Republican dissidents statement on merger of three organisations

The Real IRA and a number of breakaway IRA organisations, including Republican Action Against Drugs and Oglaigh na hEireann, have come together to issue the following public statement on Thursday night in the name of the IRA Army Council. Three of the four main dissident republican groups in the North of Ireland are to merge and reclaim the banner of the IRA, in what is seen by main commentators as "an escalation of attempts to de-stabilise power sharing".

In a statement released to the Guardian, the new organisation claimed it had formed a "unified structure, under a single leadership". It said the organisation would be "subservient to the constitution of the Irish Republican Army". This is the first time since the 1998 Good Friday Agreement that a majority of the forces of dissident republicanism has coalesced.

Republican sources told the Guardian that the new paramilitary force included several hundred armed dissidents, including some former members of the now disbanded Provisional IRA who have been conducting a campaign of shooting and forcible exile of men in Derry City whom they accuse of drug dealing.

It also includes what the statement calls "non-conformist republicans", or smaller independent groups from Belfast and rural parts of Northern Ireland. Republican Action Against Drugs and the Real IRA will cease to exist, one source close to the dissidents said to the Guardian.

Here is the text of the statement:

Following extensive consultations, Irish republicans and a number of organisations involved in armed actions against the armed forces of the British crown have come together within a unified structure, under a single leadership, subservient to the constitution of the Irish Republican Army.

The leadership of the Irish Republican Army remains committed to the full realisation of the ideals and principles enshrined in the Proclamation of 1916.

In recent years the establishment of a free and independent Ireland has suffered setbacks due to the failure among the leadership of Irish nationalism and fractures within republicanism. The root cause of conflict in our country is the subversion of the nation's inalienable right to self-determination and this has yet to be addressed. Instead the Irish people have been sold a phoney peace, rubber-stamped by a token legislature in Stormont.

Non-conformist republicans are being subjected to harassment, arrest and violence by the forces of the British crown; others have been interned on the direction of an English overlord. It is Britain, not the IRA, which has chosen provocation and conflict.

The IRA's mandate for armed struggle derives from Britain's denial of the fundamental right of the Irish people to national self-determination and sovereignty - so long as Britain persists in its denial of national and democratic rights in Ireland the IRA will have to continue to assert those rights.

The necessity of armed struggle in pursuit of Irish freedom can be avoided through the removal of the British military presence in our country, the dismantling of their armed militias and the declaration of an internationally observed timescale that details the dismantling of British political interference in our country.

Signed Army Council - IRA.

Source: ANF News Agency Belfast 27-07-2012

Greek steel workers attacked by civil war police

Early in de morning of July 20 2012 heavily armed police gangs attacked a steel factory in Aspropirgos, near Athens in Greece, which has been at a standstill due to a strike for 263 days. The police units, which apparently thought they were in a civil war, arrested 9 pickets and during clashes with the workers 39 people were wounded. Between 10 and 15 strike breakers were put in the factory under police protection. Immediately after the attack large numbers of workers rushed to the factory. They demanded the withdrawal of the police and the release of the pickets. It is reported that de attack was agreed with European leaders who were in Athens to discuss the debt crisis.

The attack on the Greek steelworkers came a day after massive protests in Spain against the dictatorship of the EU and the IMF. It shows how far Europe is prepared to go to repress the European workers. In others countries of the EU similar repression will be used if the resistance against the crisis measures is stepped up. We must support each other in this struggle. An attack on workers anywhere is also an attack on us. Spread this message around as much as possible. Because of the crisis capitalism is on the warpath. So remain on guard.   

Trip down memorylane

Sometimes it’s good to sit down for a while, and look back at the years which have past. For a moment thinking about all these things which have been said en written. Things, which in the meantime, have proved total nonsense.  Take, for example, the Eighties. That were the glory days of Thatcher in Great Britain and Reagan in America. Those two had one thing in common, a complete belief in the free market. Casino capitalism, which knew no boundaries, was their idea. Do you remember how we were promised that the free market would increase competition and lead to lower prices? They said we would be able to get almost everything on the cheap, if only we believed in that free market.

