Archive for the ‘United Left Alliance’ Category
United Left Alliance Galway and X Case – Public Meeting 7th March, 2012
From the ULA/Galway…(via The Cedar Lounge Revolution)
ULA Galway to hold public information meeting to mark 20th anniversary of the X Case and to highlight legislation campaign
The Galway branch of the United Left Alliance will hold a public meeting to mark the twentieth anniversary of the X Case and to publicise the Medical Treatment Bill 2012, which will give legislative effect to the ruling made by the Supreme Court in the case.
The public meeting will take place this Wednesday (7th March) at 7:30pm in the Kirwan Lecture Theatre in NUI Galway.
Wednesday marks the twentieth anniversary of the Supreme Court ruling, which held that a woman, whose life was endangered by a pregnancy, could legally avail of an abortion in Ireland. The meeting will also coincide with International Women’s Day.
The ULA TDs and some of the Dáil technical group TDs have brought forward the Medical Treatment (Termination Of Pregnancy In Case Of Risk To Life Of Pregnant Woman) Bill 2012 in order to provide a legislative basis for the legal termination of a pregnancy in the very limited circumstances where such treatment is deemed necessary to prevent a woman’s death, including the threat of suicide. This was the outcome of the Supreme Court judgment in Attorney General v. X in 1992.
The public meeting will hear from three distinguished speakers, and will be chaired by local activist and ULA chairperson Dette McLoughlin.
Dr. Niamh Reilly, who is a senior lecturer at NUI Galway and a co-director of the University’s Global Women’s Studies programme will speak about the political, legal and social contexts that led to the X Case.
Midwife and activist Mary Smith has worked as a nurse with Dublin’s Well Woman Centre and as a research office with the crisis pregnancy agency and will highlight the experiences of women who have affected by the lack of legislation and clarity with regard to lifesaving abortion.
Therese Caherty is co-convenor of the Open Feminist Forum and a member of the Action on X campaign group. She will discuss the Bill and its provisions, as well as the political process that will be required to see it become law.
The meeting will end with a question and answer session,
Speaking ahead of the meeting, Galway ULA chairperson Dette McLoughlin asked “why has this Supreme Court ruling been ignored? The electorate has twice urged the Government through referendums to act on the reality of crisis pregnancy and relate this judgment into law. We have had six successive Governments and yet shamefully we still do not have legislation in place. It appears that the vast majority of elected representatives choose to ignore the will of the people rather than speak out for legislation.”
“The most basic level of reproductive rights is still being denied to women in Ireland. Twenty years on, despite women having the right to an abortion in Ireland in limited circumstances, the State has failed to give legislative effect to the Supreme Court ruling. This means that all women living in Ireland who need to terminate a pregnancy are forced to travel abroad to access this medical procedure.”
“This has gone on long enough.”
The “X” case involved a 14-year old girl who had become pregnant by rape. The girl, known as “X”, was barred from travelling abroad for an abortion. Amidst anger at the court’s injunction and sympathy for the girl’s situation, the case convulsed the citizens of Ireland. The Supreme Court subsequently ruled that abortion was legal where there was a “real and substantial risk to the life” of a pregnant woman, including suicide.
Over 60 organisations and individuals – including several TDs, trade unions, and doctors, have called for immediate legislation in line with the ‘X’ case.
“This bill is in line with the constitution, with the 1992 Supreme Court ruling and with the wishes of the people as expressed in two referendums. If passed it would represent an historic step forward for women, and for the country as a whole. There is no excuse for Government or opposition TDs to oppose this Bill. We must put pressure on politicians to support this bill. We cannot allow them to play the coward with this vitally important issue. Come along on Wednesday and add your voice to the campaign.
For more information visit http://www.unitedleftalliance.org or find ULA Galway on Facebook.
Nonaligned members of ULA Sub-Committee on structures selected
The ULA Steering Committee has decided not to proceed with a postal ballot for the nonaligned positions, and has now selected to the Sub-Committee all the four nonaligned members who were nominated. Selected on 28th February were Ken Doyle, Swords, Stephen Lendaro, Dublin South, Alan Gibson, Cork and Conor McGuinness, Galway.
It was also agreed that the three component groups would have an entitlement to have up to three representatives on the body.
The Steering Committee has proposed that the first meeting of the Sub-Committee take place in Dublin on Saturday 10 March.
Vote No to EU Austerity Treaty – Bailout People Not Banks – Public Meeting, Liberty Hall, Monday March 5, 7.30pm
First Poster of the 2012 EU Austerity Referendum Campaign
- Bailout People Not Banks
Link to PDF of Poster is Here :
More Information on the Danish Red-Green MEP Soren Sondergaard Here :
Soren Sondergaard on Denmark and the Euro
Danish People’s Movement Welcomes Foreign Workers
Public Action was needed to force the government to hold a referendum.
