Dignified Protest in Clonmel at Labour Party Hypocrisy – Honouring James Connolly and Jim Larkin
We publish below a Report from Séamus Healy TD on Protests marking the 100th anniversary of the all-Ireland Labour party founded by James Connolly and Jim Larkin.
See also an Irish Times account of the same event,
Dignified Protest in Clonmel at Labour Party Hypocrisy
A dignified and successful protest organised by the Workers and Unemployed Action Group was held outside the Town Hall Clonmel on Sunday last , May 27 2012.
The event was organised to protest against the savage austerity being imposed on the Irish people by the Labour Party in Government and to expose the claim that the Labour Party of today has anything in common with the all-Ireland Labour party founded by James Connolly and Jim Larkin in Clonmel 100 years ago.
As is now usual the Labour Party was in hiding, they had run away again, cancelling the ceremony and sneaking into the Town Hall ‘earlier’ for a private unveiling. Three weeks ago Eamonn Gilmore and the Labour Leadership ran away, pulling out of the Clonmel Commemoration and giving the pathetic excuse of the Referendum. Read the rest of this entry »
Show Me The Money: Austerity Treaty – fact sheet from ULA Steering Committee member Eddie Conlon
Show Me The Money
The Yes side’s key argument is that if we don’t vote Yes, we will not be able to access ESM funds for a potential second bailout Therefore, they suggest, we will not be able to access any funds and the result will be a need to close the deficit gap in one year – hence more austerity.
They have been assisted by the media in turning this into the question of the debate, rather than debating the actual contents of the Austerity Treaty, the austerity it imposes, and the attack on democratic rights.
We need to be able to answer this question in such a way as to not turn it into the 18 billion euro question, and instead to turn the discussion back to austerity. When they say “show us the money” we should say “show us the cuts”.
The first thing we should say is:
- Seeking another bailout us an admission that government policy has failed. It is ludicrous of the government to tell us that we must take all of the pain associated with austerity so that we can get back to the markets and regain our sovereignty and at the same time tell us we must vote yes so that we can have another bailout and give up our sovereignty yet again. The need for another bailout is because austerity has failed. Therefore we need an alternative to austerity.
- A bailout will come at a cost. Firstly we are committed to providing €11b to the ESM if required. Secondly any money that comes from the fund will come with demands for more cuts, privatisation etc. As the Amendment to Art 136 says “The granting of any required financial assistance under the mechanism (ESM) will be made subject to strict conditionality”
But we should be clear that:
- The government has colluded in linking the treaty to the ESM
- It has a veto on the ESM.
- There are other sources of money if the government really wants them
- The EU has given commitment to further funding in the future perhaps for its own reasons.
- The government have colluded in linking the treaty to the ESM and is engaging in blackmail
The ESM Treaty was agreed unanimously at the European Council in February. Therefore the government did not oppose it. The government are presenting the link between the two treaties as an unfortunate reality. The link was not in the original ESM Treaty of July 2011. Read the rest of this entry »
The future of the workers of Europe is being decided in Greece (Statement of the Fourth International)
A key point :
Greece has become a laboratory for Europe. They are testing out on human guinea-pigs the methods which will then be applied to Portugal, Spain, Ireland, Italy and so on. The Greek people have revolted, in the workplaces, in the streets and at the ballot boxes, against these cruel policies.
Link to International Viewpoint article Here :
The future of the workers of Europe is being decided in Greece
SYRIZA or the magnificent breakthrough of a unique unifying and original experience
SYRIZA or the magnificent breakthrough of a unique unifying and original experience
| by Yorgos Mitralias | ||
| Translated by John Catalinotto | ||
A nightmare for “those on top,” a hope for “those on the bottom,” SYRIZA made a sensational debut on the political landscape of Europe in deep crisis. After quadrupling its electoral strength on May 6, SYRIZA now aims not only to become the largest party in Greece in the June 17 elections, but to be able to form a left-wing government which will repeal the austerity measures, repudiate the debt and chase the Troika out of the country. So it’s no surprise if SYRIZA fascinates many outside Greece, and if almost everyone is asking about its origin and true nature, its goals and ambitions.
SYRIZA, however, is not exactly a newcomer to the European left. Born in 2004, the Coalition of the Radical Left (SYRIZA) would have to attract the attention of political scientists and the international media, not least because from its beginning, it was a totally new and original type of political entity in the landscape of the Greek, European and even global left. Read the rest of this entry »
Clonmel Connolly Larkin and Labour Party
South Tipperary TD Seamus Healy Opposes Austerity Policy of today’s Labour Party – Revives Radical Tradition of Connolly and Larkin – 100 Years Ago they Proposed Labour Party Foundation in Clonmel.
Protest at Labour Commemoration, Clonmel Town Hall, Sunday May 27, 11.00am
The sole Labour Party representative on Clonmel Borough Council will unveil a plaque in the Town Hall at 12 mid-day next Sunday, May 27 to mark the centenary of the successful proposal of James Connolly and Jim Larkin to the Irish TUC AGM to form a 32-county All-Ireland Labour Party.
The Workers and Unemployed Action Group led by Seamus Healy TD is the largest party on the Council having 5 elected members on the 12 member Council. WUAG is an affiliate of the UNITED LEFT ALLIANCE.
WUAG takes the view that the austerity policy being imposed by the Labour Party in Government is the direct opposite of the policies advocated by Connolly and Larkin which led them to propose the formation of a Labour Party in 1912. This policy includes wage reductions (JLC BILL), cuts in child benefit…
View original post 144 more words
Tomás Ó Flatharta 