REMEMBERING TIANAMEN SQUARE

I was shocked to realise that Thursday 4th June 2020 was the 31st anniversary of the Tianmen Square massacre. 

Back in 1989 the ruling Communist Party in China chose repression (and murder) rather than slow liberalisation (which was followed to a degree in Eastern Europe at the same time). 

Thousands of pro-democracy activists were murdered or detained without trial by the Chinese Communist Party. 

Western Governments condemned the repression (to varying degrees) before swiftly moving on to embrace some of the dubious benefits of the PRC’s economic miracle. 

Sadly for the inhabitant’s of People's of China the Communists managed to combine Mao's arrogance in relation to people, nature and the environment with a reckless unregulated capitalist growth which resulted in spectacular economic growth and dreadful pollution and environmental damage which has impacted on people's health. 

China now exports industrial commodities around the globe, in-place of silks and potteries, and collects financial instruments and lends money around the globe rather than bullion. 

China’s needs are more complex and the state is no longer obliged to submit to unequal treaties and suffer from inequalities imposed in the past by former Western empires. 

The leaders of the PRC now invoke the imperial traditions of the past, looking to enhance state power. 

The Yuan and the Qing are now celebrated as unifiers of historic Chinese lands - something that justifiably concerns Taiwan, Kazakhstan and other states which lie within historic Chinese imperial borders. 

Other imperial traditions continue - with privileged state officials who are relatively detached or remote from the people and society that they preside over.  

Overseas the PRC has become a power in the world throwing its weight around in the developing world, especially in Africa - where African trade unionists working to protect their members have felt the negative effects of the relationship between their governments and the PRC. 

The impact of the 2008 banking crash temporarily cleared the field of many Western alternatives and the PRC stepped into the vacuum. The PRC now holds the purse strings across much of the developing world. 

Where possible we in the West (and in the rest of the world) should actively avoid questionable trade deals with the People's Republic of China and its blood stained corrupt elite focused on retaining control of the world’s last Empire and their privileges that come from being in charge.

While it is very important to remember the events of June 4th 1989 we should also remember that the PRC’s ruling elite  continues to this day to brutally repress and imprison its citizens and deny basic human rights to  Chinese citizens, Tibetans, Uyghurs and Hongkongers. 

D-DAY ANNIVERSARY

Today Saturday 6th June 2020, is the 76th anniversary of the D-Day landings. 

We should remember all those who fought for freedom in Normandy on 6 June 1944, those who came back, and those who gave their lives and never returned. Along with all those who worked at home and overseas to secure the victory over fascism and the peace that followed.

SHIELDING GUIDANCE CHANGES

Delyth Jewell MS questions change in policy despite “R” number remaining the same

Plaid Cymru MS Delyth Jewell has raised concerns at the new guidance for those shielding from Coronavirus.

The Welsh Government confirmed today that those who had been shielding from Coronavirus could now exercise outdoors from Monday, following similar advice being issued to vulnerable people in England.

However Plaid Cymru MS Delyth Jewell questioned why the guidance was changing for the group of "extremely vulnerable people" whilst the R rate had not changed.

The First Minister confirmed on Friday that the rate of transmission was still 0.8.

Ms Jewell questioned what advice the Welsh Government had received to change its policy and whether the new guidance would protect the most vulnerable people.

The Shadow Local Government Minister also raised concerns about the way the change was communicated to the press first before letters were sent to the shielding group.

Ms Jewell said letters should have been sent "weeks ago" and that telling the press first and people second was "wrong".

Those who are shielding will receive a letter from Wales' Chief Medical Officer over the next two weeks setting out the "next steps".

Plaid Cymru MS and Shadow Minister for Local Government Delyth Jewell said,

"The last few months have been incredibly challenging for those who have had to shield. They have had to go months without leaving the house and months without seeing loved ones. The huge sacrifices they have made must be recognised.

"However, questions must be asked on why the advice is changing for this extremely vulnerable group of people whilst the virus is still at the same rate of transmission as it was a few weeks ago. The First Minister himself confirmed on Friday that the R rate was still at 0.8 - which is dangerously close to 1.  What advice have the Welsh Government received to make them change this policy? Can they guarantee the new guidance will protect this vulnerable group of people?

"And why was this change in policy communicated to the press before the very people it will effect?

"Letters should have been sent to keep shielding people updated weeks ago, so that they could prepare for any changes. This will affect their lives hugely. Telling the press first and people second was both wrong and disappointing. No one should have found out about this change through reading confused reports in the press.

“Without a robust test and trace system in place we cannot possibly know where the virus is spreading in our communities. Loosening the lockdown without such a system in place risks a second wave. Getting track and trace right must continue to be the Welsh Government’s top priority going forward before we can even think about easing restrictions further.

