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This International Women's Day, the Irish Republican Socialist Party recognise the contribution of the many women who have participated in the twinned struggles for socialism and Irish national liberation, as well as to raise its voice in support of women's liberation in Ireland.
It has been said that a society's level of civilization can be determined by the position of women within that society. If that is true, then Ireland remains mired in barbarism-actually, 'pagan' Ireland provided women with a position in society that was better than it is in the present day. Irish women today remain cloistered in a few traditional areas of employment that have long been dominated by their gender but are almost completely absent from an array of other jobs, in what have been traditionally male occupational bastions. On top of this, Irish women's wages remain far below that of men in the workforce. Moreover, women are plagued by a lack of adequate childcare facilities, which, if present, would enable their greater participation of women in employment. This, in turn, would permit greater economic autonomy. While the Ireland has seen a woman President, the Dail still has far less women than would be representative of their demographic position in Irish society. The same can be said of Stormont, were it presently functioning. While divorce has been made legal, there remains the requirement of a minimum of four years separation before a divorce is granted. Abortion remains illegal. Women's liberation is a cause that must be embraced by all Irish socialists, as an immediately and pressing concern. As republican socialists, we in the IRSP understands this, which is why the IRSP's Ard Fheis identified the recruitment of more women into the party's ranks as a primary focus for the present year. Historically, women have long played leading roles in both the IRSP and the Irish National Liberation Army. The party's second chairperson was Miriam Daly, who also rose to prominence in the national H-Block/Armagh Committee. For that prominence in the prison struggle and her work with the IRSP, she became a victim of the SAS, posing as loyalist death squad members. At one time, in 1981, the party's Chairperson, Vice Chairperson, General Secretary, and Treasurer were all women. Women have not maintained a position of prominence within the IRSP, however, and the IRSP is seeking to address this shortcoming through its current recruitment practices. It is not women alone, however, who should shoulder the burden of the struggle against sexism. Socialist men in Ireland must address this form of oppression with equal zeal. As republican socialists, we seek the liberation of the working class of Ireland and it is impossible to speak of the liberation of that class, while the majority of its members--working class women--remain oppressed by sexism. It is out of recognition of this fact that the IRSP was for so long driven to a vanguard position within the Irish working class. The IRSP took what were among the most militant positions in Ireland on issues such as legalisation of contraception, abortion, and divorce; the fight against homophobia; support for full separation of Church and State; state-supported child care facilities; and a host of other issues that particularly impact of women workers. While some republican organisations have treated women's liberation as a diversion from the national liberation struggle--much as they have treated class struggle issues--the IRSP has long understood that women's liberation is an indispensable aspect of the class struggle. The nation is not an abstraction, it is the people who comprise it, and in Ireland today, the majority of those people are workers and the majority the working class are women. The Irish Republican Socialist Party is proud to have elected to its Ard Comhairle a comrade who is a woman and a lesbian, but this represents only a tiny step towards creating gender equity within our party's ranks. We encourage other present women members to seek positions of leadership within the party, from local cumman to the Ard Comhairle. We recognise that women have long been the backbones of a host of organisations. Without their contribution, the revolutionary movement would not have accomplished a fraction of what it has done. Without their liberation, the majority of Irish workers will remain unfree. STATEMENTS ENDS |