Bloody Sunday=- the Political Aftermath

The Derry massacre and it aftermath haa shown the impossibility of a military victory over the Catholic people in the immediate future, Already the wheels of compromise have been set in motion by the Tories. Bot before the various solutions being offered can be con: sidered seriously, the historical and ecomormic context in which they are being pat forward must be examined ECONOMIC FACTORS One of the major “adwances” made in this phage of the liberation straggie te the recognition by nearly all politicians that the aaky real solution to the lrish question is national unity. A number of economic factors are behind this political change of mind.

Firstly, the backbone af Sia (Oo, industry has been slowly disintegrating. Employment in the linen industry has fallen by 32° between |YS01970 and over-the same penod employment in shipbuilding dropped by 20%. Secondly industry has outstripped agriculture in the Free State asthe dominant sector of the economy thus undermining the 1922 Treaty which was easentially 6 pact between British imperialism and large scale agricultural and commercial imierests in Ireland, Accordingly it became necessary to work out a new relationship between the Free State and the UK, taking into consideration the interests of an industrial bowrpecis whoch heavily dependent on British capital, Thirdly, the technological revolution, the decline of heavy industry and the momentum of the colonial revolution haye combined to. relegate Britain to the Status of a third rate power, In face of this, a tighter integration of the UK with the elimination of costly superstructural anomalies have become necessary if Britain ts to remain-a viable economic unit Te upshoot in the political arena of all these UK has become the order of the day. However, the real question it, whether or not, in the proceas of ite death agony British imperialism is strong enough to bring abowt such a major change, A UNITED IRELAND?

To unite [reland the whole economic and aocial! getup would have to te altered. In the Six (Co's neome per head is 20% higher thin in the South, Unemployment benefits in the North are 20% higher than in the South, old age pensions are 30% higher, willows pensions are $0; housing output in relation to populatlon EG nearly 40% greater and edwestional expenditure in relation to population is 100% greater. Further, practically no Mealih Service existe in the South, Toe coax the Protestant workers into such a state would clearly require a vast improvement in Uving standards in the so called Republic. Lt is equally clear that improvement of this’ magnitude is imposible in a néo-colonial stare. COMMUNITY GOVERNMENT Thus the immediate aim of the West minster, Stornmeant and Lenster House Tories, is not-for a united lreland but for a feederal settle ment ie., Stormont und Lenster House would beecome Regional parliaments under the thumb of Westminster. But even here difficulties arise. The Stormont Regime is completely out of character with the bourgeois democratic fature of Britain and the sear bourgeois démo critic nature of the Free State and before an integrated political unit could evolve the Stormont Regme weuld have to he co impletely overhauled, This, of course, ic easier said than dane, ‘The Orange state was founded on an apartheid hasis for political reasons (which needless to aay .. * ed: ge re ? “= # ed were inspined by the deep seated economic cases. For example, the minority Catholic population has alwave tended fo grow much more rapidly than the Protestant Population, There is nothing abnormal in the fact that today 5155 of all children in the Six (c's are Catholic, Yet, the Catholic population has remained ata fairly constant 34-35%) of total nopulation since the opening of Stermant, The population control could only be achieved through an application of selective economic pressures especially in the vital areas ot employment and howsng, For this thé ghetto pattern wae cesentiol and it is no accident that this patteon ig maintained in the “development ‘schemes operating al the present moment, To institwtionalise democracy in the North much effect under capitalicm therefore, iano casy matter, for it would require the elimination of the (969, back in- Ireland, as a: member-of the Dublin Citizens Committee and more imporlanily Saor Gire, she gaye aid bo the national revolution that has breo developing in Horthern Ireland, Unlike many beth ef the uleraleft and the “pure” Republican movement she did noc distinguish between the socialistic straggles in Paris.ansk the immediate nalionalist struggles of the workers and the minority of the 6 counties. Slee saw that they were not just isolated developments; she saw thal the different forms of each masked the reality ef permanent revolution, She jpomed Saor Eire because as-a group it recognised Lhis realily, Har actrrm, political sophislicalion and dedectios was proogeieed by ber comrades i relly ceched bez to Saar Eire a ceneral But she did pot limit her understanding of permanent revolution to the purely national comtéat. She sow that the only way ta make lreland socialist was in the struggle for the world wide classless, ciateless society. To chia end im the last year of ber life she contacted lrah members of the Fourth Intemational, and very notably the lale comrade Peter Graham, and she participated aith them on preparing an insh Section of the Fourth International, Qnee again such was her ability in this task that on Comrade Craham’s treacherous assassination by reactionary elements she was appeinted a¢ an official F. 1, reprehasigon which the power of the (range bourgeoisie rests. Naturally, this is wince ptable to the Orange bourgeoisie and whilethe British imperial bourmeoisie would willingly overrule thein, they foo inust oven: cautious ly lest (hey creale a weariness which might prove to the advantage of revolutionary forces, The “oommrnity government" pra posal.is designed to mect this situation. While ii does. nevt attempl le undermine the apartheid nature of the Six (Co's 1t-does muke some superticlal “democratic changes. However, a4 the “community gove tniment"' proposal docs not go to the heart of the problem ibis bound to fall in the long run and even in the sherk pur is unlikely [oa lave sentative in retard, Her fatal tilness prevented her from taking up this post however. One more point should be made too: in just over 3 months the F.l, ui [reland-has suffered twa serious blows, Twe of its tending cadres have been eliminated, There ate acme phillstines whi feel that such blows will prove mortal, These people will be disippointed, Our loses prievous though they are, are limited oom: fared to the losses That hare heen agutlered by revolutionaries in the past. The alaughters of the Paria Commuoe, did not prevent the ernergence of world wide scientific socialism, The Repubican movement in lrebad was not destroyed because of the murders of 1916 ofr of 1922 The murdet of Karl Liehknecht and Ross Lugenibiiro could not preven, the prowl of German Communism, sod the Trotskyist morement of the world has survived not only his death and that of fle eon Sedov tot the murders of Trotskvists in and out of Rueeia Compared to these facts we have got off lightly und four leses were twenty Times me preat we would still survive, L might conclude by wishing a long life to the FP, |,-hut this would he contrary bo that body's aims. It wants workd revolution and the world includes Ireland a5 soon as possi So [ prophesy a short and successful Bie to lhe F.L..and Saor Eire. Lal our enemisd wheel are these of the working cluss beware, We are only just beginning.

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