[Inquiry into arrest RUNNING LONDON -of socialist OUR…]

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Inquiry into arrest RUNNING LONDON -of socialist OUR WAY June 19 County Hall in the spectrum of Where does it fit in?

We'll differ from some of the other papers of the Left. For example, 1 shall always keep the paper open to our opponents. If Roy Hattersley wants to call 'for something unpleasant to be done to us, I'd far rather he said it in Tribune than read 'Purge of the Parasites' on the front page of the Daily Mail.

Nobody, whether of the Left or of the Right, need fear that their point of view will not be allowed to get into the paper. If they feel they have been misrepresented, there will always be a right of reply, with equal space and equal prominence.

Labour Left generyou think it is time go on the offensive got to choose carefully for going onto ine orensive. I would prefer to see it on the basis of issues rather than personalities.

The danger of going only for issues is, of course, that we end up winning on the issues and nothing gets done about them when Labour takes power. That's the experience of the past, BRADFORD Council Labour Group has called an independent labour movement inquiry into the police arrest and assault on councillor Barry Turner last Saturday, 5th.

Witnesses have been invited to attend a hearing this Friday, 7pm at the City Hall. The Labour Group is also launching a financial appeal for Barry Turner.

Barry, a Socialist Organiser supporter, was arrested on a Trades Council counter-demonstration to a British Movement march in Bradford. Only a couple of months ago Mohammed Arif was murdered in Bradford anyway.

But I think it's a bad habit on the Left to demand absolute purity from out representatives, and to write them off if they score less than 99%. I think that leads us to end up fighting a lot of people who really should be with us.

Which issues would you prioritise?

The Bomb is the one that extends not only across all sections of the Labour Party but also to majority opinion in the country.

I think we have to keep telling our friends in the Parliamentary Labour Party, when they are advising us to fudge something, is that there is nothing to be gained even electorally by fudging issues like the Bomb.

There is a danger that we will go into the next election with two versions of the SDP. And if we do the real SDP will win.

We need a clear statement that the next Labour government will remove American nuclear weapons from British soil. But when I tried to interview our defence spokesman, Mr Silkin, on the subject, he wouldn't see me.

DID by a British Movement member.

There was no confrontation on the demonstration, and it was dispersing peacefully when Barry was arrested. He saw a freelance journalist being assaulted by a police sergeant and intervened, identifying himself as a councillor and asking for the sergeant's number.

"You're arrested", was the policeman's reply, and Barry was bundled into a police van where he was attacked and punched. At the police station he was put into a cell with three Isn't fudging on this issue made easier by the fact that Labour Party policy is not clear - trying to combine unilateral nuclear disarmament with staying in NATO?

Personally 1 am against remaining in NATO. I'm in favour of Britain being a neutral country.

That isn't however the view of the Party as yet. And getting rid of nuclear weapons is the policy of the I don't think the two things are incompatible. Canada and Norway are members of NATO and they don't have nuclear weapons.

Issues, not personalities: does that mean that you are not in favour of a challenge on the leadership or deputy leadership this year?

When they should be challenged is a matter of tactics. If someone could demonstrate to me that the strength of the Left would be improved by a challenge, then I would be in favour of it. If someone demonstrates that it would set us back -and we also have to look at the general electoral prospects - then I would be against. I have an open mind. British Movement members, and not allowed to make a phone call to his wife. He has been charged under section 5 of the Public Order Act, and is due to appear in couit on June 23.

Another Socialist Organiser supporter, Matthew Kirkpatrick, was also arrested on the demonstration, while trying to see what was going on when Barry was arrested.

Barry has lodged an official complaint, and hopes for support from the Trades Council and others in the Bradford labour movement as well as the councillors.

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Socialist Organiser, Thursday 10 June 1982 Page 14