MURRAY JOINS ATTACKS ON PICKETS SPG squads of 'third force

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Monday's mass picket.

But it indicates also the kind of hand-picked volunteer force being welded together in the SPG.

The SPG is clearly intended as a highly mobile force, trained as snatch squads and also prepared to use extremes of physical violence against even peaceful pickets.

Their use last Monday was in the hopes that those beaten up would be driven away from the Grunwick gates for good.

But such a force of trained thugs cannot be developed without top-level decisions, and military style instruction.

In previous mass pickets ordinary police even while using violence have attempted to argue with workers.

Anti-communist

The SPG however made a special point of attacking anyone who attempted to reason with them or to argue.

They rushed • into the attack screaming anti-communist slogans and "Why don't you get back to work". As injured pickets protested they were told "It's your own fault for coming"

Police circulars described the Grunwick operation as "Aid to Grunwick" but much more is involved. The mass pickets are being used to develop a skilled anti-picket strike-busting military style force that will be dependable in coming class battles.

In the face of these developments Labour Home Secretary Merlyn Rees defends the SPG's actions and TUC General Secretary Len Murray reserves his verbal attack for the pickets.

Speaking in the right wing haven of Oxford University Labour Club, he described the pickets savage beaten up by the SPG "boot boys".

Murray has lifted not a finger to assist the Grunwick strikers. But he is clearly prepared to be a part of the Labour leaders' cover-up of the SPG and its operations.

While the WSL supports the complete disbanding of the police force as an oppressive arm of the capitalist state, we do not argue that the SPG alone should be disbanded. The SPG, for all its specialised training is simply a part of the forces of the capitalist state now ranged against the working class.

But we must warn of the level of preparation this specially-trained squad-a parallel to the French CRS 'riot police'-has reached.

They must be combatted through the organised strength of the working class.

The next mass picket must be protected by thousands of miners and other organised contingents.

And the coalition government that chose to use these thugs against the working class must be brought down. SPG at work on November 7.

If the position of some of the union leaders is anything to go by Heathrow engineers will have to confront them first in order to get the necessary strike action off the ground to win this claim.

A statement from the Chairman and Secretary of the Overseas Division Joint Shop Stewards Committee