Metals victory

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What they are and what they must become Socialist Organiser 35 p Sp plus postage trom Socialist Tganiser, c/o 214 Sickert Cou ondon N1 2SY. more easily.

The workers were originally apathetic to the pay claim after the antics of last year but upon hearing of the two year offer and the attitude of union leaders, loud rumblings can now be heard. One of the regional conferences is taking place on April 27. The message coming from there should be a resounding no to the two year deal and for strike action in pursuance of a decent rise. Workers at Willan Metals, Rotherham returned to work on April 5 after a seven-week strike over a "bonus scheme". Despite manage; ment attempts to split the workers. by separate workshop negotiations, they have remained solid and won their demands. Indeed it seems that some sections have won a better deal than before.

Aurora, the parent company, have pledged no more redundancies and have reemployed four people.

Though the return signifies a victory for the workers, it is subjert in ? four-month trial period. It is essential that the workers remain firm when this period is up and do not allow management to alter the conditions of employment.

Meanwhile, it seems likely that a strike will take place this week over the same "bonus scheme" at Edgar Allen steelworks (also part of the Aurora group).

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miners" strike will soon be rock their Fleet Street poodles have solid nationwide - ballot or no had the gloating smirks wiped off ballot. their faces. The Sunday Times far as 1 am concerned they NO-ONE now doubts that the "As their injunctions" NI MacGregor, the Tories and MORI poll showed a clear 68% of miners in favour of striking. ITV's Weekend World poll showed a similar result.

Even Weekend World presenter Brian Walden was talking about this strike in terms of "class against class". It all goes to show that the pessimists, the fainthearts and the ballot maniacs within the labour movement were very out of touch with the rank and file of the NUM.

Tactic

The tactic of the rolling strike without a national ballot has been vindicated. Whether or not the special delegate conference now decides to call a ballot - an entirely tactical matter - is unlikely to make any great difference to the situation.

Those within the labour movement (from Neil Kinnock down) who use the question of the ballot as a pretext for withholding full support to the NUM must be called to order: ballot or no ballot there can be no doubt whatsoever that the majority of miners are behind the strike.

It is the job of every self-respecting socialist, worthy of the name, to get behind the miners and do their bit in building support. There can be no room for complacency.

Cabinet

MacGregor has made it clear that he is prepared to dig in for a long fight and Thatcher and her "war cabinet" are clearly behind him all the way - which is why the call from Terry Duffy and others for the government to "intervene" is so ridiculous, not to say treacherous.

The striking miners must continue the picketing of working pits and set up the picketing of power stations, railway depots, and wharves. But even more important now is solidarity action MICHAEL Bettaney tried the British state and found it guilty. Now the State has hit back, sentencing him to 23 years in jail, in solitary confinement, for attempts to pass information to the USSR which did not even succeed.

Alter his conviction, MIS official Bettaney declared: "Those members of the Establishment who will condemn me as a traitor to our country speak falsely. Our country is not their monopoly; it is an embodiment of the rights, interests and aspiracretion he became more left wing and more sceptical about British policy and the security service..

Now the state machine has turned on Bettaney in a vicious spirit of revenge. His trial was held in secret, with jurors vetted by the MIS and the Special Branch, and he has been given a very vindictive sentence.

Free Michael Bettaney!