We have extra time after the Lisbon Treaty 1-1 draw – let’s score in extra time and win this European battle on Irish Soil – start the fight back against the parasite banks in Ireland, spread the spirit of rebellion beyond our shores to the rest of Europe.
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United Left Alliance calls for a NO vote in ‘Austerity Referendum’
The five United Left Alliance TDs (Richard Boyd Barrett, Joan Collins, Clare Daly, Joe Higgins and Seamus Healy) today called for a NO vote in the referendum on the Fiscal Treaty – the austerity treaty. Read the rest of this entry »
Action on ‘X’ Public Meeting Gresham Hotel, Tuesday 21 February, 7.30pm; Broad Support for Dáil Legislation
Action on X
The Irish Times Reports :
A PRIVATE Members’ Bill which would provide for limited access to abortion will be introduced in the Dáil next week.
The Bill, to make abortion legal where there is a “real and substantial risk to the life” of the pregnant woman, will be introduced by Socialist Party TD Clare Daly in private members’ time and will be voted on in the House on April 19th.
Over 60 organisations and individuals, including seven TDs, two Senators, trade unions, academics and doctors have called for “immediate legislation in line with the ‘X’ case”.
More Here :
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2012/0218/1224311978354.html
There is an impressive media round-up here :
Action on X After 20 Years
http://www.facebook.com/actiononx2012
Public Meeting on February 21 Read the rest of this entry »
Postal vote for election of nonaligned to ULA sub-committee
The following email went out to ULA members, or some, yesterday:
From: “United Left Alliance” <contact@unitedleftalliance.org>
Date: 15 Feb 2012
Subject: ULA sub-committee election
To:
Dear all,
As announced in our previous email a sub-committee is being established to:
– recommend interim arrangements for representation of unaligned members on Steering Committee,
– discuss future development of ULA including the development of participative structure,
– consult all members on these issues and
– report to Steering Committee who will report to conference.
The Steering Committee has agreed that 2 comrades who are members of the ULA but not members of any of the founding organisations, should be part of the subcommittee.
To that effect, we are proposing to set up a postal vote where all such members can take part in the election of two individual ULA members onto the subcommittee. The subcommittee will have eight members in total.
A postal ballot is not ideal but the Steering Committee felt it was best if the individual members on the subcommittee were elected by all such individual members in the ULA.
The Steering Committee to contact by email/letter all comrades on our membership database to ask if they would like to participate in this election to the subcommittee.
As we want to establish the subcommittee as soon as possible, could you get back to us by or on Thursday 23rd of February as to whether you wish to participate in this election and make sure you include your full postal address so you can be sent a ballot paper.
Please note this is an election of members to the subcommittee on structures. The election of individual members to the Steering Committee will take place at the ULA Conference in April.
In relation to nomination: Nominees must not be members of any of the founding organisations – the People Before Profit Alliance, the Workers and Unemployed Action Group (Tipperary) or the Socialist Party. Nominations can be by ULA branches or by individuals, in which case the nominee should be proposed and seconded and again should be communicated to the ULA office by Thursday 23rd of February.
Please note:
- · If you want to participate in the election of two ULA members, who are not part of any of the founding groups, onto the subcommittee on structures, get in touch with your full address by Thursday 23rd of February.
- · Nominations for this election can be made by ULA branches or by individual members, a proposer and seconder and should be sent to the ULA office by Thursday 23rd of February.
Thanks,
United Left Alliance
That little birdie again: ULA conference 28th April
Tomás is reliably informed that the ULA conference has been reset for Saturday 28th April 2012.
France: The NPA in Crisis
Both the SWP internal communication of 6th February and a commentator on it reffered to the Nouveau Parti Anticapitaliste (New Anti-capitalist Party, NPA) in France. It has truely suffered the dramatic decline in membership mentioned. The NPA is particularly significant for those of us who promote a new pluralist radical left and it deserves consideration beyond hostile and misleading soundbites.
We reproduce below an article on the NPA, complete with comments, by Jason Stanley, from the January/February 2012 issue of the US magazine Against The Current, an analytical journal for the broad revolutionary left sponsored by the Solidarity group there. It is a model, for any online discussion, of informed substance, civility, commitment and calm.
France: The NPA in Crisis
— Jason Stanley
FRANCE’S NEW ANTI-CAPITALIST Party (NPA) is in crisis. While only two years ago many on the international left talked about the NPA as one of the brightest lights on an otherwise dim revolutionary horizon, today the Party is hemorrhaging members and struggling to stay afloat. Read the rest of this entry »
Tomás Ó Flatharta 