In May 2014, the week following the Odessa massacre, a small group of mostly non-aligned antifascists in Ireland organized through word of mouth and through social media a successful demonstration in Dublin. We rallied against the fascist atrocity and described it as part of an imperialist anti-Russian agenda in the EU and we called for support in Ireland for the struggle against the Ukrainian army in Donbas.
There was very little reporting on the atrocity in the mainstream media. Unfortunately, it was complimented by virtual silence from nominally anti-imperialist, socialist organizations in the country, despite the fact that a massacre had occurred the day after Mayday, the historical day of workers' solidarity and that it was committed by openly fascist groups inside a trade union hall. What seemed surprising to us at the time was the fact that the Irish trade unions had issued no statements at all on the tragic event of May 2. There were no messages sympathising with the loss of life or condolences to grieving families sent by the union hierarchy, no expression of solidarity as one would have expected. There was no condemnation, or even any acknowledgement from the trades union movement that a horrendous crime had been committed against young anti-fascists who had sought refuge from an armed fascist mob in the Odessa House of Trade Unions.
When we raised the question of this silence with members of groups associated with the Left in Ireland, we found that most were hardly interested in addressing a threat that even some right-wing commentators had been drawing attention to - i.e. the re-appearance of Nazism and the support fascism was receiving from the Ukraine government - in a part of Europe that was aspiring to join the EU. To the extent that these leftists mentioned Odesa at all, they argued that the massacre took place in the context of a war in Ukraine between forces aligned with two equally regressive imperialist regimes -. between supporters of the EU / NATO on the one hand and supporters of a paramilitary Russian nationalism aligned to Russian "imperialism", which was attempting to redraw the Ukrainian borders. Those who died or suffered injury in the Odessa massacre were portrayed, when they were mentioned at all, as unfortunate victims of inter-imperialist rivalry.
The successful resistance and defeat of fascist brigades in Donbas earlier this year - by "tractor drivers and miners" as Putin put it - halted a march to the right that was taking place across the whole of Europe. That defence gave the world time to face reality. Social media and non-Western media sources have allowed us the space to counter much of the propaganda. We have received support from trades unionists as well as from those political groups that are not tied to the pro-UK line followed by most of the official Irish media.
But we have found that attempts to oppose a pro-imperialist narrative are too often treated as affronts to the unity of the Left political project in Ireland. Political discourse of the sort that insists on a precise understanding of the meaning of words is too often dismissed as sectarian or divisive. In the lexicon of much of the Left, the concretely understood word "imperialism" has been replaced by words taken from the language of "humanitarian" intervention that has been promoted by groups such as Amnesty. When we say that Russia is not an imperialist country for instance we get accused of introducing what are termed "sectarian ideological squabblings." Bono's latest political musings seem to outdate Lenin's formulation on any matter! According to the humanitarian Left words like " imperialism" get in the way of a united strategy that should be aimed at electing progressive left-wing representatives to the Irish parliament institution that is largely powerless in the face of austerity measures dictated by international finance.
Left unity that is based on the abandonment of principles can only weaken the fight against imperialism. This has been demonstrated in the Irish "humanitarian" Left's responses to the present conflict in Syria and the current refugee crisis. The influential Washington-based Foreign Policy magazine wrote correctly this month about how Russian involvement in Syria is inextricably linked to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. Such links have to be understood and taken fully into account in the building of a genuine internationalist movement against imperialism.
The Odessa massacre, as we know, occurred on May 2, 2014. Sightly over a month later, the Zionist onslaught against Gaza began - on 7 July 2014. The responses in Ireland to the two events were totally different - almost as if two tragedies were simultaneously taking place on different stages on different planets. In response to Gaza, a pro-Palestine demonstration was called in Ireland's capital city, Dublin, for Gaza; it was attended by something in the order of 10,000 people. Those ordinary citizens at the march had undoubtedly been moved by an act of incredible brutality by a Western-backed regime on a defenceless Palestinian people. Those speaking on the Save Gaza platform did not ever mention the Ukraine bombardment of civilian areas - supported by the US and its allies - that was taking place in Donbas at exactly the same time as the Israeli military strikes on Gaza were occurring. The same people had supported the Maidan coup. The bombardment of Donbas was also supported by the US and its allies so wouldn't it have been sensible for the Gaza rally organizers to mention Donbas? At exactly the same time as Gaza and East Ukraine were under attack, the US and its allies were organizing proxy "rebel" forces in Syria aimed at the destruction of the nation's secular state and its replacement by a pliant regime. The Syrian crisis did not get mentioned at the Gaza rally either on account of the opportunist alliances between leftists who dominate the anti-war movement in Ireland and the Muslim Brotherhood.
