Ukraine – A Ukrainian Left And Russian Left View

Below we are publishing twe articles from Ukraine. The first is from the Autonomous Workers Union in Kyiv/Kiev, the second from well-known Russian socialist oppositionist, Boris Kagarlitsky, first published in the Links International Journal of Socialist Renewal. 1. A STATEMENT FROM AWU/KIEV The overthrow of the authoritarian regime of Yanukovych by no means signifies for…

Republican socialist candidate for the executive of the Left Unity Party

Steve Freeman of the Republican Socialist Alliance is standing as for the Executive of the Left Unity Party. Steve spoke, along with Bernadette McAliskey and Mary McGregor (RCN) at the 4 Nations After the UK session at the Radical Independence Campaign conference in Glasgow on 23rd November. This is the statement he has produced for…

Latvia And Ireland In The Race To The Bottom

There has been much talk recently from George Osborne about economic recovery in the UK, demonstrated in a rise in employment figures. That many of these jobs are on zero hours or other part-time contracts, and that the largest group dependent now on benefits are the low paid jobs, highlights the reality of life in ‘Food Bank…

Republican Socialist Alliance In England Responds To Cameron And Osborne

Below we are posting the statement agreed by the RSA Steering Committee in London on Feb. 14th in response to Cameron and Osborne. This is followed by a statement of solidarity sent to republican socialist organisations in Scotland by Steve Freeman, member of the Republican Socialist Alliance and Left Unity Party in England. He was a…

A Review of Jim Sillars’ ‘In Place Of Fear II’ by Gerry Hassan

If much of the Left in England has become all nostalgic about Old Labour following Ken Loach’s The Spirit of ’45, then much of the Left in Scotland, both in and out of the Labour Left, look back to Scottish Labour’s ‘glory days’ in the 1970’s. Here Gerry Hassan reviews dissident SNP member, Jim Sillar’s…

The SNP And Scottish Independence

Eric Chester (RCN) outlines some of the problems that the SNP government’s White Paper Independence-Lite proposals would pose for genuine Scottish self-determination. As the referendum campaign unfolds, it becomes increasingly obvious that Alex Salmond and the SNP have no interest in a truly independent Scotland. Instead, a ‘yes’ vote is a vote to authorize Salmond to…

‘Just Say Naw’ To Galloway’s Sectarian British Unionism

Bella caledonia posted an article by Richard Cameron (RCN and Edinburgh RIC) outlining the politics behind George Galloway’s Just Say Naw Scottish road tour (see Just Say Naw – To Galloway’s Sectarian British Unionism). Given the short time to write this article a number of errors appeared, none of which affected the overall arguments presented. However, Richard…

Human Rights Are Under Threat In North Of Ireland

http://www.scotsrepublic.com/2013/09/human-rights-are-under-threat-in-north.html New York based Sandy Boyer is the co-host of “Radio Free Eireann” broadcast Saturdays at 1pm on WBAI, 99.5 FM, or wbai.org. He has helped to mobilize support for political prisoners including Marian Price, Roisin McAliskey, the Birmingham 6, Pol Brennan and Joe Doherty. Here he outlines the continued threat to human rights in Northern…

Irish Budget 2014 – A Budget Of Smoke And Mirrors, Advancing An Agenda Of Barbarism

The mainstream Irish press claims the economic crisis has bottomed out in Ireland, and the economy is on the road to recovery. This article from from the Socialist Democracy (Ireland) outline the reality, particularly for the Irish working class. The extent to which the ideology of austerity has been engrained in Irish society is reflected in the expression of relief that…

Alex Salmond And The Written Constitution

Murdo Ritchie, a new member of the RCN, writes about the political significance of the issue of a written constitution raised the SNP government’s White Paper. Although the First Minister has abandoned the SNP’s commitments to referenda on a future independent Scotland’s membership of NATO and the European Union as well as continuing the current…