THIS ABC mini-series screened on May 13-14, stars Colin Friels as MUA official John Coombs, Jack Thompson as wharfie Tony Tully, Daniel Frederikson as Greg Combet, and Geoff Morrell as Patrick Stevedores boss Chris Corrigan.It is the story of the 1998 war on the wharves.I had been looking forward to this series if for no other reason than a whole barrel-load of Liberals have been vocally criticising it.

For example ABC critic and Liberal Senator Concetta Fierravanti-Wells, said the show "smacks of another example of wasteful spending by the ABC, being used to drive an anti-government, pro-left agenda, conveniently timed to appear during an election year".

However I was disappointed with some aspects of Bastard Boys. The first instalment followed the conventional view that it was more the clever legal tactics of the lawyers and union officials�that won the MUA's right to exist, then the industrial action and growing anger from below.

Hundreds of poems, paintings, posters and songs came out of the struggle: A testament to the thousands of workers that supported the strike, either by holding simultaneous action, walking off sites in support of the strike, or keeping the illegal picket lines alive.

Yet here we are painted a picture of lawyers and bureaucrats finding nifty ways of using high court challenges.

In reality the high court challenge would never have succeeded if the campaign and struggle had not been built from below. My union was rostered on the night of the big picket and I well remember the sound of helicopters whirring overhead and their spotlights flashing us constantly.

We linked arms and faced off the police until the building workers from the CFMEU marched together to join us, catching about 200 police in the middle who had to negotiate their way out.

Truth emerges

Unearthing strike breakers, balaclavas, snarling dogs, and the Dubai army training fiasco might remind us of some of the more unsavoury truths about the Howard government.

Historically, Australian bosses have often resorted to strong-arm tactics. Police shot four waterside workers in 1927, when they boarded ships to remove scabs used by the Bruce-Page government after the introduction of coercive legislation.

The waterfront is place where workers can exert power because profits for big bosses can be disrupted here.

Exerting control over waterside workers is important enough to lead governments and bosses to a relentless drive for profit that leads the likes of Chris Corrigan to extreme lengths.

Even if this mini-series is a view from the top, Greg Combets's character catches the essence of the waterfront strike when he tells John Coombs, "you're going to need the whole labour movement, and then some" to save the MUA and unionism. And we did.

The weakness of the mini-series was summed up by actor Geoff Morrell.

He said, "I spent a day with Chris Corrigan and really think he's a nice bloke, and one of the reasons he wanted to be involved was that he was incredibly demonised at the time and he wanted people to see another side."

"It doesn't condone the MUA, but does provide evidence of how important unions are to the fabric of a working-class community.

"But I don't think it hides away from the excesses of the MUA. That's really important because if you are just going to do a left-wing polemic then it's really of no use. So I don't think it comes down on either side."

The series starts with a wharfie asking whether they should have a national stoppage over the quality of the pool table. In many ways the series is saying that the MUA should have been "dealt with", but not quite like it was.

The myths about pampered workers should be quashed, and the rights of workers to have good pay and conditions need to be enshrined.

Nevertheless, Bastard Boys shows the grubby truth about the Howard government's attitude to its so-called battlers.

by Melanie Lazarow

Bastard Boys
Screened on ABC TV, May 13-14

"When Patrick sacked the wharfies

They thought it was a joke

But world wide solidarity

Is causing them to choke

Don't scab for the bosses

Don't listen to their lies

Us working folks haven't got a chance

Unless we organise"

-Mark Gregory