> >New Worker Online Digest > >Week commencing 31st March, 2000. > >1) Editorial - The whole truth. > >2) Lead story - Peace process in danger. > >3) Feature article - Hit squads for "failing" hospitals. > >4) International story - Galloway challenges Hain over Iraq. > >5) British news item - Sellafield to close within months? > > >1) Editorial > >The whole truth. > >LAST week the New Worker published a report from a Greek comrade on the >appalling case of a Latvian Second World War veteran who has been sentenced >to prison for defending his country from Nazi invaders and home-grown >fascist collaborators. This week we publish a letter from Viktor Anpilov on >the same matter. > > Certainly this situation reflects the political and social turmoil that >has followed the counter-revolution in the former Soviet Union and it shows >that backward and reactionary ideas are flourishing in the manure heaps of >restored capitalism. > > This act of spitting upon the heroic sacrifice of 20 million Soviet war >dead is also made possible by a lack of historical knowledge among the >population, particularly since there are now two generations who have no >memory of the war. Fascists and the far-right will see an opportunity in >any ignorance they find to rewrite history for then own benefit -- and this >will not just happen in Latvia. > > In Britain there has been a tendency to shy away from the truth about the >Second World War dating back to the end of the war itself. Some readers may >remember that the giant hoarding put up in Trafalgar Square for the VE Day >celebrations proclaimed "Victory over Germany!" -- it did not, as the >Soviet posters did, proclaim "victory over Hitler fascism". The slogans >mirrored the attitudes of Britain's capitalist elite and the Soviet Union's >socialist state. > > During the decades of the Cold War the people of the western countries >were told very little about the was on the eastern front. The devastation >of the Soviet Union and the terrible loss of life were quickly swept under >the carpet in the late forties and early fifties in order to prepare the >ground for the anti-Soviet propaganda to come. > > But we have all been shown countless war films produced in Hollywood, >Shepperton, Pinewood and the like which mostly focused on the heroic >actions of United States and British forces. > > There is, of course, nothing wrong with honouring the courage of the >Allies on the western front, the sea and air battles of Europe and the >Atlantic, the war in the Far East and the war against Japanese militarism >in the Pacific. What is wrong is the blacking out of our Soviet Allies and >the lack of attention paid to the nature of fascism and the reasons why the >war happened at all. > > Now that half a century has passed there are fewer and fewer people around >to tell it as it was. To everyone under 50 the Second World War is only a >history lesson in school or a memory passed on by parents and older >relatives and friends. > > The situation today in Latvia shows how vital it is that the truth about >our recent past is told and told in full. If it is ignored or if it is >distorted the criminals of that past may crawl out to seek an unjust >revenge. And, the racist, supremacist ideas which the fascists used in the >1930s and 40s can then be separated in people's minds from the barbarous >crimes of that period and dressed in a respectability they should never be >allowed to have. > > This is especially important in this present period of capitalist crisis >in which imperialist warmongering is wreaking destruction in country after >country and creating a rising number of refugees and asylum seekers -- >people who are already being targeted by racists and fascists in the >prosperous countries of western Europe. > > We need to make sure that young people are taught the whole truth. There >is a real danger that the demands of capitalist production are starting to >push state education along the path of training for work -- a concentration >on basic skills and computer literacy. It was after all significant that >the one time Department of Education and Science became the Department of >Education and Employment. > > Discussions of education should not simply focus on funding (important >though that is) but should look at the content as well. We have already >seen a scaling down of physical education and music in our schools. It is >vital that history does not join this list nor must it be allowed to become >unduly influenced by the private sponsors currently creeping into our >schools by the backdoor. Above all the communists, anti-fascists and >progressives must speak out and keep the truth alive! > > ************************** > >2) Lead story > >Peace process in danger. > >by Theo Russell > >THE SAVILLE inquiry into the events of Bloody Sunday began last week in the >Guildhall of Derry which was the intended destination of the ill-fated >march 28 years ago. > > Fourteen marchers died and many others were wounded as British >paratroopers opened fire on the unarmed civil rights protesters. > > The inquiry isexpected to take many months but already there have been >staggering revelations -- of a deliberate policy of shoot-to-kill endorsed >by senior army officers. > > A private memo has been produced from commander of land forces General >Robert Ford to Sir Harry Tute, general officer commanding in northern >Ireland, outlining army plans to stop the banned march at the point of >maximum advantage to the army and to shoot on sight the young men believed >to be the ringleaders of civil disturbance in Derry. > > Another top secret communication from the head of the army, General >Michael Carver, informed the then Prime Minister, Edward Heath, that it may >be "imperative" to go into the Bogside and "root out terrorists and >hooligans". > > Francie Malloy, a member of Sinn Fein's national executive and a >councillor, said in London last week that unless the Good Friday >institutions are restored the peace process in Ireland could collapse >altogether. > > Speaking at a public meeting organised by the Wolfe Tone Society, he said: >"It is still possible to move on and develop the Good Friday Agreement >agenda if the institutions are re-established, but if this