We have been working since 2014 with members of the Ukraine and Russian communities in Ireland and called demos in support of Donbas. We visited trades union headquarters in Ireland and helped Russian and Ukrainian leftists in Ireland bring the Odesa massacre photo exhibition to the country's major cities - Dublin, Cork and Belfast. We have held events to coincide with the showing of the photos, which have been attended by sympathetic trades union leaders, members of the Russian and Ukrainian communities and Irish republicans and socialists. We were very pleased that our limited endeavours in Ireland have been well-matched across Europe and beyond and we draw strength from this international solidarity.
When we raised the question of this silence with members of groups associated with the Left in Ireland, we found that most were hardly interested in addressing a threat that even some right-wing commentators had been drawing attention to - i.e. the re-appearance of Nazism and the support fascism was receiving from the Ukraine government - in a part of Europe that was aspiring to join the EU. To the extent that these leftists mentioned Odesa at all, they argued that the massacre took place in the context of a war in Ukraine between forces aligned with two equally regressive imperialist regimes -. between supporters of the EU / NATO on the one hand and supporters of a paramilitary Russian nationalism aligned to Russian "imperialism", which was attempting to redraw the Ukrainian borders. Those who died or suffered injury in the Odessa massacre were portrayed, when they were mentioned at all, as unfortunate victims of inter-imperialist rivalry.
The successful resistance and defeat of fascist brigades in Donbas earlier this year - by "tractor drivers and miners" as Putin put it - halted a march to the right that was taking place across the whole of Europe. That defence gave the world time to face reality. Social media and non-Western media sources have allowed us the space to counter much of the propaganda. We have received support from trades unionists as well as from those political groups that are not tied to the pro-UK line followed by most of the official Irish media.
But we have found that attempts to oppose a pro-imperialist narrative are too often treated as affronts to the unity of the Left political project in Ireland. Political discourse of the sort that insists on a precise understanding of the meaning of words is too often dismissed as sectarian or divisive. In the lexicon of much of the Left, the concretely understood word "imperialism" has been replaced by words taken from the language of "humanitarian" intervention that has been promoted by groups such as Amnesty. When we say that Russia is not an imperialist country for instance we get accused of introducing what are termed "sectarian ideological squabblings." Bono's latest political musings seem to outdate Lenin's formulation on any matter! According to the humanitarian Left words like " imperialism" get in the way of a united strategy that should be aimed at electing progressive left-wing representatives to the Irish parliament institution that is largely powerless in the face of austerity measures dictated by international finance.
Left unity that is based on the abandonment of principles can only weaken the fight against imperialism. This has been demonstrated in the Irish "humanitarian" Left's responses to the present conflict in Syria and the current refugee crisis. The influential Washington-based Foreign Policy magazine wrote correctly this month about how Russian involvement in Syria is inextricably linked to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. Such links have to be understood and taken fully into account in the building of a genuine internationalist movement against imperialism.
The Odessa massacre, as we know, occurred on May 2, 2014. Sightly over a month later, the Zionist onslaught against Gaza began - on 7 July 2014. The responses in Ireland to the two events were totally different - almost as if two tragedies were simultaneously taking place on different stages on different planets. In response to Gaza, a pro-Palestine demonstration was called in Ireland's capital city, Dublin, for Gaza; it was attended by something in the order of 10,000 people. Those ordinary citizens at the march had undoubtedly been moved by an act of incredible brutality by a Western-backed regime on a defenceless Palestinian people. Those speaking on the Save Gaza platform did not ever mention the Ukraine bombardment of civilian areas - supported by the US and its allies - that was taking place in Donbas at exactly the same time as the Israeli military strikes on Gaza were occurring. The same people had supported the Maidan coup. The bombardment of Donbas was also supported by the US and its allies so wouldn't it have been sensible for the Gaza rally organizers to mention Donbas? At exactly the same time as Gaza and East Ukraine were under attack, the US and its allies were organizing proxy "rebel" forces in Syria aimed at the destruction of the nation's secular state and its replacement by a pliant regime. The Syrian crisis did not get mentioned at the Gaza rally either on account of the opportunist alliances between leftists who dominate the anti-war movement in Ireland and the Muslim Brotherhood.
