“begins to open: The social partnership which sucks the…”

begins to open:

The social partnership which sucks the life out of the political process in the 26 counties resulting in every party advocating the same economic program ts all rapped up tn a rancid neo liberal ideology called closer European Unlon. when the jobs ensis is mentioned we are told that we must follow the European way and rely on job deregulauion and private investment to solve the problem. The European courts can be relied on to see that Itberal laws on everything from contraception to divorce are introduced into [reland. The peace process towards an agreed [reland can rely on the single market to deliver the goods above the heads of the unionists.

The European union is a fetish of progress in Ireland. Ail our problems are to be solved by membership of the great union and the beauty is we just have to sit back and go with the How.

### OBSTACLES

A lew obstactes to the magic carpet mde are now just around the corner. The renewal of the implementation cycle agreed to at Maastricht will bring with it profound attacks on the working lives of most Insh workers. The other problem ts that the [rish capitalist class are now so indebted to imperialism that they are to be press- ganged into the big power military machine. Wolfgang Schuble the likely next chancellor of Germany recently told the [nish about their future when he said;”. . those states that press ahead with monctary umion would form a corc, and any neutral countries like Ireland would have to fully join the EU security structures if they were serious about their European vocauion” ([rish [ndependent 10. 3 95 At Maastricht a plan to adopt a single EU currency by 1999 al the latest was agreed to by the Irish government. It now transpires that membership for Ireland ts conditional on the [ish abolishing their neutral status vis a vis the military alliance controlled by NATO. Europeanism now includes full committment to the WEU which is barely anything more than a sub-section of NATO making usc of the same stock of weapons and falling under the NATO command umbrella. The Irish political establishment thinks it can gel away with fudging the capitulation on neutrality by dressing it all up in sentimental garb about the humanitarian mission facing the new Europe. One obstacte in the way which they will not find so casy to get by reiates to the fact that many [nish workers sul! remember that membership of NATO in the past was objected [email protected] the grounds that Britain held sovercignty over the SINZCOURLICS. Even with the benefit of the peace process it will not be casv for the Dail to get many Irish workers io put the neutral past behind them for the purpose of being in military and political league with British foreign interests.

### Monetary union:

Despite numerous obstacles Euorepean monetary union ts a central strategic goal for intemauional capital. International capital favours a single currency because !t would significantly increase the political opportunity for the capitalist class across Europe to step up the neo -liberal offensive against public spending and hold down wage demands. A single currency could allow the capitalists to remove almost all parliamentary intluence over setting economic priorities. National parliaments are viewed by neo liberals more and more as a hindrance to sound finance, they bow to political demands to spend money on lowering unemployment and other such stupidities. The new European central bank will have only one priority, to keep inflation down. The Euro-bank will be much harsher on spending governments than national banks are allowed to be. A single bank out of political reach is the ideal instrument for renewing monctarist policies. A single bank will be able to impose the same interest rates on all countnies at once ensuring no country is able to cheat its neighbours.

{rsh capitalism hopes to gain from the impending singic currency by altracung a big increase of private investment into the country. [tis believed that capital will be made more mobile under a single currency. They believe that a country like Ircland with tts gencrous tax regime for foreign investors and the lower than avcrage wages should be able to do well out of the transformed conditions. But Irish capitalistism will certainly face increased political and social struggles. Public spending will be ruthlessly cut to meet the convergence crilena, goverment borrowing will have to come down in large degrees. As soon as the For A Workers Republic. Page 10

economy is locked into the singic currency firms will no longer be ablic to escape from foreign competition by demanding a currency devaluation.

### GAUNTLET

Insh workers will be made to carry the burdens and risks that arrive with a single currency. To stay compceuuve firms will be compelled to hold wages down and erode conditions. Public spending cuts will be necessary right through the wellare spectrum. The privatisauion of sem: state companies will have to be speeded up to rid the government of having to risk public spending targets keeping the indebted ones alive. As laras Insh workers arc concerned the single currency ts Itke the ntual throwing down of the gauntet ts open up a coming penod of intense Ernest Mandel. one of the worid’s most eminent Marxist economists and a lifelong socialist activist, died in his native Belgium on the morning of July 20th. 1995, Mande! joined the Trotskyist movement in Belgtum in German occupauon. Captured twice he managed to escape but was sent to a prison camp in Germany in 1944. During the war he participated in an underground contferenee of the Fourth International in Europe. In !946 the second world congress elected him to ts leadership.

