in case it's NOT a joke, please supply the information about exactly what IndyMedia Ireland did to bring that about. PLEASE TELL US. Sounds like information that could be useful to other IndyMedia sites.

The story is not detailed enough to allow an opinion.
However I wonder how and why the SWP has reached such decision and why their advertisement was removed.

It isn't a joke. Check The Irish Indymedia
website. The Irish SWP started the boycott because Indymedia Ireland removed SWP election adverts from the newswire. Of course, the adverts were removed because publishing (any) political party propaganda is against the principles and philosophy of Indymedia. According to the Irish SWP leadership, though, Indymedia Ireland has been
taken over by 'anarchists'. The SWP leaders are now threatening to kick out any SWP Party member who is caught posting messages to Indymedia.

It is not a joke at all, though we can see why
people would laugh. Go and check yesterday's (Friday) Indymedia Ireland for details.

Yay!

What next?
Boycotting the town centre on a Saturday?
Refusing to force propaganda down our throats and then making us !pay! for it?

Come on, SWP, show us what you're made of!

SWP Ireland are losing members all over the place, they can't afford to kick out members for using indymedia. They are falling apart in Ireland, they haven't recruited many people since last autumn and branches are being expelled and leaving like there is no tomorrow. There are also rumours about a rift in the leadership centering around their electoral strategy. I think the death of the SWP in Ireland is on the cards. Ths is in stark contrast to the conditions on the ground in Ireland, ordinary working people have no representation which has left a huge vacuum on the left. Whereever a genuine alternative has put itself forward it has succeeded, look at the great success othe Socialist Party and the Tipperary Workers and Unemployment Action Group as well as many other working class movements that are springing up. The SWP should be cleaning up, but they are not.

It's just typical of the authoritarian SWP. A little warning for those 'Please! We're all on the same side, let's work together' liberals who turn up every time someone has a dig at the trots. The SWP are quick enough to call everyone else sectarian, but they're not fooling anyone because we've all got them sussed.

See as I'm the person who actually hid the post, I'll fess up.

A member of the SWP posted an article with the title "VOTE SOCIALIST" and a list of their candiates in the forthcoming election.

I argued that this is advertising and a breach of newswire guidelines several people disagreed, I pointed out that this debate probably wouldn't be on going if a major political party or the IPP (irish people's party, our BNF) had posted, with the same article. So it was hidden, contested by two members of the editorial list, who are in the SWP.

The SWP member is arguing that allowing the anarchists to publish Info on not voting is the same, and why are those been hidden; and Indymedia, Ireland is a WSM anrachist front (I'm serious) after I stopped laughing the newswire started getting bombarded by this kind of stuff.

We've invited them to join the editorial list debate their point of view, but instead we get this over and over again. It was funny, for a while.

As for the SWP banning it's members I'm not sure, if it's a wind up, but considering the bloody mindiness thats being displayed here, I wouldn't rule it out.

Sorry to air our dirty linen here.

Aidan
-IMC Ireland Volunteer-

Aiden, you are a sweetheart, thank you for explaining what happened in detail. You were of course right. And I'm so happy!