Letters

Remain or Ratify?

Last week the slogan “No second referendum, yes to a ratification referendum” was highlighted when London Mayor, Sadiq Khan, called for a “second EU referendum”. He predicted May would bring back a “bad deal” or an even worse “no deal”. Who will ratify or reject this deal - the Crown-In-Parliament alone (‘Westminster’ as it is more popularly known) or the peoples of our “Precious Union”.

On BBC One’s Andrew Marr Show, Mr Khan said “It’s really important that this is not a re-run of the referendum but the British public having a say for the first time on the outcome.” This might seem clear that Khan is for ratification not a repeat of 2016. But you would be wrong. “My point is this” he said, “Rather than having a bad deal or a no deal, let’s put that to the British public with the option of staying in the EU.” (Observer16 September 2018)

The EU referendum divided the country between the reactionaries and ultra lefts on one side and liberals and democrats on the opposite side. In Weekly Worker (Issues 1213 and 1214 ‘Crisis of Democracy’ 2 August 2018) I raised the slogan “No to a second referendum, Yes to a ratification referendum”. The demand for people’s ratification provides a democratic way forward for a divided working class.

The reactionaries and ultra lefts are against any further referendum on Europe. Theresa May has repeatedly stated her opposition. The ultras say the same for different reasons. They live in their own special bubble where high principles insulate them from recognising their coincidental alignment. This same blind spot saw the SWP and the Communist Party of Britain line up behind leaving the EU alongside the Tory right and UKIP.

On the opposite side are the liberals and democrats. The duplicitous liberals, like Sadiq Khan, whether left-Tories or right- Labour, serve the interests of the City and big business. Capital needs free trade, integrated supply chains and cheap workers which the EU supplies. The slogan of a ‘second referendum’ is a deliberately ambiguous slogan behind which liberals serve profit in the name of ‘jobs’.

The divisions within the working class over British exit can easily widen and deepen. The liberals don’t care about this but working class democrats do. Barry Gardiner, the shadow international trade secretary, warned that another vote on EU membership could result in civil disobedience and social disruption. The hard right are ready for the ‘Great Betrayal’. A second referendum means feeding raw meat to the ravenous beast of Brexit.

The democratic demand for ratification is different. A recent survey of Labour members found “that 86% of members backed a referendum on the outcome of the Brexit negotiations”. (Independent 24 September). The 2016 referendum enabled the working class to vote. Scotland and Northern Ireland voted to remain. This is the key to a democratic and revolutionary approach to the Brexit divide. Working class voters across the Union must have the right to ratify or reject the Tory Deal.

The Labour Party conference clarified the options. May, the Tories and Weekly Worker oppose another referendum. Blair, Alistair Campbell, Sadiq Khan and Chuka Umunna want a second remain referendum. McCluskey, McDonnell and Corbyn support a ratification referendum. Labour’s carefully constructed ambiguity was blown up when Keir Starmer declared, in an unscripted part of his conference speech, that a remain in the EU question was not ruled out.

Left democrats (i.e. republicans) have a different perspective. The battle for European democracy recognises the strategic importance of Scotland and Northern Ireland. Having already voted to remain in the EU, why should they vote on that again? Their majority votes have been ignored by the Tories. If the English left had an ounce of internationalism and democratic commitment they would already have mobilised opposition to this violation of self determination.

The left in England is a victim of Anglo-British chauvinism. Their minds are messed up with a kind of reactionary English nationalism which supports Theresa May’s “Precious Union”. Any international socialist who values the unity of the working class must fight against a second repeat referendum and call time on the British Union. The answer to Brexit starts from a united Ireland and a Scottish republic in a democratic Europe.

Steve Freeman
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Personality

Andrew Northhall’s letters are occasionally off the wall. Nonetheless, they are always worth a read.

Last week he took Mike Macnair to task for making personal comments against him (Letters September 20). But, Andrew, I think Mike was err ... replying to you.

