary told us, included loose window frames, down-draughts in chimneys so that people cannot light fires; and faulty electric wiring. Balconies are unsafe, with bits of masonry dropping Bristol-A dock strike Newslette DURING the week-end of September 26 sixty dockers walked off the 'Gloucester City' in a dispute over the pay rates for unloading timber.

This rate was negotiated at a meeting between Transport and General Workers' Union officials and the port employers.

Since the initial walk-off at Avonmouth, the strike has spread to the rest of the Avonmouth and Portishead docks, and dockers in Bristol have come out in sympathy.

Well supported

The committee leading the unofficial strike is well suphots up transferring some routes different garages.

The total result, busmen allege, is a drastic reduction in services.

This follows the introduction of pre-determined cuts, against which an overtime ban was operated at Southall garage.

The London Transport Board intends introducing area traffic schemes in other Divisions in the near future.

Harrow Weald, Edgware and Heendon garages joined the ban over the new schedules.

LEAD

All these garages are giving a firm lead in the fight against the introduction of the schedules, as the rank and file paper "The Platform' states:

It is the membership in garages like Hendon, Edgware, Harrow, Southall and Hanwell, who, by so-called 'unofficial' actions, are really waging the fight on behalf of London busmen. In the winter that faces us it will be this sort of action—at GARAGE LEVELthat will count-rather than the pious prayer meetings at Woodberry. off occasionally.

While the secretary was speaking to us, a tenant called to consult him about a document which stated that under the Rent Restriction Act she should have been paying no more than 17s. 9d. rent a week since 1957. For six years she has been paying 18s. 9d.

EXCUSE

Brent Borough Council now say they intend to compulsorily purchase the houses, but this has still to come before an inquiry. Tenants feel that the council is using this as an excuse for no action.

They demand that the council should make a management order compelling the landlords to carry out repairs, or else hand over to the council, who would do the repairs and collect the rent.

The Tenants' Association is backing the rent freeze and is now collecting the rents and putting them in a bank account until the repairs are done.

They have established contact with the council Tenants' Association in nearby flats. They deserve the full backing of local trade union branches for their struggle, which could give a lead to many other London tenants.

vonmouth Reporter ported in its claim that the pay rate for unloading timber is inadequate, and by the night of October 1 thirty-one ships in the port of Bristol were idle.

The number of dockers now in dispute amounts to at least 1,500.

At a meeting on Sunday, October 3, in Bristol, attended by over 500 dockers, a proposal from the floor was adopted by a large majority, calling on the strike committee to meet TGWU officials on October 4 to discuss the dispute and hear the strike committee's case.

Another proposal to return home and wait for the union officials to call on their members was defeated, by a large majority. • The 'Daily Press' of October 2 honoured an employer with the main article on the front page lamenting the fortunes of : his shipping line, which he claims has been closed down by the strike of the dockers, who are killing the port.

Two sources But who is killing the port? On this employer's own admision, the owners of the 'Gloucester City' are spending £500 a day, at least, when their ship is idle, and this position applies to a greater or lesser extent to the owners of the other 30 ships.

This present strike emphasises once again that today the solution to the problems of dockland may come from one of two sources; from Devlin, the Labour government and the employers by kind permission of the TGWU officials, or from the rank-and-file dockers in the form of a fight for nationalization of the port industry under dockers' control.

If the Bristol port employers are allowed to defeat this strike, it will give them more confidence for the future, when they try to implement the recommendations of the Devlin Report with the help of the Labour government.