"The Lost Revolution: A History of the OIRA and Workers Party"

[ManOfReason]

Netron,

The DL split was pure and simply about politics. A faction within the Party led by the TDs wanted to move away from revolutionary socialism, and to embrace the opportunity to sit in government. The WP said at the time that their real aim was to join the Labour Party, and that they were lying to WP members and those who went with them about that fact. History has borne this out.

There had been people within the Party moving rightwards, and there had been problems controlling some TDs, before the fall of the socialist states. Their collapse hastened that progress, and meant that instead of some TDs being forced to leave if they wanted to pursue their ambitions, they were able to split the party in the confusion of this time. They used allegations in the media to cover what was in reality a flight from socialism.

The WP published a collection of documents from both sides called Patterns of Betrayal. It can still be got from The WP.

Only half true - there was indeed a move by most elected TDs to abandon democratic centralism, and eventually join the Labour party (infact it was quite funny to see how Eoghan Harris was used in that process). However there were real tensions within the party between those who were party members and a vague subgroup who most understood to be at least someway associated with the OIRA. After the poor results in the local elections in the republic (with a hatchet job by Pat Cox just before the election exposing supposed OIRA links) everybody simply knew that further electral progress would be impossible while the OIRA continued to exist. I think most members who left the WP and joined DL hoped DL would replace the Labour party rather than merging with it (although the TDs clearly knew that creation of SIPTU would allow for the merger of DL and LAB). Those ordinary members who stayed in the WP mostly did so because they had a real commitemnt to solicalist principles and not out any belief that the OIRA was still consided a necessity.

I think both sides were proved right - a move to the right would only result in a merger with labour and political carreerism, but on the other hand sticking to socialist principles only led to political irrelevance.

[PetevonPete]

Pat Cox's show was 86 IIRC

[Josip Broz]

I loved PK's discomfort over the RTE infiltration claims. This is the greatest story never told in recent Irish History. Can you imagine if Militant had taken over the BBC in the'80s? Of course, the UK Labour Party expelled Militant...here, the WP took over Labour!!

Understandably, times have changed and we've all moved on. However, I've always been confused by journalism's complete failure to analyse what happened in RTE in the '70s and '80s. If we don't learn from the past, etc... Remember, we were the only country in the civilised world at the time where broadcast journalists were actually happily implementing censorship and some even calling for more!!

[Garibaldy]

I sensed no discomfort with Kenny. Rather he was making the valid point that The WP had been singled out when there were larger number of supporters of other parties in RTÉ, who also promoted their agenda and people close to them, but who never received anything like the same scrutiny.

The reason being that they were part of the corrupt political and financial elite that was revealed in the Irish People and other WP publications years before the mainstream media took it up. I thought that the authors were left a bit baffled as to how to respond to that.

[netron]

I loved PK's discomfort over the RTE infiltration claims. This is the greatest story never told in recent Irish History. Can you imagine if Militant had taken over the BBC in the'80s? Of course, the UK Labour Party expelled Militant...here, the WP took over Labour!!

Understandably, times have changed and we've all moved on. However, I've always been confused by journalism's complete failure to analyse what happened in RTE in the '70s and '80s. If we don't learn from the past, etc... Remember, we were the only country in the civilised world at the time where broadcast journalists were actually happily implementing censorship and some even calling for more!!

agree - its absolutely fascinating how the WP executed their infilitration strategy with absolutely staggering levels of single mindedness.

irrespective of your own politics, its a fascinating piece of Irish history.

[Nem]

I thought that the authors were left a bit baffled as to how to respond to that.

To be honest, I think they made the valid point that the WP set out with a particular agenda with regards to organisations like RTE and that their tactics caused resentment. IMHO Kenny seemed to ask fair enough questions and the two gave good answers. Shame there wasn't more on the source material used, but that maybe was my own particular interest.

Thanks btw. to the person who pointed out they were on the programme - for those listening to the archive version, note that they come on in the second hour after Kenny has read some reactions to the previous item.

[Garibaldy]

To be honest, I think they made the valid point that the WP set out with a particular agenda with regards to organisations like RTE and that their tactics caused resentment. IMHO Kenny seemed to ask fair enough questions and the two gave good answers. Shame there wasn't more on the source material used, but that maybe was my own particular interest.

Thanks btw. to the person who pointed out they were on the programme - for those listening to the archive version, note that they come on in the second hour after Kenny has read some reactions to the previous item.

That's fair enough Nem, but Kenny's point was essentially that this was a more hard-headed version of something everyone was doing. In that context, it kind of challenged the narrative of a unique conspiracy. But I'd agree with you largely.

[PetevonPete]

But FF didn't have a name for their RTE branch, with them is more based on a mafia clan system

[tenderloins1]

I dont know if its covered in the book, but another area where which in part
led to the Workers Party electoral success was the pragamatic nature of
some of its electoral literature (which is one of my political interests).

In light of the book and this thread I spent a while looking back over pre DL
Split WP material from the 80s.
Despite the partys beliefs they didn't come across as particularly dogmatic.
They were able to capitalise on the harsh economic realities of the time by
this public lack of dogma.

At the same time the CPI and others were constrained by a certain type of
language. The CPI could have a lovely sensible document that would have
joe public interested until Capitalism, collectives and so on appeared and
they lost the reader and the voter.
Sinn Fein at the time were looking for a 32 county Democratic Socialist
Republic, but had other issues which failed to attract voters.

The Workers Party simply avoided words such as capitalism, Socialist,
centralism and indeed Communism and communicated with the public far
better. It was of course only a small part of the greater effort such as
work on the ground, infiltration which led to their moderate success.

Even today The Socialst Party use 'Ordinary Working People'and terms such
as 'Working Class' and slip often into doctrinal language. Although Joe Higgins
was elected an MEP, he was in part elected as Joe Higgins and in part
elected as Socialist Party and in part not being Eoin Ryan or Mary Lou
McDonald.(They also lost Mick Murphys Council seat)

I would imagine that the SWP saw the error of their ways and using the PFP
vehicle were able to tone down their doctrine to get a left wing but
acceptable message across.

[tenderloins1]

With regard to the DL Split, I've posted this on my Blog here already, however it may be of interest in the way the split was portrayed to the public.

"The past few months have been difficult for us" .. what did that mean?

I'm sure there are plenty of other little things here too.







In case anyone is interested I have a bit of old Workers Party stuff, mostly from the 80s up on the blog.
Workers Party Dublin Central 83 and Euro89
Irish Shipping Workers Flyer and Workers Party Condom Train
John McManus and Jimmy Hogan Workers Party 1985
Workers Party 1987 Cork and Waterford
Unusual Pub Quiz leaflet from Tomas MacGiolla in 1994
Workers Party-Pat Rabbitte, Liz McManus , Tom Crilly ,Andy Smith
Workers Party Kildare late 80s early 90s

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