} p €publ ic)

a

mT TTT

The real issue in

Northern Ireland

By NELSON CLARKE

Resi:
b ine under the blows struck
the Civil Rights Movement,

Northen onary Unionists of

| back €m ireland are fighting

desperately to hold on to
Power and privileges.

that . are clinging to the fiction
tain the, are still able to main-
ing an or authority by launch-
tatian Enquiry” into the “‘sec-
tamitign nite.” Canadians will be
i With the tactic of a gov-
Royal t in trouble setting up a
Commission.

is Se particular “enquiry”
W a to proceed at a time
faileg { € British government has
SeNtiay ee the absolutely es-
Sarmin Tst step of effectively
€d the ig the goon squads call-
the 1... 8 Specials” set up by
Nu, vOnist regime as a para-
fa ty force to spread terror
wide throughout the

theiy

COMMUNIST STAND
Wi
Wag et Needs to be done now
ining st Out with precision in a
fe Citement of Northern Ire-
Otke mmunist Party, the Irish
;' uy (of the Irish
a and the Communist
Y of Great Britain.
e

Square esPonsibility is placed
} a on Prime Minister Har-
impetiation in London: “British
Sion in Tet by introducing divi-
lem Saeee created the prob-.
Must ¢ the British government
SOlve it €refore. take action to
Without delay.

n .
ed eo nticular, there is requir-
di immediate disarming and

Sha
Stabyeins of the Special Con-

actiyi a Steps to prevent the
teey ss of the Ulster Volun-
Royal ae the placing of the
Officia Mish Constabulary (the
Contr, Police) under impartial
Special’ the annulment of the

Owers Act and the re-

Political prisoners.”

RIGHTS VIOLATED

The
Special euement points out the
OWers Act is a draconic

|

i

‘Yste

Teaks or OPpression which
Sions ra out of the 30 provi-
Niverg the United Nations’
Rights al Declaration of Human

&

]
State pe become clear,’ the
Unionist continues, “the ruling
Ng or Party is either unwill-
"eason, RoPPle to respond to the
_ dle demand that these

abuses shall be immediately
ended. :

“The firm establishment of po-
litical democracy in Northern
Ireland which could result from
these measures could lay the
basis for the opening of talks
at an early date between the
Government of Great Britain,
the Government of the Irish Re-
public, and representative bodies
of the people of Northern Ire-
land with a view to the solution
of outstanding constitutional
problems.’ ;

In short, the immediate, burn-
ing issue is the enforcement of
elementary democratic rights in
Northern Ireland. This can open
the possibility of the Irish people
resolving themselves the historic
problems imposed by the parti-
tion of their land by British im-
perialism.

‘DIVIDE AND RULE’

The roots of his policy of par-
tition, of “divide and rule,” go
far back in Irish history.

The following points are made
by Desmond Greaves based on
a pamphlet: “Northern Ireland
— Civil Rights and Political
Wrongs:”:

“Northern Ireland was _ artifi-
cially created by a British Act
of Parliament, the Government
of Ireland Act of 1920...

“It is often said that the trou-
bles in Northern Ireland are due
to religious differences. Why re-
ligious differences have one ef-
fect in Northern Ireland and an-
other in Britain or the Republic
is not usually explained . . -

“Let it be said, now, that the
main issue in Northern Ireland
is not religion but class rela-
tions and politics .

LOW WAGE AREA

“When shipyards were estab-
lished in Belfast in the 1830's
the shipyard employers delibe-
rately created religious feuds in
order to keep wages down...

“The north east had been al-
lowed more industrialization
than the rest of Ireland as part
of a policy of creating a division
of interest within Ireland. (By
the 1880’s) a mass movement
had forced the British govern-
ment to’ buy out the landlords
and hand the land to the peo-
plese (With the rise of the
agitation for home rule) it was
now proposed to transfer the

charges to the Irish exchequer.
This would: have resulted in the
Northern capitalists being taxed
to buy land for the peasants ...

