Bloody Sunday-1984÷

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AFTER 11 successful Bloody Sunday demonstrations since 1973, the 12th in Sheffield should have been no problem. Sheffield has a reputedly left wing City Council and an active (and increasingly successful) Labour Committee on Ireland branch.

Of course the march was in fact banned;

This was at the request of the leader of Sheffield City Council, David Blunkett, who did not bother to consult the Labour Group, or District Labour Party before doing so.

As with his decision to ban the rally from City Council premises earlier in January, he did it first and then sought endorsement from the Labour Group later.

council that it whipped up, he saw only one solution, of going first for a ban on the use of the City Hall, and again, later, for an appeal to a Tory Minister to ban the march.

The nicest word that can be found to describe the behaviour of the spokesperson for the local Sinn Fein (UK) branch, Tony Kelly, is incompetent.

As soon as the Harrods bomb went off, he got himself on radio and television, and making statements to the press, saying that it was necessary and correct but that he regretted civilian casualties.

The statements made were linked to the Bloody Sunday Mobilising Committee since Tony Kelly couldn't make up his mind who he was speaking for (he didn't consult the Bloody Sunday Mobilising Committee).

Meanwhile, Ireland suffers.

Joan Maynard MP came out against the ban saying that the talk of an NF march did not justify it. "I am very unhappy that the council should have got itself involved in this kind of ban. It's a ploy to stop people demonstrating on issues relating to Ireland", , she said.

Councillor Sheena Clarke told Socialist Organiser that she was dismayed about the ban. "It inhibits what we see as the important task. That is to talk to the people involved in the struggle, over here."

The fault of the LCI rests not being influential enough, not having enough authority have been consulted in this as right.

Meanwhile, we will have to continue our work, getting Ireland discussed in the movement; reversing the ban on the use of council premises for meetings relating to Ireland; building for a Sheffield labour movement delegation to Ireland; and generally trying to raise the issue of Ireland out of the areas of ignorance, incompetence and sectarian manoeuvre.

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Reacting only to media cover- age, and the complaints to the