It is good to know that Andrew now admits that he should take his “fair share of ... responsibility for what happened” in the Soviet Union and eastern Europe. It’s a pity, though, that criticism of the “authoritarian, top-down, ‘command and administer’ systems of government” did not happen long, long ago.

More to the point, albeit looking back from a great distance, what does comrade Northall propose should have been done.

He adheres to an almost kings and queens version of history. This ‘good’ general sectary, that ‘bad’ general secretary. If only the ‘bad’ general sectretary had died earlier, if only the ‘good’ general secretary hadn’t died so soon.

Comrade Andrew, that is not Marxism, it is the politics of the personality cult.

Stephane Just
Canterbury

Open selection

Around 50 people met just after the end of the Labour Party Liverpool conference to discuss how to continue the fight for open selection (another word for mandatory reselection). Among them were Matt Wrack, general secretary of the Fire Brigades Union, and Chris Williamson MP. Others included members of International Labour, representatives from CLPs who had submitted similar rule changes and volunteers who had helped to spread the message.

With over 90% of CLP delegates supporting the move to debate the issue, the organisers quite rightly, want to hit the ground running.

Considering the role that Len McCluskey and Jon Lansman played in defeating this important political principle, it was decided that extra effort should be made to win over trade union members and branches to the open selection campaign. For example, urging branches to affiliate. Comrades will also produce a petition to go to Momentum (which needs to be signed by 4,000 people in order to be put up before to the entire membership).

The informal meeting agreed to hold a conference on the issue very soon and to produce one ‘super rule change’ that could be used by as many CLPs as possible. There was some confusion about when exactly open selection could be brought back conference: some comrades feared that the undemocratic three-year-rule would prevent any amendment being heard next year. Others seemed convinced that this should be possible, as the issue was not actually properly debated. The decision was made to approach the conference arrangements committee for some guidance.

There was an interesting discussion on how to deal with the reform of parliamentary selections that was voted through at conference: from now on, an open selection process will take place once either 33% of all Labour branches or 33% of all affiliate branches (unions, socialist societies etc) of a CLP request it via the trigger ballot.

Some comrades suggested that Open Selection could run a successful campaign to organise trigger ballots everywhere - “including particularly North Islington, where a certain Jeremy Corbyn is the MP”, as one comrade suggested. Not to get rid of him, of course, but to show that there is nothing wrong with giving the membership the choice who they want as their parliamentary candidate.

Others feared that a successful campaign to run trigger ballots everywhere could take up a huge amount of resources and mean “that we might lose sight of the prize: Open selection”. There is, of course, also the danger that this could turn out to be too successful - ie, if lots of CLPs manage to win trigger ballots with the new system, this might reduce the sense of urgency in fighting for proper mandatory reselection. Again, comrades decided to seek guidance on how exactly this new type of trigger ballot would actually work, which might solve the above dilemma.

There was also some discussion on how the campaign is “naturally” touching on other important issues where the Labour Party is ripe for radical reform. “There are lots of other issues where the left needs to be better organised”, said Matt Wrack, who lamented that some unions had voted against a rule change that wanted to introduce written standing orders for conference.

Another comrade told how in her CLP, leftwingers are being stopped from running as councillors, because local campaign forums - which are usually dominated by councillors and regional officials - stopped them from being selected. A rule change to abolish LCFs and re-establish the much more democratic local government committees was withdrawn after the movers were “heavily leaned on”, she reported.

All in all, it was an inspiring meeting. Hopefully it will push the fight for mandatory reselection and other democratic demands forward.

Comrades who want to get involved should sign up on https://www.labour-open-selection.org.uk.

Bob Evans
Birmingham

Joe Robinson

Thanks for the article defending Joe Robinson. He is a hero, not a villain who deserves an eight year prison sentence in a Turkish gaol.

Having seen what Islamic fundamentalism has done to Afghanistan when he served there in the British army, he decided to fight against the Islamic State in Syria.

On his return from Syria he was arrested by the British authorities. Why? Because volunteered to be a medic for the People’s Protection Units (YPG) in Syrian Kurdistan. The very forces that the Americans have been backing. Thankfully Joe was not prosecuted in Britain and he was released.

