INJUSTICE :
" While these pages were passing through the press, a circumstance has occurred which so clearly illustrates the position of the Irish priest, that I cannot avoid mentioning it. A gentleman has purchased some property, and his first act is to give his three tenants notice to quit. The unfortunate men have no resource but to obey the cruel mandate, and to turn out upon the world homeless and penniless. They cannot go to law, for the law would be against them. They are not in a position to appeal to public opinion, for they are only farmers. The parish priest is their only resource and their only friend. He appeals to the feelings of their new landlord in a most courteous letter, in which he represents the cruel sufferings these three families must endure. The landlord replies that he has bought the land as a "commercial speculation," and of course he has a right to do whatever he considers most for his advantage; but offers to allow the tenants to remain if they consent to pay double their former rent—a rent which would be double the real value of the land. Such cases are constantly occurring, and are constantly exposed by priests; and we have known more than one instance in which fear of such exposure has obtained justice. A few of them are mentioned from time to time in the Irish local papers. The majority of cases are entirely unknown, except to the persons concerned; but they are remembered by the poor sufferers and their friends. I believe, if the people of England were aware of one-half of these ejectments, and the sufferings they cause, they would rise up as a body and demand justice for Ireland and the Irish; they would marvel at the patience with which what to them would be so intolerable has been borne so long...."
(From here)


It was those that organised , supported and/or otherwise made possible such acts of barbarism that people like the late Dan Keating fought against : his fight has inspired others to follow in his footsteps . The crimes committed by the British on this isle will guarantee as many 'Dan Keatings' as it takes to resolve the issue of British interference in Irish affairs . And that issue can only be resolved by the British withdrawing politically and militarily from these shores . Even if it takes another 838 years...

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THEY ARE HELD IN BELFAST JAIL .......

From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, January 1958 .

HELD WITHOUT CHARGE OR TRIAL :

M. McBurney , 56 Durham Street , Belfast .
M. Murray , 14 Beechfield Street , Belfast .
T. McGrogan , 40 Commedogh Drive , Belfast .
L. McParland , 63 Ballymurphy Road , Belfast .
Art Rox , 23 Kilroad Street , Belfast .
Séan O' Cearnaigh , 26 Pound Street , Belfast .
J. Madill , 31 Oakman Street , Belfast .
John McNeill , Glendun , County Antrim .
J. Dullaghan , 4 Clyde Street , Belfast .
P. Doyle , 45 White Rock Crescent , Belfast (Interned after three months sentence) .
G. Robinson , 23 Vulcan Street , Belfast .
K. O' Kane , 45 Princes Park , Whiteabbey , Belfast .
W. Kennedy , 24 Balaclava Street , Whiteabbey , Belfast .
G. McCotter , 27 Upton Street , Belfast .
(MORE LATER).




ECONOMY IN CRISIS - An Historical Perspective.......

By any standards the economy of Ireland , North and South , can be described as being in a sorry mess with crisis , recession and imminent bankruptcy the most constant themes of economic discussion , intermittently over the last decade and ceaselessly in the last three years . In this article , Peter Graham surveys the factors which have produced this economy , and the historical role of foreign and native Irish capital.

From 'IRIS' magazine , November 1982.

In arriving at the two partitionist states it was more the independent power of Irish nationalism , rather than economic forces , which were at work . Although the early twentieth century had seen , under James Larkin and James Connolly, a major upsurge of trade union membership and working-class militancy in the 1913 lock-out, it was the middle-class (which had condemned the 1916 Rising) which speedily re-assessed the force of nationalism .

So that by 1918 middle-class influence had already infiltrated into a Sinn Fein which , within three years , would sell-out the Republic for the Treaty , whilst labour had to accept that it must wait and stand out of the political arena .

For the Irish capitalist class in the 26-Counties , the establishment of the Free State in 1922 achieved its aims . The victims on the republican side in the Civil War were overwhelmingly the small farmers , agricultural labourers and city workers , fighting on for a Republic which embraced the socialist principles of James Connolly, Padraig Pearse and Liam Mellows- not necessarily a politically-conscious struggle , but one which intuitively recognised that the Republic must mean the wealth of Ireland for the people of Ireland.......
(MORE LATER).



