‘The Social Democratic & Labour Party: The End.’ by Donal Lavery

The late Paddy Devlin was quite a colourful bully of a character. Having been an IRA man in his youth, he later turned on republicans and became a vehement opponent of the Hunger Strikers campaign to have basic political status restored. His colleague Gerry (later Lord) Fitt helped to bring down the Callaghan government and usher in Margaret Thatcher – and all her ‘delightful’ tactics towards little old Ireland. Some SDLP figures were supportive of Internment when it was initially introduced. I bring Devlin up for a reason – he, not I, predicted the ultimate demise of his old party, the SDLP, long before it is now happening. Paddy told reporters that a rotten right wing conspiracy existed, whereby the Church Hierarchy were stuffing the SDLP full of devout middle-class school-teachers and members of Catholic secret societies, who would do whatever the clergy wanted. This bluffed nationalist people into thinking they were voting for moderate ‘social democracy’ when in reality they were getting ardent social conservatives with a counter-revolutionary agenda. Many of the other big figures within it likewise departed – from Brian Feeney to Paschal O’Hare.

For a lack of vision is one thing, but that added to by a dwindling number of members and voter-base, is really just a recipe for disaster. These people don’t stand for anything, they model themselves on the millionaire Democrats in America and fully accept the economic status quo. Their ranks are made of a class of Machievellian-wannabes who wouldn’t just cut their grandmother’s throat for high office, they would cook and eat the old girl as well. During the conflict, people always suspected a very circumspect relationship between the SDLP and the British State/MI5. Recently released Northern Ireland Office papers show how senior securocrats were very concerned about the nationalist people throwing their allegiance increasingly behind Sinn Fein over the “greying” Catholic toffs. I wonder why? These people never wanted peace at all, despite lecturing on its merits now; no no! Seamus Mallon and others regularly attacked John Hume for his efforts at dialogue with republicans and there were plans to oust him as leader; desiring instead to continue with the conflict for the sake of their then electoral position.

Three of their former leaders, McDonnell, Ritchie and Durkan, are set for electoral execution on the back of Colum Eastwood’s vanity project towards any potential pacts. I’m glad he didn’t do a pact, because now he really will accelerate his party’s demise and confine them to the history books where they belong. Even if you aren’t a Sinn Fein voter, there can be no denying that their candidates are far more representative of ordinary people than the wannabe-bourgeois failures which the SDLP keep asking you to salary/pension (with some ending up in the British House of Lords).

I know a few young people in the SDLP, and there are a very limited number of young people in it indeed. They have told me that the only reason they are in the SDLP as opposed to Sinn Fein is because they wouldn’t want to work for the ‘average industrial wage’; and believe that they have a better chance of a well-paid political career at the expense of the taxpayer, with Colum Eastwood’s lot. Which confirms exactly what most people suspect, that politics to these people is simply an enhancement of their CV. It’s not an ideological clash of ideas, the desire for national reunification, but a prospective wage slip waiting to be cashed off of the labour of the poor. Ask them what they think of Irish unity and the mask will slip – they don’t much fancy that because there wouldn’t be too many of them elected in that changed landscape. Likewise, they love giving away Irish sovereignty to the European Union because they think it will thwart any future left wing ambitions advanced by Republicans in government.

I’m university educated, but you can’t have a whole party of “academic worthies” being patronisingly cerebral towards voters. You need a broad base of support, made up overwhelmingly of working class people, not university cliques detached from the real world. So whether it’s in Foyle, South Down or South Belfast, you remember come polling day that Colum Eastwood himself gave his transfer vote to a party which has oppressed/slaughtered our people, which has derided legacy inquests (including Bloody Sunday’s in his native Derry), which has blocked same-sex marriage, which is pro-austerity and which is now advancing the Brexit agenda. His vision of “equality” is the kind you get at the dentist on gas and air. All for the sake of merc’s and perks. By contrast, YOU have the choice to elect republicans in the same socio-economic circumstances as you, sending their kids to the same schools, living in the same areas, enjoying the same cultures, possessing the same concerns (about health, education and jobs) and wanting the same things from life. The vast majority of you have absolutely nothing in common with Dr. McDonnell, Margaret Ritchie or Mark Durkan, besides where you might attend church on a Sunday. The basis upon which you should vote is very simple – your social class. Elect people who really stand up for your material interests, the national interest and European interests; and show the British government that we aren’t some borough of England.