THE LONG-TERM INDOCTRINATION OF THE PEOPLE OF WALES.

Here is a letter by Cllr Gwyn Hopkins which illustrates why elements of Welsh opinion are opposed to independence for Wales:

The effectiveness of relentless, long-term, intense and unbroken indoctrination is truly astonishing. In Wales such a process has been proceeding continuously ever since the conquest (1282), culminating in 1870 with the imposition of an Educational System designed entirely with the needs of the children of England in mind. Regrettably, its legacy still prevails. By personally experiencing it, I – like many others – can testify that from start to finish, a very major feature of the system equated to intense pro-England and pro-English indoctrination. The Anglicization of the Welsh people was one of its key objectives.

This system totally concealed the History of Wales from us. Wales was thus very effectively marginalized and the idea that Wales was a non-entity was implanted in its children’s minds at an early age. History meant the History of England! The poets and writers of England constituted the staple diet of “literature”, with those of Scotland, Ireland and Wales – such as Robbie Burns, James Joyce and Dafydd ap Gwilym – conspicuous by their absence. In Geography major emphasis was placed on the Geography of England. Scotland was not mentioned and certainly not Ireland. The school ethos and curriculum decisively steered one to identify with England. The expectation that one should pay due reverence, deference and loyalty to England was the unmistakable message. The inevitable consequence is that the vast majority of the people of Wales are astonishingly ignorant of virtually all matters relating to their own country, knowing far more about England.

Welsh – our indigenous language – was banned on pain of physical punishment until 1910 and then given an extraordinarily subordinate role, often ridiculed and disparagingly afforded the status of the least important school subject often taught for only one half-hour lesson per week. This was uncivilized linguistic discrimination – nay, oppression – with a vengeance. Of course, virtually all of Wales’ schoolchildren were totally oblivious to what was happening. It has largely achieved its desired effect of producing many people that are only semi-literate in their first language with the majority having no knowledge of Welsh at all.

As if this was not enough indoctrination, from about the same time (1870) we have been subjected to much the same conditioning by a daily barrage of English newspapers, designed – not for the people of Wales but - for the people of England. Indeed not one of the London dailies has a correspondent, or even a reporter, in Wales.

Heaped upon all this we have received an overwhelmingly England-oriented radio and TV service since the early 1900’s. These have relentlessly carried the same message that we really should to a large extent have loyalty to, and identify with, England and accept, or better still support, her continual control and dominance over Wales as the normal state of affairs.

This policy has been outstandingly successful. It has produced very many people in Wales who have swallowed the bait - hook, line and sinker – and become fellow travellers of English imperialism with the result that they belittle and sell Wales short with relish. Many of them are in the British political parties, people that are totally unable to discard the imperial baggage they have acquired. Indeed, it appears that virtually none have even realized that they are carrying such psychological baggage. They are willing to employ any number of political and logical contortions to ensure that Wales remains very firmly under England’s control.

The article by Rhodri Morgan and Peter Hain about the possible extension of devolution in the Western Mail of 4/8/2004 is a brilliant example of this. The message is crystal clear, namely that the interests and will of the Labour party comes first, closely followed by the preservation of the jobs of Wales’ Labour MP’s. The interests of the people of Wales come a very poor third. We are to infer that they are unworthy and not sufficiently mature or competent to have responsibility for primary legislation and they certainly cannot be trusted to manage their own affairs. We are expected to believe and accept that it is perfectly in order for the people of the Isle of Man (population 78,000) and the Channel Islands (population 156,000) to have law-making powers but – oh no – not so the people of Wales. What an appallingly disparaging, contemptuous and uncivilized view of the people of Wales.

Gwyn Hopkins

This letter was published in the Llanelli Star on 30/9/2004.

Is not the above factually correct and does it not demonstrate the attempts made to systematically eradicate the history, the language and the national consciousness of the Welsh people in order that they may be good loyal British citizens?