Saor Éire 2011 – A gathering for socialists and republicans

They think they have bought half of us off with the withdrawal of the British garrison in Ireland to barracks and fooled the rest of us into believing that bail outs and tax breaks for the rich are somehow in the interests of working people.

However the fools they have left us armed with something far more dangerous than any bullet or any ounce.

The historical legacy and political ideas of James Connolly should act as a guide to the actions that republicans and socialists should be engaged in.

Ninety-five years after the execution of Irish socialist republican James Connolly, Ireland remains under the yoke of capitalism and imperialism.

On Saturday, May 7, éirígí has organised a gathering where the way forward for the national liberation and class struggles in Ireland today can debated and discussed.

‘Saor Éire’ in the 1930s was central to the project of radicalising a generation of activists and it is fitting then that it will today be the title for a gathering which hopes over the coming years to achieve the same end.

‘Saor Éire’ – A gathering for socialists and republicans

Venue: Ashling Hotel (Parkgate Street, across from Heuston Station)
 

Date: Saturday, May 7

10am – The resources of Ireland for the people of Ireland?
The giveaway of Irish natural and the struggle to reclaim them. Speakers: Maura Harrington (Shell to Sea) and more.

11am – James Connolly – Idol or Ideologue for Irish Republicans?
Speakers: Aindrias Ó Cathasaigh (author) and Dr Brian Kelly (lecturer, QUB).
A discussion on whether Irish republicans only see James Connolly in terms of his involvement in the 1916 Rising or seriously use his writings and actions over his lifetime as a guide to their political commitments.

12 Noon – Fighting back against the EU/IMF cuts
Speakers include éirígí's Daithí Mac An Mháistir, Pepe Gutierrez from Latin America Solidarity Campaign and Brendan Ogle of Unite the Union.

1pm – Break

1.30pm – No Queen Here – Why we oppose monarchy and imperialism
Brian Leeson of éirígí, Roger Cole of PANA and others will take part in a discussion on the imminent arrival of the commander of British military and why imperialism in Ireland and abroad must be resisted.

3.30pm – James Connolly Commemoration, Arbour Hill cemetery.

Attack on Libya – Another War for Oil

The United States, Britain and France have launched a joint military assault on Libya, which came just days after a United Nations resolution imposing a ‘no-fly zone’ on the country.

The assault commenced on Saturday night [March 19] when over 100 cruise missiles were fired from US warships and submarines off the coast of Libya. According to reports, dozens of civilians have been killed as western powers move to impose regime change on a country that it held as a close ally until very recently.

US and British interference and occupation in Iraq and Afghanistan demonstrates that the civilian population suffers most, as western powers, under the guise of protecting the civilian population seek to protect and advance their strategic and business interests in the region.

Declarations from western powers that the military strike against Libya is motivated solely by a desire to protect the civilian population cannot be taken seriously. Western imperialist powers have stood by as protestors in other countries in the region have been slaughtered. In Yemen, 40 protestors were shot dead by state forces, while the west’s closest ally in the region Saudi Arabia has swept into Bahrain, where martial law has been declared, in support of that country’s autocratic regime.

The brutal Saudi regime bans political parties, has declared protests ‘un-Islamic’ and continues to incarcerate almost 8,000 political prisoners. The Saudi’s so-called peace keeping force in Bahrain has besieged and machine gunned hospitals, where demonstrators are being treated for injuries sustained at the hands of state forces.

Yet, the continuing military offensive against the civilian population in Bahrain has met only with weasel words from US secretary of state Hilary Clinton who lamely stated, “We have made clear that security alone cannot resolve the challenges facing Bahrain.” The US also supported its Israeli ally, when its military bombarded Gaza during Operation Cast Lead in December 2008, slaughtering over 1,400 Palestinians. There was no UN resolution imposing a ‘no fly zone’ to protect the civilian population of Palestine.

Just last October the Obama administration agreed an arms deal with the Saudi regime worth US$60 billion, which included the sale of 84 F-15 fighter jets; the upgrading of a further 70 older F-15s; and 200 new attack helicopters. At a press conference announcing details of the deal, Andrew Shapiro, US assistant secretary for political and military affairs, was clear about its purpose, which was to enhance the ability of the Saudis to “deter and defend threats to its oil structure, which is critical to our [US] economic interests”.

Under the deal, the US air force will train Saudi pilots to fly the F-15 jets and discussions are taking place to upgrade Saudi Arabia's navy, worth an additional US$30bn. That attack helicopters are being used to machine gun hospitals treating pro-democracy protestors in Bahrain is unlikely to trouble the Obama regime. The Saudis, along with Jordan and the United Arab Emirates, are also offering military support for the attack on Libya.

For the west, the blood of civilians is, after all, secondary to ensuring that the oil keeps flowing.

The British government is keen to ensure that BP maintains access to Libyan oil, while another major British oil corporation, Shell, reached a deal with the Libyan state oil company in 2005. This deal gave the oil giant access to explore for gas in five blocks covering 20,000 square kilometres in the Sirte Basin and would see it spending between US$105m and $450m on upgrading a Libyan gas plant and US$187m on exploration. 

While the British government expresses concern for the civilian population of Libya, it supplied missiles and air defence systems to the same regime under an agreement reached in 2007. The hypocrisy is astounding.

People power has toppled the dictatorships of Ben Ali in Tunisia and Hosni Mubarak in Egypt; a former key ally of the west, who facilitated the US invasion of Iraq and the Israeli siege of Gaza. The wave of protests sweeping through the Middle East has unnerved the US, Britain and Israel.

éirígí supports the right of the people of Libya to determine their own future without interference from outside powers.

