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Bobby Sands: Irish Blood on Labour's Hands

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Bobby Sands: Irish Blood on Labour's Hands tr::iis:i:oi::;:::::::::::::::BR;:XTON:::*:;l 11 FRENCH !! tt. ELECTIONS ..... I I I 11' ANSELL 's i I1 ~:.:::~::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::~::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::!:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::;; BOBBY SANDS: IRISH BLOOD ON LABOUR'S HANDS BOBBY SANDS - IRISH political up in Rathcoole, a predominantly Prot­ prisoner, blanketman and Repub­ estant part of Belfast, his family was lican - a member of the British driv~n from their home by Orange House of Commons - has been left thugs in 1972. An apprentice coach-. builder in a province where Catholics to die in the H-Blocks. His murder suffer unemployment twice the British Peoples March was ordered on the authority of, average, he was driven at gun-point from or with the connivance of, his his job in the same year. He became an "fellow" MPs. IRA fighter and in 1973 received his first That the Tories with the cold and five-year sentence. In 1976 he was sen­ calculating malice special to their breed tenced to fourteen years by the no-jury, were prepared to let him die should sup- single-judge Diplock courts which accept rise no-one in Ireland and few clas,," "uncorroborated evidence" - i.e. police must unite conscious workers in Britain. Bobby statements and confession extracted by Sands' blood.will add but one more stain to the "butchers' apron" Union torture. Sands, as IRA "Public Relations Jack that has flown over the stolen six Officer" in the Maze was subject to reg­ counties of Ireland since 1921. ular beatings and solitary confinement from the authorities. But it is not only the Tory members . ~ow have the official "left-wingers" of the Westminster thieves kitchen who wlthm the Labour Party responded to workers' struggles have blood on their hands. The leaders ofSan~s' hunger strike? "Tribune" ref­ the British working class who adorn its used poin~:blank to supp~r~ any of.his benches bear a double mark of infamy demands .. yv ould the. deCISIon to gIVe for their complicity in Sands' murder. Sands polItIcal status m any w~y h~ve Thatcher killed in the interests of her changed what has been happenmg m class. Foot and the despicable Labour Ulster l' - asked a Tribune editorial. Party spok~sman on Northern Ireland, Thei: a~swer was "N?!". Tony Benn, for jobs Don Concannon, were complicit in an d~splte mternal,meetmgs wh~r~ he has , act that flies in the face of the most raised the questIOn of recogmsIng Sands sacred interests of the working class _ membership of the Hous~ of Commons, :: WELL LAID plans of the Comm- The Peoples March must be turned into a In every town the march passes through, internationalism. pas made no clear uneqUIvocal statement ;t Party to keep the People's March focus for working class action, The struggles organising committees to support the march ment for the granting of the hunger IhtlV-policed passive protest c:!u be of the unemployed can be linked to those of must be based on Stewards Committees, Union Con cannon obscenel;y chose May Daystrikers'}emands .. ". ~ated. That is the clear message f~rom the employed, establishing real working class branches, Labour Party wards, etc, They must itself to visit the H Block to let Sands The CommunIst (SIC) Mornmg Star majority of the marchers. The young unity. To do this the Peoples March must be, mobilise for strike action against unemploy, know that he had no hope of support talked about IRA moves to "exploit .. d come a militant Unemployed Workers march. ment when the Peoples' March passes through. chers in particular have .not jome In every town ALL OUT STR I KE ACTION from the Labour Party. Concannon Sands' death" and equated the IRA with trek t~ hear the conso~mg prayers of Th~ visits to c~urches mu~t be replaced by should greet the marchers. These committees rushed onto the media to gush his and I~ Paisley; "the pro~pects of major sec· Archbishops, but to brmg home the VISitS to factories. That thiS can be done on the should not dissolve the minute the march the shadow cabinet's 100% support for tanan confron~at.IOn IS, perhaps. as u,~e­ ht of the unemployed to the whole March was demonstrated by an initiative taken passes through. They must lay the basis for the government. Doubtless militant left- ful to ~hem as It IS to Mr Ian Paisley king class. by WORK~RS POWER suppo~ters on the Councils of Action to fight all attacks from wingers in the trade unions, the Labour (MornIng Star, 2/5/81). ~Iready the CP, eager to stay in receipt