Journalists discuss reland censorship

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Bobby Sands, the former commanding ornicer of the 11. republican prisoners in the Long Kesh concentration camp, began a hunger strike to the death on Sunday 1 March.

He is the first of the new wave of republicans to resume hunger strike action in pursuit of political status for the 400 prisoners of war currently 'on the blanket'-refusing to wear prison clothing or do prison work-in Long Kesh, and the iepublican women in Armagh jail.

The renewed struggle takes place in the wake of a definitive decision by the Tory government to tear up the written and verbal agreement which persuaded the seven republican hunger strikers to end their 53day fast just before Christmas.

Strike action

Faced by mounting mass mobilisations and by increasing reverted to its guerrillaist militarv campaign.

Now the links with the mass movement and in particular with the trade unions North and South must be rebuilt, and the fight for all out working class action to support the Sands' struggle must be brought to the fore.

Solidarity

In Britain, socialists must at once take up the fight to ensure that this hunger strike-unlike the previous one-is supported by the mobilisation of trade unions and Labour Parties in active solidarity.

We call all Socialist Press readers to participate in this joint struggle. we must fight alongside courageous Irish militants against the common enemy-Thatcher's • vicious imperialist government.

*Restore political status to republican prisoners of war!

*Troops out of Ireland now!

*Self determination for the Irish people!

COVENTRY and District Hunger Strike Action Committee has been busy preparing for the re-launching of the campaign.

During the last hunger strike the committee was able to publish a support statement signed by approximately 60 prominent figures in the local labour movement and gain affiliations from, among others, the Trades Counci and four Labour Party wards.

The campaign leaflet, of Which 12,000 copies were distributed, is being updated and further leafleting : campaigns, public meetings and a march are being organised.

An impressive local Newsletter has already begun publication.

Nearly 130 NUJ members and delegates from other trade unions and from trades councils attended last Saturday's Birmingham conference on media censorship of Northern Ireland.

The platform appeared determined to minimise, deny or defend the operation of censorship.

Certainly all the main speakers were united in not raising the central issue, that the need of the British state to defend partition as a means of preserving imperialist rule in Ireland, 1s the cause of the censorship.

Alan Murray (Irish Press NUJ) was the first of several speakers to argue for the British state to introduce a "freedom of information" Act, but he also argued that "people" don't want to read news, still less news about conflict in Ireland.

An Official Unionist speaker argued that it was the lack of formal censorship laws in the six counties like those existing in the South which created problems for journalists!

"Panorama" editor Roger Bolton, sacked by the BBC over the Carrickmore incident, argued a "democratic" line.

The 30 elect Sinn F ein count should not be t Irish R. TE under argued.

Led Provisional cillors in Eire anned by the Section 31 he British media But such a policy would leave the republican movement -with no MPs-denied the right to express identical views in the British media.

However, Bolton reiterated that NUJ members' action had won his reinstatement, a principled defence . which Mary Holland had not received when sacked for her reporting on Ireland at the Observer.

Holland pointed out that for every TV programme that was banned, 20 were planned but never made because of the "British Way of Censorship".

A message from. Danny Morrison, editor of Republican News was read out; it welcomed the conference but regretted that he would not be able to attend as invited because he would again be seized as he entered Britain under section 11 of the Prevention of Terrorism Act.

Afternoon workshops made it clear that the delegates had different ideas from the platAfter three days of "staring down the same gun barrel" Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan have come out with equally savage plans for internationform.

The questions of partition, the role of the army, the bias in favour of the army and Loyalists (which the morning's platform had illustrated) and of censorship in the labour movement were discussed.

In one workshop all but two delegates were in favour of a journalists' code of conduct for reporting on Ireland, along the lines of existing NUJ codes against racism and sexism.

Another workshop detailed the threat and use of the PTA against journalists as well as others, and • reported Dublin NUJ branch's campaign for suspension of the banning provisions in Eire's Section 31 rules.

TUC witch-hunt

The final plenary session reflected these preoccupations.

Tameside Trades • Council secretary Dave Hallsworth appealed for support against TUC moves to expel any trades council sending delegates to the Coventry 'TUC Hands Off Ireland" conterence on 14 March.

It is vital that there is support for this appeal and that NUJ members build on their 1980 conference defence of The three days resounded with bloodcurdling war-whoops and anti-Soviet declarations.

But while Thatcher if anything exceeded Reagal in Sabre: rattling, she also came under criticism from the US adminisTameside.

Pointing to the centrality of the issue of partition in censorship, Peter Molntyre (NUJ Oxford) underlined the agreement between the invited Official, Unionist speaker and the "balancing" views of Austin Currie (SDLP).

Favoured censorship Both favoured state censorship and both were equally hostile towards the Provisional Sinn Fein.

Melntyre called for action at workplace level-for instance by journalists refusing to go on Army propaganda tours.

This conference however was all but wrecked, not so much by the platform speakers as by organisational chaos which left NUJ branches without any printed information with which to campaign for a broader based conference until a mere 20 days before the conference!

However, this initiative can still be used to take the issue of Ireland further into the wider labour movement.

A report of the conference is be published by the NUJ.

By McKeith