DIVIS FLATS : Building Towards A Demolition Campaign .......
Divis Flats , at the bottom of the Falls Road in West Belfast , have acquired a reputation for 'trouble' - of all kinds - and social deprivation ever since they were built in the 1960's . They have also endured some of the severest British repression meted out during the past 14 years , and replied with some of the fiercest resistance . Local resident and community activist Jim Faulkner examines the new resurgence of morale in the flats complex and the prospects it faces in its biggest battle yet - for total demolition .
From 'IRIS' magazine , November 1983 .

The Divis Residents Association was set up towards the end of the 1981 hunger-strike by Father Pat Buckley, a curate of St Peter's parish , and with the assistance of some local women organised a successful 'clean-up campaign' to repair the environmental devastation of that riotous summer .

The new Association restored relationships with the Housing Executive which had been curtailed by its more militant predecessor , the Divis Demolition Committee, and met the Tory housing minister at Stormont , David Mitchell, to discuss total demolition . Mitchell praised the Association for their efforts but made no firm commitment to any additional demolition over and above the two blocks - Whitehall and Farset - already scheduled to be knocked down because of their proximity to the new Westlink motorway .

In August 1982 Fr Pat Buckley's residents' association organised a festival in Divis Flats to restore community morale - and it too was a great success , with games and open-air concerts which woke everyone up and brought neighbours out to socialise in a way which had not been seen since the high-rise complex replaced the old terraced streets of the Pound Loney neighbourhood in the 1960's . But that 'success' was short-lived.......
(MORE LATER).

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DAN KEATING : January 2, 1902 - October 2, 2007.

UPDATE: Removal tonight (THURSDAY 4th OCTOBER) at seven thirty from Tralee Nursing Home to Kiltalla Church (four miles past Castlemaine).
Funeral mass tomorrow (FRIDAY 5th OCTOBER) at twelve noon.


DAN Keating was born in 1902 in the townland of Ballygamboon, Castlemaine, Co Kerry. In 1917, Dan went to work in Tralee at Jerry McSweeney's Grocery, Bar and Bakery. Jerry McSweeney's uncle, Richard Laide, was shot in the attack on Gortalea barracks which was the first barracks to be attacked in Ireland.
Dan joined the Fianna in Tralee in 1918 and about two years later he joined the Irish Republican Army. Others to join at that time were Gerry Moyles, Donnchadh Donoghue, Tommy Vale, John Riordan (Kerry All-Ireland footballer), Jerry O'Connor (better known as "Uncy"), Matt Moroney and Paddy and Billy Griffin.

In the meantime Dan met a soldier who used to frequent the bar where he worked and during conversations procured a rifle from him. This was then handed over to Johnny O'Connor of the Farmers' Bridge unit. Dan was later to join this unit which included men of the calibre of Johnny Duggan, Johnny O'Connor, Timmy Galvin, Moss Galvin, Jack Corkery, Jim Ryle, Mick Hogan and Jamesy Whiston. This unit was very active from 1920 to 1924 and many of its members took part in the Headford ambush which claimed the lives of approximately 20 British soldiers. Volunteers Danny Allman and Jimmy Baily also lost their lives at Headford.
Dan took part in the ambush at Castlemaine in which eight RIC and Black-and-Tans were killed. Gerry Moyles was severely injured in this encounter. The last ambush in Kerry took place in Castleisland on the night before the Truce and Dan also participated in this. Four RIC members were killed in this action and Volunteers Jack Shanahan, Jack Prenderville, John McMahon and John Flynn also lost their lives.


In 1922 Dan was transferred to a unit in Tralee which was commanded by Tommy Barton of Ballyroe when they occupied Ballymullen barracks for a period of three months. Dan took part in the attack on Listowel barracks, now occupied by the Free Staters, in which one Free Stater was shot dead.
In Limerick, Dan, along with comrades from Kerry, fought the Free State troops over a period of ten days. Republican Volunteers Patrick Foran, Charlie O'Hanlon and Tom McLoughlin lost their lives there, Dan was then sent to Tipperary to instruct Gerry Moyles to return to Kilmallock but on the way they were surrounded by Free Staters. After a battle at Two Mile Bridge Dan and his comrades were taken prisoner and held in Thurles barracks for two days before being conveyed to Portlaoise jail where he was held for six months. This was to be the first of many times Dan was interned by the Free State.
During this period in Portlaoise the jail was burned and Volunteer Paddy Hickey from Dublin was shot dead. Dan was then transferred to the Curragh Internment Camp and was held there until March 1923. A Free State soldier named Bergin from Nenagh, who became friendly with the Republican prisoners and acted as a courier to Republicans on the outside, was executed by the Staters.

