Peoples Democracy Conference

The Peoples Democracy National | Coriference of 21/22 November took place under extremely difficult conditions. Much of the documentation and pre-conference discussion had to take place during the last days of the hunger strike and at the time of our conference the organisation, in common withe all the other anti-imperialist ‘forces, was suffering the exhausting ' effects of over a year of intense political activity.

For all these reasons, much of the discussion at conference represented the beginning of debate rather than its completion. However, it was clear that at the conference PD began to define a new and more active role in the Irish revolution and its formal decision to join the Fourth International was simply the most visible sign of this.

THE BACKGROUND PD conference decisions are not taken in isolation. A great deal of conference time is given over to the Marxist analysis of society on which our decisions are based. Because we are internationalists the analysis steps outside the national boundaries of Ireland and examines the ebb and flow of revolution on a world scale. What conclusions did this discussion come to?

The period since 1968 has marked a dramatic upswing in revolutionary movements all over the world. In the majority of these struggles the working class has taken a dominant position tion and a number of revolutions (Vietnam, Nicaragua, Iran) have deepened the imperialist crisis and fueled an imperialist counter-offensive. Given the pro-capitalist role of Social Democrats and Labourites and the counter-revolutionary role of the Stalinist bureaucracies this has led to a crisis of leadership for the working class.

The same processes are at work in lreland. The world-wide imperialist crisis fuels Thatcherite intransigence and a new reactionary alliance with the nationalist bourgeoisie around the Anglo-Irish talks. The working class is the main force not only in the hunger strike but in a whole series of economic and social struggles. We also have the crisis of leadership, with the Republican movement, despite moves to the left, unable to adopt a clear working-class programme and the traditional labour and trade union leadership committed to pro-imperialist policies, PD’s role in this situation is to help build a new revolutionary leadership by constantly struggling to unite all the revolutionary forces in an ongoing programme of mass action.

PD—IRISH SECTION OF THE FOURTH INTERNATIONAL We nave already shown how PD’s analysis puts the Irish struggle firmly in the context of the world class struggle. There’s nothing new about this. The Fenian movmeent had close connections with the First International established by Marx, and Connolly was an active member of the Second International. What is new is in fact the lack of an internationalist perspective in today's revolutionary movement.

If we are part of a worldwide struggle then our internationalism should not be confined to gestures of support for individual struggles or to general propaganda, Our internationalism is an active internationalism and this is the base of our decision to join the Fourth International — the worldwide revolutionary organisation ‘established by Leon Trotsky following the decay of the Comintern or Third International into Staiinism. We have been in political agreement with the International before the fusion of the old PD and the Movement for a Socialist Republic over three years ago. Our membership give us an.active voice in the overall plan of revolutionary action worldwide and also a responsibility to argue within the Irish revolutionary movement so that its members march in step with their comrades in other lands.

In practice the most effective solidarity actions are undertaken in the working class. Our membership of the the FI gives a new dimension to our appeals to Irish workers and Irish youth. It helps strip the last elements, of fake radicalism from pro-imperialist groups dike Sinn Fein — The Workers’ Party and our growth will in turn strengthen the intervention of the Fl worldwide and lay the basis for a mass international of the working class.

PD'S ROLE — LESSONS OF THE H BLOCK/ARMAGH STRUGGLE PD is the only one of the major political forces in the anti-imperialist movement totally committed to a programme of mass action as the major weapon of the revolutionary This commitment and the use of marxist analysis led us to select the political status struggle as the central defensive struggle for the anti-imperialist movement as early as January 1976 — before status had actually been removed removed. It led to our involvement in theong fight for united action through the Relatives Action Committees and meant that we were prepared with a strategic outline — Defence of Democracy and Workers Action which, if never fully adopted by the H Block/ Armagh movement, yet served as a framework for the main tactical advances of the campaign — the debate over contesting elections is a good example of this. There is no doubt that elections played the major role during the hunger strike in both mobilising and demonstrating support for the hunger strikers. PD fought, for an orientation towards elections in the H Block/Armagh campaign. Our declaration of standing in the Six County local government election brought the debate out in the open and forced the other ahti-imperialist forces to address the question. When Bobby Sands stood in Fermanagh/ South Tyrone there was no going back. Unfortunately the Republican Movement did not participate in the Local Government election. PD challenged Gerry Fitt and Paddy Devlin convincingly thereby showing what could have been achieved with a united challenge across the Six Counties. Bobby Sands’ election was the first of a series of electoral victories that in fact were the most clear cut victories of the whole H Block/Armagh struggle.

These twin lessons of the H Block/ Armagh campaign have convinced PD of the need to build on the gains and victories achieved ; We must preserve not only the unity of the anti-imperialist forces but also all those other forces that were won to the campaign — trade unionists women, students, youth. We see the electoral area as having a real potential to advance unity and take forward the struggle of the anti-imperialist movement.We plan to use the electoral arena at all possible opportunities, and call for maximum unity among anti-imperialist forces. It is maximum unity around a clear uncompromising programme that brings victories. The conference agreed that achieving such unity would be a major test for our organisation, the republican Movement, the Irish Republican Socialist Party, and the broader anti-imperialist movement over the next year. RUC breaking up the peaceful City Hall protest Joe Craig was still fined £25 in order that loyalist law saves face.

In a statement condemning the fine, the two PD Belfast city councillors, Fergus O’Hare and John McAnulty, said, “‘ Even when the anti-unionists try to demonstrate peacefully in the city centre the reactionary RUC will prevent them and then have the decision upheld in court. While loyalists have paraded unhindered in private armies during the past month all over the 6 Counties, anti-unionists attempting to hold a peaceful meeting are attacked, held in police stations for hours and heavily fined.” In a statement the Belfast H Block/ Armagh Committee said, ‘‘We will not be deterred by bigoted attacks on our supporters from carrying out futurd activities in support of the prisoners.”