Establishment figures in Ireland are falling over themselves to welcome the announcement that US president Barack Obama will visit the Twenty-Six Counties in May. There has been a deathly silence from establishment political figures about Obama’s war mongering in Afghanistan, the use of US drones on the Pakistani border, which last week killed 40 civilians in Waziristan, his administration’s continued support for despotic regimes such as Saudi Arabia, the failure to close Guantanamo Bay, and the continued use of Shannon airport by the US military.

The slaughter of hundreds of thousands of civilians in a bloody war for oil in both Iraq and Afghanistan is a stark reminder of the human cost of the west’s imperial ambitions. While the west claims its purpose in bombing Libya is to defend the civilian population, it has stood by and supported Saudi Arabia’s invasion of Bahrain to defend that country’s despotic regime and attack pro-democracy demonstrators. Meanwhile, the fact that Yemen lacks oil means that the lives of the innocent of that country are of no concern to the western imperial powers.

The US, British and French military attack on Libya is quite simply another war for oil and should be opposed as such.

éirígí announce Leinster House Finance Bill Protest for Saturday

The socialist republican party éirígí are to hold a demonstration outside Leinster House in Kildare Street this Saturday January 29th.  The protest which will commence at 5.30pm has been organised in opposition to the Finance bill which is currently being fast-tracked through Leinster House.

Announcing the demonstration Cathaoirleach éirígí Brian Leeson said that people need to take to  the streets to resist the savage cutbacks being imposed from Leinster House on behalf of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the European Central Bank (ECB).

Leeson said:  “The Finance Bill which is currently being fast-tracked through Leinster House is set to be the final shameful piece of legislation enacted by this Fianna Fáil led administration.  It will give a legal basis to last November's blood budget.  This will enable the continuance of the policy of making working class  families and communities pay for the greed and corruption of bankers, developers and property speculators.”

“The true cost of this Finance Bill and the grubby deal arranged  with the IMF will not be measured in euros and cents.  Rather, it will be measured in levels of homelessness, in the severe decline of educational standards and in the massive increase in ill-health and ultimately unnecessary deaths of working class people that will inevitably result from it.”

Leeson concluded by urging people to take to the streets:

“We have an obligation, not just to this generation but to future generations to resist and fight back.  We need to drive the IMF from our shores, to burn the bondholders, to reverse the cutbacks and to establish the sovereignty of the people.  éirígí are urging people to take to the streets on Saturday to send a clear message to the IMF that their dictatorship will be resisted regardless of what puppets are implementing their dictats in Leinster House.”

Where are the promised Lisbon jobs Now?

IBEC posters promising jobs during second Lisbon Treaty Referendum Campaign

Do you remember seeing all these posters?  'Yes for Jobs', 'Yes for Jobs and Investment', 'Yes to Recovery' as well as a whole host of other literature bearing a similar message.  Remember all those politicians promising the moon and the stars (and particularly the jobs) in order to con people into voting for a treaty that they had already democratically rejected?

Well that was almost 12 months, so where exactly are all these jobs we were promised if the Lisbon Treaty was ratified?  Recently released figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) showed that,  contrary to those  promises of economic recovery and job creation,  unemployment levels in this state are at its highest in more than 16 years.  The numbers on the live register in July reached more than 466,000, an increase of 14,000 on June of this year and more than 34,000 higher than July of 2009.

The state wide figures are replicated here in the north west also.  There were 22,832 people on the Live Register in Donegal at the end of July, up 1,981 on the same period last year, a rise of 9.5%.  However, the jobless figure for Ballyshannon rose by a massive 15%, with Dungloe increasing by 13% and Letterkenny by 12%.  And in the latest blow to Donegal's unemployment problems, it was announced last week that the Keith Prowse call centre in Lisfannon, Buncrana, Co Donegal is set to close with the loss of up to 100 jobs.

In County Sligo, the unemployed numbers have risen by 166 from June and almost 500 from July 2009 to now stand at 5932.   In Leitrim those signing on has increased by 163 to total 3900, while County Roscommon's total is now 4,306 following yet another increase of 216 from last month and up 425 on July of last year.  County Mayo also seen an increase in those signing on with an extra 450 people joining the live register in July bringing the total to 13,965, and increase of more than 1200 on this time last year.

Despite the continued job losses and the fact that Fianna Fáil led administrations have succeeded in increasing unemployment levels from just 4.3% in July 2005 to the current level of 13.7% and rising in July 2010, Fianna Fáil Ministers have defended and attempted to justify the rising unemployment figures and their abject failure to save and create jobs.

According to Batt O'Keefe, Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Innovation, Fianna Fáil policies "are helping Ireland to emerge from recession and to avoid another period of protracted recession."

"We will persist with our policies" he said "to help unemployed workers to get back into the labour force and create conditions conducive to job creation".

Billboard in Donegal (December 2009)

Reacting to the latest unemployment figures and Fianna Fáil's response to them, éirígi activist Gerry Casey accused the government of "gross incompetence and mismanagement  of the economy".  He also claimed that the true figures for people losing their jobs is far higher than the figures suggest.

Casey said:  "At the time of the second Lisbon Treaty referendum campaign last year, Fianna Fáil backed up by the supposed opposition parties, Labour and Fine Gael as well as the representatives of big business such as IBEC and the American Chamber of Commerce in Ireland, promised us all that a vote for the Lisbon Treaty would secure jobs for Ireland.  As éirígí pointed out during the campaign, that was a blatant lie.  The continued loss of jobs around the state and the latest unemployment figures which now stands at a 16 year high of 466,000, exposes that lie clearly for all to see."

He added:  "However bad people may think those figures are, the reality is that the numbers losing their jobs is actually far higher.  What the figures don't show are those who are unemployed and have been forced to emigrate once more, egged on by a government happy to push them onto a boat or plane and get them off the live register.  Shamefully, forced emigration, a thing the Irish people thought was a thing of the past, has re-emerged with a vengeance as a direct result of this governments policies.  The statistics also hide those who are now on state schemes or remained in education due to a lack of employment."