of March. As It passed throuqh Wldnes. WP ~U?P- the Tories and the employers. Party and socialist groups will be out- ~obby Sa~ds wrote of the strength ruC's good graces, has attempted to orters contact,ed workers at the nearby United On May 29th the march arrives in London. raged at the shame brought an the Brit- ~hich the vOices of support from out­ k efforts by the marchers to have'll demo· Glass factory I~ St. Helens. Here 600 wor· I n line with their whole scheme for the cally run march. At the eve of march spec· kers had occupied the factory when the man march, the organisers are hpoing to make this ish working class by its leaders. B~.lt they sld~ brough,~ to the f~~edom. ~ghters riefing in Liverpool, fellow.traveller of ag,ement t~re~tened 81 redundancies. Faced a passive affair. Their plans must be thwarted! should not be suprised. Concannon was ~g~mst the .monster of BntIsh Imper· ;talinists Jack Oromey declared "Don't With an eVlctlon~rde~ ~hey can:'e out of ,the The majority of the marchers, and by this Roy (Butcher) Mason's second-in- lall~,t represslo?: e with stewards public:1y ,.the main pur· ~Iant, but are maintaining a strike and picket time the Eastern Leg will have teamed up with command (with special responsibilities My body IS broken and cold, fm of stewards is not to act as policemen, line. When approached they were eager to talk the main march· are not marchinq to London for prisons) in Northern Ireland under lonely and 1 need comfort. From some­ to help you". This would have rung more to the People's March. The CP marshalls tried for the joy of hearing St Paul's bells ringing in the last Labour government. Me-rlyn Reeswh~re afar 1 hear ~hose familiar.voices if the stewards had been elected. Whe.. to prevent a steward addressing the marchers, their ears. They are marching for jobs. They and Mason with Con cannon as their whIch keep me gomg. We are wIth you was proposed from the floor,however, claim·ing that "official channels" had not are marching against the Thatcher gang, ag- underling, ~asterminded the "criminal- .... don't let th~m beat you. 1 need to ;talinists were quick to argue that this been gone through. The marchers were ainst the Tory policies of mass unemployment. isation" of the Republican prisoners, hear those ~olces. They anger the mon- Id destrny the unity of the marbh. having no truck with this petty bureacuracy. They must be greeted by a general strike of the recognised de facto by the previous ster. It retreats.. ;I:lmow that if they 'he unity the CP wanted was unity b~ They gave the Uhited Glass G&MWU whole working class on May 29th. The TUC its policy of showing respect for the ben· steward a warm welcome. must be forced to cut the chat and start the Tory government as political prisoners, shout louder, they will s~e ~he mln- ent bosses and caring clergy who were The vital lessons '-'II.ISt be learnt: the real action. They must call out the whole trade as prisoners of war. ster away and my suffermg will be ,ared to join its chorus of pleading to the allies of the Peoples March are workers actu. union movement to register the massive oppo- Bobby Sands wrote movingly of the ended." es. Midlands march organiser, Pete Carter, ally fighting to d~fend jobs. in United Glass, sit ion to unemployment that ex ists inside the conditions these creatures devised for Alas, he heard too few voices from t this out at the briefing meeting when he in Holman Mitchells (in St Helens), at Lee working class. And if the TUC refuse to do this, their captives: this side of the Irish Sea, Too few voices "You have got to unite the nation, It's Jeans, Ansell's and Plansee. By visiting the fac- then strike action on the 29th must be called "I am a political prisoner, a freedom from the ranks of British labour. Revo­ 'y big job on your hands... We ask you to tories, supporting the picket lines, addressing by every stewards committee, union branch and fighter .. .I have been stripped of my cIo- lutionary socialists, all honest working lspectfulof people working towards your workers meetings, the march can lay the basis trades council regardless. A show of strengith thes and locked in a dirty empty cell class militants can pay a real tribute to al. Respect the point of view of the chur for a united working class offensive against the like this can show every Peoples marcher, where 1 have been starved, beaten and his memory by raising their voices in " bosses' job-slashing plans. every unemployed wocker, every worker 'his sort of unity is useless in the fight for To do this it is necessary to take the march fighting to defend his or her job, that unemploy tortured ..
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