The results of all this we now see every day. Huge cartels and secret deals have sent prices through the roof. And the only competition we have seen is the competition to decide who would be bankrupt first. Some slick scoundrels have made their fortune, but we have been driven to poverty. There was also the idea of privatisation. That too, was portrait as a holy solution. That too, would increase competition; it would wake up the huge state utilities and increase our choice enormously. They said that public services would improve out of all recognition. What were the results of all this? Nearly all subscriptions have increased tenfold, choice is limited because of the high costs and the idea of service has gone totally out of the window. But through this idea too, some parasites have earned large sums of money. And what about us? It’s not hard to guess.

We lost out, big time. Our essential services and institutions are now in the hands of faceless bandits, in the Health Service you have the right to die when you can’t afford treatment and our wallet is becoming more empty by the day. The whole Thatcher – Reagan ideology was a huge lie. It was a con trick to rob us blind and allow their capitalist friends to get their hands on a nice little earner.  And that’s exactly what they did, those capitalist friends. Their sky high profits let the stock markets go to the roof, ready for a big bang. And at the same time so many loans were granted that there was not enough money in the world to pay it all back. The watchdogs, who should have kept an eye on this situation, were sleeping in a deep coma in their cages.    

When the bubble started to burst in 2008, the watchdogs woke up again. They could not understand that they had missed the alarm signals. They promised that things would change; making sure that every penny was accounted for. But this in itself was a new lie, because in reality nothing has changed. How could it be otherwise? Thatcher and Reagan were the preachers and the spokespersons of capitalism. As long as capitalism exists we will see this kind of chaotic situations.

Is somebody out there crying; Shame! Correct, it is a huge shame. But an even greater shame is that we allow this all to happen. Every day we see that they steal from us, we see the conmen and women, be they bank managers or tax inspectors, emptying our pockets. But we remain silent. We let it happen. There is grumbling, and sometimes swearing, but that’s it. Nobody stands up and says that enough is enough. Most people are on a slippery slope. They talk themselves in to sleep with thoughts like: “I can go on holiday once instead of two times,” “It’s okay as long I can pay the mortgage,” or “If I can only keep the car.” But all these stations are passed slowly, and still the express train rumbles on. Heading straight for the nearest cliff.    

Some people say that poverty in the old days was much worse, and still we survived. But times have changes and trouble can strike within a few seconds. Much more quickly than in the old days. When the day comes that you and your furniture are out in the street, it is starting to rain and your children are asking where they will sleep tonight, it makes little difference if it is old or new poverty. At that point rock bottom remains rock bottom, which every way you look at it.

So, what can be done? A first important step is to stop believing the lies which are told by the system. Don’t forget that some of the biggest liars can be found in the TV news. Be critical and use your own mind. The elite wants us to be a sleeping people, which means that the time has come to wake up. Another step is to reject the demands made by the system. When enough people throw off the collar of obedience the system becomes powerless.

These steps will lead, with the necessary organisation, to open resistance. Which is the correct way to go, because why would we allow ourselves to be exploited and cheated every day? Why are we allowing the system to con us into ignoring what is going on? Why would we allow ourselves to be robbed every single day?  There is no reason to accept all this without a struggle.

We can change things, when we have a go together. The key to this is solidarity. It is no coincidence that the system has worked so hard for so long to break down solidarity. They know that as individual people, with limited means, we can do very little. But when we all stand together we have a much better chance. When we form a united front the system is finished. It does not matter if they bring in the police, the riot squad or the army. It is always a question of strength, and this means that we have the advantage.

They need us to keep their system going. Without us they are finished. But we don’t need the elite. Furthermore, we are much better off without those parasites. You don’t have to believe this out of hand. Look around you, and think about it. Think about the lies of the 80s, and what became of them. And then think about the lies of today. It will not be difficult to come to a conclusion. At that point comes the moment to take action.

Let’s take our future in our own hands. Before the liars of capitalism drag us down to the bottom of the cliff where only they themselves have a rightful place. Our slogan remains: organize and hit back!!