Miners vs. the State

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In the 'Triple of cowboy firms owning just a to their aid. -ment to stop movement has heen Eric Heffer MP has tabled a motion for the Labour Party NEC concerning the role of the police in the current miners' strike.

"This meeting expresses its deep concern at the extent of the police operations in the current mining dispute. which from press. radio and TV reports. appears designed to prevent picketing at collieries. The right to undertake peaceful picketing is still upheld by law, and it In the surreni mining dispute the pritating has been peaceful. des.

free morement of the British people. On gre EsTat i D police to arrest bus drivers and miners' pickets from Yorkshire and else. where is a move towards the ending of free movement in Britain. It is surely a step towards the police state, and is little different from an East European or a Latin American dictatorship.

The Home Secretary and other government ministers, giving permission to the Police Chiefs under common law to carry out such action is a serious breach of the traditional and normal procedures of The Labour Party therefore calls upon the government and the freedom of movement are upheld. police authorities to ensure that the rights of peaceful picketing and However, the Party reminds the authorities that it is not the job the police to regard civil liabilities under the Employment Act grounds to justify police action to prevent peaceful picketing.

John Douglas and Steve Battlemuch report from Nottinghamshire.

NO effort has been spared by the forces of the state to try to make the miners' picket lines in Nottinghamshire ineffective.

The Yorkshire and South Wales pickets were contained by up to 8000 police on duty in and around Nottinghamshire.

The police would only allow six pickets on the line at each nit The rest were kept to one side, hemmed in by the boys in blue.

The Nottinghamshire vote -20,188 to 7,285 to work - was obviously a blow, and the area officials have now joined the 'call a national ballot' brigade.

"We've had a ballot", , whine the scabs. "You'll be wanting a ballot for your Sunday dinner next" , was the response of one picket angered by the complacent smugness of those crossing the picket lines. They respect more the rights of the police to harry or assault pickets, than the right of fellow miners to form picket lines.

But despite all this, the pickets keep coming, and now their wives are coming with them.

The Nottinghamshire miners who voted for a strike are generally not crossing the picket lines, and in many cases they are joining the pickets.

Barnsley

1000 pickets gathered Barnsley last Monday, outside the headquarters of the Yorkshire area NUM, to defend their union against the threat of sequestration of its assets by the courts.

The middle pages of Socialist Organiser, with the headline •Tories and fascists - the last time round', , were held up in front of the police, and one miner stuck them up on the fence to show what he thought of the police.

When the police attempted to arrest three miners, the pickets, having the balance of forces in their favour. demanded the release of the three and by sheer weight of numbers forced the police to retreat into a side street.

The strange spectacle of a senior police officer and Jack Taylor, the Yorkshire NUM President, both standing on the top of a police vehicle, with Jack Taylor announcing that the court hearing had been adjourned, was sufficient to get the crowd to disperse.

But many of the pickets were still angry. They demanded full union support for picketing Nottinghamshire.

Jack Taylor was remiss in not explaining that the action of the National Coal Board in taking the Yorkshire NUM to court gave the police the excuse they needed to mount their action against pickets in Nottinghamshire. He had an excellent opportunity to galvanise the pickets for a fight not only against pit closures but also against the Tory anti-union laws.

The question of the Triple Alliance (miners-railworkers-steel) and how to deal with the police are already being posed by the militants in Yorkshire and North Derbyshire. At present all the itative has come from the rank =-i:e. It is up to the leadership * side maximum support from she cade unionists for the =. snitrike proparational media == appovition of Nottlottinghamshire area but Botsover colliery voted 679 E0 341 to work.

On Tuesday 20th the afterone shift refused to cross a Dertesire miners' picket line. at on hadnesday the Bolsover ers themsetres lobbied the diora hamshire area executive leasing an all out strike. NOW IS the time for the NUM's partners in the 'Triple Alliance' to come to their aid. Railworkers could help tip the balance for the NUM.

Any coal or coke that produced is carried by rail road. Road is very difficult stop, with poor union organ 29: 00s: genres DAT DIE Tra the country. tion, and because of the number of cowboy firms owning just a couple of lorries. But a commit- couple of lorries. But a commitment to stop movement has been won from the TGWU and, with determined picketing, it could be dried up.

But rail has far better organisation and carries the bulk of the traffic. Here • the key could lie.

Both tr e NUR and ASLEF .: 200 By Rob Dawber (Sheffield NUR) (Chaffial NTID \ have instructed members not to cross picket lines. Properly interpreted this should mean not that pickets have to stand on railway lines, but that a picket at the front entrance means that a train should not enter at the back.

And a Yorkshire picket outside Nottinghamshire colliery should mean that NUR and ASLEF members do not CrosS.

Such a policy should be fought for by NUM pickets, outside train crew depots, persuading_ drivers and guards not to cross picket lines and informing them of which collieries have pickets outside.

Masses of police can get scabs in, but they can't make trains run into Nottinghamshire pits.

Repeat

Pickets should still try, nonetheless. to repeat the scenes of 1972 and 1974. when NUM banners on bridges over railways =-= = e:el mossings. stopped •sse polio n=14: T.: 4x= unions - some of whod diest (that is ASLEI and NUR) spill over into Nottinghamshire and Derby shire.

Refusing to move coal could thus start to hit Nottinghamshire. While the effects on morale of such help from other unions to the NUM speaks for itself.

BR management have already indicated their attitude to such a relusal to cross picket lines. At Tinsley, Sheffield, local union BEN IF-RAIL JOHN HARRIS way, could help the miners allowing us to boycott or *Oil normally arrives at Eggborough, Ferrybridge and Drax power stations at the rate of under two trains per week. As a substitute for coal, it is clearly a threat. That is why, for the last couple of weeks, traffic has increased to about one train a day - trebbling the amount of oil. Pickets needed!

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Labour must back miners

The text of the resolution is as follows: should therefore be upheld be the poxice.

The Broad Lefts

must become