Workers Solidarity Movement

On 8/8/08, The Department of Social and Family Affairs (DSFA) issued a press release entitled “€238 million saved in first six months of this year through Welfare anti fraud crackdown.” A closer look at the operations of the DSFA reveals a slightly different story however. According to the 2007 Social Welfare Appeals Office (SWAO) Annual Report, 46% of appeals to the SWAO were successful. The chief appeals officer, Brian Flynn, is critical of social welfare deciding officers “applying the ‘fraud’ applications of the legislation in all cases involving overpayments”.

This is an audio interview recorded by a phone with Cormac, a WSM member who is in Rossport. He reports on the latest developments in the campaign.

Over 100 people attended the public launch of the Alliance for Choice meeting on Tuesday evening in the Europa. Speakers included community and trade union representatives as well as Dawn Purvis from the PUP. The campaign plans to organise a series of public meetings across the North to support the proposed amendment to the 1967 Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill by House of Commons Labour MP Diane Abbott that if successful will allow women in the North to have access to abortion services.

The Irish Socialist Network is talking to a half dozen other groups about unity. The Socialist Workers Party, always in a hurry, simply wants everyone else to join their People Before Profit creation. Every few years we see the same game played, “why won’t the Judean Peoples Front join the Judean Popular Front?”

Unite leaders forced to back down from their attempt to imprison him.

Unite leaders’ attempt to cripple Gordon with legal costs thrown out by the court

“I will now be returning to my lawful protest outside Transport House” Gordon McNeill

The case brought by the Unite leadership against sacked airport shop steward, Gordon McNeill, was heard in the Belfast High Court this morning. Unite were attempting to have Gordon imprisoned for breaking an injunction barring him from protesting at Transport House.

After a hungerstrike which lasted 76 days, the Anarchist prisoner Amadeu Casellas won his demands for the privileges he had been denied, supervised freedom under the 3rdº degree, which iwill allow him two 48 hour passes followed by work outside of prison only to return to sleep.

Members from the Belfast branch of the Workers Solidarity Movement in conjunction with Anarchist Black Cross will be holding a picket to highlight the case of political prisoner Amadeu Casellas outside Belfast City Hall this Monday 8th September at 5.30.

Despite the bad weather and the protest being organised at short notice (within a day) as well as a passing interest from the PSNI, the Belfast branch of the WSM, Anarchist Black Cross joined others outside Belfast City Hall this evening as part of the growing national and international campaign. In solidarity with Amadeu Casellas who is now entering his 73rd day on hunger strike; and the opposition to his continued political incarceration and persecution by the Spanish state because of his anarchist beliefs

Former Airport worker Gordon McNeill has resumed hunger/thirst strike on Thursday to lift a gagging order clause preventing him speaking out against the role of trade union officials during the dispute.
Gordon commented: “Tony Woodley and Jimmy Kelly are offering me a bribe to keep me silent about the role of officials of my union. I will never accept these terms.

After a quiet period the struggle against Shell’s attempt to impose a dangerous experimental gas pipeline in Erris, Co. Mayo has escalated once more over the last month.