Greenham hasn't failed

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'It's a real struggle, and real gains have been made' clear that men are not welcome at to say "To hell with this: these the camps and are only tolerated. men recognise women's oppressoners' rights Angela Fraser recently visited the Greenham women's peace camp ON WEDNESDAY April 4 at 6.30 am, the police moved in and evicted the Greenham women trom their camp outside the main gate of the base. The other camps around the perimeter still remain, and, I think it's safe to say, so will the women.

The Greenham women pledged to stop Cruise being brought to Britain; they failed. They also pledged to stop Cruise leaving the base, but have failed even to stop practice runs.

They have been i accused of being just non-political, middle class feminists, going nowhere, achieving little.

But is it true to say that little has been achieved?

I'm sure that anyone who has visited the camps recently will tell you that yes, there are-hostile, middle class feminists there but there are also ordinary middle Class women, working class women, young girls, grandmothers - and all doing something ¡some for the first time in their lives) that they feel is positive.

On Sunday April 1, 1 visited the camps with three men. While they were not abused, heckled, sexually harassed or any of the other things that women, gays, black people or people of minority groups have to face every day Pri Gerry Moore, who is in H Block 7 Long Kesh, has not seen his sister Cathy in over a year. Cathy is on remand on the word of paid perjuror Raymond Gilmor and has been in Armagh Gaol for the past 19 months. Normally, inter-prison visits between relatives are allowed every three months, and during the past year both Gerry and Cathy have applied several times for this supposedly statutory right. On every petter ire ›m Long Kes of their lives, it was made quite ers' righ occasion the Long Kesh administration have granted the visit while the governor in Armagh Gaol has refused to allow what should be a normal family visit. Because of this, no visit is given.

Despite repeated attempts to have an explanation from Armagh Gaol as to why the progress has been made. It would appear to be a descrimination policy, since other inter-prison visits between Armagh and Long Kesh are continuing and this theory has been strengthened by a recent step up in censorship of letters between the brother and sister.

We feel that an issue such as this, though minor in comparison to the very dubious nature of Ms Moore's imprisonment and the degrading strip searches to which female prisoners are regularly subjected is an issue which deserves some support. That being the *se. we invite your readers to write letters of protest to the Prisons Minister at the Northern Ireland Office demanding that normal visiting rights be extended to Cathy and Gerry Moore immediately Is mise OCP/PRO publican POWs H Blocks It would have been very easy sion' and gone home, but you have to go into the camps and speak to the women to understand why men are not welcome.

I witnessed, for the first time in my life, real unity, friendship, humour, strength and such a bond between these women that it was almost frightening - all the charthat are portrayed as exclusive to men, and conditions that tvos HOSL hardened of us would find difficult to cope with.

If the camps had been open to men. these bonds would not nave been formed. Taking stance separate from men, has enabled the Greenham women to independent and to build strength and confidence The women I spoke to had no illusions about what they achieve by continuing their protest at Greenham, but they were very well aware that along with the miners, the Liverpool fight he GLC fight and all the othe disputes going on around the country, pressure is being put on this government, and surely that's a step in the right direction.

Some womnen were linking their struggle with the black people of South Africa and workers in Chile.

When asked one woman what she thought about the CND leadership callad freeze rather than she said that it all depended on who I thought the CND leadership was. That sounds positive to There have been links, although limited, with the trade union movement. The National Union of Miners has donated 40 tons of coal; the Fire Brigades Union gave jackets and other unions have sent things like metal plates.

Understandably, because the trade union movement is male-dominated, the women are loth to form too close a link with it. But just as we would support the trade union militant who mistakenly believes that politics should be kept separate from trade unionism and doesn't recognise that every strike is a political act, so also we should support the positive side of the Greenham women's struggle.

These women are in struggle and gains have been made - even if they are only personal to the women themselves.

What would we have them do? Go home like good little girls and some never experience a struggle again, apart from in the home where women are virtually isolated?

Or to stay at Greenham - and experience what unity, strength and comradeship is all about. for Arguing for socialism

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Governor there has adopted this vindictive attitude, no