IPSC & TUFP Israeli Boycott Meeting - 6pm, Thursday 22nd January - Liberty Hall

by Tom Will Attend Thu Jan 22, 2009 13:05

Looks good. See ya there about a quarter to six. Good news about the cancellation of the Veolia contract in Sweden

by Socialist Fri Jan 23, 2009 00:20

You have a FF TD speaking on a platform about boycotting Israel! The Fianna Fail government have been giving material assistance to US Imperialism's wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, yet you have asked them to speak! And Jack O'Connor tries to cloak himself in the respectability of calling for a boycott of Israel because thats safe, its far away, its not going to have any real impact on his members or his arena of work, yet he hasn't lifted a finger to do anything for the thousands of SIPTU members who are losing their jobs except to meet with the political representatives of the bosses to see what he can do to assist the government to attack workers rights.
Boycott Israel, it is politically very safe. But when it comes to real struggle and real issues in your own country its a different story. Bishop Tutu, Naomi Klein etc all trying to claim that apartheid was overthrown by a boycott. Not true. Apartheid was overthrown by the mass struggle of the Black working class. But that doesn't fit in with how the likes of Tutu, Klein, Jack O'Connor etc want you to view the world. None of them support militant struggle by the working class. None of them support the idea of a mass movement of Palestinians to struggle for independence, or for a mass movement of Israeli workers to overthrow the reationary Israeli state.
They don't support militant action and struggle by the working class in their own countries so why would they support it abroad. No instead they support a boycott because that is safe. If Jack O'Connor really wanted to have a material impact on the lives of the Palestinian people then he would use his power and influence to stop the export of technology and equipment from Ireland to the Israeli military by getting trade unionists to take industrial action and block the export of these goods. And he could use his influence as could leading members of the ICTU executive who have senior roles in British based trade unions to argue that the British unions should organise similar action there. But they will not do this because they are opposed to organising workers to take direct action. SIPTU and ICTU has the power to stop US troops using Shannon airport on their way to Iraq. Social partnership doesn't only affect how they react to attacks on the jobs, wages and rights of Irish and British workers, it also influences their attitudes towards what should be done in relation to events abroad like the wars in Gaza, Iraq and Afghanistan.

by Tom Fri Jan 23, 2009 01:49

You should have come to the meeting and made those points. Probably would have more impact.

Waiting for a working class revolution from the Israeli Left to help Palestinians by overthrowing the Israeli state seems very misguided to say the least. It would be great to see but what are you going to do about the killings, land theft, subjection of population, destruction of property, theft of resources, denial of culture etc etc in the mean time... More rhetoric?

Was the meeting/line up/content perfect? No. Is it active? Yes. Can it have a impact? Yes