"Fianna Fáil and the Greens have failed  miserably in tacking the jobs crisis and creating sustainable employment.  Their policy in terms of reducing the numbers of unemployed has been to cynically squeeze our young people who find themselves out of work to such a degree that they are forced to emigrate."

"On top of losing their jobs, young people had their dole reduced to €100 a week and €150 a week for under 21's and 22-24 year olds respectively, making it virtually impossible for them to survive on the dole in their own country.  Even at that, people signing on to receive this pittance are been forced to wait for as long as 16 weeks before being paid.  These measures were deliberately introduced by a callous government in order to make life unbearable for young unemployed people in the hope they would choose the option of emigration thus helping to hide the true extent of unemployment.”

FIanna Fáil, Fine Gael & Labour Unite in False Jobs Promises during Lisbon Treaty Referendum Campaign

"This administration, aided by the 'opposition' and big business, lied to the Irish people when they told us that ratifying the Lisbon Treaty would mean job creation and an end to the recession.  The 'opposition' who would offer themselves as an alternative deliberately lied to the Irish people also.  These parties, along with the neo-liberal capitalist system they strive to maintain, all share responsibility for the current economic crisis and the savage attacks being waged against working people and those less well off in society." 

Casey concluded:  "The solution to our social and economic problems is not replacing Tweedledum (Fianna Fáil/Greens) with Tweedledee (Fine Gael/Labour).  The solution lies in dismantling their rotten corrupt  capitalist system that continues to heap misery and hardship on working class communities and to replace it with an alternative Ireland based on public ownership and a decent standard of living and working conditions for all."

Dont Fund Israeli War Crimes - Boycott Israeli Goods

This weekend (July 9-11) is International Boycott Sanctions & Divestment (BDS) Weekend against Israel. Here in Ireland, to mark the occasion, the IPSC (Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign) are launching a nationwide petition calling on Dunnes Stores to cease stocking Israeli goods in their stores.

This petition and actions surrounding it are in support and solidarity with up to 200 organisations from within Palestinian civil society who have pleaded with the international community to endorse the call for a campaign of boycott, divestment and sanctions against Israel, similar to that which helped to end the apartheid regime in South Africa. These organisations include Palestinian trade unions, professional bodies such as all the academic unions and associations, medical unions, and most of the major NGOs.

The Palestinian people continue to endure terrible suffering and brutal repression at the hands of the Israeli regime on a daily basis. The illegal occupation of the West Bank, theft of Palestinian land and resources, the continued expansion of illegal settlements and the construction of their apartheid wall continues unabated. Despite Israel's claims that they have somehow 'eased' their illegal siege of Gaza, their unhumane blockade and clear violation of international law continues.

This deliberate policy, coupled with the devestation caused to the infrastructure of Gaza during Operation Cast Lead last year when they slaughtered more than 1400 people, more than three hundred of whom were children, has resulted in the complete collapse of the Gazan economy and extensive and unnecessary illness and deaths, particularly among the young and elderly.

Let no-one be under any illusion – the suffering endured by the civilian population in Gaza is no accident. Neither is it a case of them being 'caught in the middle' as Israel targets Hamas as some might suggest.

No, the siege itself, like Israel's policy towards the Palestinians generally, is targetted specifically at the civilian population. By Israel's own admission, the blockade has a primarily political, as opposed to military objective, which is to put pressure on the civilian population of the Gaza Strip in order to influence Hamas.
 

Former Israeli Deputy Defense Minister M.K. Matan Vilnai equated the closure of Gaza with the achievement of changes in Hamas 'behaviour': He said that Israel would need “to reduce the scope of goods and thus create pressure on the Hamas organization, which is deliberately failing to take steps to advance the negotiation."

According to a senior Israeli government adviser Dov Weisglass the idea was “to put Palestinians on a diet but not to make them die of hunger”.

It is a clear cut case of collective punishment being imposed on a civilian population completely at odds with international law.

Article 33 of the Fourth Geneva Genvention is crystal clear on such matters. It says: “No protected person (civilian) may be punished for an offence he or she has not personally committed. Collective penalties and likewise all measures of intimidation or of terrorism are prohibited.”

Yet despite this, the US and the EU have welcomed Israel's 'easing' of the siege, which is nothing more than a PR stunt to divert attention away from massacre of humanitarian activists on board the Gaza aid flotilla. Once again they seem to ignore Israel's blatant contempt for International law and basic human rights for Palestinians. They need to be reminded that only a complete and total end to the blockade is acceptable under international law and to the Palestinian people.

The Palestine Center for Human Rights (PCHR) have already expressed their concerns over some international reaction to Israel's move. Raji Sourani, Director of PCHR, said that “the siege has transformed the Gaza Strip into an animal farm. The risk is that Gaza is just passing to another form of illegal blockade, one that may become internationally accepted and institutionalized."

The EU and US have also conveniently and shamefully ignored the litany of war crimes carried out by Israel, most notably those carried out during their month long murderous assault on Gaza last year and the more recent massacre of humanitarian activists on the Gaza aid flotilla. 
 

Specifically where the Dublin government are concerned, they have turned a blind eye and failed to take any action against Israel.   This is despite the fact that Israel engaged in the hi-jacking and kidnapping of Irish citizens on board Challenger 1 and the MV Rachel Corrie who they subsequently assaulted and ill treated while in captivity. Yet at the time at their kidnapping, Brian Cowen warned  that Israel would face “serious consequences” if any Irish citizens were injured. True to form, but shameful nonetheless, this Fianna Fáil led administration have so far refused to take any action whatsoever against the zionist regime.