Dan was charged with possession of a shotgun in 1930 and was issued a summons but did not attend court and was fined £1. In the true Republican tradition he refused to pay and was sent to Limerick and held for one week. During a court case in Tralee involving Johnny O'Connor and Mick Kennedy, in which they refused to recognise the court, their supporters in the courthouse cheered loudly and when things died down the judge ordered Dan Keating to be brought up before him and gave him three months for contempt. Dan was jailed in Cork with Johnny O'Connor but after a hunger strike by Johnny both were released after three weeks.

The next time Dan was interned was after O'Duffy's visit to Tralee; he was sentenced to six months in Arbour Hill. Dan was later captured in Carrigans in Clonmel by a policeman who had previously arrested him in Tralee and was taken first to Thurles and from there to the Curragh where he was held for three years and six months. In this period the camp was the camp was burned and Barney Casey from Longford was shot dead.
Dan was also on active service in England during the early 1940s.

Dan returned to work in Dublin and operated as a barman in the Eagle House, James Street, the Cornet and the Kilmardenny public houses.
Dan's other great interest was Gaelic games, and indeed between football and hurling he has attended more than 140 All-Ireland senior finals including replays, which must be a record in itself. When Dan retired he returned to Kerry in 1978 and resided at Ballygamboon, Castlemaine.

In 2004 Dan Keating replaced George Harrison of Mayo and New York as the fourth Patron of Sinn Féin Poblachtach since 1986, following in the footsteps of such illustrious Republicans ad Comdt-General Tom Maguire and Michael Flannery of Tipperary and New York.

During his long, healthy and adventurous lifetime Dan has seen many splits and deviations from Republican principles, but he remained loyal and true to the end.

Dan Keating died in Tralee on October 2, 2007, after a short illness.
I measc Laochra na nGael go raibh sé .
(From here )
The authors of this blog have met Dan on many an occasion at various republican functions over the years : we have had the honour and the pleasure to sit-in on and partake in some of the many conversations with the man. His wit and historical wisdom and knowledge will be sorely missed , but his comrades will ensure that those attributes are passed-on as best we can to future generations.
Slán go fóill , A Chara.

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THEY ARE HELD IN BELFAST JAIL .......

From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, January 1958 .

HELD WITHOUT CHARGE OR TRIAL :

D. Morgan , 65 Cullingtree Road , Belfast , County Antrim .
J. Jameson , 2 Cullingtree Road , Belfast .
B. McLoughlin , 28 Irwin Street , Belfast .
Joe Donnelly , 16 Osman Street , Belfast .
P.L. Martin , 27 Rochville Street , Belfast .
R. McKnight , 32 McAuley Street , Belfast .
A. Murray , 13 Saint James' Gardens , Belfast .
I. Bell , 15 Upton Cottages , Belfast .
D. Toner , 8 Emily Place , Belfast .
E. O' Neill , 16 Seaforte Street , Belfast .
J. Cahill , 60 Divis Street , Belfast .
F. Cahill , 60 Divis Street , Belfast .
Sammy O' Hanlon , 1 Annalle Street , Belfast .
A. McMillen , 17 Venice Street , Belfast .
D. McAlinden , 37 Kenard Avenue , Belfast .
B. O' Reilly , 34 Linden Street , Belfast .
J. McGuirk , 37 Institution Place , Belfast .
L. McGuirk , 37 Institution Place , Belfast .
C. P. Martin , 36 Commedagh Drive , Belfast .
T. Heenan , 17 Violet Street , Belfast .
W. McKee , 89 McDonnell Street , Belfast .
F. Card , 6 Kane Street , Belfast .
(MORE LATER).



ECONOMY IN CRISIS - An Historical Perspective.......

By any standards the economy of Ireland , North and South , can be described as being in a sorry mess with crisis , recession and imminent bankruptcy the most constant themes of economic discussion , intermittently over the last decade and ceaselessly in the last three years . In this article , Peter Graham surveys the factors which have produced this economy , and the historical role of foreign and native Irish capital.

From 'IRIS' magazine , November 1982.

At the same time , the extension of the welfare state from Britain into the North of Ireland held the lid on its enormous social deprivation , and further distanced comparisons between it and the 26 Counties for at least three decades .

Still , the Six Counties' position as the 'outermost region' of the so-called 'United Kingdom' economy left it increasingly weaker in relation to 'other' regions , with unemployment rates always substantially up on Britain's and economic growth lagging far behind , its ailments largely ignored by a preoccupied Westminster .

