Leaflet - Bloody Sunday, questions still unanswered

Thirty years ago, just after Bloody Sunday, we carried a headline in our paper - then called the Militant - which simply read "Derry - this was murder". Everyone who was in Derry on January 30th 1972 knew at the time that 13 (later 14) innocent and unarmed civillians had been shot dead by the paras.

Now with the facts revealed in the Saville Inquiry, and the two films that have been released, the world knows that those who were killed were unarmed, that some were shot in the back. others were finished off while on the ground and thet the nail bombs supposedly found were planted after the shooting.

The facts of what happended are beyond dispute. The lies of Widgery have been laid to rest. Forced to admit that those who were killed were unarmed, the Establishment is encouraging the idea that the whole thing was an operation that went wrong: in the confusion the paras went berserk and launched a killing spree. The James NEsbitt film, Bloody Sunday is a striking demonstration of the events of the day, but it unfortunatley gives the impression that it was all down to confusion and soldiers acting beyond their orders.

The answer to these questions is not just a matter of historical record. The individuals may have changed but it is the same class that makes up the ranks of the Establishment today. If these people were prepared to resort to the methods of a military dictatorship in 1972 when their interests were threatened, they would do the same today. This time the "enemy" might not be "Younf hooligans" but workers on strike to save jobs, or anti-capitalist protestors on the streets opposing the IMF or World Bank.

Bloody Sunday gave a huge impetus to the Troubles. Thirty years on and we are no nearer a solution than we were then. The sectarian division is more entrenched than ever.

The strikes and huge demonstrations on January 18th (2002) against the sectarian threats and the murder of postman Daniel McColgan show the way forward. It is the working class - not the state forces or the right-wing and sectarian politicians - who can end the killings and bring about a successful solution. A movement that could unite Catholic and Protestant workers by linking the struggle against injustice and sectarianism with the struggle for jobs, decent wages and adequate services for the communities would be the best memorial to those who lost their lives on Bloody Sunday.

The Socialist Party fights in the common interests of working class people. We are a non-sectarian party with members from both communities. Our youth wing, Socialist Youth, is the only organisation which unites Catholic and Protestant youth to fight for young people's rights.

The recent trade union rallies against sectarianism showed the potentail power that workers and youth have when they unite. The politicians in the Assembly are united in attacking the conditions of working class people throughout the north. The Socialist Party believes an alternative is needed to the big business agenda of the sectarian parties. If you would like a socialist alternative to the sectarian and right-wing parties, then join the Socialist Party today!