The 1988 Burma uprising
The 1988 Burma uprising

A busy day working on our FOCUS newsletters, completing the text and then cycling across the common to get copies for distribution. A break from this to mow the rather uneven games lawn and then a more relaxed evening writing my journal and getting an early night before the rains came. The government’s battle against the IRA continues with efforts to try to prevent supplies of Semtex. Following the revolution in Burma, 1000 prisoners are shot dead. NASA suffers sabotage and Chancellor Lawson works hard trying to bolster confidence in the economy.

Was tired, after my appallingly late nights of the last day or two, when Di brought my morning tea at 7.00am. This meant that I only had six hours sleep last night! (when I normally need 8 hours). Showered and dressed, but was only down at 8.00am, but I still managed to read the paper before and during my breakfast of French toast. Got down to work on my FOCUS newsletters this morning, typing out the Priory Ward version to go with that for Little Paxton and pasting the resulting print out onto more A3 sheets to show the intended layout. Then a dash across the Common on my bike to get the A3 sheets copied and reduced onto A4, so that I can copy more of them on my own machine thereafter. The cycle back home was much easier, as this time the wind was with me. Today started bright, but continued dull, with some spots of rain later on. Home on my bike, then, and a lunch of salad that I had to prepare myself. I spent a little while watching test cricket on TV whilst eating my lunch. For once, England have ended up 300 odd for 3 against the Sri Lanka score of less than 200. Worked away this afternoon, typing letters, correspondence and memos and then followed a mammoth exercise of photocopying, writing envelopes and preparing the copies for delivery. There were press releases for each of the local papers and then the FOCUS newsletters were sent to Cambridge party workers and copies to the members responsible for other local wards.

At 5.00pm, it was tea time, but I had to spend an hour & a half delivering all the envelopes. Once home again, I mowed the games lawn, but was demotivated by the uneven state of the surface, which is getting worse. Tended the ducks and then came inside for a more restful evening, writing my journal and getting an early night. News today is of the extradition of an IRA prisoner, Russell, from the Irish Republic to the United Kingdom, after a four year campaign to prevent it. The security battles in Northern Ireland dominate the rest of the news as well. Britain has asked Czechoslovakia to try to prevent supplies of their explosives, Semtex, reaching the IRA. We also want them to add an odour constituent, so that it can be more easily traced and recognised. Six of the soldiers killed on Saturday were buried today.  Reports from Burma are of a thousand prisoners being shot dead at a prison, as they were killed running away from fires that had been started. NASA has found sabotage in supplies of its ‘O’ ring seals, which seems to be the work of agents. Chancellor Lawson was busy today, trying to reassure the City about the state of the British economy, but the stock indices still fell 10 points. It came onto rain more heavily late this evening.