The explosion of civil unrest in the late 1960's , developing into a renewed war of national liberation ('1169...' Comment - ...which is what it is to some of us, whilst others [including the SDLP and this shower] seek only better treatment from the British crown) , has since scared off much investment capital from the North , such as it was , and has left British public spending as the temporary 'growth industry' . Even this though has been increasingly cut back in the three years of Margaret Thatcher's monetarism.......
(MORE LATER).



DIVIS FLATS : Building Towards A Demolition Campaign .......
Divis Flats , at the bottom of the Falls Road in West Belfast , have acquired a reputation for 'trouble' - of all kinds - and social deprivation ever since they were built in the 1960's . They have also endured some of the severest British repression meted out during the past 14 years , and replied with some of the fiercest resistance . Local resident and community activist Jim Faulkner examines the new resurgence of morale in the flats complex and the prospects it faces in its biggest battle yet - for total demolition .
From 'IRIS' magazine , November 1983 .

A similar preoccupation with their 'image' had prompted the Housing Executive to replace a broken pane of glass in the front door of the Valliday family's flat (which the family had been asking for all year) immediately after young Kevin Valliday was killed in an INLA bombing tragedy in September 1982- knowing that TV cameras would soon be around .

Divis Flats' agonising housing and environmental conditions have forced sixty-four per cent of householders surveyed to apply for a transfer out of the flats . About fifty per cent want to be rehoused within the Divis area , twenty per cent would be prepared to move to other estates in Nationalist West Belfast and the remaining thirty per cent would be prepared to move outside the Divis area but would want to remain within the lower Falls area .

If these statistics accurately reflect the preferences of Divis residents , they are an important guide to the future planning strategies of the Divis Residents' Association, which has the task of taking action on behalf of local people to secure the demolition of the flats.......
(MORE LATER).

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DAN KEATING , IRISH REPUBLICAN : January 2nd 1902 - October 2nd 2007 .


" Anybody can make history . Only a great man can write it."
(Oscar Wilde)

Dan Keating made history , and helped write and record it. A principled Irish Republican from his teenage years to his last breath , Dan never gave up on the Cause and was a beacon of strength to all he came into contact with . Over his many years of involvement in this Struggle , he could have taken the easy way out many times but his commitment to righting a wrong would never allow for that . His passing will leave a huge gap in the hearts of his many friends and comrades.

Go raibh suaimhneas síoraí dá anam uasail .

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CROMWELL,WEXFORD - 2nd OCTOBER 1649 :


'Cromwell arrived at Wexford on the 2nd of October 1649 with about 6000 men, 8 heavy siege guns and 2 mortars. On the 6th of October, Cromwell concentrated his force on the heights overlooking the southern end of the town.....the destruction of Wexford was so severe that it could not be used either as a port or as winter quarters for the Parliamentarian forces. One Parliamentarian source therefore described the sack as "incommodius to ourselves". Cromwell reported that the remaining civilians had "run off" and asked for soldiers to be sent from England to re-populate the town and re-open its port.....'
(From here)

The Curse Of Cromwell by William Butler Yeats.

'You ask what - I have found, and far and wide I go:
Nothing but Cromwell's house and Cromwell's murderous crew,
The lovers and the dancers are beaten into the clay,
And the tall men and the swordsmen and the horsemen, where are they?
And there is an old beggar wandering in his pride - -
His fathers served their fathers before Christ was crucified.
O what of that, O what of that,
What is there left to say?

All neighbourly content and easy talk are gone,
But there's no good complaining, for money's rant is on.
He that's mounting up must on his neighbour mount,
And we and all the Muses are things of no account.
They have schooling of their own, but I pass their schooling by,
What can they know that we know that know the time to die?
O what of that, O what of that,
What is there left to say?

But there's another knowledge that my heart destroys,
As the fox in the old fable destroyed the Spartan boy's
Because it proves that things both can and cannot be;
That the swordsmen and the ladies can still keep company,
Can pay the poet for a verse and hear the fiddle sound,
That I am still their servant though all are underground.
O what of that, O what of that,
What is there left to say?

I came on a great house in the middle of the night,
Its open lighted doorway and its windows all alight,
And all my friends were there and made me welcome too;
But I woke in an old ruin that the winds howled through;
And when I pay attention I must out and walk
Among the dogs and horses that understand my talk.
O what of that, O what of that,
What is there left to say? '

Cromwell's dead and gone , but the bastard seeds he and his like have planted live on , in our native gombeen men and women and in the actions and deeds of their foreign counterparts...

