Feeding the 800 Million

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"YOU came here to listen and learn?", a US news But many of them were transformed into economic managed to seriously develop their economies and reporter asked President Reagan at the Cancun backyards of the rich capitalist countries - with deal with the poverty in those countries.

Humped discussing the problems of world poverty. economies geared to a single crop or mineral, not A real workers' revolution in the poor countries could mobilise their resources, redistribute their "Have any of the delegates, Mr President, said Those industries that did develop in them were anything to cause you to change your thinking owned by - and their profits were drained off to about foreien aid or how vou could heln the Door the wealthy claages of the colnnisino nowara only for the Tories but also for the Labour Party.

Especially since World War 2, most of the former colonies have won political independence The right wing has an answer. The left wing is Reagan relies on the 'free market' to deal with - often after long, terrible struggles — and some- to blame. Labour should perhaps not dump its poverty - about the same answer that the British times seized ownership of their major industries.. policies, they say, but it should dump the leaders ruling class gave to the Irish potato famine nearly But they still depender: on the rich capitalist who speak out for those policies and any 150 years ago, but on a much larger scale. countries - dependent on their markets, their mechanisms to make sure the policies are carried 800 million people in the world are undernour- technology, and their finance. In recent years, ished. In India and in most of Africa the average debt payments to the bankers of the rich capitalist But the whole purpose of a working class party life expectancy is in the 30s or 40s. The 36 poorest countries have become a more and more crushing is to challenge the established opinions and values countries in the world, containing over half its in a capitalist society. That does not mean it must population, spend about $5 billion a year ! The few fragments of aid doled out by the rich be in a minority — it means having to work to win nealth, while multary spenaing in cne to major rich capitalist countries is about $200 billion per If Labour's leaders constantly proclaim that Labour's own policies are extremist, and that the National income per person in the US is 40 times powerful, and the poor - even the relatively poor as high as in the 36 poorest countries in the world.

West Germany's national income per head is 100 A real workers' government in a country like win.

Britain would undertake a massive programme of Winning support for radical policies also deWhy? When the European powers first seized colonies in Asia and Africa, the areas they seized were often not much less advanced than the colonising countries. But as the European capitalist powers advanced, they pushed the colonies back.

The Indian cotton industry, for example, was practically destroyed in the interests of the British The great popular revolutions in China and The lesson of Croydon is: we must change our In some ways and to some extent, the colonial powers did develop the economies of the colonies. people of the world?"

"No" year.

times as high as Bangladesh's. cotton industry.

THREE prison warders are to go on trial for murdering a prisoner, despite two magistrates judgments that there was insufficient evidence.

Barry Prosser was found dead in Winson Green jail, Birmingham, on August 19th, 1980. His injuries could not have been self-inflicted. He had received a blow (probably from someone's knee) so hard that it had burst his stomach; his gullet had been perforated; there was severe bruising around his genitals, on his back and on his feet; and his toes were broken.

Suspicion immediately fell on senior prison officer Melvyn Jackson. He was the only person on the premises who had a key to Prosser's cell.

The prison officers' story was the same from the start - Prosser, they claimed, shame?

We've always said these people we send to Parliament have no shame. Well, it seems there's one exception. Ron Brown, the much-named Iby Speaker] MP for Leith, ваув he's too embarassed to tell people what be does, so he tells them he's an en. gineer - his previous job before entering the House.

Would it be too much to hope that one day Labour MPe and Labour gorers. ments had nothing to be ashamed of in the first place?

FOR a small sum, you too can have access to confidential personal details held on the Police National Computer. New Statesman investigator Duncan Campbell has established proof that ex-police officers working for private detective agencies can use their links with working policemen to gain access to the computer which holds over had had to be restrained in order to give him a sedative injection. No more than reasonable force was used to administer the sedative.

This story is 'supported' by a prison hospital notebook bearing an Entry which reads 'This man has gone completely berserk, banging in cree most end treme way. Very, very disturbed and hallucinating. Thinks he is being beaten to death.' (!)

Lawyers for the victim's entry was made after Prosser had been beaten in order to provide a cover.

Exertion The police failed to see any signs of external injury on the dead body and allowed the cell to be IF you're black you stand a far greater chance of being allocated poor quality council bousing. and you're more likelt to base a long mail. And Don is seems ita: you car i min erber. i tou try to buy your oma bouse.

A report on Asian house forty million records, including b four names and 20 vehicle records.

All this for a mere £4 computer check.

It seem that those in the police force supplying the information art selling themselves short. Surely they could make a bigger killing than that! to the needs of the people. burden on the poor countries.

capitalists - fall further behind. Cleaned out, so removing any possibility of forensic tests identifying Barry Prosser's assailants.

At a hearing in September, the magistrate chose to give no credence to the testimony of Patrick Galvin who had been a fellow prisoner at the time of Barry Prosser's death. He was the only person offering evidence that the three accused officers had Fore Tits Prat evening bee come loc Prosser's cell We• tune time of the notebook entry).

Galvin had told an inquest last Apri: that he had heard a noise that sounded like leave me alone' coming from the cell, that he then saw the three officers outside the cell showing signs of exertion, and that one of them had told him the next morning to keep his mouth shut. purchasers in Leeds by Linda Stevens and Malcolm Harrison of Leeds University has found that they have special difficulties in getting mortgages.

Bullding societies. it seeIas. are untilling to lend moner to buy houses in parts of the city where ethnic minorities form a large section of the population.

The study focused on an area covered by the support Lending Scheme, brought in specifically to encourage building society funds into inner city areas, and found even here that the refusal rate was higher and loan percentages lower in areas where Asians have settled.

Prison officer Melvyn Jackson now faces trial for the third time for the murder of prisoner Barry Prosser, after what the DPP called a 'very unusual' move. Andrew Hornung explains.

Last February a local fulltime magistrate decided there wasn't enough evidence. Then Galvin came forward and the prison officers were brought to court again in September, when once again the magistrate ruled that there was not enough evidence for a trial. Now the DPP, under mounting pressure, has gone over the heads of the magistrates and sent the three for trial on a murder charge.

Magistrates' courts used • Police court, officially as , openly the instruments of the local Observe im the pam sighe months Birmingham magwealth, and begin to deal with poverty. coalition government. anhufantha Truino hood What to do about it?

out! huge difficulties. are bound to be boosted. It is a serious problem not -lan Saul