In a briefing document distributed to members of the Leinster House Joint Committee on European Affairs on June 21, the IPSC proposed the following steps that the Dublin government need to take in relation to Palestine and Israeli War Crimes

(1)End its arms trade with Israel, e.g. the purchase of helmets and bullets from Israeli firms

(2) Support the suspension of the Euro-Mediterranean Association Agreement until Israel complies with international law

(3) Ensure that the ‘silent upgrade’ of EU-Israeli relations is halted until Israel complies with international law

(4) Work to reverse Israel's premature accession to the OECD

(5) Withdraw its ambassador from Tel Aviv as other countries have done, and expel the Israeli ambassador to Ireland. "Symbolic" actions such as the expulsion of a minor security official from the Israeli Embassy are insufficient.

(6) Oppose Israel's plan to hold an "internal" inquiry into its own actions against the Gaza Flotilla and support the holding of a genuinely impartial international inquiry.

(7) Exercise pressure on Irish multinational CRH to divest from its Israeli subsidiary that is engaged in building the Separation Wall deemed illegal by the International Court of Justice in 2005.

However, it is not just campaign groups or politicians that can make a difference or influence the situation. This Boycott campaign is an opportunity for every individual to express their abhorrence at the crimes committed by the Israeli state and to show support for the rights of Palestinian people to secure peace, justice and freedom. But more importantly, it is an opportunity for people to take practical measures that can have a real and positive effect, similar to what happened with the boycott of apartheid-era South African goods.

Support International Boycott Weekend by signing the IPSC petition, distributing the petition if possible to friends, family, neighbours, work colleagues etc and contacting your local store to ask them to cease stocking Israeli goods.

The IPSC in Sligo will be leafletting and gathering signatures for the Boycott Israel petition this Saturday (July 10) in O'Connell Street, Sligo between 2pm an 4pm.  Everyone welcome. 

For more information on International Boycott Day, to get copies of the petition for distribution and to learn of further IPSC activities in your area click here or email info@ipsc.ie

éirígí Calls for Action on Israel

éirígí Tir Chonaill spokesperson, Micheál Cholm Mac Giolla Easbuig, has called on the EU to halt it's association with Israel in light of the recent vote in the European Parliament to support the UN Goldstone Report on Gaza. One of those who has voted in favour of the report is local MEP Pat The Cope Gallagher.


The report, by Justice Richard Goldstone on behalf of the UN Human Rights Council, was compiled in the aftermath of the military assault by Israel on Gaza in early 2009 and was heavily critical of the actions of Israel during the conflict. In the report, Goldstone concluded that Israel committed "grave breaches of the Fourth Geneva Convention in respect of wilful killings and wilfully causing great suffering to protected persons," war crimes and possible crimes against humanity.

Mac Giolla Easbuig said "The fact that the European Parliament has voted in support of such a report goes to show the revulsion that is felt, by so many, of the brutal actions meted out by the Israeli state on the Palestinian people, both in Gaza and the West Bank. This week, the the Council for the EU will be discussing the up-grading of the EU-Israel Association Agreement (EUIAA) and we in éirígí are calling on the EU to halt this in light of the recent vote that was taken by the European Parliament."



"The EU-Israel Association Agreement promotes strong business, trade and cultural links between the EU and Israel and an up-grade to 'special status' will make these links even stronger, eventually giving Israel the chance of more input in EU policies and more access to EU money. This just will not be acceptable. Currently Israel is no more than a rouge state. Its in clear breach of a list of UN Security Council resolutions, the Forth Geneva Convention and rulings from the International Court of Justice. Its even in breach of the regulations of the EU-Israel Association Agreement set up for Israels benefit. Its a nuclear power in violation of international law and shouldn't be rewarded for its continuing illegal occupation in Palestine."

Likening Israel to to the once Apartheid South Africa, Mac Giolla Easbuig continued by saying widespread sanctions should be placed on Israel. "The conditions which the Palestinian people endure under the Israeli occupation are as bad as that which the people of South Africa lived under during the Apartheid Regime. Economic, cultural and sporting boycotts done much to bring that regime to an end and similar actions could go a long way to bring the Israeli states brutality to an end. Rather than aiding and abetting Israel in its crimes the EU should place economic sanctions upon it for the wrongs it continues to perpetrate in the middle east."



Mac Giolla Easbuig concluded by saying, "The current Twenty-Six County government have their part to play in this also. They should be actively calling on Israel to desist from its many crimes, instead of backing them by trading with them in deals, such as the purchasing of millions of euros worth of bullets from Israeli Military Industries, a deal which they are currently considering."

"At the up-coming EUIAA meeting, the Twenty-Six Counties will be represented by the Department of Foreign Affairs and given Israels track record and its continuing occupation of Palestine and blockade of Gaza, I'm calling on the government to insist that this agreement isn't up-graded, but rather scrapped altogether. I would also ask that those who represent the Twenty-Six Counties in the European Parliament, such as Pat The Cope Gallagher, work harder to insure that Israel is brought to book and that the Irish people who they represent are not mis-represented by being made complicit in Israels many crimes."

Palestinian Play in Donegal a big Success

A much larger than expected crowd attended an event to mark International Women's Week in Dungloe last weekend. The event, a play entitled "Clouds on a Mountain Road", was held in Ionad Teampall Chróine, Dungloe, and staged by Derry based theatre company Sole Purpose Productions.

Well over one hundred people turned up on the Saturday evening (13th March) and packed into the upstairs room in Ionad Teampall Chróine, Dungloe, to see the two local actresses, Carmel McCafferty and Abby Oliveira, put on a very emotional and moving performance which got a standing ovation from the audience on the night.

The emotive play looked at the issue of two women living in Palestine, how they deal with the brutal occupation of the Israeli Defence Forces, the conflict the occupation causes and the personal hurt and emotion caused to the women by the conflict. Orna Akad, who wrote the play, looked at how women resist the occupation and the great angst which it causes them, as well as their efforts to make change in their own way, was at the heart of the play.