“Here was the economic basis
of modern Unionism. The ‘Or-
ange card’ was played. ‘Home
rule is Rome rule’ was the cry.
The aim was to safeguard capi-
talist profits. There is an old
joke that Unionists are loyal not
to the Crown but to the half
crown...

“Unionism has seen as its life-
line the perpetuation of religious
sectarianism as the surest way
to keep the situation as it is.
_.» The principle means of do-
ing this is by blatant and deliber-
ate discrimination against the
Catholics .. .

THE GERRYMANDER

“For this purpose they intro-
duced gerrymandering. Thus
while Derry City had a two
thirds anti-unionist electorate,
the ward boundaries were so
drawn that two-thirds of the
councillors were Unionists.

“The measures taken invariab-
ly strengthened the rich against
the poor. Thus in local elections
only householders are allowed a
vote. This affects both Catholic
and Protestant workers. Busi-
nessmen can have up to SIx
votes for each business, accord-
ing to its size.

“Obviously it was in the
Unionist interest that their op-
ponents should not have houses.
Hence the discrimination in the
allocation of houses. :

“There are council estates
(government housing), for eX-
ample in Enniskillen where not
a single Catholic lives. The
Catholics are crowded into the
poorest and most congested part
of town.”

By these means and the notori-
ously anti-democratic Special
Powers Act the Unionists have
maintained virtually a police
state rule-

Greaves continues: ‘The pres-
ent civil rights agitation had its
origin early in the ’60s in the
Left Wing of the trade union
movement, It was felt that there
was little hope of presenting a
united. working - Class front
against the forces of Toryism
while one-third of the people
were second class citizens. . .

“The civil rights supporters
demard that there shall be one
man one vote in all elections,
and that boundaries shall be

BEKNADETTE DEVLIN

Bernadette Devlin, M.P. proves that she knows how to fight for
her people ,not just in the cloistered halls of Westminister, but on
the barricades of Londonderry. She carries forward in the Ireland
of today, the great socialist and patriotic traditions of the martyrs of
the Easter Rebellion, James Connolly and Padraic Pearse.

fairly drawn. They demand a
properly ordered points system
by which homeless families can
be housed on the basis of need.
They demand that discrimina-
tion based on religion shall be
made illegal; and that there shall
be no discrimination in the sit-
ing of industry. . .

“They demand abolition of the
Special Powers Act and with-
drawal of the Public Order Act.
Their yardstick of success is
stated clearly. They want parity
with the rest of the United King-
dom, and the same principles of
civil liberty to the six counties
(Northern Ireland) as to Brit-
ain.”

UNITY WILL WIN

This unity based on the work-
ing class and democratic forces
has continued in the recent trou-
bled days.

William J. Pomeroy writing
in the Daily World says that
“the people under attack wel-
comed the arrival of the British
troops, not out of love for Brit-
ish authority but because it
meant a respite in attacks upon
them by police-protected extre-
mists.’ He continues:

“This is only one aspect of
the complicated nature of the

Northern Ireland problem. An-
other and deeply significant fea-
ture is the unity and friendship
of Catholic and Protestant peo-
ple, displayed in the communi-
ties where they live together: In
the Falls Road, Oldpark and Cor-
poration Street areas, where
some of the worst of the attacks
occurred, Catholic and Protes-
tant neighbors set up a City De-
fense Corps to protect homes
and prevent incidents.

“In these areas, where threats
and warnings had been made by
Paisleyites and Orange Order
extremists from outside the
communities for weeks, Protes-
tant families have frequently of-
fered to look after the furniture
and even the children of Catho-
lic families evacuating in fear.

“The Irish Congress of Trade
Unions in Northern Ireland com-
posed of both Catholic and
Protestant workers, has called
for an end to sectarian strife,
and for democratization meas-
ures.”

It is such unity which can
compel the British government
at long last to live up to its
responsibilities for upholding
democracy, and which open the
way for resolution of the “Irish
Question” in the true interests
of the people of all Ireland.

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—SEPTEMBER 5,,]969-—PAGE 5,