WS102 is now online

First Ulster edition

The articles from Workers Solidarity 102 are now online, the edition is significant because WS102 was published in different editions for north and south of the border. Both front covers are shown here.

Northern front cover

PDF files

The Ulster edition of Workers Solidarity 102
http://www.wsm.ie/attachments/apr2008/ws102.pdf

The southern edition of Workers Solidarity 102
http://www.wsm.ie/attachments/apr2008/ws10226.pdf

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International Women's Day
Every year we celebrate International Women’s Day on March 8th. This goes back to 1910, when an international conference of socialist women decided that 'women the world over set aside a particular day each year to remember women and their struggles.'

Will the Lisbon Treaty vote change anything?
Last year, the EU Constitution was defeated in referenda in France and the Netherlands. Europe’s governments quickly got together and rewrote the constitution as an incredibly complicated list of amendments to existing treaties. Together these amendments make up the “Treaty of Lisbon.” Valery Giscard d’Estaing, the president of the Convention on the Future of Europe which did much of the ground work in drafting the constitution, has concluded that “the difference between the original Constitution and the present Lisbon Treaty is one of approach, rather than content”.

Thinking About Anarchism: Freedom, Democracy and Republicanism
For decades they sold the concept of ‘freedom’ and talked about a ‘socialist republic’ but now, with Martin McGuinness chuckling around the world with Ian Paisley, it’s clear that Sinn Fein’s concept of ‘freedom’ and their supposed vision of a ‘32-County Socialist Republic’ was at best an illusion.Hundreds of republicans over the last 30-odd years killed and died, were imprisoned and suffered severe personal and emotional traumas in the name of that ‘freedom’. But today true freedom remains as far away as ever.

It’s Time to Fight for Quality Public Healthcare
The tragedies, the mistakes and the disputes roll on. Mary Harney and the HSE merrily proceed with their agenda of privatisation. They continue to run down the public health service while creating opportunities for profit-driven healthcare, business opportunities for their already rich friends. They ignore the misery and anger of patients and health workers while trying to divert our attention from the real causes of the problems in Irish healthcare.

That's Capitalism
Shorts highlighting the crazy world of capitalism

Mad Asset Stripping
A report from Irish Psychiatric Association (IPA), 'The Lie of the Land', lists instances where land that was adjacent to psychiatric hospitals is being sold off cheaply, or even given away for other purposes.

Organising to beat the boss: Interview with a Belfast retail worker
An interview with a member of the TGWU who is attempting to organise a union in a leading Irish Sports Shop in Belfast. It describes the problems facing workers in the retail sector who are exploited by their employers and start organising themselves in their own work-place to improve their conditions. These problems are even more acute when there is no history of unionisation in the workplace and a limited awareness of people's rights as workers.

Irish Ferries: exploiting workers and insulting Wilde
When Irish Ferries launched their new €50million vessel in Dublin Port on Tuesday 29th January, 400 guests from the tourism, freight and shipping sectors attended the naming ceremony. How many of them, I wonder, took a moment as they quaffed their champagne and nibbled on their canapés to ponder on the news revealed by International Transport Workers Federation inspector, Ken Fleming, that the workers who would be manning the ferry will be paid as little as €4 per hour?

Ireland's Imperial Adventure in Chad
Most people will be aware that Irish troops are being sent to Africa as part of an EU 'peace-keeping' mission to Chad and Central African Republic (CAR), but many will be relatively unaware of the background to the conflict and the reasons for the mission. Chad and Central African Republic are both resource rich (oil, gold and uranium in Chad, gold, diamonds and uranium in CAR) but economically underdeveloped former colonies of France.

Who are the real spongers?
Welcome to the new era in the north, in which waiting lists for social housing are at their highest in over 30 years, landlords like the local Rooney brothers continue to plunder our communities to make way for ‘yuppie’ flats. Meanwhile, our local politicians are expected to receive a 16% pay increase while we are expected to bend over backwards for the bosses and supposedly wait for the ‘trickle down effect’.

Welfare cuts spell a war on women
The Irish Government is planning to replace the ‘One Parent Family Allowance‘, a welfare payment for single parents of children under the age of eighteen with the ‘Parental Allowance‘. The primary difference between two is that while the OPFA ends when the parent's youngest child is eighteen, the PA ends when the youngest child turns eight. At this stage the parent will be transferred to an ordinary unemployment benefit, and will thus be forced into the job market. At present the policy is on trial in Kilkenny and Dublin, but the Government hopes to apply it throughout the state in the next Budget.
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Anarchism and the WSM
February saw many of the newer members meet up at a day long session for discussions about anarchist ideas, why we talk about class, how we fight women’s oppression, anarchist organisation, anarchist history, the Spanish Revolution, Russia: revolution and counter revolution and practical organising in our unions & communities.

We do regular events like this to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to discuss and learn. In the WSM there are no leaders and led, internal education and debate is vital for any truly democratic organisation that wants to remain that way as it grows..

February also saw the formation of a new WSM branch in Belfast. You can get in touch at belfastwsm@yahoo.com or 079 2847 9308.

The WSM stands for a society where production is organised to meet human needs and desires rather than to generate profit for a few. We hold that there should no limits on human liberty other than respect for the liberty of others. We believe in democracy, in direct democracy. This means everyone being able to have a say in making the decisions that will effect them.

We are an organisation of working class anarchists who have come together to maximise the impact of anarchist ideas. Pooling the resources of many people allows us to distribute 10,000 copies of this paper every two months, and 1,000 copies of our twice yearly magazine, Red & Black Revolution. It allows us to discuss the best ways to advance working class interests, and prioritise particular activities rather than be so widely dispersed as to have little effect.

Every additional person who joins adds a little bit more to what we can achieve. To find out more you can write to the WSM, P.O. Box 1528, Dublin 8; or email us at wsm_ireland.@yahoo.com.

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PDF files

The Ulster edition of Workers Solidarity 102
http://www.wsm.ie/attachments/apr2008/ws102.pdf

The southern edition of Workers Solidarity 102
http://www.wsm.ie/attachments/apr2008/ws10226.pdf

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Southern front cover