The Ghost Estates of Ireland
Back at the start of this year, Socialist Appeal (Issue 193) published a
little item in its ‘Left and Right’ about the so-called Ghost Estates
of Ireland
September 2011
Egypt: the class war intensifies
With the
re-introduction of the emergency law, the military junta is desperately
trying to strangle the revolution and return to the “normality” of the
Mubarak era. But the workers are on the move. The recent upsurge in
strikes and protests could spell the end for the SCAF regime.
Egyptian working class organising and on the move – “a revolution within the revolution”
The euphoria amongst the Egyptian masses that followed the fall of
Mubarak in February has disappeared. The hard reality of the situation –
in which political, social, and economic conditions have barely changed
– has set in. The revolution has not ended, however, but has, after a
brief lull, transitioned from the streets to the workplaces. The working
class in Egypt – the motor force of the revolution – is organising and
is on the move.
90 Years of the Chinese Communist Party – Part Five
Had the Chinese Communist Party(CCP) leadership been fully conscious of
what their conquest in Shanghai in 1927 really meant, there would have
been no stopping them. The example of Shanghai being taken by the
organised working class, rather than the military forces of the
Guomindang, could have been spread around the country through the CCP
party structures and their network of commanders in the Northern
Expedition from Guangzhou up to Wuhan, Nanchang, Nanjing and Shanghai.
Birmingham: strike two against Martini contracts
Birmingham council Unison members once again manned the picket lines on 21 September, for a second day of strike action against the Con-Dem council’s threat to impose ‘Martini’ contracts on the authority’s 26,000 workers.
Women and the crisis of capitalism: Fighting back on a class basis!
Russian
working class women gained much from the October revolution of 1917 and
the subsequent planned economy that was put in place. Later under Stalin
many of the gains were destroyed, although as the economy developed the
conditions of women also improved. The return of capitalism in Russia
dramatically worsened the conditions of women. How does all this compare
to the current situation working class women are facing in the UK?
Edinburgh university occupied: Support Free Education!
Just a few days before the Scottish
Government are to announce details of a series of major spending cuts
to public services, students from around Scotland have occupied the
George Square at Edinburgh University in protest against rising tuition
fees for English, Welsh and Northern Irish students wanting to attend
Edinburgh University.
90 years of the Chinese Communist Party – Part Four
On March
20th, 1926, another event similar to the assassination of Liao Zhongkai
took place. It laid the basis for the violent coup of Chiang Kai-shek in
Guangzhou, when his mask of democratic revolution slipped. The uneasy
tension between the Guomindang right wing and the CCP comrades inside
the Guomindang broke out into the open.
Protest in Birmingham
It was billed as a "March and Rally for the Alternative: Jobs,
Growth and Justice". On Sunday, September 18th, over two thousand trade unionists and political activists descended on Birmingham
to march and rally with the aim of trying to bring pressure on the Lib
Dems at their conference in the city to break with the Tory policies of
the Condem government.
All out November 30th!
It’s official. November 30th is the agreed date
for a national “day of strike action” by public sector unions and others
against the government’s plans over pensions. It is expected that three million
workers could strike in what has been called the “biggest mobilisation in a
generation.” Unison, Unite and the GMB have given notice that they will ballot
their members, joining other public sector unions in what is intended to be the
start of a rolling campaign of action, which will go through the winter and into
2012.
IRELAND: After the “think ins,” a bumpy ride ahead
According to press reports the Fine Gael and Labour
parliamentary “think ins” this week were upbeat and confident. Although
the Irish Times reports that both parties were warned “to brace
themselves for the bumpy ride ahead”. There has been talk
about Enda’s “honeymoon period” over the last few months. Although in
large measure the new coalition is benefitting from not being Fianna Fáil or the Green Party, while Enda Kenny is doing well in the polls for being neither Brian Cowen nor Brian Lenihan.
Barnet council attacks workforce
Barnet Council workers are taking action on Tuesday – however the bosses
are attempting to impose a ‘lock out’ to pressurize Unison members
into backing out. This is just the latest in a series of attacks
initiated by Tory-led councils against workers resisting the cuts.
Plymouth has ‘derecognised’ Unison and Soujthampton workers have been
taking action for some weeks now.
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