Opening shots in fight

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There were only 20 trade to the conference should union branches, so a lot of meet and plan local and work will need to be done in regional campaigns. The that area, particularly by the London Labour Party regtrade union subcommittee of ional executive has circulatthe National Council - org- ed a call to all CLPs urging anising a campaign in the them to refuse expulsions, branches, establishing links and pledging full support if The trade union branches bodies should be urged to represented at the conferen- do likewise.

Socialist Organiser Alliance LAST Saturday, 30th, barely LAST Saturday, 30th, barely one month after the : Labour one month after the Labour party conference, and before nartv conference and hefore the right wing have chopped any heads off, 101 Constitency Labour Parties (CLPs) sent delegates to discuss resisting expulsions.

The CLPs against the witch-hunt' conference, initjated by Hackney North CLP, also had delegates from 67. YSs, 110 other Labour Party organisations, and 22 trade union branches, etc. There were 76 observers, 36 from CLPS.

The conference agreed to establish a 'Labour against the witch-hunt' campaign.

It was sponsored by 20 MPs. Les Huckfield, Ernie Roberts, and Reg Race spoke on Saturday, as well Audrey Wise and led Knight. Dennis Skinner sent a message of support.

There were a lot of Militant supporters at the conference appropriately, since some of them are in the front line.

However, the way the Militant comrades intervened meant that much of the conference was polarised over their proposal that we should just elect one or two delegates to the Militantdominated 'Labour Steering Committee Against the Witch-Hunt' (set up from a conference on September 11), and dissolve.

So, ironically, those who are immediately threatened were the least constructive TEARS came to the eyes of Mrs Thatcher here yesterday as she stood for the first time at the Berlin Wall and looked out over the watch towers, dog runs and death strip dividing the free world from the horrors of communist rule.

With a catch in her voice and leaning forward so that she could scarcely be heard over the Falklands Victory Rundo Rand ohn whionnad Diass Dallu Sut WIsptIcu to her aides: 'I want one of those! I want two"

Later she laid a wreath of white lillies on the Reichstag memorial to those who had died attempting to cross the wall. "You have got to see it to see the full horror of it" ', she said ... "and you will."

"With our technology" she told a cheering crowd of ecstatic West German businessmen, 'there won't be any white lilies in the western world, Nobody will get that far.

The dramatic trip to the wall and the contract placed with the Soviet Union for £200 million worth of barbed wire, electric fencing 'and 300 rabid dogs has caused further deep divisions within the Western Alliance.

President Reagan reported to have told the British Ambassador: JOHN HARRIS for the campaign.

They persisted despite the harsh right wing message from Wednesday's NEC meeting, despite approaches from our Steering Committee before the conference, and despite a letter from ten MPs supporting the October 30 conference and urging a constructive approach.

Militant's belief, apparently, is that they can best fight on their own.

The division was a sectarian one because the Steering Committee's alternative was NG ' 'The broad's gone bananas. Why allow those Commie bastards to get their hands on our currency by buying their second grade security. Haven't we got enough of our own?"

But the Cabinet is likely to stand firm on its demand to buy the Berlin Wall assembly kit from Eastern Europe because of the difficulty of ensuring continuous supplies from British steel mills once they have been shut down.

The new strategy has been leaked from the Government's Think Tank proposals on election boundary reorganisations. Mrs Thatcher takes the view that the Royal Commission has not gone far enough in throwing about 25 extra seats the Tories' way.

After studying the long term MORI and NOP trends she became convinced that the key division in British politics between North and South and that the Government should recognise the division.

Anywhere north of the 'blue rinse' line is to be declared a free enterprise zone mark 2. The wall will mark the boundary of the zones and the government's new immigration for an organisation directly based on and accountable to Labour Party " organisations (in particular the CLPs), to work side by side with the 'Labour Steering Committee against the Witch-Hunt'.

Virtually all the delegates who were not Militant supporters voted for this, and for maximum unity between the two campaigns, including an exchange of three delegates.

A number of suggestions were put before the conference by the Steering Committee on how to begin organising the resistance, and the basic 'groundrules' were overwhelmingly agreed:

* the need to reverse the decision on the register, * unequivocal refusal to expel socialists - no bending before the inevitable threats of disaffiliation;

complete solidarity with any comrade expelled or CLP disaffiliated.

The immediate suggestions included rapid circulation of the policies agreed at the conference to Labour Party organisations and trade Ted Knight addresses the conference unions, to get support and commitments of action; the production of a regular newsletter to exchange information and coordinate action; and a lobby of the Labour Party National Executive meeting on November 24.

The conference established a delegate-based and CLPdominated National Council, to meet at least once every two months. Any CLP supporting the campaign will automatically have the right to a delegate on the Counci.

While the Council will control the campaign, the conference also elected a working secretariat: Ernie ce have called a further meeting for Saturday November 13, 2pm at County Hall, London.

The other main area of attention must be the CLPs outside London who represented only half the CLPs present (54).

Size

The size of the conference, the votes for clear action, the establishment of 'Labour Against the WitchHunt' - by any reckoning these will be shots across the bows of the NEC.

But there was little belief in the Conference that the right wing will be stopped by warning shots. It will require determined, united action.

Saturday's conference gives the skeleton for providing a lead in this. The job now must be to put flesh on the bones by:

* campaigning for the policies of Labour Against the Witch-Hunt and getting commitments for action.

Organisations that came they do. Other Labour Party * Get sponsorships and donations from labour movement organisations for 'Labour Against the Witch Hunt' . Campaign to affiliate CLPs to it, and send a delegate to the National Council meetings.

*Ğet delegates to the November 27 regional conferences organised by the 'Labour Steering Committee Against the Witch Hunt' , and resolutions for: - policies similar to those passed on October 30, - the establishment of democratically elected and accountable regional organisations, affiliated to both campaigns, - maximum unity between the Labour Steering Committee Against the Witch Hunt and Labour Against the Witch Hunt, including the exchange of three delegates;

* Support the lobby of the NEC called for 9am on Wednesday November 24. Send banners, delegations, or messages of support.

Contact: c/o 1 Neville Road, London N16

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by John Blox: