Issue 3 of Socialist Resistance is out soon.

We have reduced the price to £2.

This issue features articles on Colombia, Italy, contrasting views on Respect from Andy Newman and Alan Thornett, Emperor Hadrian, bureaucracy in the labour movement, sustainable cities, what do we mean by socialism and barbarism in the 21st century and the crisis of the working class.

Subscription rates for 6 issues are: £10 UK, £15 Europe, £20 international, £30 institutions.

Please make cheques out to Socialist Resistance and send them to

Socialist Resistance,

P.O. Box 1109,

London

N4 2UU

Posted by admin as Publications, Socialist Resistance News at 9:59 AM MDT

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Celia Hart Santamaría and her brother Abel Hart Santamaria have been killed in an car accident. Celia knew and worked with many comrades in Britain. A memorial meeting on Wednesday 8 October will unite us to remember, discuss and celebrate her contribution. This open meeting is hosted by Socialist Resistance, publisher of her books, ‘It’s never too late to love or rebel’ and ‘A revolutionary fight against the demon.’

You can download a leaflet for the event here. Speakers invited: Bernard Regan, Liam MacUaid, Amancay Colque (Bolivia Solidarity Campaign), Hands Off Venezuela, Cuban embassy.

Posted by Duncan as Cuba, Socialist Resistance News at 12:09 PM MDT

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The traditional narrative of the Irish War of Independence dwells on the flying columns and Michael Collins. Yet not even Ireland was immune to the effects of the revolutionary wave in Europe and for a brief period workers’ control was established in Limerick.

Below is the text of the Socialist Resistance leaflet advertising a meeting on the subject next week in Birmingham.

Speaker: D. R. O’Connor Lysaght - Irish socialist and author

Tuesday 16th September 7.30pm

Bennetts Bar, Bennetts Hill, Birmingham

The Limerick soviet was part of the international social upsurge following the First World War. This has been described as the “Red Mirage” because of the revolutions and general strikes inspired by the October Revolution, but dashed by the guile and treachery of the old Social democratic leaders and the revolutionary leaders’ own inexperience.
Such struggles have been overshadowed in Ireland by the Anglo-Irish War and its aftermath. Nonetheless, in1919, the Irish capitalists were more worried by the social threat than by that of armed contest.

It was, however, the combination of both of these that sparked the general strike that created the Limerick Soviet: the running of the city of Limerick by its Trades Council for a fortnight. Significantly, it was sparked by the death of Robert (Bertie) Byrne, a trade union militant and Irish Volunteer. A prisoner recovering in hospital, he was killed in an attempted rescue on 6th April.

The British colonial regime was more concerned with the simultaneous deaths of the two constables who had been guarding Byrne. It placed most of the city and its surroundings under martial law. The newly-unionised workers in the Condensed Milk Company factory responded, on April 12th, by voting for strike action. The next day, the city Trades Council voted to extend the strike to all city workers.

From Monday 14th April, all business was closed save government departments (the post office was open for stamp sales only), hotels and the railway. The Army remained obstinate, so the council established sub-committees to organise permits to leave the city (as the Army allowed entry only by its own permits) to bring in and distribute food supplies, for pickets to police the area, transport, propaganda and, at the end of the week, finance. The last named was supervised by the Irish TUC treasurer, Thomas Johnson.

However, he was playing a double game. Since 1916, he had inspired his movement’s strategy of staying out of too active an involvement in the Irish national movement. Now he opposed demands to spread the strike through the country, and, on 15 April, acted to persuade the Soviet leaders to limit its application and, on the 28th, to end it altogether. A week later, martial law was lifted.

Understandably, Limerick would never play such a leading role in the social sphere during the troubles. Other areas, in Co. Tipperary and Co. Cork would take over the lead. They too would find themselves circumscribed by the reformist strategy of Labour’s national leadership and the bourgeois nature of the Republican leaders.

Nonetheless, the attempt had been made to light the way to the
workers’ republic.

