Comrades, students, and members of other political parties may I first thank the organisers of this meeting for the invitation to speak. If I seem hesitant, then please remember that I speak for a movement that has all been but forgotten and its voice marginalised in the current re-writing of Republican history. The Provos are not the only Republicans.

This is the other voice of Republicanism that of Republican Socialism. the radical and socialist voice in the republican tradition.

I wish to outline briefly the considered position of the Irish Republican Socialist Party on this the day before the historical visit of the President of the United States of America, the most rapacious Imperialist nation the world has yet seen.

To Bill Clinton and his regime we have only one thing to say that sums up our political position on his visit, "HANDS OFF CUBA".

On the main issue before us today of "nationalism in the new millennium" let me say that our party s position on nationalism in Ireland accepts the view that in essence it is a progressive movement whilst having no Illusions about its elitist, and essentially pro-capitalist stance whether espoused by nationalists in Fine Gael, Fianna Fail, the SDLP or Sinn Fein. So long as those parties in pursuit of their vision of nationalism act in a progressive manner against the proposition that a great power has the right to subjugate small nations then we will be prepared to co-operate, or at least not oppose some of their actions.

That is why in the light of the Ceasefires and the so called peace process the Republican Socialist Movement took a conscious decision to take no action that could be construed as endangering that process. Indeed we opened many avenues of communications with others in order from our viewpoint to make more widely known the socialist perspective of our movement.

But let me say that whilst we are not prepared to endanger the current process we have no love for it. We remain to be convinced and I doubt if we could ever be convinced, of the genuine intent of the British Government.

We doubt if after all the flag waving and displays of chauvinism that we have seen recently and will see tomorrow the position of the working class, apart from the absence of political violence, will have in essence changed. Unemployment, low wages, ghettoised housing, class ridden education systems, extremities of wealth and poverty, and people divided by religion and poisoned by prejudice; these things will remain.

And they will remain we believe no matter how many meetings take place between the representatives of Irish Capitalism and British Imperialism. Major or Bruton will not solve the fundamental problems of the peoples of these isles.

We, as socialists, as republicans and as internationalists, and as unreconstructed believers In the old adage, "Workers of the World unite" look forward to a post nationalist phase of our history. Post nationalist in the sense that the national question has been resolved, that the right of the Irish people to self determination has been recognised and exercised, and that we can move on to begin the creation of a socialist society.

This is a brief but succinct outline of our party s position. We have no time for mindless militarism, nor any form of elitist constitutionalism. We remain unrepentant republicans, full blooded socialists. In the post nationalist Ireland that is trying to emerge from the strait jack of the Government of Ireland Act we look forward to pushing the socialist agenda. Thank you for listening to me.