THE BOUNDARY COMMISSION , 1921-1925 .......
A British 'sleight-of-hand' which caused a mutiny within British forces in Ireland.......
....... the Free Staters in Leinster House had looked-on and allowed Westminster to nominate two of the three representatives to the Boundary Commission (thus breaking the 1921 Treaty) ; then , in a further act of humiliation , ' The London Morning Post ' newspaper reported (on 7th November 1925) that it looked like the Free Staters were going to be ordered by the Boundary Commission to hand-over some of its territory to the Six-County 'State' ....... !
The Brits were 'flying a kite' , or getting their retaliation in first (!) - and it worked ! The Nationalist population in the Free State 'border' counties were being 'fed' with rumours that their areas were to be 'handed-over' to Stormont in return for a couple of 'border fields' in South Fermanagh and/or South Armagh . Within four days (ie by 11th November 1925) the (first) President of the Free State , William T. Cosgrave , was trying to calm things down - he stated that the Free State would not agree to transfer any of its territory to the Stormont administration .
Ten days later (ie on the 21st November 1925) , with the panic-level growing , Eoin MacNeill resigned from the Boundary Commission , a move which only fed the rumour-mill . The Brits jumped in here , again , and fanned the flames by claiming that , before he had resigned , Eoin MacNeill had agreed that the Free State should cede some territory and , whats more , that MacNeill saw nothing wrong about , and had no problem with , Westminster appointing the Stormont representative to the Boundary Commission !
Three days later (ie on the 24th November 1925) Eoin MacNeill , by now the centre of much 'did-he-or-did-he-not' speculation , 'resigned' from the Free State Government itself (pushed or 'resigned' ...?) .
But the Brits were not finished 'stirring' things up just yet ; they had more 'salt' and spied another Free State 'wound'.......
(MORE LATER).
WE FIGHT ON , SAY IRA CHIEFS .......
... and Maggie is still on their hit list .
Twenty years into their campaign against the British Army , the IRA is still as far from victory , or defeat , as ever . Now , its leaders talk exclusinely about their plans .
Margaret Thatcher is still a target , so are some members of the British Royal family , while attacks on British forces in continental Europe will continue . Peace is out , says a spokesman , there is nothing to be gained from a ceasefire .
By Derek Dunne .
First published in 'NOW' magazine , volume 1 , No. 4 , October 1989 , pages 5 and 6 .
Re-published here in 10 parts .
( 9 of 10).
The IRA spokesperson said - " There are academics and leading media personalities trying to revise and re-write Irish history from a hidden anti-nationalist perspective ; if they are successful , the people of the 26 Counties will find themselves even more stateless and souless in terms of their national identity than they are at present . They are at the centre of a struggle for their people , but it is being waged on unequal terms .
Anyone who stands up for Irish culture , Irish language or neutrality , who questions the repressive laws enacted by the State , who questions censorship , immediately feels the heat of the wrath of the revisionists and is made to feel responsible for killing 3,000 people ! What people need to understand is that the IRA , contrary to what a former Minister for Defence said , is not about to walk down O'Connell Street with a thousand AK47 rifles .
The IRA is a small , closely-knit organisation made up of dedicated people - it has not got the resources , nor the might , nor the desire , to over-rule the will of the Irish people . What has kept the IRA going has been the tenacity , comradeship , individual heroism ; and the desire to see peace ....... "
(MORE LATER).
NORAID'S UNTOLD MILLIONS .......
Irish-Americans have long had complex and contradictory relations with Ireland and the 'Irish Question' . On Saint Patrick's Day , all the ambiguities are apparent .
This year (ie 1987) , on Saint Patrick's Day , the latest book by Irish writer , Jack Holland was published in New York , exploring the tangled web of links between Irish-Americans and the Irish in Ireland , the IRA and the Irish government .
' The American Connection ' describes the activities of leading Irish-American politicians , of romanticising writers and of gun-runners .
In this edited extract , the author tells how Noraid was set up and how it has resisted pressures to disclose all the sources and uses of its funds .
First published in 'MAGILL' magazine , April 1987 .
Re-published here in 31 parts .
(17 of 31).
In June 1972 , the U.S. Justice Department subpoenaed five New York members of NORAID to appear before a Grand Jury sitting in Fort Worth , Texas , to investigate alleged arms smuggling across the Mexican border : all the men were in their seventies , of working-class backgrounds , and had been active in NORAID - attending functions and rallies and picketing the British Consulate .
Human-rights lawyers , like Paul O'Dwyer , who took up their case , accused the U.S. Government of deliberately harassing Irish-American activists by forcing them to go some 1,400 miles to testify . There was an outcry not only within the Irish-American community but also among civil libertarians .
Eventually , bail was granted thanks to the intervention of Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas , whom Paul O'Dwyer had gone to see personally . After ten months , the five men were released ; no indictments were ever brought against them .......
(MORE LATER).
