ANYONE who is still sceptical about the serious dangers to the workers movement posed by Labour's Prese ention of Terrorism Act should have been in Bristol over the past few weeks, A number of very nasty incidents there show exactly the sort of reactlonary, anti-Irish citmate that this piece of repressive legislation breeds.
*James Flynn, chairman of the local branch of Clann na hEircann, and Brendan Phelan, secretary of the branch, were both arrested and served with exclusion orders under the Act. Flynn was deported to Belfastwhere the authorities did not think: that the evidence against him was sufficient to warrant interning him. Phelau has appealed and is still in prison.
*After a picket of Horfield Prison in solidarity with Flyan organised by Jocal socialists and Republicans, one of the pickets- George Andersea-was sacked from his job at Spillers Grain Refinery because of pressure from his Tellow workers.
*Charlie Horton, shop steward al the factory, esecutive member of the GHT Bristol Trades Council, and secretary of his trade union branch, was denounced by the local National Front because of his support for Anderson. The NF managed to get enough sup port in the factory to have Horton busted as steward, although support from other factories prevented his removal as branch secretary.
*Danny Ryan, Bristol based national organiser of Clanni, was also shipped to Dublin under the Act. Immediately afterwards his daughter, also a Republican, was victimised at the technical college she attends.
Of course this little treign of terror" engineered by the local police, Special Branch and the fascists is not confined to Bristol, In Bletchley a shop steward and long standing member of the local trades council, who has lived in this country for 24 years, has been jailed and threatened with deportation, the peace, obstruction, using abusive language and attempting to rescure a prisoner, were found not proven ag: minst defendants Peter Campbell and Stewart Maclennan in Glasgow on 31 January. Campbell and Maclennan, both IMG militants and building workers, were arrested last May Day in Glasgow at the direction of Special Branch officers as a large crowd prevented police harassment of Clamn na hEireann paper sellers. The charges were dis missed because police evidence was so contradictory.
Harassment against Republican sympathisers has been continuing in Glasgow, just last week three, Irishmen were arrested under the Prevention ol Terrorism Act for allegedly distributing posters soliciting support for the IRA.
As Stewart Maclennan said after his trial In my particular case the police forgot to do their homework on their evidence beforehand. But the only way to stop the persecution of Republican sympathisers in this country and the increasing harassment of working class militants, whether through Meanwhile, charges of breach of the the imprisonment of the Shrewsbury pickets or the attempted deportation of Franco Captino, is to fight to remove the Prevention of Terrorism Act from the statute book along with all other anti-working class legisiation." The in-fighting over the leadership of the Tory Party has thrown into relief
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