Mayor theoretical works like “Marxist Economic Theoan”, “Late Capitalism” and “The Second Slump” went alongside a project to make Marxism more accessible to Working peopic. “Introduction to Marxist economics” was transiated into many ianguages and soid over hali a mifiton copies. “Introduction to Marxism soid at similar levels.

He never became Iess of an activist. His support for the revolts of 1968 led to him being barred from the US, France, Switzerland. West Germany and Australia.

The many obituanes in the capitalist press have grappled with the multiple facets of Mandel's life. They have failed utterly because of their incomprchension of the main aspect of his life - the attempt to build through the Fourth Intemational a world party of socialist revolution. class struggle.

The leaders of the workers movement are well aware thal the single currency could casily open anew penod of class struggles in Ireland. The Trades union congress mecting in Tralec agreed a policy of modermisation that would put more self imposed burricrs on strike acuvitics. The Labour party and the Democratic Lelt are in the vanguard of European social democracy which idcoiogicaliy 18 to the nghtof Tony Blair. Progress for trish workers can only gct started with the removal of our rotten leaderships.

NO to NATO and the WEU!

NO to an EU common foreign policy! NO to asingle currency and a central European bank!

Let Emest Mande! speak for himscit:

“Understand that you cannot be happier than if you know that you have dedicated your life to this defence of human rights everywhere in the world: the defence of the exploited, the oppressed, the downtrodden, the despised. There is no better way to be a good human being in this world than to dedicate your life to this great cause. That’s why the future is with Marxism.

For A Workers Republic. Page 11

economy is locked into the singic currency firms will no longer be ablic to escape from foreign competition by demanding a currency devaluation.

### GAUNTLET

Insh workers will be made to carry the burdens and risks that arrive with a single currency. To stay compceuuve firms will be compelled to hold wages down and erode conditions. Public spending cuts will be necessary right through the wellare spectrum. The privatisauion of sem: state companies will have to be speeded up to rid the government of having to risk public spending targets keeping the indebted ones alive. As laras Insh workers arc concerned the single currency ts Itke the ntual throwing down of the gauntet ts open up a coming penod of intense Ernest Mandel. one of the worid’s most eminent Marxist economists and a lifelong socialist activist, died in his native Belgium on the morning of July 20th. 1995, Mande! joined the Trotskyist movement in Belgtum in German occupauon. Captured twice he managed to escape but was sent to a prison camp in Germany in 1944. During the war he participated in an underground contferenee of the Fourth International in Europe. In !946 the second world congress elected him to ts leadership.

Mayor theoretical works like “Marxist Economic Theoan”, “Late Capitalism” and “The Second Slump” went alongside a project to make Marxism more accessible to Working peopic. “Introduction to Marxist economics” was transiated into many ianguages and soid over hali a mifiton copies. “Introduction to Marxism soid at similar levels.

He never became Iess of an activist. His support for the revolts of 1968 led to him being barred from the US, France, Switzerland. West Germany and Australia.

The many obituanes in the capitalist press have grappled with the multiple facets of Mandel's life. They have failed utterly because of their incomprchension of the main aspect of his life - the attempt to build through the Fourth Intemational a world party of socialist revolution. class struggle.

The leaders of the workers movement are well aware thal the single currency could casily open anew penod of class struggles in Ireland. The Trades union congress mecting in Tralec agreed a policy of modermisation that would put more self imposed burricrs on strike acuvitics. The Labour party and the Democratic Lelt are in the vanguard of European social democracy which idcoiogicaliy 18 to the nghtof Tony Blair. Progress for trish workers can only gct started with the removal of our rotten leaderships.

NO to NATO and the WEU!

NO to an EU common foreign policy! NO to asingle currency and a central European bank!

Let Emest Mande! speak for himscit:

“Understand that you cannot be happier than if you know that you have dedicated your life to this defence of human rights everywhere in the world: the defence of the exploited, the oppressed, the downtrodden, the despised. There is no better way to be a good human being in this world than to dedicate your life to this great cause. That’s why the future is with Marxism.

For A Workers Republic. Page 11