We have been working since 2014 with members of the Ukraine and Russian communities in Ireland and called demos in support of Donbas. We visited trades union headquarters in Ireland and helped Russian and Ukrainian leftists in Ireland bring the Odesa massacre photo exhibition to the country's major cities - Dublin, Cork and Belfast. We have held events to coincide with the showing of the photos, which have been attended by sympathetic trades union leaders, members of the Russian and Ukrainian communities and Irish republicans and socialists. We were very pleased that our limited endeavours in Ireland have been well-matched across Europe and beyond and we draw strength from this international solidarity.
🖼 Bill O'Brien is an independent republican.
I am reminded of some things that occurred in the long war, Belfast Coop, Birminhgam etc. The minority pro Russian Loyalists in teh Donbas, note a minority.
ReplyDeleteSome links.
The “Odessa Massacre”: a crown jewel in Russia’s genocidal anti-Ukrainian propaganda - https://euromaidanpress.com/2023/05/06/the-odesa-massacre-a-crown-jewel-in-russias-genocidal-anti-ukrainian-propaganda/ (6 May 2023)
The author just repeats Putinite propaganda. Ukraine is the equivalent of Ireland in the Tsarist Empire. The fate that Putin intends, intended for Ukraine was to reduce it to a West Bank type statelet.
Yes, Jimbo , I remember what you call the long war well and the former Irish republicans who were bought off and became apologists for British imperialism and the British -trained death squads operating in Ireland - as their counterparts do today in support of Ukraine’s SAS - trained death squads .
ReplyDeleteBack in the seventies republican “revisionists” or “renegades” as we used to call them would argue that Irish republicans had become worse than the British . Every time I read media- promoted nonsense nowadays about “Russian imperialism”, especially from former leftists who have become supporters of the Ukraine nazis , I’m reminded very much of groups like BICO , how they would theorise on “Free State imperialism” wanting to enslave the progressive Protestant working class !
Well Billbo, sorry Bill,
ReplyDeleteI am reminded of the apologists for Stalinism, the CPI and the WPI. The CPI hid under their beds during the Long War refusing to get involved in Humna Rights struggles such as the H-Block/Armagh one. The WPI who assised imperialism in branding the prisoners as fascists.
You refer to teh Ukrainaisn as Nazis. What nonsense. It has a rightwing conservative government. I would not vote for them, but again it is the democratic choice of the Ukrainian people. It is not the business of Russian Imperialism to decide on who or what rules. Ukraine, or indeed any other imperialism. In Palestine there is a duopoly of the PLO (corrupt and hapless) and Hamas (which makes Aiseiri look great). I support not the leaderships but the Ukrainian people and the Palestinian people. You have found yourself supporting what is no more than the equivalent of the Ulster Workers Council with the exception that the Donbas separatists are in the end a Russian invention. Do you seriously think Putinite Russia is anything but the successor of Tsarist Imperialism. Putin, himself, regards Lenin and co. as aberations. On BICO, well there are now on the same wavelength as yourself.
ReplyDeleteHa ha ,Billbo a freudian slip there , I’m sure ! You have it completely the wrong way around :because Bilbo is the Hobbit from Lord of the Rings who Zelenski identifies with . It was Bilbo led the elfin and hobbit fight for freedom and light against the Orcs and their dark leader, Sauron in the Tolkein fantasy ;The putschist and former Ukraine president Petro Poroshenco was first to compare Ukraine’s fight against evil Russian untermenshen to the battle waged by Bilbo against the Orcs in The Lord of the Rings . In 2015 ,Poreshenco likened the anti- Nazi regions in Donbas to Mordor, the realm ruled by Sauron, the main antagonist of the Lord of the Rings.
An article on the morale-boosting benefits of fantasy for Ukraine. You would already have read it perhaps.
“In an interview with the Ukrainian online newspaper Ukrainska Pravda, literary scholar and fiction writer Mykhailo Nazarenko, discusses how Tolkien's stories resonate in the war in Ukraine, and how people turn to mythology to comprehend extraordinary events. Furthermore, Nazarenko explains how Tolkien can uplift the Ukrainians' morale during the war.”
https://worldcrunch.com/focus/tolkien-ukraine-war-hobbits