ENDS

A VICTORY FOR COMMON SENSE

Plaid Cymru Leader Adam Price MS has called the Welsh Government’s U-turn on lockdown a “victory for common sense”.

Following pressure from police chiefs and Plaid Cymru, the Welsh Government has tonight confirmed it will be raising the maximum fines for those breaking lockdown from £120 to £1920.

However minimum fines will remain at £60.

Plaid Cymru Leader Adam Price said the victory belonged to the “perseverance” of Welsh police forces who were doing “heroic work” in protecting communities during the crisis.  

However, the Plaid Leader said it was “bitterly regrettable” that the First Minister had not raised the minimum fines to match England as had been requested by police chiefs in their letter to the First Minister last Friday.

Plaid Cymru Leader Adam Price MS said,

“After weeks of pressure from Wales’ police chiefs and Plaid Cymru, the Labour Welsh Government have finally seen sense and raised the maximum fines for those breaking lockdown rules in Wales from £120 to £1,920.

“This latest U-turn from the government is a victory for common sense and to the perseverance of our police forces who are doing heroic work in protecting our communities during this crisis.  

“However, the decision not to raise the minimum fines in parity with England as requested by the All Wales Policing Group remains bitterly regrettable.

ENDS

BUYING LOCAL

Our local producers and local suppliers need our support now more than ever. This is why Plaid Cymru has launched a major new campaign to help boost the Welsh food and drink industry.

The 'I'm buying local" campaign encourages party member and supporters to buy more locally produced food and drink with the aim of helping those businesses cope with the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic as well as building resilience for the future.

Launched by Llyr Gruffydd MS, Plaid's shadow rural affairs minister, and Ben Lake MP, Plaid's Westminster spokesperson on rural affairs, it highlights how the pandemic could, with the right leadership, provide an opportunity to re-set the economy.

Llyr Gruffydd MS said:

“The Welsh food and drink industry has been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic. The sudden closure of restaurants and coffee shops and the loss of export markets saw many Welsh farmers lose their markets overnight. We’ve all seen images of milk being poured down the drain and beef prices have also been severely hit, leaving farms incurring losses and struggling to survive.

“Plaid Cymru has campaigned hard for Government action to help these businesses, but we can all do more. That’s why we’re urging everyone to make that extra effort to back Welsh food and drink producers wherever possible. We also want to celebrate the world-class produce Wales has to offer.

"In terms of our economy and food supplies, the virus has exposed and exacerbated long-ignored issues, including our dependence on imports. Now is the time to rethink, reset and rebuild our food supply from the ground up.

"The UK Government has steadily withdrew from food policy and allowed our food retail industry to become ever more concentrated in a few hands. Just four companies control 70% of the UK food retail market. The large food retailers have used that concentration of power to dictate ever lower prices to farmers, continually sapping the financial health of domestic agriculture.

"Our food production model was fundamentally flawed even before Covid-19. Yet for many people and even the UK Government, the frailties and dangers of the current food supply model only became apparent when they saw empty shelves day after day as panic buying shattered the now fractured supply chain."

Ben Lake MP added: 

"Plaid Cymru has a long-standing commitment to addressing the crisis in the food industry in Wales that starts with a local procurement policy. Some councils in Wales procure school dinner basics such as potatoes and bread from Rochdale and Liverpool. Hundreds of millions of pounds leak out of the Welsh public purse each year because local producers and enterprises are overlooked or unable to compete with the bigger corporations.

"Building a resilient food industry means not only backing our farmers but also developing processing and developing added value for our raw materials. To achieve that, we need a strong united voice for the Welsh food industry to protect and support our food producers and agriculture.

"In Wales, our farmers are not only stewards of our environment but are also the economic backbone of rural communities and market towns. Welsh agriculture plays a vital role in the broader economy, achieving record exports worth over a half a billion pounds in 2018 and acting as the bedrock to the Welsh food and drink sector which employs over 240,000 workers."

The "I'm Buying Local" campaign is designed to put additional focus on the high-quality local food produced throughout Wales to improve food security and improving farmers’ incomes.

Mr Gruffydd added: "This campaign will encourage consumers to buy more locally produced food, keeping value in the local economy, our environmental footprint low and strengthening community institutions like farmers' markets and the local High Street.

"That is why Plaid Cymru continues to work with the farming unions and rural enterprises to promote a food strategy that encourages buying local produce to support the local economy. This would inject demand into our rural economies, consideration for the environment and sustainability into how we trade and ensure a fair price and choice for consumers and producers.

