We Must Reclaim the Future at the Next Election

Guest writer, socialist activist Ciarán Mulholland with a review of a week in Belfast politics 20th December 2013.

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They say a lot can happen in a week of politics, but I think that more happens in the everyday real world of the ordinary person. Over the course of the past few days we have witnessed explosions, attempted bombings, and more recently arrests and incarceration.

It is without doubt that the events we are witnessing are like something from a Golding’s ‘Lord of the Flies’ or even Orwell’s novel, ‘Animal Farm’. The truth of the matter is that we live in a City whereby equality is not extended to all and it is customary for some to be “more equal than others”.

I do not condone the recent attacks on Belfast City Centre, particularly given this time of year and fail to comprehend the logic in these reckless actions. I am also very sceptical of the timing and the rationale of such events, not to mention those who instigated them. We are not strangers to State sponsored manipulation through their Securocrats in order to cultivate a culture of fear and to dictate peoples’ political mind-sets for their strategic gains.

One must reasonably question the lack of coverage in recent days of these bombs. In the moments after each incident the PSNI were first to vocalise that they would be releasing any CCTV footage of the culprits. However, they have retracted to a position that there are difficulties in doing so because of the age of the individual(s). This wasn’t the PSNI’s position several months ago when they released images of riot suspects, many of which were juveniles. What is really going on?

In recent days several Republicans have been arrested and incarcerated on dubious allegations. One can’t fail but notice these are the ‘usual suspects’ and assume that they will be held on remand indefinitely – “obviously in our best interests” we will be told. Maybe I am naïve but I was shocked to hear the indoctrination being echoed throughout the media from the TV and Radio to Newspapers and Social Media.

“Three prominent Republican’s off our streets” one paper has headlined - Let’s put this in context, there is no evidence before the Courts other than the word of the PSNI. It was only months ago that we all heard at the Court of Appeal the inaccuracies and flaws of the ‘concrete evidence’ the PSNI boosted they had against the ‘Craigavon 2’. Despite the Appeal Court’s judgement still undelivered it clearly transpired during the course of the hearing that the PSNI, Special Branch and MI5 had conspired and had an influence on the investigations to ensure there were speedy arrests and unsound convictions at whatever cost.

These three men have been arrested and have spent time in prison before. Therefore, for the narrow-minded, the face may fit - so jail them! However if you dissect these events, the facts, and the historical circumstances, one may reach a fairer conclusion. Colin Duffy epitomises this, how many years of remand must he serve before there is an outcry, how many more appeals must he lodge to clear his name, how could he possibly get any justice from the same criminal justice system that has failed him on so many occasions and appeases the harassment and intimidation he and his family endures.

There was also a shameful and slanderous article printed in a Sunday Tabloid on Gerard Hodgins. It was nothing more than a malicious unfounded concoction of lies to benefit the political elite. This was another very sad indictment on the media.

For me regardless of your political persuasion, religious beliefs or anything that differs us from one another, we all should be respected equivalently and extended the same rights, protections and opportunities.

Unfortunately this creation of the ‘beast’ is in the interest of the status quo and the political establishment. It has been brought to my attention that a Belfast Councillor for the Lower Falls Ward while on Radio Ulster on 17th December exploited the sensationalised media coverage. As opposed to utilise his civil duty, and represent his constituency he used the opportunity as a means of exasperating the political rhetoric, obviously for his party’s gains.

I recently read an article which alluded to the double standards and hypocrisy of the political establishment here; on one hand the political figures will quickly condemn the actions of ‘Dissidents’ and/or ‘Disenchanted Unionists’ and state that ‘these sort of people will not drag us back to the past’ meanwhile their body language, persona, and political dogma has never left the past.

The derogatory stigma of being a deemed a ‘Dissident’ by the establishment is practically identical to the use of the word ‘terrorist’. It is a toxic label. This crud use of terminology and deception has long been an instrument of the Establishment’s scaremongering arsenal.

According to the dictionary a ‘Dissident’ is defined as the following;

“a person who opposes official policy, especially that of an authoritarian state”

I can certainly identify with the above particularly given my opposition to certain official policy; the Welfare Reforms, Unregulated Payday Loan Culture and the unaccountable use of ‘legal’ surveillance under RIPA 2000 just to name a few.

I believe this opposition is totally legal and just in any democracy but unfortunately in a Statelet whereby even the local Assembly has no opposition, to dissent from the status quo is frowned upon and extremely dangerous for the few brave outspoken critics.

Realistically, a ‘Dissident’ is perceived by the majority of the people in Ireland as something negative, dark and dirty, and many generally have a mental picture of a warmongering Neanderthal dragging their knuckles along the ground with nothing to offer society. Let it be known that I am a proud Irish man and a socialist who believes in a better fairer future for all, but first and foremost I am just an ordinary human being, no better or no less than my neighbour.

These continued failures of the political elite are not due to external factors but their own; the lack of leadership, courage and compassion. No American can fly in and resolve ‘the legacy of our past and issues of contention’; it requires willingness from the participants and an Irish solution to an Irish problem. We are now witnessing the flaws of Hass and the inability to compromise by the political status quo.

While at a talk in Queen’s University several years ago an academic stated that the problem with the ‘politically stagnant environment’ we live in is that the ‘Nationalists are too cute to tell their supports the true failures of the Good Friday Agreement and that the Unionists are too arrogant to recognise the extent of their victory’. This is an analogy that is becoming increasingly apparent.

I am a strong advocate of the peace process and I fully endorse the use of political avenues to further the struggle for a Socialist Republic, however I am deeply opposed to the numerous agreements that facilitated further Unionist concessions. The reality is that the Good Friday Agreement has long been dead; it was dead with the signing of further agreements such as St. Andrew’s and Hillsborough, this is often echoed by the DUP.

Times are hard and difficult; they are fully of discrimination, people are demoralised and deflated but ignorance and aggression will bring little real change. Let’s rise – let’s organise and let’s mobilise. I want to offer an alternative left, a vibrant voice for City Hall that will represent the entire constituency. We need to ensure we are registered to vote. We can all make a small difference.

It is new strung and shall be heard - Vote for Change in 2014!

Beirigi Bua…