[ssf] The SWP issue as concerning NO2ID

[jym jim]

Hi there,

It is something which i have seen mentioned here in the past, but i was prompted to email after reading a very recent posting in the "Why SWP undermined social forums?" thread which mentioned NO2ID.

I quote the relevant part below:

"the SWP is good at is
identifying new movements early on and then rapidly organising a hegemonic
leadership body dominated by the SWP, which is interested not in joining in
with new movements, but in taking them over and co-opting their aspirations
and frustrations as part of their messianic self-belief system - a good
recent example of this is the No2ID movement, another SWP stooge.

The problem for the SWP in all of this is two-fold. Firstly, horizontalists,
experienced political activists and other more open folk who believe in more
democratic, participatory organizations and methods can see this coming a
mile off and refuse to accept the bullshit, understanding the need for such
campaigns and joining in to the extent that they can without accepting the
dictatorship of the cupula of SWP comandantes - the
Rees/Callinicos/German/Nineham entity. As such groups continuallly point out
the reality of SWP autocracy, the SWP is unable to adopt the democratic
colouration to which it has pretensions (in spite of the reality of its'
actions) and so lashes out savagely at anybody who dares to cast aspersions
on the semi-divine utterances of the pantheon of SWP holies."


End quote.

Now, to begin with, i have been the Sheffield No2ID coordinator for just over 3 months, and have experienced absolutely no interference from anyone in the main office in London, or from other local coordinators, and have been completely free from anything which would limit, or direct in anyway, my campaign activities.

Indeed, for some, the very "hands off" nature of the No2ID main office might make starting up a campaign more difficult than if they gave explicit instruction.

I have also met many of the "founders" of NO2ID recently, and again have found nothing to suggest to me any kind of underlying agenda apart from that of stopping compulsory ID.

This, as i see it, contrasts rather starkly with the sketched out methods of the SWP.

I have quizzed the guys working in the main office about the SWP issue, and it turns out that there are actually two members of the SWP working there, but i would not call that "organising a hegemonic
leadership body dominated by the SWP", since there are at least 3 times that many people involved at that level.

And of course, just because you are a member of the SWP does not mean that you cannot have independent campaigns, or, indeed, thoughts, which do not involve those other political views.

NO2ID is purely about preserving what Civil Liberties we have left from the institution of compulsory national identity schemes, and i for one have never found anything to even hint at an SWP slant to that campaign.....apart from the fact that both NO2ID and the SWP do not accept the principle of compulsory ID.

As i said at the beginning of this reply, i have read in various places of this supposed SWP co-opting of the NO2ID campaign, but i have not read anything to support it in the least, nor experienced anything which would confirm it to me personally.

I am however very interested to learn of such supporting evidence, because, as i say at all of the meetings/stalls i do as part of my campaign against the ID bill, "I'm not a company man", meaning obviously that i am not "part" of No2ID in the sense that i have some kind of allegiance above that of the campaign itself, and i am more than able to look at the group critically.

As perhaps some members of political entities are not......


Please let me know if i have missed anything out, or am hopelessly naive, because i am interested in learning the Truth of this issue one way or another, and hopefully putting to rest what i currently see to be nothing but a divisive rumour.


Best regards,

James Mannell.
Sheffield NO2ID

www.no2id.net


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