SOCIALIST LABOUR PARTY ====================== www.socialist-labour-party.org.uk Report On Scargill's Speech At June 4th Election Rally, London ----------------------------------------------------------------- (By S.Chandan) Arthur Scargill spoke to over a 150 people in London's Conway Hall on Monday 4th June. He spoke with London general election candidates Steve Cook, Ella Rule (who is also Womens Section Chair), and Harpal Brar (SLP NEC member). Cde Arthur electrified the meeting with a principled working class and anti-imperialist speech. A summary of his speech follows. He said that the original Socialist Labour Party, from whose tradition the present SLP continues, was formed in 1902 by the legendary revoluitonaries James Connolly and McLean. These fighters understoof the dangers of social democracy and warned Lenin of the dangers of the Labour Party, as a compromise over principles with the Labour Party would only dilute the class struggle for socialism. The Labour Party, and those which hung on to it, still dillutes and weakens the class struggle today. The only solution to our world is socialism. But people need to be given answers of how we propose to rememdy social problems today. Cde Arthur presented SLP policies for Britain such as the 35 hour , 4 day working week; of retirement on full pay; abolishing the monarchy; and getting out of the EU which is a capitalist club and out of NATO. That the founders of a European superpower was Hitler and is today been led by the Germans carrying on the tradition of Hitlerism. Cde Arthur made clear that he is for the unity of workers throughout Spain, Germany, France and the rest of Europe for a real working class internationalism. Cde Arthur explained that it is unemployment, disenchantment with politicians which is the real breeding ground for fascists, and if we are to fight fascism on a long term basis in Britain we must address these problems. Cde Arthur said that the miners learned more about fighting racism in a week in struggle through the Great Heroic Miners Strike of 1984-'85 than they would through 20 years of TUC and Labour Party schools on the subject. He spoke of how in this election the forces of the right and left are uniting against the SLP. That they are spending an enormous amount of time trying to discredit the SLP with one anti-wortking class voice. Cde Arthur said that there was only ONE nation-wide socialist party standing which is the Socialist Labour Party. There is no other socialist party standing which is calling on the people, not to vote for any of the capitalist parties, and to vote for the only socialist party which is championing the rights of the most disprivileged and exploited people both in Britain and abroad. Cde Arthur answered questions and contributions from the floor from a counter-revolutionary trotkysit orgainstion of the Workers Hammer and also a SA member. The former accused the SLP of having nationalist policies as we want to have import controls and we sould have workd socialist revolution yesterday and the latter asked why the SLP is not forming 'unity' with the SA. To the first accusation Cde Arthur said that the SLP does not want socialist Britain to be victims of imperialist dumping as pracitised by imperialism on the oppressed nations of the world. To the second accusation Cde Arthur explained that the founding of what came to be the SLP was done by meading members of all thos who now comprise the SA. All these people cannot complain about the SLP as they helped to establish the constitution and the policies of the SLP. They, however, could not give up their own organisations papers and parties so could not form a unified working class party. The SA and Workers Hammer were thoroughly discredited by Cde Arthur. Cde Arthur Scargill finished the meeting by calling on the people of Britain to vote for the SLP, for socialism and against capitalism, and that we have a glorious tradition of struggle, personified by so many revolutionary leaders around the world! Sukant Chandan SLP national youth organiser and candidate for Hackney North and Stoke Newington. _________________________________________________________________________ To Post a message, send it to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe, send a blank message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