Obviously he thought it was safe to travel abroad. But not to Turkey it appears. Joe did not know that under Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Turkey has become a fascist state. The Erdoğan government not only hates the Kurds, it hates all those who dare stand up against Isis - a medieval force of oppression, backwardness, rape and terror.

There is clear evidence that Turkey and Isis work hand in glove. This had been known for years. Back in 2014 British prime minister, David Cameron was pressing Turkey “to do more” to prevent Isis fighters from crossing back and forth over the Turkish border. But Erdoğan sees Isis as an asset. Turkey has recently been recruiting former Isis fighters into its ‘Free Syrian Army’ to shore up its occupation of Afrin.

I urge your readers to join in the growing demands for the Turkish government to free Joe Robinson. Also please call upon your British foreign office to put real pressure on the Turkey government.

Expressions of interest and concern are not enough.

Ara Ghobadi
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Hope

I very much appreciated Jack Conrad’s obituary of Michael Bettaney (Weekly Worker September 6 2018). It made fascinating reading.

You may be interested in an additional detail. I have been told, that after his arrest, Michael not only passed on details concerning MI5’s operations in Northern Ireland to the IRA. He passed them on to Brian Keenan. . After joining the IRA in the early 1970s Brian rose in the ranks of the Provisional to become their quartermaster general. That meant planning bombings and travelling to the German Democratic Republic, Libya, Syria and the Lebanon to acquire arms and explosives.

Keenan was, of course, sentenced to 25 years in June 1980, charged with organising the IRA’s bombing campaign in Britain. He was defended at his trial by the notable lawyer Michael Mansfield. Keenan widely correspond from his gaol cell - including, I believe, with a certain Jack Conrad.

Anyway, whether or not Brian and Michael were ever met in prison, I don’t know. But it does make a great story doesn’t it.

Michael Bettaney was obviously an intriguing, talented, complex and very charming individual.

Too many comrades on the left seem to believe that the state is all knowing, all powerful. It isn’t, because it is made up of living, thinking, feeling human beings. Not automatons.

That an MI5 agent such as him can be won to the cause of human liberation and communism should give all of us hope for the future.

Alan J Walden
New York

Relaunch

After a gap of some years, the left magazine Tribune was relaunched at a well-attended and enthusiastic rally at The World Transformed during Labour Party conference. Introducing a panel which included David Harvey, Dawn Foster, Owen Jones and Grace Blakeley, the journal’s editor, Ronan Burtenshaw, argued that there was a clear need for a magazine which reflected both the experience of the contemporary Labour movement as well as drawing on the “enduring relevance of our historical achievements”.

Tradition was a key theme for Burtenshaw and he very deliberately identified his magazine with what he saw as the illustrious history of the Tribunite current and the Labour left since the 1930s. The first edition certainly had some similarities with the ‘original’ magazine, with articles covering current politics, history, culture, the arts and ideas. But both in form and content this Tribune is much closer to the US left publication The Jacobin. This is not surprising given that Bhaskar Sukara, publisher of The Jacobin, is also now the publisher of Tribune. The success of The Jacobin and the hopes for the new/old Tribune rest on the new layers who have been drawn into activity by the Sanders campaign in the US and the election of Jeremy Corbyn as Labour leader in Britain.

The tone, layout and nature of the articles in Tribune certainly reflect many of the concerns and enthusiasms of these activists. Any new magazine that provides a media space for the discussion of socialism and the future of the labour movement is to be welcomed: after all, the range and size of our movement’s media is pitifully inadequate for the political tasks facing us. We need more magazines and papers: we need more voices and much more debate within our ranks. But can this Tribune make such a useful contribution to those discussions? We can but hope.

However, given that the magazine proudly lays claim to both the discredited historical traditions of Labour left reformism and its contemporary manifestation in the inchoate politics of Owen Jones, this seems somewhat doubtful.

Dave Jones
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