One of the women portrayed in the play was internationally acclaimed Palestinian poet, Fadwa Tuqan, a women from a comfortable background who had seen the world and lived a western style life. The other was a younger Palestinian women, Inshirah Shiti, a political ex-prisoner and militant from a much poorer background, holding strong religious views. Throughout the course of the play the two women discussed their feelings, the effects the conflict has had on them and the reasons for doing what they did in their own way to resist the occupation of their homeland.

Éirígí Tir Chonaill spokesperson Micheál Cholm Mac Giolla Easbuig who organised the Dungloe event said he was overwhelmed by the amount of people who showed up on the night to see the play and mark International Women's Week. Speaking after the event Micheál Cholm said, "I was amazed and delighted to see so many people make the effort to show up and support this event. Such a crowd turned up that we had to close the doors and unfortunately we had to turn people who came late away, which I'd like to apologise for as I appreciate the fact they made the effort to come to the event. But we just had no more room to fit people in."

"It was such an emotional performance and it was hard not to be moved by the subject matter. All too often the issue of how conflict affects women and people in general on a personal level is overlooked. This play, particularly on International Women's Week, was a good opportunity to do just that. The brutality meted out on the Palestinian people on a daily basis continues and all the problems that come with that affect them both emotionally and psychologically, as well as socially, from the very youngest to the very oldest in their society. There were so many people sitting around me who were moved to tears and that reaction just went to show that the audience took on board the message of the play", he said.

"A women speaking to me after the play said throughout the performance, she could visualise pictures of the suffering of the Palestinian people and almost relived the footage which was shown around the world of the horrors of the prolonged Israeli military attacks on Gaza and its people in early 2009. Not only that but she said she could relate what the women discussed in the play to her own terrible experiences living through the on-going British occupation in the North of Ireland where she had lived for most of her life. So I feel that the play did a service, not only of marking International Women's Week, but in educating people about the many issues, challenges and emotions women face in times of conflict."

Micheál finished by thanking all those involved in helping to stage the play and also thanked the people who turned up on the night to see it.

VOTE NO TO LISBON 2

On October 2nd éirígí are urging people to once again vote NO to the Lisbon Treaty. Despite democratically rejecting the Treaty last year, we are now being forced to vote again on this exact same Treaty.

The French and Dutch public also democratically rejected this Treaty in 2005, then titled the European Constitution, when it was put to them in referenda. Instead of accepting the democratic decision in those countries, the EU simply changed the name of the Treaty and had the French and Dutch government's ratify it without putting it back to the people to avoid it being defeated again.

That this Treaty has not been scrapped despite being rejected by the people of three different European states, only serves to confirm the undemocratic nature of the Treaty and the contempt with which the EU and our so-called government have for democracy itself.

Despite the pretence of the political establishment, this is exactly the same Treaty we rejected last year. Not a single line, word or comma has been changed. Their claims to have secured "legal guarantees" that address the concerns that the public has over the Treaty are disingenuous and a deliberate effort to deceive the public.

Their guarantees have no legal basis, are not included in the Treaty and have not been added as protocols to the Treaty. They are empty political promises by politicians and bureaucrats at Irish and European level who have shown consistently that they cannot be trusted. The actual content of the Treaty, which is what we are voting on, overrides any "guarantees" or pre-referenda promises that may be given in order to secure your vote.


The Treaty also intensifies the push towards a more heavily armed and militarised Europe, drawing this state closer to a nuclear armed NATO. It creates a mutual defence pact, obliging ALL states in the union to come to the assistance of another EU state where an armed attack takes place on its territory. According to the Dublin Government's own White paper on Foreign Policy (1996) "provisions committing the parties to collective action in the event of armed attack against one or more of them .... would not be compatible with an intention to remain neutral."

It also obliges all states to increase their military spending. This at a time when Fianna Fáil and the Greens are imposing savage cutbacks in essential health and education services properly. Clearly this administration views the profits of the European arms industry as a higher priority than the education and health of the people of this state.

The reality is that this administration has already seriously eroded this states supposed neutral status. They joined NATO's Partnership for Peace (PfP) without holding the referendum they promised. They have assisted the US and British war effort in Afghanistan and Iraq. They have turned Shannon airport into a virtual US military base, providing refuelling and rest and recreation facilities for US aircraft and troops on their way to and from slaughtering civilians in Afghanistan and Iraq.


The announcement in recent weeks by Ryanair, by Intel Ireland and by the Business group IBEC, that they are to spend hundreds of thousands of Euro campaigning for a yes vote clearly shows who will benefit from the Lisbon Treaty. Lisbon is a charter for big business. For workers it is an extremely bad deal. If Lisbon is ratified it will see a continuation of the neo-liberal economic madness that led to the current recession, with its mass unemployment and cutbacks in essential public services, that we are currently in. The one thing that Lisbon will provide for workers and their families is increased misery and hardship and yet further attacks on their working conditions and living standards.

While that may be the political and business establishment’s vision for Europe, it is not éirígí’s. All the reasons why we opposed this Treaty last year remain. A yes vote will increase the militarisation of Europe and see the further erosion of workers’ rights, sovereignty and democracy. On that basis we are campaigning and asking people once again to vote NO for a better Europe, not a Europe based on greed over need and the exploitation of its 500 million workers.

Lisbon 2 Official Campaign Launch

The official launch of éirígí’s No to Lisbon 2 campaign took place yesterday (Saturday) in Dublin’s Belvedere Hotel. Close to forty éirígí activists were on hand for the event which began with a number of presentations relating the Lisbon Treaty itself and the éirígí campaign calling for a NO vote in the October 2nd referendum.

Party Chair Brian Leeson, General Secretary Breandán Mac Cionnaith, spokesperson Daithí Mac An Mhaistír, Belfast Ciorcal Chair Nuala McGurk and Councillor Louise Minihan all took part in a panel based question and answer session which followed the presentations.

