SWP expulsions and squabbles

[19force8]

No. I don't think there is an allegation of an assault in Newcastle. The allegations are of bullying, misogyny, harrassment etc.. I apologize if my post inferred that there was.

There was an allegation of sexual abuse in the UCU affair involving an SWP member. See here:

New light on MeTooUCU, involving evidence from within the SWP

[Content warning: sexual assault] On 8 February, our first blog lifted the lid on sexual abuse in the UCU committed by Paul Blackledge ...

metooucu.blogspot.com

From reading the Newcastle documents [very tedious] I don't see how this is worth calling a scandal. It's more storm in a teacup territory. From the correspondence, the SWP's Disputes Committee seems to have been making every effort to deal with this fairly, but it just escalated too fast. If anything is worth being scandalised by it's Yunus Baksh representing Blackledge at his appeal. I'm not surprised he was suspended as soon as they found out about it. Strange that his defence of his actions (basically that it was a purely commercial matter, and besides, Blackledge tricked him) has disappeared from the documents.

That MeTooUCU stuff came out during the strikes where it had no traction on the picket lines I was on. Mostly because it was seen for what it was - a cynical ploy to weaponise the SWP's reputation against the UCU Left in the elections and against the strikes. It might have had more of a chance had it had a more nuanced take on several highly respected women within the union. Though UCU Left do seem to have taken a hit in the elections.

 

[19force8]

In trawling this thread I found this from 2016:

Soooooo, what's Paul Blackledge been up to?

Hmmm

 

[treelover]

Bakhsh is now a QC?

Wow!

 

[19force8]

Baksh is now a QC?

Wow!

An "unregistered barrister" was the phrase I saw in his "defence."

Your guess is as good as mine.

 

[belboid]

In trawling this thread I found this from 2016:

Hmmm

hmm? We know the answer now, all too clearly

 

[treelover]

lot of it about in the SWP, perhaps historically as well, fellow travellers not looking too hard, etc.

 

[19force8]

I did manage to find some of the stuff about the MeTooUCU back in February, but most of it seems to have disappeared. Not surprising really.

Here is Vicky Blake’s response:

 

[DaveCinzano]

Bakhsh is now a QC?

Wow!

An "unregistered barrister" was the phrase I saw in his "defence."

Your guess is as good as mine.

Definitely not a QC, but possibly an ‘unregistered barrister’.

He describes himself as a ‘legal advocate’ in his company filings.

 

[SpackleFrog]

No. I don't think there is an allegation of an assault in Newcastle. The allegations are of bullying, misogyny, harrassment etc.. I apologize if my post inferred that there was.

There was an allegation of sexual abuse in the UCU affair involving an SWP member. See here:

New light on MeTooUCU, involving evidence from within the SWP

[Content warning: sexual assault] On 8 February, our first blog lifted the lid on sexual abuse in the UCU committed by Paul Blackledge ...

metooucu.blogspot.com

I'm not quite sure what connection is being made here cos YB supposedly represented Blackledge when he appealed his expulsion from the Union. I

I'm also a bit suspicious of that blog series (the UCU ones) as there seems to be a lot of effort being made to connect people not in the SWP or even in UCU Left to the case.

 

[Nigel]

I get the impression that Yunus is relatively friendly with P S !
Is the'scandal' up north going to have any'fall out' or affect on SUTR or UAF do you think?

 

[emanymton]

I get the impression that Yunus is relatively friendly with
Is the'scandal' up north going to have any'fall out' or affect on SUTR or UAF do you think?

Fancy removing the name if the person no named in any of the above stuff?

And no I doubt it.

 

[frogwoman]

Should the Socialist still be produced during the Corona crisis? An exchange with Mark Serwotka about sales of the Socialist - Socialist Party

On 7 April Mark Serwotka wrote to Hannah Sell, general secretary of the Socialist Party, asking for an assurance that the Socialist would not be sold outside PCS-organised workplaces during the coronavirus emergency

www.socialistparty.org.uk

Wtf.

 

[SpackleFrog]

Should the Socialist still be produced during the Corona crisis? An exchange with Mark Serwotka about sales of the Socialist - Socialist Party

On 7 April Mark Serwotka wrote to Hannah Sell, general secretary of the Socialist Party, asking for an assurance that the Socialist would not be sold outside PCS-organised workplaces during the coronavirus emergency

www.socialistparty.org.uk

Wtf.

Sadness.

 

[frogwoman]

Sadness.

I'm glad we're no longer in the party, they'd want us out on a stall!

Dear Mark,
I am writing in response to your letter of 7 April 2020 which complains about a Socialist Party stall outside Jubilee House, Stratford, London, a DWP and HMRC workplace, which took place on Monday 30 March, 2020. The letter also raises broader points about the role of labour and trade union activists during these difficult times.

The Socialist Party takes the health and safety of all workers very seriously, and the stall you refer to strictly complied with the government's social-distancing guidelines, as do all Socialist Party actions. As you know, the government's guidelines allow the buying and selling of newspapers.

 

[JimW]

There's an unkind comment about the ease of social distancing for a Trot newspaper seller in here somewhere

 

[Proper Tidy]

Should the Socialist still be produced during the Corona crisis? An exchange with Mark Serwotka about sales of the Socialist - Socialist Party

On 7 April Mark Serwotka wrote to Hannah Sell, general secretary of the Socialist Party, asking for an assurance that the Socialist would not be sold outside PCS-organised workplaces during the coronavirus emergency

www.socialistparty.org.uk

Wtf.