doesn't happen >the collapse of the peace process will become permanent". > > Malloy said that Northern Ireland Secretary Peter Mandelson had "applied a >British-Unionist veto and collapsed into the hands of Unionism", and >meeting with the Irish government in Dublin he had "given David Trimble's >position" on the peace process. The Irish government told the British not >to collapse the Good Friday institutions, saying this would lead to the >collapse of the peace process. > > Malloy also said that If the institutions are re-established, the >legislation allowing the Westminster parliament to suspend them must be >removed if the parties involved are to be allowed to let politics work in >the north of Ireland. > > He pointed out that Sinn Fein and the SDLP had worked on the Agriculture >Committee of the Northern Ireland Assembly, chaired by Ian Paisley, and had >worked well together to tackle the crisis affecting farmers in the north of >Ireland. > > Malloy added that Sinn Fein is considering taking the British government >to the European court for flouting the 1998 referendum result in suspending >the inslitutions. > > However he stressed that "the confidence of the nationalist community in >the north of Ireland is higher than ever. Mandelson may stall the peace >process, but the republican movement knows that equality and re-unification >will be achieved, and that there is no alternative mechanism for resolving >the conflict in Ireland." > > John McDonnell MP reminded the meeting that the cross-border bodies had >also been suspended by Mandelson, and said the Irish government and people >had been shocked and amazed by Mandelson's failure to consult them over the >suspension. > > He described Mandelson as "very close" to the Unionists, adding that >Labour MPs had "lost interest" in the Irish peace process and in consulting >with the Irish community in Britain. > > Speaking on behalf of the Justice for Diarmuid O'Neill Campaign, >Diarmuid's brother Shane announced that following the recent inquest >decision that Diarmuid's killing was lawful, the family was calling for a >public enquiry into all incidents in which people had been shot and killed >by the Metropolitan Police. > > ********************* > > >3) Feature article > >Hit squads for "failing" hospitals. > >by Caroline Colebrook > >THE GOVERNMENT last week announced a new strategy to improve standards in >hospitals by "naming and shaming" hospitals which do not meet minimum >standards of co mpetence, cleanliness and so on. > > Hospitals will be given hotel style ratings and those that fail, instead >of being given extra support, will have their funding reduced. > > A new health watchdog is to be established to inspect hospitals to see if >they are performing well. > > If they are deemed to be "failing", the hospital trusts will be given a >choice, face cuts in funding or accept outside intervention to improve >standards. > > This policy closely mirrors the Government line on education, where >inspections put enormous pressures on teachers, create a lot of paperwork >and can lead to all round demoralisation. > > The Government has already set its "hit squads" to work on several schools >and whole education authorities. This often involves handing the >administration over to the private sector -- in other words back door >privatisation. > > Renaming schools and bringing in "super-heads" is a policy that simply >ignores the root causes of why the school was having problems and already >three "super-heads" have quit, because there are no quick fixes ior the >deep underlying problems. > > The Government has also been moving the goalposts on what it means by >"failing". Schools with reasonable average exam results can now be accused >of being complacent and failing to stretch or pressure -- pupils enough. > > And the Government has recently admitted that it intends to hand schools' >administrations over to the private sector even when they are not "failing". > > it seems this has been the real agenda all along -- to fragment and >privatise the education system -- providing opportunities for the private >sector to make profits. > > Now it seems this process is to be applied to the health service, already >fragmented into hospital trusts. > > And if being a pupil in a school that has been "named and shamed" as >failing is demoralising, then being a patient in a "named and shamed" >hospital must be terrifying. > > All patients want better standards in hospitals but gimmicky hit squads >will not improve things. > > Hospitals have for too long suffered funding shortages. They have been >forced to contract out cleaning services to the cheapest tender on offer. > > The wages and conditions of ancillary workers have been drastically cut -- >sparking the longrunning Hillingdon Hospital dispute. > > The companies that run these services have to make a profit. This can only >be done by employing fewer workers on lower pay. > > >rampant infectians > > It is no wonder that hygiene standards have fallen and how infections are >running rampant in hospitals. > > The way to change this is to bring such services back into the NHS. > > Many skilled health workers like physio and occupational therapists have >found their positions undermined and wages cut as cash-strapped trusts >bring in less qualified but cheaper practitioners. > >This process is still going on. The Royal College of Physicians has >recommended a new tier of "health care practitioner" to help free doctors >and nurses to carry out more complex tasks. It might be better simply to >employ enough doctors and nurses in the first place. > > If this were part of a career structure to break down barriers and allow >the unqualified to gain qualifications in stages, it would be a good thing. >But it is really aimed to save money and allow trusts to get away with >employing fewer doctors and nurses. > > In the meantime the bricks and mortar of the hospitals are still being >handed over to the private sector to be rented back by the NHS in Private >Finance Initiative deals -- even though the Treasury select committee -- a >Parliamentary watchdog -- only last week admitted that PFI deals are not >the most effective way of funding public projects. > > Chancellor Gordon Brown was