Wednesday, June 10, 2009

DUBLIN 1980 : THE GLUE SNIFFERS / HOPE IN THE SHADOWS / A BATTLE FOR HEARTS AND MINDS.

DUBLIN 1980 : THE GLUE SNIFFERS.......
Pictures by Andrew McGlynn. From 'MAGILL' magazine September 1980.

The Dublin Committee For Travelling People got the lease for the house from a Catholic bishop , a fact that ironically comes in handy when neighbours petition to close the place down . The Health Board helps but there are bureaucratic foul-ups with Dublin Corporation and there's never enough money .

Committee members are teaching the children some basic skills like painting , carpentry and domestic science and the kids help to improve the house and get paid for their efforts , sometimes with food instead of money . The idea is not to adjust them to a settled lifestyle but to give them skills which they can use in the travelling life . These children are proud , and loyal to their own codes . It is best to approach them as equals or not at all .
(MORE LATER).



HOPE IN THE SHADOWS.......

For some Northern nationalists the Anglo-Irish Agreement ('Hillsborough Treaty',1985) only makes their lives more dangerous , for others it offers hope on a road to nowhere. Fionnuala O'Connor visited a (Provisional) Sinn Fein advice centre in the Ardoyne and Seamus Mallon's office in Newry.
From 'MAGILL' magazine, December 1986.

In the meantime , however , both men thought that people would 'vote for hope' . Somehow that brought us to elections , and British Labour's talks that very day with the Unionist leaders . Confidence wavered .

The record hung in the air : power-sharing betrayed , Westminster seats bartered , battle to the death begun with the Provos over the end of political prisoner status.
(MORE LATER).



A BATTLE FOR HEARTS AND MINDS.......
A look at issues raised by Liz Curtis' recent book.
From 'IRIS' magazine, August 1984.
Review by Trisha Fox.

The film uses clips from earlier films of bombs , shootings and funerals , and overlays them with soundtracks from other footage , producing a totally distorted perception of Republicanism and a malicious profile of Gerry Adams.

Leading Workers Party spokespersons (whose political affiliations are not revealed on the programme) are allowed free rein to malign Adams , while being portrayed themselves as 'balanced commentators' . Seamus Lynch recounts - unchallenged - a fictitious conversation he alleges he had with Adams in which the latter claimed he was "prepared to wade knee-deep in Protestant blood " .

Elsewhere in the programme , a photograph is shown of a solitary standing hut in the Long Kesh Cages after the camp burning in 1974 . The programme alleges that Adams had refused to burn* the cage of which he was Officer Commanding , lacking the courage to do so . However , Adams was not Officer Commanding of his Cage at that time and claims he did take part in the burning of the camp . And it should be noted that the hut shown in the TV programme , for illustration purpose , was occupied by loyalist prisoners , not republicans.

('1169...' Comment : * According to verbal accounts given by some of those who shared prison time with Adams , he was tasked by the Screws with keeping the cage he was in , Cage 11 , clean , and carried out clean-up duties on a regular basis . This despite the fact that republican POW's were under orders not to take instructions from the Screws - Adams was said to be the only republican prisoner that was on friendly terms with the prison authorities. Also , it has been stated that Adams repeatedly stated "this is wrong" , when told that the Cages were on fire.)
(MORE LATER).