Support the shipyard workers!

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in Ireland. But we must remember Bloody Sunday (above). The root cause of the deaths and suffering is the anti-democratic, British-imposed. Rritish restninod THE PLAN put forward by British Shipbuilders to "save the industry' is a plan to break every bone in the body of shipyard trade unionism.

Tens of thousands would lose their jobs, pay and conditions would worsen for the few survivors, and management would rule with the blackjack of total power.

Dawber THE annual demonstration to commemorate Bloody Sunday takes place in Sheffield this year.

Bloody Sunday was the day in 1972 when the Second Parachute Regiment of the British Army shot down and killed 14 demonstrators on a protest against internment without charge or trial.

The Bloody Sunday demonstration is also more generally. of course, a protest against the whole of British policy and presence in Ireland.

We knew that as soon as the local media got hold of it, they would trv and do the same as was done in Mansfield when the LCI demonstrated there against the then Labour spokesperson on Ireland, Don Concannon.

Mansfield

The population of Mansfieid were told instead that bombers were on their way and local builders offered reduced rates for building work after the IRA had been through. Not surprisingly a lot of people, including a large Labour Party contingent, turned out to defend their MP.

Just before Chrismas. all of this started here. The occasion to regin it was provided by the Harrods bomb. But a godsend for the media was provided by one local Sinn Fein (Britain) member Tony Kelly who went to the radio and press claiming to speak for the Bloody Sunday Mobilising Committee (of which he is secretary.)

He informed the media that he supported the bombing at Harrods, as an act of war, but of course he regretted civilian casualties.

But the fear, the insecurity and the powerlessness that has infected many sec tions of the working class in Thatcher's Britain has not demoralised the men and women of the ship yards.

Their militancy has pushed their union leaders into calling a national strike from January 6.

The press locauy is relatively restrained in its attacks on left issues because of the strength of support for Labour, and has got its circulation figures to worry about.

No such problem with Irish questions. though. The labour movement is as bad here on this question as anywhere. Straight away, City Council leader David Blunkett moved to get the city hall withdrawn as the venue for the rally, stating that he had, "consulted colleagues and decided it was unacceptable to permit the hire of city council premises to organisations that advocated violence and bombing."

He said, 'The council did not like to place restrictions on the use of its premises because it could be accused of censorship.

Tyneside workers have decided to occupy their yards. At Cammell Lairds a committee has been set up to organise non-shipyard workers in the fight to save jobs.

These are the key tactics to a successful struggle involving all the strikers and drawing in the wider community and other austunicu, purution oj freiana. But that is not the case where people are advocating violence and talking about being at war with people in the streets of Sheffield or London."

Of course, the press is now howling for the march itself to be banned.

Blunkett Even before Tony Kelly's statements however, Blunkett had tried to get postponed meeting organised by the Labour Committee on Ireland and the Troops Out Movement on the use of show trials and paid perjurers in Northern Ireland under the title of "British Justice on Trial in Ireland' This nonetheless goes ahead on January 13.

sections of workers.

Last September's shipyard strikes and occupations in West Germany succeeded in fuelling the fighting spirit of other heavy industries, above all steel. Solidarity from steel and coal workers who face similar attacks could turn the trade union struggle into a political battle against the Tories.

The Labour Committee on Ireland branch is trying its best to salvage what we can. We have put out a letter to all Labour Party and trade union branches, informing them of the real purpose of the march (i.e. that its purpose is not and never has been to support the tactics of the IRA), trying to explain some of the background to the division of Ireland, the nature of the sectarian state, why the war is going on and why it has spread to Britain; how the final responsibility for all this rests with British governments past and present.

We are calling for a maximum attendance on the march with banners.

Assemble 12.30pm Carlisle Street, off Spitalhill, Sheffield. Sunday January 29.