EEC Elections

encourage the loyalists to be even more intransigent, even more arrogant towards the nationalist minority in the North.

There is nothing to suggest that either of these options are any more acceptable to British imperialism than a United Ireland) British Government stat€éments on the Forum have stressed the need for the SDLP to participate in the Stormont Assembly, implicitly ruling out any cross border political institutions. While ‘Joint Sovereignty’ and ‘Federation’ will get no endorsement from the Tory Government they will not be displeased by the Forum bringing such options to the fore. Thatcher and Prior know that even the pretence of - consideration for these options provides political cover for stepped up collaboration by the Coalition and the SDLP. That is Britains real interest’ in the forum, the extent to. which a political and security offensive against the republican fighters can be coThe upcoming June EEC elections will have an important significance for the struggle against Britain and for their Irish puppets throughout the 32 Counties. The elections will be used by all the capitalist politicians to bolster their declining credibility among working people already impoverished by unemployment and cuts.

Thatcher's Tory programme offers only increased unemployment and repression for workers in the 6 Counties.

The Coalition offers exactly the same. A further feature of the contest will be the flagging attempt of the SDLP to mislead the anti-unionist population in the 6 Counties into supporting a restructuring and strengthening of imperialism through the Dublin Forum.

Twelve years ago Fianna Fail and Fine Gael would have us believe that EEC membership would lead to Irish unity. We know now that other capitalist states would only become involved if they felt Britain was falling down on the job of preserving capitalism in Ireland.

In the same way the U.S. intervened in Vietnam and Grenada when lesser capitalist powers were unable to maintain imperialist rule in those regions, so NATO is already looking on anxiously at the political instability throughout the 32 Counties. Reagan's upcoming Irish tour coupled with the Coalition’s undermining of Irish neutrality is already opening up that door. It would not be surprising if NATO military aircraft were the first’ to inaugurate Knock Airport runway.

We were also told 12 years ago that EEC membership would foster prosperity among the Irish people and break our economic dependence on British markets. Instead joining the EEC has led to chaos. Industrial development has ground to a halt and almost total reliance on multinationals has meant massive unemployment, deskilling of workers and destruction of indigenous Irish industry.

Agriculture is also in a mess and EEC membership is responsible. It was supposed to bring a bonanza. Instead it has created financial ruin among small farmers, indebtedness and bankruptcy. The crisis of the milk super-levy indicates that the major EEC powers don’t give a damn about Ireland’s national economic interests. They have no qualms about shoving more Irish workers onto the dole and more small farmers into hankruntcy Only a national economit plan based on the actual needs of Irish workers and small farmers will get us out of this mess. This means a socialist transformation of society. This is the practical necessity facing the Irish working class today.

This is the kind of pregramme which the anti-imperialist | movement has to formulate and fight for in the EEC elections. As the major anti-imperialist organisation, Sinn Fein standing in all constituencies in the 32 Counties has both an excellent opportunity and major responsibility to build all-Ireland workers unity against the twin evils of repression and austerity. None of the other parties offer any reason why Irish workers should put their trust in them, This includes those parties who are socialist in words and collaborators in action. Therefore Sinn Fein STATEMENT BY THE NATIONAL COMMITTEE OF PEOPLES DEMOCRACY offers the only real alternative. In building support for their candidates it will be important for Sinn Fein to turn their campaign outwards along the lines of the HBlock movement to gain the attention of the mass of organised workers. It will be necessary to involve the best activists in the campaign. :

Fundamentally it will be vital to build .an all-Ireland political fightback against partition and all-its evils. In particular fighting the SDLP in the 6 Counties means not only ousting them as the chief representatives of the nationalist people, it means counterposing to the sham Forum a concrete -political alternative. This means an_ all-Ireland Constituent Assembly. This can provide the means by which all the workers, small farmers and oppressed people of Ireland can determine their future and the fu-, ) OS eS ee EC