IRELAND , JANUARY 15th , 1920 : ELECTIONS .......
....... in 1980 , a Black and Tan member spoke about why he and thousands like him joined that group ; political motivation had nothing to do with it .......
" ... the pay in the [French] Foreign Legion was only ten centimes a day for a five-year period . On going back to my room - where I lived - I happened to pick-up a current edition of ' The Daily Mail ' newspaper and I saw in it this advert for recruits wanted for the RIC with good pay , danger money , prospects for promotion and a pension at the end .
So I thought to myself ; why should I risk my life and perhaps my limbs for ten centimes a day when I could join the RIC for good money ? So I decided to join up there and then .
And , of course , there was good money [in the RIC]. It was £6 per week and I think I'd been getting 28 shillings (£1.40) a week when I'd finished up in the (British) Army . The average wage in the RIC was about two to three times what the men could have earned in England . "
However - Westminsters 'Plan B' , General 'Sir' Nevil Macready , and his band of unstable looters , the Black and Tans , were fought every inch of the way ; by May 1921 (on the 24th of that month) the 'penny dropped' for 'Sir' Nevile Macready - he finally realised that westminster had handed him a 'poisoned chalice' .......
(MORE LATER).
RELEASE NICKY KELLY .......
By Vincent Browne .
First published in 'Magill' magazine , April 1982 , pages 4 and 5 .
Re-published here in 8 parts .
[8 of 8].
The Sallins robbery took place at the height of the Coalition's hysteria about 'law and order' - a time when the Gardai would have been most encouraged to believe that the authorities would stand behind them in whatever they did to stamp out " subversive crime . "
As stated above , the handling by the Special Criminal Court of the case was less than satisfactory and the Court of Criminal Appeal has proved entirely unprepared to deal with the issues which the court throws up . At the end of it all Nicky Kelly is in Portlaoise Prison doing a 12-year sentence ; apart from the material fact that he is entirely innocent , there is the point that the processes whereby he has ended up serving this sentence have proved entirely unsatisfactory .
There is only one correct course of action now - Release Nicky Kelly and then institute an enquiry into the entire background to the case .
[END of ' RELEASE NICKY KELLY '].
(Tomorrow - 'PLASTIC BULLETS' : from 1981).
THE EXTRADITION FIASCO .......
By Derek Dunne .
First published in 'Magill' magazine , October 1985 , pages 9,10 and 11.
Re-published here in 13 parts.
(10 of 13).
Sources close to the (FS) government deny that there is any embarrassment over the John Patrick Quinn-extradition affair and say that there are " no plans to change the law " in relation to the production of prima facie evidence in Irish courts for people wanted in the North and Britain . Nonetheless , Quinn's case is bound to have a bearing on the cases now due before the courts in the Republic. The fact that the law had been altered significantly in the case , and then all charges dismissed , is bound to be an issue .
For three years , John Patrick Quinn had the threat of prosecution and charge hanging over him ; and then on the day , the British authorities could not apparently produce enough evidence in court to proceed with their case . The fact that the British police were taking steps to acquire Quinn's affidavit also shows that they did not have the proof required to proceed .
This fact assumes a new importance when one considers that in the Shannon judgement last year (ie 1984) , the Supreme Court intimated that the motive of those committing 'criminal acts' was an important consideration in whether or not the 'crimes' were political and thus exempt from extradition . Those wishing to claim ' political exception from extradition ' must first therefore admit to the 'crime' .......
(MORE LATER).
(Annabel - you could try posting your request here ; you will have to register first , but its free , quick , and cheerful ! I hope they can help you out - Sharon .)
