Workers Solidarity Movement

Imagine that, leaving the pub on Saturday night, you find a fight outside. The Gardai turn up, grab a load of people, including you, and drag you off to the station, and throw in a beating in the back of the van. Next morning you are taken to an interview room and an old garda gives you a cup of tea, apologises for the “mix-up” earlier and says you can go as soon as you’ve signed a 6 page statement he’s prepared for you.

The Assembly plans to charge us for water from next April. Even though the DUP and Sinn Fein said they opposed the water tax when they wanted votes, they don’t regard that as important. They got the votes and now they can ignore the promises.

“Oppose the imposition of water charges and the privatisation of the water service, and any other forms of regressive double-taxation”
(Sinn Féin, 2007 manifesto)

“Other parties are against water charges now but the DUP has been consistently opposed to the scheme”(DUP, 2007 policy document)

Nine people from Derry are facing jail sentences for their part in ‘decommissioning’ weapons of war. The silence from official Ireland is striking. Not a murmer from Nobel Peace Prize winners John Hume and David Trimble, or from Cowan or Paisley, or Adams or Gormley, or Gilmore or Empey. Not even an empty platitude from Bono or Bob Geldof. Nobody was harmed but computers belonging to a multinational arms firm were tossed from windows and destroyed. It seems that the right of arms dealers to make big profits is a lot more important than the right to life of people in the Lebanon.

Former airport workers, Gordon McNeill, Madan Gupta and Chris Bowyer suspend their hunger strike after the Unite guarantees that their demands will be met. Despite refusing to speak to the strikers face to face and embarking on a deliberate scaremongering campaign of disinformation to undermine the strike (see http://www.indymedia.ie/article/87081), trade union officials from Unite at HQ at Transport House in Belfast have finally caved into the demands of the striking Airport workers.

While in Florida, Andrew Flood of the WSM attended a local 'Winter Soldier' hearing. These are public meetings where United States ex-soldiers of the Iraq testify against the war.

Appoximately 5,000 people turned out for the “March for a Decent Public Health Service” held on Saturday, 29th March in Dublin. Various Trade Unions, patients groups from around the country and political organisations were represented.

Belfast

On Saturday March 29th over 700 people attended a protest at noon in the city of Slupsk, Northern Poland, against the Polish government's plans to permit the construction of a US missile base, part of their notorious 'Star Wars' program. On Friday and Saturday solidarity vigils were held with Polish activists in Prague, Dublin, London, Hamburg, Berlin, Moscow, Washington and the U.S. spy base at Fylingdales in England

The Dublin Anarchist Bookfair – held this year on the weekend of 14th and 15th March – has firmly established itself as the biggest and most exciting event on the political left in Ireland.