Posted by admin as Socialist Resistance News at 11:04 AM MDT

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Hurricane Gustav affected more than 60 per cent of Cuba’s territory, and damage has been sustained across the housing, education, poultry and fishing, electricity, and telecommunication services sectors.   To make matters worse, Gustav was followed by Hurricane Ike cutting through Cuba leaving a path of destruction in its wake which is further complicating the current humanitarian response as well as increasing the vulnerability and needs of the affected population.

If you are able to make a donation, please send a cheque to:

The Cuba Solidarity Campaign

c/o UNITE Woodberry

218 Green Lanes

London N4 2HB

Please make your cheque payable to CSC and write "Hurricane Appeal" on the back.

Please pass the CSC’s appeal’s to anyone you know who may also be interested in helping raise money to support the people of Cuba in this difficult time.

An eyewitness account of what has happened is here.

Posted by admin as Cuba, International at 11:11 AM MDT

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Stuart Richardson

The one day strike called by the National Union of Teachers (NUT)joined by the Further Education section of University and College Union (UCU) was the first national strike by the NUT since 1985, the year of the great miners’ strike. The intervening period was an era of retreat and defeat for many sections of the trade union movement. The strike, of course, had immediate causes, rising inflation and wage settlements for the previous two years below the rate of inflation. Also the increasingly heavy management pressure on teachers derived from the endless targets imposed on school staff. However the strike would never have been called without a long fight by the NUT left, the Socialist Teachers Alliance (STA) and the smaller Campaign for a Fighting and Democratic Union (CDFU) for more militant policies. For many years the annual NUT Conference held at Easter had passed often with very large majorities resolutions committing the union to industrial action on pay, conditions and performance management but these were regularly ignored by the NUT Executive. The Broad Left (now called Broadly Speaking!!), historically an alliance of Labour Left and Communist teachers, has dominated the NUT Executive for the last two or three decades regularly stifling calls for action.

Three or four years ago the Broadly Speaking divided over issues connected with the views of the ex-General Secretary Doug McEvoy and the balance of power on the NUT Executive became more fluid. The success of the strikes around the London teacher’s allowance indicated a growing militancy in the ranks of the NUT and a new generation of STA supporters were elected onto the Executive. This shift in the balance of power on the NUT Executive meant that in 2007/8 the right wing were not able to block industrial action.

Despite this shift the overwhelming vote of the 2007 NUT Conference for strike action to resist the below inflation pay deal (2.45% 2007/8, 2.3% for the next two years) the manoeuvres on the Executive delayed the strike to the following year.

The 24^th April was a great success but only partial in some areas, over half the schools closed in Birmingham, 90% NUT members on strike in Liverpool and a very solid strike in London and many other areas. But a fair proportion of NUT members did not strike especially in certain rural areas. Despite the partial nature of the strike many impressive rallies were held usually in cooperation with others unions such as UCU, PCS, and the CWU. In Birmingham a particularly impressive rally of 3,000 was held jointly with council unions, UNISON, GMB, UNITE and others who were on strike on the Single Status issue.

At a well attended STA National Coordinating meeting on the 26^th April (two days after the strike) it was agreed unanimously to push for a one day strike in the Summer term although there was vacillation on the part of some in the meeting. The view was that it was essential to maintain the momentum of the pay campaign but there were obviously difficulties given the Summer term is dominated by exams and the prospect of the summer holidays. It would have been ideal if the NUT had joined the local council workers strike on the 16^th/17^th July. A series of NUT Executive meetings in May and June ducked the chance of a summer strike with only a small minority supporting this action.

The Executive was however united on continuing the industrial in the Autumn term balloting for discontinuous action will be starting on Monday 6^th October. The prospects for the national ballot seem good given the accelerating inflation figures, RPI 5% and CPI 4.4% July 2008. Also the ballot is for discontinuous action unlike the previous ballot which was for a one day strike only. So a series of actions can be organised by the NUT without reference to further ballots.

Finally an indication of the hard line the employers will take is the reply form the School Teachers’ Review Body to a claim by the NUT for a reconsideration of the 2.3- 2.45% pay award. In the imposed deal if the inflation is above 3.25% then the award can be re-considered but despite inflation being way above this level the Review Body replied that because the vacancy rate for teachers was low the market (the god for New Labour) does not justify a higher award!!

Posted by admin as Trade unions at 9:14 PM MDT

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