accused last week of misleading MPs after >Health Secretary Alan Milburn admitted that the 10,000 new nurses promised >by Brown were already in the pipeline and paid for by the taxpayer. > > The latest increase was in fact promised two years ago as part of an >expansion promised by the previous comprehensive spending review. > > This pledged to recruit 15,000 more nurses for the NHS by 2002. Mr Milbum >admitted that the "new" 10,000 were included in the original figure. > > Meanwhile the closures go on. The Stirling Royal Infirmary in Scotland is >to lose its entire women's and children's directorate, including a state of >the art children's ward and maternity services. > > Labour beds, the neo-natal intensive care unit and in-patient gynaecology >will be axed under plans drawn up by the Forth Valley Acute Hospitals Trust. > > ************************* > >4) International story > >Galloway challenges Hain over Iraq. > >CAMPAIGNING Labour MP George Galloway has challenged Foreign Office >Minister Peter Hain to a public debate on the blockade of Iraq in Hain's >own Welsh constituency. And if Hain doesn't take up the offer Galloway is >going to hold a public meeting there on Iraq regardless. > > The Scottish MP who has championed the plight of the beleaguered Iraqi >people has booked Neath Town Hall on 8th May for the meeting to challenge >Hain's version of the facts around the cancellation of the Mariam Appeal's >mercy flight to Baghdad. > > In a letter to the Glasgow Herald Galloway says: > > "To be accused of a 'cynical and dishonest manoeuvre' (Peter Hain's letter >21/3) by an apologist for a sanctions regime which has killed more than a >million children is like being told to sit up straight by the Hunchback of >Notre Dame. > > Fresh from his 'triumph' in bludgeoning the hapless Alun Michael into the >position of First Minister of Wales -- a famous success as we all know now >-- Hain is the third foreign minister in just over a year to be given the >task of defending the indefensible. > > His claims are just ludicrous. If as he says I was interested only in a >publicity stunt readers may ask themselves whether actually flying the >aeroplane to Baghdad rather than cancelling it would not have generated >more publicity. > > Having agreed at Hain's diktat to reduce the numbers on board from 207 to >29, the UN Sanctions Committee in New York demanded -- in three hours -- >answers to a long list of questions which could not be answered or, like >the demand to know the precise purpose of each of the 29 people of board >were, as our forthcoming court case will show, flatly illegitimate. > > Hain makes the extraordinary claim that the Sanctions Committee OK'd the >flighton the day I cancelled it. How could this be true when I did not >answer their long list of questions? And if true would that not establish >that the questions were a wrecking device?" > > An Iraqi-born British doctor who had planned to go on the flight to attend >an expatriates conference in Baghdad reports that he was visited by a >member of Special Branch to warn him off. > > Jerrard Misconi, a retired orthopaedic surgeon who has lived in Britain >since 1964, says the plain-clothes policeman told him "we have reservations >about this conference" and claimed it would give Saddam Hussein money, >technology and a propaganda platform and allow him to recruit agents from >those attending. > > Thames Valley police confirm that a detective-constable had visited >Misconi on behalf of the government and the Home Office admits that the >police had called on "some Iraqis" who had been invited to the conference, >which was discussing issues like dual citizenship problems. > > George Galloway is going to lodge a protest with the Home Secretary at >what he described as the "disturbing use of the police for a political >purpose." > > ********************* > >5) British news item > >Sellafield to close within months? > >THE GOVERNMENT last week announced that the proposed privatisation of >British Nuclear Fuels Limited (BNFL) will be delayed until at least after >the next election, adding to speculation that the controversial nuclear >reprocessing plant at Sellafield in Cumbria may be closed within a few months. > > Sellafield's problems have mounted steadily since it came to light that >officials had deliberately falsified records. > > This was followed by a damning report from the nuclear inspectorate on the >management of Sellafield. > > Customers of Sellarfield's services, including Germany and Switzerland >have since suspended shipments of spent nuclear fuel as questions of the >safety of the plant multiply. > > And Irish energy minister Jose Jacob has called for the plant to be closed >because of the high level of pollution in the Irish Sea coming from >Sellafield. > > He has been supported in this by the Danish and Swedish governments. > > Joe Jacob and Danish environment minister Svend Auken are to put proposals >for closing the plant before Ospar, the international convention which >controls marine pollution in the Irish sea, north east Atlantic and North Sea. > > They are also proposing to end nuclear reprocessing at Cap de la Hague in >France. > > Sellafield received a new blow last week when deliberate sabotage was >reported ina high security area in the plant. > > Wires were cut on five giant robots used for handling highly radioactive >materials, putting the vitrification plant out of action for three days. > > When Joe Jacob and Svend Auken put forward their demands for the plant to >close, they were surprised that the British government did not voice any >opposition, or deny a report that the plant is due to be closed soon. > > ********************* > > >New Communist Party of Britain Homepage > >http://www.newcommunistparty.org.uk > >A news service for the Working Class! > >Workers of all countries Unite! __________________________________ KOMINFORM P.O. Box 66 00841 Helsinki - Finland +358-40-7177941, fax +358-9-7591081 e-mail [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.kominf.pp.fi ___________________________________ [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe/unsubscribe messages mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] ___________________________________