éirígí’s main campaign leaflet entitled ‘500,000 UNEMPLOYED – EUROPE ISN’T WORKING’ was also revealed at the launch. 100,000 of these leaflets are to be distributed across the country during the course of the campaign. These leaflets are in addition to the 3,000 No to Lisbon posters calling for a No vote that éirígí has produced.

Following the launch thousands of leaflets were distributed to pedestrians across the city centre. Speaking after the launch éirígí’s Lisbon spokesperson Daithí Mac An Mhaistír said: “éirígí played a major role in the first Lisbon referendum, distributing tens of thousands of leaflets and erecting hundreds of posters and banners. Given the growth that éirígí has experienced in the intervening period our Lisbon 2 campaign will be considerably bigger. We will bring the message that the EU isn’t working to the doorsteps of tens of thousands of homes across the state.

“The establishment political parties, IBEC and big business – the very people who have led this country into economic ruin – are asking people to vote yes. éirígí is proposing a radical socialist alternative to the failed economic policies of the EU and the Twenty-Six County government. By voting NO to the Lisbon Treaty, people can express their support for the building of a different society build upon the principles of economic democracy and genuine equality. Saying No to Lisbon is to stand on the side of democracy and a vision of Europe wherein the people are sovereign.”

NO to Lisbon 2 Poster Campaign launched in Sligo

éirígí Sligeach launched the first phase of its poster campaign against the Lisbon Treaty earlier this week. Posters and banners opposing the Treaty and calling for a NO vote were erected throughout Sligo town and also in Ballisodare and Collooney.

éirígí Sligeach activist Gerry Casey said that this was just the start of what he claims will be an intensive campaign by the party in Sligo and throughout the north-west.

He said: "While this is certain to be a very tough campaign, we in éirígí are more than confident that we can achieve a second NO vote in the upcoming referendum on October 2nd. For our part we will be stepping up our campaign in Sligo and the north-west in general over the coming weekend and in the weeks to come."

He added: "This is the exact same treaty we voted on and rejected last year. Every word, sentence and paragraph included in the Treaty is the very same as last time around."

"The so called guarantees which the political establishment is so intent to promote as being "legally binding" are nothing of the sort. They have no legal standing, are contrary to the actual content of the Treaty in many instances and do not override the content of the Treaty itself. As éirígí have pointed out repeatedly, these are no more than political promises from politicians at both Irish and European level who, on the basis of their records, are totally discredited and are not to be trusted."

"This Treaty, under its previous guise as the EU constitution, has already been rejected by the French and Dutch public. The EU have ignored those democratic decisions. Following our rejection of that re-named constitution, now called the Lisbon Treaty, once again the EU and the Fianna Fáil led administration have ignored that democratic vote also."

"This reveals the fundamentally undemocratic nature at the heart of the EU itself and how they will stop at nothing as they attempt to entrench their neo-liberalism and privatisation agenda, further deepen the democratic deficit of the union and move towards their desired EU super-state."

He concluded: " éirígí oppose this Treaty, as we did last time, as it undermines sovereignty, is fundamentally anti-worker, promotes greed over need and increases the militarization of Europe. We will also continue to challenge and expose the attempts by Fianna Fáil and the so-called "opposition" in Fine Gael and Labour to deliberately mislead and deceive the public with their bogus arguments about so-called legal guarantees that are in fact worthless."

Cruinnithe faoin spéir sa Chlochán Liath faoi Chonradh Liospóin

(English version follows.)

Ag labhairt ag cruinniú eagraithe ag éirígí sa Chlochán Liath ag éileamh ar vóta Níl sa reifreann i mí Dheireadh Fómhair, dúirt eagraí Cheardchumann Neamhspleách na nOibrithe Tommy McKearney nach bhfuil sé de ghustal ag Éirinn ligeant don Eoraip talamh slán a dhéanamh dá comhlíonadh.

“Le ceann de na daonraí agus eacnamaíochtaí is lú san Aontas Eorpach, ní féidir le hÉirinn cáil a fháil ó chomhlíonadh i gcónaí nuair a ordaíonn na stáit mhóra é sin a dhéanamh agus sin an rud a tharlóidh má athraíonn muid an cinneadh tógtha ag ár ndaoine in 2008,” dúirt sé.

Bhí an cruinniú sin ar cheann de sraith chruinnithe iarAifrinn curtha ar siúl lasmuigh de eaglasi chaitliceach an Chlocháin Liath oíche Dé Sathairn agus maidin Dé Domhnaigh [29-30ú Lúnasa]. Labhair urlabhraí éirígí Thír Chonaill Micheál Cholm Mac Giolla Easbuig ag na cruinnithe freisin.

“Cuimhnigh,” lean McKearney, “dá mba rud é gur athraíodh an conradh seo go mór ó dhiúltaigh muid é in 2008, bheadh ar phobail an Aontais Eorpaigh vóta a chaitheamh air arís. Tá muid, mar sin, ag vótáil ar an chonradh céanna. Seo conradh a dhéanann leatrom ar oibrithe agus i bhfábhar na mbaincéirí, amhantraithe agus gnóthaí móra trí thacú le hiomaíocht roimh shaothar.

“Cén fáth, an dóigh leat, go bhfuil Michael O’Leary ag infheistiú €500,000 san fheachtas Tá?” arsa McKearney.

Dúirt sé go bhfuil páirtithe na bunaíochta atá ag tabhairt comhairle dúinn vótáil Tá ag tabhairt le tuiscint go gcuirfear amach as an Aontas Eorpach muid agus go mbeidh muid brúite amach ón Euro má theipeann orainn sin a dhéanamh.

“Tá sé seo bréagach amach is amach,” arsa é.

