List of Left-Wing Parties in Ireland

I've started an editable List of Left-Wing Parties in Ireland on Anarchopedia but it needs a lot of cleaning up.

Updated a few bits.

Somebody suggested I add Socialist Democracy but under what category?

They're a Trotskyist group so I suppose they should be put with CWI and SWP. Why are CPI in their own section, and why are WPI in the same section as eirigi, IRSP, SWP and SP?!

the reference to sinn fein is clearly to psf, as its in the reformist section. What about rsf?

rsf are a revolutionary socialist organisation. They call for a democratic SOCIALIST republic. They are clearly left wing, even a brief look at their policies show this is the case. They are certainly more left wing than PSF which feature on the list and who refer to themselves as a party for business!! Have a look at their eire nua and saol nua policies and tell me that they aren't left wing. Or visit the IRBB discussion board which is largely pro-rsf and where you will find the majority of posters ranging between anarchism and connolly type socialism.

rsf are a revolutionary socialist organisation. They call for a democratic SOCIALIST republic. They are clearly left wing, even a brief look at their policies show this is the case. They are certainly more left wing than PSF which feature on the list and who refer to themselves as a party for business!! Have a look at their eire nua and saol nua policies and tell me that they aren't left wing. Or visit the IRBB discussion board which is largely pro-rsf and where you will find the majority of posters ranging between anarchism and connolly type socialism.

We believe in the central importance of the Irish language to the Irish identity.

Nationalist clap trap which cannot be reconciled with revolutionary socialism.


This is also the same group that has a decade of the rosary recited at their commemorations.

RSF has also attended anItalian event organised by Facist groups
http://www.ladestra.info/public/word...03/irlanda.jpg

not very left wing of them?

Nationalist clap trap which cannot be reconciled with revolutionary socialism.

This is also the same group that has a decade of the rosary recited at their commemorations.

Indiginous language rights can easily be reconciled with revolutionary socialism. Sure, we could all just accept the language of the conqueror, those zapatistas could all just forget about speaking Tzoltzil or Tzeltal and speak Spanish amongst themselves, as the Basques can do the same. Imposing English, or Spanish, or any other language of empire cannot be reconciled with revolutionary socialism.

As for religion, its not surprising that at commemorations of the dead, that people turn to their religion. It doesn't happen at all commemorations, only those where the individuals have religious beliefs. You will find however that very few republicans have any time at all for the church hierarchy. As an athiest I have no problem standing silently while my comrades remember their fallen friends in whatever way they feel appropriate.

The fascist event in Italy is rubbish. It was not a fascist event, i'll dig out sources for my rebuttal and get back to you on that. With any organisation that supports national liberation you will always get remnants of nationalist tendencies, but there are very few irish leftists who do not believe also in national liberation, and i think RSF have as much right to be on this list of groups as any of the other groups already listed on it. Certainly more so than the neo-liberal provies.

I was making reference to "Irish identify" rather than the Irish language. But let's take a look at some party motions. While the website doesn't say if they were accepted or not, they give an idea of the type of people who are in the RSF.

25. That Republican Sinn Féin use every opportunity available to us to highlight that there is one flag and one national anthem for all Ireland.

24. That Sinn Féin Poblachtach organise a campaign to expose the corruption of the National Anthem by a 26-County political party, Fianna Fáil, by urging the GAA and others to adopt and popularise the neutral version "Laochra Fáil" when using it.

57. With the influx of immigrants Republican Sinn Féin has not drafted an 'inclusive plan' that would assimilate non-Irish persons into all aspects of Irish life. We call on this Ard-Fheis to instruct the incoming Ard Chomhairle to develop such a plan immediately.

[quote]

The irish identity issue will always be at the fore when you have a national liberation struggle. When national liberation movements fight for their own national identity they are not fighting to exclude minorities, but only to end the subjugation of their own identity by a foreign power.

I agree that the motion calling for "assimilation" raises some concerns (i think any motion should be aiming at the processes that prevent immigrants from playing their full part in society), but calling for integration of immigrants hardly brings RSF outside of the description of a left wing organisation. I would admit that immigration is not something that RSF is currently strong on from a left wing perspective, but of course there will be such issues.

And of course there are some within the organisation who have a traditionalist point of view, rooted in separtism rather than socialism, but that doesn't take away from the fact that the core politics of the organisation are left wing. They are not free from left wing criticism, far from it, but they do at least deserve to be on a list of left wing organisations.