"With scenes of unharvested crops and farmers pouring milk down the drain because of lack of demand, we must remember that these are not problems caused just by the pandemic. This has being brewing for some time due to our failing food supply model. Only if we are ambitious and clear that we cannot return to business as usual that led to this, can we deliver food security and build resilience in our society and economy."

NEW ZEALAND EXIT STRATEGY

Focus must be on implementing testing, tracing and isolating  

Plaid Cymru Leader Adam Price has said the Welsh Government’s exit strategy should mirror the New Zealand model with a focus on testing, tracing and isolating.

The Welsh Government is expected to publish its exit strategy today (Friday, 15th May)

Speaking ahead of the publication of the Welsh Government’s Coronavirus Exit Strategy today, Plaid Cymru Leader Adam Price MS said,

             

“The Welsh Government’s exit strategy should mirror the model adopted so successfully by New Zealand. That means all efforts focused on driving down the R number to reduce the number of avoidable deaths to zero.

“Then, when the number of new cases has been successfully suppressed nationally, the Welsh Government should also consider a more local approach, with the ability to re-impose lockdown measures quickly in response to the emergence of new clusters.

“However, the key to easing restrictions safely remains the implementation of a comprehensive and localised testing and tracing program. We can’t even begin to significantly ease restrictions in Wales without having a testing, tracing and isolating infrastructure in place that we can trust. The onus falls on the Welsh Government to urgently change gear on testing and tracing to allow us to move safely on to the next phase on the path to recovery.

ENDS

A MATTER OF ANNIVERSARIES

Friday 8th May 2020 will be the 75th Anniversary of Victory in Europe - an anniversary we should remember for a variety of reasons including the hard fought bloody victory of allied forces over fascism and the destruction of a great evil in the world. 

On the 75th anniversary of VE Day we should reflect on the bravery of so many men and women who fought the tyranny of fascism and came back home. We should also spare more than a few thoughts for those who made the ultimate sacrifice and never came back home.

Peace after war always comes with a price even for the victors. With the sense of relief would have been an awareness of those friends and neighbours who were not there, those who would have lost their lives and those who would have lost loved ones. 

At the time despite the no doubt profound and overwhelming sense of relief that many people would have felt and displayed, people would also have been conscious of the on going conflict in the Far East and the fact that relatives and friends would have been still serving in distant lands overseas in the war against Imperial Japan.

For a state so allegedly if somewhat selectively obsessed with elements of a rich history it is the things that are forgotten that occasionally should still have the power to surprise or shock us. 

I was talking a few years ago to a family friend, who had served in North Africa and Italy during the Second World War, he was shocked to discover that the Poles had been excluded from the Allied victory parade in held in June 1946.

Greek contingent marching in 1946 victory parade

The 4th June 2020 will be the 74th anniversary of the great victory parade, which was held in London to commemorate the victory over fascism. 

It was held on June 4th 1946 by the then Labour Government, who staged an elaborate victory parade in London. 

Representatives from over 30 Allied nations gathered to celebrate the Allies collective victory over fascism. 

Some 134 different nationalities actually took part in the victory parade:  Czechs, Dutch, Iranian, Indian, Sikh, Norwegian, Canadian, South African, Arab, Belgian and Australian and many others marched (or flew over) through the streets of London. 

Absent were the Poles, who in probably one of the most despicable (even with the benefit of hindsight) gutless acts of any Westminster government, were excluded due to indirect pressure from Stalin. 

The Poles, some 200,000 thousand of whom had served alongside the Western Allies, in the Mediterranean and Western Europe, and who had given so much for allied victory in almost every campaign and had done the ground work which broke the enigma codes (formally recognised on 12th July 2001), were perceived as a problem post war.  

The British Labour government initially invited the Soviet-backed government in Poland to send a flag party to represent Poland among the allied forces in the parade, but did not specifically invite representatives of the Polish forces that had fought in the West alongside Allied forces. 

Attlee's government had previously hindered, harassed and pressured the Poles to return to Soviet occupied Poland, before somewhat reluctantly granting them asylum. 

They were specifically and perhaps deliberately excluded - perhaps due to a combination of expediency and pressure from / fear of offending Stalin. 

To their everlasting credit, the RAF, consistently refused to harass the Poles to return to Soviet dominated Poland from the start, and they gave the Polish airman who had fought so valiantly in the Battle of Britain in 1940 the option to fly but they chose not to fly in the aerial victory parade in an act of solidarity with their excluded comrades on the ground.  

Poland itself would not finally be free and a democracy until 1989. The Poles finally marched in the National Commemoration Celebration Day of VE Day and VJ Day in London on 10 July 2005.