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go to press, prisone Ts have strike for 50 Armagh gaol joined their hunger strike on December 1. And today another 23 republican prisoners have also begun munger strike.

A hunger strike is ate, potentially self-d means of struggle.

For the republican prisoners it marks the climax of a bitter be the most four-year struggle. They want the restoration of their special against imperialist oppression. political fighters category status as political We may disagree with their prisoners, who have been jailed we may wish they had as a result of the continuing chosen some other form of counties of Ireland from British war for the liberation of the six action to press their demands: rule. imns but every class conscious worker now has the obligation to fight Photo: Republican News unconditionally, tooth in their defence. 02214/)14 DON'T SIT BACK AND four years republican LET THEM DIE! ACT NOW! prisoners at Long Kesh have TO Demand your union branch, been refusing to wear prison your Labour Party, declare its clothes or do prison work- full support for the hunger both of which they correctly striki ers and their demands. regard as attempts by the British military authorities to deny political status and brand crimin- Demand the Labour als. and the TUC break from result this stand, the reactionary bi-partisan alliance ers havi for four years with the Tories and support this Deen cells, left in unheated struggle by the Irish naked apart single from a against imperialism! blanket: they subjec- been Bring contingents join ted to violence, abuse and solidarity demonstratior s on intimidation. As the struggle has own leaders, remain largely ruggle has sparked death, sulidarity the Irish AI attempt by 1 ift December! escalated, their cells have been ignorant of th e atrocities being large wave of solidarity action struggle is still a cause fought Ernie oberts to enlist Give your fouled and their conditions are carried out in their name by the throughout the whole of Ireland for only by the most dedicated MPs the local campaigns to back tne now an international scandal. British army against Irish the over the last seven weeks. socialists and Irish militants. strikers on hum: nitarian hunger strikers: spread the truth struggle and the But for four barbarity of years this working class. ~ Now the prisoners cial call by the National "H' Last Wednesday the unoffi- strike, a handful of Labour MPs, In advance of the hunger grounds natures out of 230 produced MPs! only five sig- leaflet factories and other work- on Ireland to the working classimperialist rule have been have waited long enou! sh. Block/Armagh Committee for union bureaucrats and liberals places. blandly ignored Or savagely Their response to their isol- action in their support belatedly signed the Charter 80 The witch-hunted by virtually the ation nas been to launch a -though strongly opposed by petition calling on the Tories to whole leadership of the British hunger strike centred on the five the Irish TUC-brought work concede labour movement. elementary demands which stoppages in Belfast, demands Trade unionists have brave Irisn The pleas of the Irish tacitly represent prisoner-of-war Dungannon, Derry, Armagh, grounds. raised the issue have found deaths. prisoners for they status: Enniskillen, and Newry in the The Tories have themselves witch-hunted by Only our are entitled to expect have *The North; and in Dublin, Cork, remained adar con- extreme right wingers while to an end th fallen on deaf ears. British clothes. Dundalk, Drogneda, Monaghan, n.. 1_11- ceded nothing. union bureaucrats back Irish war.

and trade union bureau- *The right Sligo and in other factories, Since then, silence. now! crats, t nwilling to lift a finger prison work. shops, building sites and public signatories have lent even The t for solidarity against their "own" ruling class *The right services in othe localities in the Britain hard one-but and its military machine, have tion among themselves. ise solidarity action in the vital one. The Irish hunger continu ed to support imperialist *The right to their own British labour movement. As the strikers are, like u engaged in rule. cational and recreat issue has polarised feeling, ! the struggle the British And British workers, fed activities. porters of human rights' in capitalist class. a diet of lies and censored *The and have been few and The prisoners have shown by the mass media and by remission to between. themselves, far from being

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