CP opposes links with

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excuse to monopolise contacts between British workers and 'Isolate apartheid', the AAM leaders say-and they use as an THE unacceptable face of Communism (CPGB-style) was well in evidence at the AGM of the Anti-Apartheid Movement on 1 November.

A motion from Oxford Trades Council and SO supporter Bob Fine and other members of the Socialist Forum on Southern African Solidarity (SFOSAS); discussion action group for Trotskyists and libertarian Marxists, as well as a variety of Militant-inspired motions so alarmed the CP-dominated National Committee and Executive Committee that they packed the meeting with members from the London area who could be relied upon to support the Central to the day's struggle was a motion put by Bob Fine and other SFOSAS members asking the AGM to resolve chat the Anti-Apartheid Movement should encourage the formation of direct fraternal links between all independent, non-racial trade unions in South Africa and unions in Britain; to encourage the exchange of visits between active trade unionists in Britain and genuine, independent, non-racial unions in South Africa; to support the invitation of trade unionists from the independent non-racial trade unions in South Africa to international combine meetings and that AAM should make every effort to receive report-backs from those who visited South Africa on this basis and publicise all findings not prejudicial to the security of the South African unions.

So crucial did the EC consider the defeat of this resolution that they went to the lengths of putting forward a complete substitute support for any initiatives taken by women in the unemployed workers' movement to set up women's unemployed and unmaged groups and childcare provision at every (WM meeting. and commits ibe LTIM to campaigo for prorision for child care ei dole offices and against discriminacion in beneIts like the cobabilation "It* dUsI De drit black somes de as ite bottom. The Charter commits the WM to fighting sexism and racism.

The Charter calls for free and safe contraception and abortion facilities.

and demands a minimum income for women based on the average male worker's wage.

The Charter is central to building a genuine unemployed workers' movement, as women are losing their jobs at a much higher rate than men are resolution arguing that the AAM should encourage trade union solidarity work in Britain along the lines of the AAM's National Committee statement of 27 June.

This had been put out in response to a proposal from Coventry South-East CLP at an Anti-Apartheid Conference in March.

The statement had confirmed the existing AAM line of support for South Africa trade unions solely through the South African Congress of Trade Unions (SAČTU) which is, of course, underground organisation, and follows the same ideological line as the African National Congress.

The statement rejected totally the Coventry SE CLP request TOT direct links between combine committeesand factories in the UK and South Africa. It did so on the grounds that a) any visits to South Africa by British trade unionists would inevitably endanger South African trade unionists; b) that all information from trade unionists' visits to South Africa, be they by Bill Sirs and Terry • Duffy with management's blessing or by British shop stewards at the invitation of South African black workers struggle, are unnecessary: South African strikers (above.). c) that international visits are often treated with susnational visits and whose suspicion.

Leaflet

SFOSAS circulated at the meeting a leaflet documenting the strength of the overground, independent, non-racial trade union organisations, such as FOSATU, whose affiliates include the unions active in Leyland South Africa and SAAWU which has been leading the Rowntree struggle.

Bob Fine reminded members that both FOSATU and SAAWU as well as other overground trade union organisations involved in the recent wave of struggles have asked for direct visits by UK trade unionists in related firms and The Executive's amended resolution was principally recommended by Chris Easterling, SCPS bureaucrat.

He and his supporters played the 'danger to South African trade unionists' card strongly and also claimed that such visits would also endanger the British trade unionists who took part.

They spoke as if hundreds of shop stewards intended to try and fly into South Africa. They tried to draw parallels between shop stewards' visits and the proposed visit of Sirs and Duffy, playing down the fact that Sirs and Duffy have not been invited by the workers themselves.

Vote

Even with the support of Militant, the vote went 116 to 48 against the original resolution 14 as put up by SFOSAS, and for the Executive amendment which showed the extent of the Anti-Apartheid Movement platform's voting strength.

The EC and NC of the Anti-Apartheid Movement organised the day's business to suit their own purposes.

Before taking resolution 14 they brought a leading SACTU comrade onto the platform to make a strong attack on the proposal for direct links.

Having defeated resolution 14 and knocked the stuffing out of Militant, the platform got the meeting to vote that three more resolutions be referred to the National Committee's next These included the resolution from Oxford Trades Council, calling for direct links, for. British workers to open their bosses books, for full blacking action and for nationalisation under workers' control of all companies and banks involved in South Africa.

Not much imagination is needed to envisage what the NC would do with this resolution.

A major plank of AAM programme is for comprehensive sanctions against the South African government by the British (i.e. Thatcher) government.

Militant speakers who explained that neither sanctions nor the withdrawal of British companies from South Africa could be achieved within the framework of capitalism were hissed and harassed at the AGM.

It emerged that the AAM constitution is grossly undemocratic. The AGM does not decide policy but merely recommends it to the National Committee of which 30 members are elected at the Conference and over 30 co-opted from affiliated organisations by the existing NC after the AGM.

South African solidarity is of paramount importance. Not only do we have to decide how best to deal with the problems of the AAM oligarchy, but also what solidarity work we can undertake outside Anti-Apartheid.

South African solidarity work should be discussed at SO meetings and should come up for full discussion at SO delegate meetings:

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Socialist Organiser, Thursday 5 November 1981 Page 13

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picion. The statement did not specify whose inter-