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BELFAST JAIL/ ECONOMY IN CRISIS/ DIVIS FLATS .

THEY ARE HELD IN BELFAST JAIL .......

From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, January 1958 .

HELD WITHOUT CHARGE OR TRIAL :

Matt Loy , 66 Linenhall Square , Newry , County Down (interned after five months sentence) .
Dominic Loy , 66 Linenhall Square , Newry .
R.J. Fitzpatrick , Newry (interned after five months sentence) .
J.F. Moore , Newry (interned after five months sentence) .
Gerry Mulligan , 8 O' Neill Avenue , Newry .
James Morgan , 34 Lower Water Street , Newry .
Jack Moore , Dromalane , Newry .
James Savage , John Martin's Garden , Newry .
Pat Murtagh , Jerret's Pass , Newry .
Liam O' Neill , 60 Norfolk Street , Belfast , County Antrim .
Sean McKearney , 209 Mount Pottinger Road , Belfast .
Adam McIllhatton , 34 Forest Street , Belfast .
Paul Carlton , Ashton Street , Belfast .
Liam McMillan , 40 Ton Street , Belfast .
B. Boswell , 5 New Andrew Street , Belfast .
William Kelly , 12 Adela Street , Belfast .
(MORE LATER).



ECONOMY IN CRISIS - An Historical Perspective.......

By any standards the economy of Ireland , North and South , can be described as being in a sorry mess with crisis , recession and imminent bankruptcy the most constant themes of economic discussion , intermittently over the last decade and ceaselessly in the last three years . In this article , Peter Graham surveys the factors which have produced this economy , and the historical role of foreign and native Irish capital.

From 'IRIS' magazine , November 1982.

As an alternative to investment in home industries , the far easier attractions of the lucrative London stock market drew capital out of Ireland , and the acquired wealth of the prosperous native followed the rack-rented spoils of the absentee landlord .

As the banks grew up and spread like wildfire throughout the towns of Ireland in the nineteenth century , picking up the small deposits of the lowly , they too concentrated not on investing in Irish industrial development but rather in Britain ; this country was starved of its necessary capital and so we became , and have remained to the present day , an economic peculiarity in normal colonial and neo-colonial relationships , in exporting capital to the dominant country rather than being the recipient of capital for exploitative development .

Whatever capital was attracted to Ireland from Britain was generally concentrated in the north-east , which , up until recently , looked more stable and attractive for investment than other areas of the country . From 1922 then , the Six Counties continued and maintained its industrialisation , controlling by sectarian divisions the class conflict that might otherwise have arisen , particularly during the depression of the 1930's. During the Second World War, the British link gave the North's industries , particularly ship-building , an enormous boost which continued prosperity for its owners into the post-war 1950's.......
(MORE LATER).



DIVIS FLATS : Building Towards A Demolition Campaign .......
Divis Flats , at the bottom of the Falls Road in West Belfast , have acquired a reputation for 'trouble' - of all kinds - and social deprivation ever since they were built in the 1960's . They have also endured some of the severest British repression meted out during the past 14 years , and replied with some of the fiercest resistance . Local resident and community activist Jim Faulkner examines the new resurgence of morale in the flats complex and the prospects it faces in its biggest battle yet - for total demolition .
From 'IRIS' magazine , November 1983 .

In November 1982 , a woman and her 2-year-old son were trapped in a lift in Divis Flats for one-and-a-half hours ; the child became hysterical and his mother had to climb through the roof of the lift to summon help - for days after the incident the child suffered from convulsions , vomiting and nightmares .

Twenty-eight per cent of households have a family member who has been injured , including broken limbs , as a result of accidents on broken staircases or holes in the pavements and balcony walkways . In one tragedy in February this year (1983) , 4-year-old Jimmy McGivern from Cullingtree Walk in the Divis complex was drowned after falling into an open sewer near his home , while playing at the site of the multi-million-pound Westlink motorway then under construction .

Farrans, the British construction company building the motorway , were fined only a few hundred pounds for criminal neglect in leaving the sewer uncovered . On the morning of young Jimmy's funeral , the Housing Executive despatched their cleaning staff to the balcony where he had lived - knowing that television cameras would be there - and the balcony area was made spotless . But the balcony directly above - Cullingtree Row - had not been swept for three days and stayed littetred with rubbish . Another death led to a pane of glass being replaced.......
(MORE LATER).

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