“Ní féidir muid a dhíbirt agus muid ag feidhmiú ár gceart daonlathach Níl a rá agus ní chaillfidh muid an Euro trí dhiúltú don chonradh seo.

“Breithnigh gur iad na páirtithe comhrialtais atá ag tabhairt comhairle dúinn ar vótáil, na daoine oll-neamhinniúlacha céanna atá i gceannas ar thubaiste ár ngeilleagair agus atá meáite anois ar reachtaíocht NAMA a thógaint isteach chun na baincéirí agus na hamhantraithe a tharrtháil agus iad tar éis an méad sin a dhéanamh chun muid go léir a scrios.”

Chríochnaigh sé ag rá gur bhain muintir na hÉireann úsáid as a ndea-chiall agus dhiúltaigh siad bulaíocht an uair dheireanach a vótalaíodh ar an chonradh seo agus gur chóir dúinn an rud céanna a dhéanamh i mí Dheireadh Fómhair.

Open Air meetings in Dungloe on Lisbon Treaty

Speaking at a meeting organised by éirígí in Dungloe to call for a No vote in October’s Lisbon referendum, Independent Workers’ Union organiser Tommy McKearney said that Ireland cannot afford to allow the European Union take its compliance for granted.

“With one of the smallest populations and economies in the European Union, Ireland must not earn a reputation for meekly rolling over when ordered to do so by the bigger states and that is what will happen if we change the decision delivered by our people in 2008,” McKearney said.

The meeting was one of a series of after mass meetings held outside Dungloe catholic church on Saturday and Sunday [August 29-30]. Donegal éirígí spokesperson Micheál Cholm Mac Giolla Easbuig also addressed the meetings.

“Let us remind ourselves,” McKearney continued, “that if this Treaty had been significantly altered since we rejected it in 2008, the peoples of the EU would have had to vote on it again. We are, therefore, voting on the same treaty. A treaty that by endorsing the right of competition over that of labour, discriminates against workers and in favour of bankers, speculators and big business.

“Why do you think Michael O’Leary is investing €500,000 in the Yes campaign?” McKearney asked.

He said that the establishment parties advising people to vote yes are implying that if they fail to do so, the Twenty-Six Counties will be expelled from the EU and forced out of the Euro.

“That is simply untrue,” he said.

“We cannot be expelled for exercising our democratic right to say No and we shall not lose the Euro for objection to this treaty.

“Don’t lose sight of the fact that the coalition parties now advising us on how to vote are the same grossly incompetent people that have presided over the collapse of our economy and are now hell bent on introducing the NAMA legislation in order to rescue the bankers and speculators who have done so much to ruin us all.”

McKearney concluded by saying that people in the Twenty-Six Counties had used their good sense and refused to be bullied the last time the Treaty was voted on and they should do the same again in October.

éirígí Launches First Wave of No to Lisbon 2

éirígí launched the first wave of the party’s No to Lisbon 2 campaign yesterday (Monday) outside the gates of Leinster House and the EU offices in Dublin city centre.

To remind the Twenty-Six County establishment that they cannot spin their way to a referendum victory and encourage a second defeat of the Lisbon Treaty, éirígí has produced a poster entitled Never Mind the B****cks – It is the Same Treaty.

The poster campaign is themed on the famous Sex Pistols album cover, and hundreds of the posters will be distributed across the Twenty-Six Counties in the lead up to the re-run of the Lisbon Treaty on October 2.

The campaign was launched using a colourful piece of street theatre by two éirígí ‘punks’, while other éirígí activists distributed leaflets to passing members of the public.

éirígí spokesperson Daithí Mac an Mhaistír, who was at the launch, said: “Earlier this year, the Twenty-Six County government issued a series of so-called guarantees drafted by EU hacks, in an attempt to provide some political cover for their desire to re-run the Treaty referendum. These ‘guarantees’ amounted to nothing more than political propaganda on a variety of bogus issues unconnected to the Lisbon Treaty itself. With this fig-leaf of a cover, Brian Cowen announced his decision to reject the democratic verdict of the electorate in the Twenty-Six Counties.

“éirígí has produced this poster to remind people that, despite all the hype and spin surrounding the so-called Lisbon Treaty guarantees, what we are actually being asked to vote on in October is exactly the same treaty as the one that was rejected in June 2008.

“Not a single word, comma or full stop has been changed in the text of the Lisbon Treaty. The Twenty-Six County establishment is blatantly and arrogantly ignoring the democratic wishes of the people by re-running the Lisbon referendum.

“éirígí is confident that, despite all of the scare-mongering by the Pro-Lisbon camp, the electorate will deliver a resounding No once again on October 2.”

Following the poster launch Sligo éirígí activist Gerry Casey said that the Treaty was a very bad deal for workers within the European Union and needed to be rejected once again.

Casey said: "The Lisbon Treaty is a charter for big business and the multi-national corporations. It is an extremely bad deal for the millions of workers who live within the European Union (EU)."

He added: "The revelation that IBEC North West are now supporting the yes campaign and that the Multi-National firm Intel are also planning to spend hundreds of thousands of Euro on promoting a yes vote confirms that it is big business interests that will benefit from the implementation of the Lisbon Treaty."

"Big business is interested in one thing and one only. Maximising it's profits regardless of how that effects their workers or wider society. Workers are viewed as commodities to be used and discarded at the whim of these large companies. What is in their interest, as Lisbon so obviously is, is not in the interests of workers and their families and wider society in general."

He concluded: "A vote for Lisbon will see the continuation of the neo-liberal and privatisation policies that created the economic recession which has resulted in mass unemployment and widespread cutbacks in pay and essential public services . Contrary to what IBEC and Intel are suggesting, the way out of this crisis and the cure for it is not an even stronger dose of the greed before need policies that got us into this mess in the first place. The only thing that Lisbon will provide for workers is more pain and misery and further attacks on their living standards and working conditions."

