Development
Soon after its establishment the UWC established a thirteen member co-ordinating committee, under the chairmanship of Barr. This smaller group met once a fortnight at the VPUP headquarters. The group soon came to the attention of the government and Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Merlyn Rees held a meeting with its representatives on 8 April 1974. At the meeting the UWC demanded new elections to the Northern Ireland Assembly which they dismissed as undemocratic. The meeting soon descended into angry scenes with UWC members throwing allegations about the treatment of loyalist prisoners and negotiations with "terrorists" in Dublin at Rees and it ended inconclusively.
The response of the UWC was to threaten a general strike and pressed ahead for plans of it without the initial knowledge of the Unionist politicians. On 13 May 1974 a large meeting of UWC affiliated people was held at Portrush and at this Billy Kelly, accompanied by Tyrie, UDA member Jim Smyth and Short Brothers shop steward Hugh Petrie announced to the assembled audience, which included Ernest Baird, Ian Paisley and John Taylor, that the general strike was to be launched the following day.
Read more about this topic: Ulster Workers' Council
Famous quotes containing the word development:
“As a final instance of the force of limitations in the development of concentration, I must mention that beautiful creature, Helen Keller, whom I have known for these many years. I am filled with wonder of her knowledge, acquired because shut out from all distraction. If I could have been deaf, dumb, and blind I also might have arrived at something.”
—Mark Twain [Samuel Langhorne Clemens] (18351910)
“The proper aim of education is to promote significant learning. Significant learning entails development. Development means successively asking broader and deeper questions of the relationship between oneself and the world. This is as true for first graders as graduate students, for fledging artists as graying accountants.”
—Laurent A. Daloz (20th century)
“They [women] can use their abilities to support each other, even as they develop more effective and appropriate ways of dealing with power.... Women do not need to diminish other women ... [they] need the power to advance their own development, but they do not need the power to limit the development of others.”
—Jean Baker Miller (20th century)