Holy fucking shit

 

[killer b]

They did always say that the only thing left after the apocalypse would be cockroaches and paper sellers tbf

 

[butchersapron]

She also raised points about the important role of the Socialist during the crisis

 

[Proper Tidy]

All joking aside tho this is horrific, SP and these groups heavily reliant on youngsters, these kids buy it big time for a while, constant activity, 'why we were right' about xyz. Ostensibly an organisation of working class solidarity. Fucking hell.

 

[Shechemite]

It’s like with the workers party twitter fella. Someone looking for acceptance, meaning all that bollocks.

 

[Smokeandsteam]

Bizarre that the SP and the PCSU are having a public row about this. I know there are tensions within their broad left but surely even they realise how this looks?

As for the SP selling papers I’m torn between admiring the lunatic commitment of ‘the comrades’ and despair at the idiocy of it

 

[Proper Tidy]

Tbf I don't think PCS knew they were having a public row, I think serwotka wrote to the SP exec saying don't do stalls outside the tax office or whatever it was during coronavirus and for some reason hannah sell thought it was a good opportunity for a nice bit of back and forth to be subsequently printed in the organ of working class memory

 

[Smokeandsteam]

Tbf I don't think PCS knew they were having a public row, I think serwotka wrote to the SP exec saying don't do stalls outside the tax office or whatever it was during coronavirus and for some reason hannah sell thought it was a good opportunity for a nice bit of back and forth to be subsequently printed in the organ of working class memory

wouldn’t a word in their ear by a local Steward be the normal approach? Do General Secretaries normally spend their time sending letters like this?

Agree re Hannah Sell’s article. It’s fucking dreadful. Self obsessed (in respect of the centrality of a declining cobweb sect) and politically cloth eared.

 

[frogwoman]

All joking aside tho this is horrific, SP and these groups heavily reliant on youngsters, these kids buy it big time for a while, constant activity, 'why we were right' about xyz. Ostensibly an organisation of working class solidarity. Fucking hell.

Yep, if I was still in the party they'd have made me go on a stall. I'm actually speechless they thought this was ok.

 

[Nigel]

Fancy removing the name if the person no named in any of the above stuff?

And no I doubt it.

Already removed
However their name, PS, is relatively notorious; significantly regarding bullying and intimidation in and around Comrade Delta scenario.
JG & entourages account at least, if not others around the short running, now defunct ISN!

Both Yunus & PS are long term stalwarts, used by the party to bully intimidate and relatively close and may have some relevance with regard SUTR as it appears to be the SWP's main intervention if not entryism in Labour left; Corbynites etc. If they want to use it as a main recruitment ground for SWP, a change in culture, at least superficially and on surface would be advantageous. For example no public assault or harassment of AWL; last years Marxism must have been one of the few occasions, where this, rarely otherwise homo-erotic symbiotic sado masochistic ritual wasn't even in the wings.

 

[Nigel]

Yep, if I was still in the party they'd have made me go on a stall. I'm actually speechless they thought this was ok.

The fall out between Socialist Party & Socialist Alternative is very strong and by many seen as betrayal by both sides; both have stories of unpricipled and underhanded behaviour.
People who've been friends and comrades for decades have fallen out; Coventry is an magnified case of example. It's a shame a lot of the younger and talented activists have gone down the reformist root of ISA.

 

[Nigel]

The fall out between Socialist Party & Socialist Alternative is very strong and by many seen as betrayal by both sides; both have stories of unpricipled and underhanded behaviour.
People who've been friends and comrades for decades have fallen out; Coventry is an magnified case of example. It's a shame a lot of the younger and talented activists have gone down the reformist root of ISA.

A lot of this has to do with maneuvering, tactics & factionalism within white collar unions i.e. PCS & UNISON, so the Serwotka stance if of no surprise really.

 

[Proper Tidy]

I haven't been following the split that closely, had a look at SA website and from names I spotted it basically looks like anybody under about 45 has gone to SA.

Anyway, what happens if SP stand in elections now, do they still stand as SA and can SA stand as SA?

 

[Fedayn]

Tbf I don't think PCS knew they were having a public row, I think serwotka wrote to the SP exec saying don't do stalls outside the tax office or whatever it was during coronavirus and for some reason hannah sell thought it was a good opportunity for a nice bit of back and forth to be subsequently printed in the organ of working class memory

Mark didn't know he was getting into a public row, The SP in some distorted view of transparency though it would be an idea to compare the timid approach of Serwotka and the heroic commitment to paper sales during social distancing as employed by the heroic SP. It is basically the SP using it as a stick to push their PCS Broad Left Network and to tie iit in with their opposition to not holding the NEC and GEC annual elections and showing who the 'real fighters' are. The 3 BLN members on the NEC argued that the events of Covid prove they are right to want to hold the elections. They have not explained why but apparently they are those defending the principle of Annual Elections. Those principles seemed quiet when they supported not holding the annual elections a few years back because of an admittedly serious financial position. in PCS at the time. Indeed, they were saying people who blindly opposed holding the elections were not loyal to PCS. They are truly fucking wired.

 

[Proper Tidy]

Mark didn't know he was getting into a public row, The SP in some distorted view of transparency though it would be an idea to compare the timid approach of Serwotka and the heroic commitment to paper sales during social distancing as employed by the heroic SP. It is basically the SP using it as a stick to push their PCS Broad Left Network and to tie iit in with their opposition to not holding the NEC and GEC annual elections and showing who the 'real fighters' are. The 3 BLN members on the NEC argued that the events of Covid prove they are right to want to hold the elections. They have not explained why but apparently they are those defending the principle of Annual Elections. Those principles seemed quiet when they supported not holding the annual elections a few years back because of an admittedly serious financial position. in PCS at the time. Indeed, they were saying people who blindly opposed holding the elections were not loyal to PCS. They are truly fucking wired.

If they really think laymembers are going to think they are the real fighters for being dickheads during lockdown then I think wired is a mild description