NO to Lisbon 2 launched

With just six weeks to go to the second Lisbon Treaty referendum, there was a real sense of vigour, urgency and determination amongst activists and members of the public who packed into Liberty Hall for the launch of the No to Lisbon 2 campaign.

Organised by the Campaign Against the EU Constitution, Tuesday’s meeting heard calls for a united left-wing campaign that would put a halt to the grand plans of the European Union’s political elite. The meeting was addressed by trade union activists from both Ireland and Britain as well as Irish political representatives and attended by over 150 people.

Jimmy Kelly, regional secretary of trade union Unite, denounced the European Court of Justice, which he said had savaged the principles of social justice and solidarity and eroded workers’ rights, subordinating them to the interests of business. Linking the erosion of workers’ rights with the Lisbon Treaty, Kelly contrasted the Twenty-Six County government’s refusal to legislate for free collective bargaining and statutory recognition of trade unions with the state’s swift response to end the occupation by workers at Thomas Cook and haul them before the courts. Pledging the full support of Unite, he called for a united left-wing campaign that would mobilise grassroots members of the trade union movement to take the message into workplaces and local communities.

Bob Crow, general secretary of the Rail Maritime and Transport Union, delivered an impassioned speech that denounced the principles upon which the Lisbon Treaty was constructed. Reminding the meeting that the Lisbon Treaty enshrines the principle of competition, the internal market and the policy of privatisation within the EU, he called for the unity of workers across Europe to defeat the neo-liberal agenda. The EU project as enunciated in Lisbon was about controlling labour and privatising public services; workers’ rights came second to the movement of free trade he said. Rejecting establishment attempts to label the No side as ‘anti-European isolationists’, Crow declared he was pro-European, pro-African, pro-American, pro-Asian but anti the European Union. Summing up, he argued that the Lisbon Treaty presented two options: a bosses’ Europe or a workers’ Europe and workers’ world. He pledged the support of his comrades in Britain and said the referendum in the Twenty-Six Counties offered an opportunity to re-ignite a European wide campaign.

There followed a lively discussion from the floor, during which a range of issues were debated. Workers’ rights, specifically the ongoing lock-out of workers at Dublin docks and the employment of scab labour, were of particular concern. The meeting was also addressed by Ed Horgan of the Irish Anti-War movement, who pointed out that the Twenty-Six County government has allowed 1.5 million US troops to pass through Shannon airport over the last eight years and is complicit in the killing of a million people in Iraq and Afghanistan, including 250,000 children.

éirígí spokesperson Daithí Mac An Mháistír, who attended the launch of the No campaign on Tuesday morning, called for the maximum effort from all activists over the coming six weeks.

“éirígí intends playing a full and active part in the campaign to defeat the bosses’ charter that is the Lisbon Treaty,” Daithí said.

“Already, our activists have been busy getting the message out. This referendum represents a blatant attack on democratic principles; regardless of the spin, it is the same Treaty.

“The economic model proposed by Lisbon has completely failed working class people. The antidote to the current jobs catastrophe facing workers is not an even stronger dose of neo-liberalism.

“This treaty must be defeated because the fact of it being put to referendum in the Twenty-Six Counties on October 2 represents a negation of democracy. This is the third time that the provisions contained in Lisbon will have been voted upon. On both previous occasions, it was defeated: the peoples of France and the Netherlands rejected the identical EU Constitution in 2005, and the people of the Twenty-Six Counties did likewise when the Lisbon Treaty re-incarnation of the EU Constitution was defeated by the votes of almost a million people in June 2008.

“Once again, the right to vote on the provisions of Lisbon has been denied to over 350 million European citizens. Indeed, éirígí has activists across the Six Counties who will, once again, be denied their say on a treaty that, if ratified, will utterly transform the economic, political and social character of the EU in a direction that is damaging to their interests. It is therefore incumbent upon all those who profess to believe in democracy to campaign to ensure that Lisbon is defeated once again.”

Fianna Fáil MEP accused of misleading the public over Lisbon guarantees

Sligo éirígí activist Gerry Casey has accused Fianna Fáil MEP Pat the Cope Gallagher of "misleading the public" over the Lisbon Treaty. He said that the "guarantees" that the Cope claims are legally binding are in fact "political promises from untrustworthy politicians" with no legal standing.

Casey said: "Pat the Cope Gallagher claims that people are being disingenuous by highlighting the fact that the second Lisbon Treaty referendum is exactly the same as the first referendum which was democratically rejected last year. However, it is Pat the Cope who is being disingenuous and misleading the public."

He added: "This is the exact same treaty we voted on and rejected last year. Every word, sentence and paragraph included in the Treaty is the very same as last time around. The guarantees which Pat is so intent to promote as being "legally binding" are nothing of the sort. They have no legal basis and do not override the content of the Treaty itself. They are simply political promises from politicians at both Irish and European level who, on the basis of their records, cannot be trusted to keep any promises they make."

"This Treaty, under its previous guise as the EU constitution, has already been rejected by the French and Dutch public. The EU ignored those democratic decisions. Following our rejection of that re-named constitution, now called the Lisbon Treaty, the EU and the Fianna Fáil led administration ignored that democratic vote also. This reveals the fundamentally undemocratic nature of the EU itself and how they will stop at nothing as they attempt to entrench their neo-liberalism and privatisation agenda, further deepen the democratic deficit of the union and move towards their desired EU super-state."

Also responding to the claims by the Fianna Fáil MEP, éirígí Tír Chonaill spokesperson Micheál Cholm MacGiolla Easbuig said that "this is a deliberate tactic to deceive the public into thinking that they are voting on something different in this second referendum."

"It is an attempt by them to make people believe the treaty has somehow been altered, even though this is clearly untrue" he said.