Left gains seats

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TROOPS_ONT NOWE Join the Labour Committee on Ireland.

By Box ssss. London WCIN SLY weapons.

Most of the conference -as far as I could understand -sati ite fight against nuclear === = = coral issue. to be SEE IN LEFT-WINGERS won positions in the elections for CND officers and council: Labour CND secretary Joy Hurcombe was elected as one of the four vice-chairs, and Socialist Organiser supporter Judith Bonner was elected to council together with Helen John from Greenham Common, Dick Withecombe (a Socialist Action supporter) and Walter Wolfgang (Labour CND).

Labour CND and Youth CND, however, lost their battles against the CND leadership. Both these sections have in recent months had their committees dissolved by the CND under "Interim Committees, Put under Interim committees Over Labour CND, the knife was put in, scandalously, by one of the few Socialist Workers Party members left after the SWP's recent almost-complete withdrawal from CND.

SWP veteran Nick Howard moved that Labour CND's motion opposing the measures against them be referred to the CND council, and the reference back was carried by 1045 votes "Labour CND moved behind the Labour Party's election campaign" , he complained, despite the fact that one of the CND leadership's charges against the Labour CND executive had been the fact that they criticised the election campaign. ("'A sectarian binge ... Attacks on people like Robin Cook and Neil Kinnock," complained Mike Gapes).

Nick Howard further complained that Labour CND had "sullied' the movement with "sectarianism"

But Walter Wolfgang, for the Labour CND Executive, explained that action had been taken against Labour CND, 'precisely because we have campaigned for a strong, uncompromising unilateralist line ... Inside the Labour Party there are people who would like to see a less determined campaign. If the words were not so sharp and the commitment not so hard, it would be easier to get the agreement of the leadership.

Youth CND's motion, condemning the CND executive's decision to declare Youth CND conference invalid, was lost on a show of hands by about three to one.

Tom Rigby, moving the motion, argued that the technical reasons given for invalidating the conference did not hold. Membership had been checked, against a CND computer print-out. Ages hadn't, but then they hadn't been checked at previous YCND conferences, either.

The issue, he said, was the CND executive coming down in a heavy-handed way on YCND's militant campaigning for unilaterialism and withdrawal from NATO. Youth should have some autonomy, and 90% of YCND activities were organised by groups which support autonomy.

The argument from the CND leadership, as with Labour CND, was based on the charge of "sectarianism". 'Youth must not be alienated by small political groupings within our movement who want to campaign on issues which are not the policy of CND," said Annajoy David, referring to the YCND conference decision to support the "'No More Chiles" demonstration in September.

Dan Smith launched a bitter attack on left groups in YCND: 'Their agenda for YCND is different from the agenda of CND as a whole.

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i-International news Sandinista rally - the regime retains mass support ocialist Organiser, 8 December 1983 Page 4 - .. 14