LAW IN DISORDER.......


The state trumpets every drugs seizure as a major victory over the barons. But the war against drugs is really a murky world characterised by botched operations , questionable use of informers and ego-driven squabbles between the Garda Siochana and customs officials.
Mairead Carey gets the inside story.
From 'MAGILL' magazine , August 2002.

The vast majority of customs officers who spoke to 'Magill Magazine' believe that a joint agency similar to the US 'Drug Enforcement Administration' (DEA) is the only answer to their current problems. They point to the success of the 'Criminal Assets Bureau' (CAB) as an example of how Customs and the Garda Siochana can work well together.

Labour Party justice spokesperson , Pat Rabbitte , also believes it is time that the Minister considered a single agency to tackle drugs - " There is no room for turf wars in the fight against the drug barons. The new Minister should look at the merits of streamlining , in a single agency, those in the frontline against drug dealing."

As for Jack Doyle's allegations , he says - " There seems to be a prima facie case that requires an investigation. If there is any truth in these allegations , there is a need to review whether legislative changes are necessary to govern these type of operations."

[END OF 'LAW IN DISORDER'.]
(Next : ' The Murder Of John Corcoran : The Cover-Up Continues' - from 'Magill Magazine' , 1998.)











THE PETER BERRY PAPERS....... The Top Secret Memoirs of Ireland's Most Powerful Civil Servant : Dirty Tricks, Election '69/ Spying on a Unionist Politician/ Keeping the (State) Taoiseach informed/ The Garda Fallon Murder/ Advice to Jack Lynch- 'Fire the pair of them...'/ Vivion De Valera's advice to O'Malley/ Rumours of a Coup D'Etat/ The Internment Plot, November 1970/ Secret Meeting with William Craig.
From 'MAGILL' magazine , June 1980.

" In speaking to Mr de Valera I was certain that I was adopting the right course : I had had many kindnesses from him and I knew that he would not resent my approach. When I was put in contact with him by his personal secretary , Miss O' Kelly, I said - "I have come into knowledge of matters of national concern and I am afraid that if I follow the normal course the information might not reach Government. Does my duty end with informing my Minister or am I responsible to Government by whom I was appointed ? ".

The President asked me to repeat what I had said and I did so : he said 'Are you sure of your facts' , and I said yes. The President asked 'Are you absolutely sure of your facts' and I replied that I was absolutely sure. "Then" , said the President , "You have a clear duty to Government , you should speak to the Taoiseach" . I thanked him.

I did not tell the President the nature of my information and he did not ask. After the dismissal of the Ministers on May 6th I had a phone call from Miss O' Kelly who asked me to repeat my conversation with the President. I did so in the terms above , of which I made a note. Miss O' Kelly thanked me and said that I had confirmed the President's recollection that the subject matter had never been mentioned by me...."
(MORE LATER).





RAFFLE RESULTS......



....from the monthly raffle held on Sunday 13th November 2011 :

First prize of €200 was won by Robin , Blanchardstown , with ticket No. 524 , Second prize went to C. Kennedy , ticket No. 345 , Third prize went to Eóin , from Tallaght , with ticket No. 322 and the 'Half-Way' prize - Fourth - was won by Maggo , with ticket No. 159.
Fifth prize went to the holder of ticket No. 589 , Colm , from Raheny , Sixth prize was won by Paul G. with ticket No. 003 , the second-last prize - Seventh - went to Jack P. , ticket No. 327 and the last prize - Eight - went to Greg K. , the holder of ticket No. 029.
Well done to all the winners - and especially to those who opened their prize envelopes and bought us all a round !



THREE IRISH REPUBLICAN COMMEMORATIONS TO BE HELD ON SUNDAY 20th NOVEMBER 2011 :



"Rev. Michael Griffin C.C., (Gurteen Galway.), A supporter of the Irish language and volunteer causes, was taken from his residence at 2 Mountpelier Tce. Galway on the night of 14 -15 November 1920 to the HQ of the Crown forces in Taylor’s Hill. His body was found on Sunday 20th. November having been buried in a boggy field at Cloghscoltia near Barna. A military inquiry held at Eglinton Police Station found that he died as a result of a gunshot wound to his head, fired feloniously, wilfully and with malice by some person or persons unknown......"
(From here.)

The Father Griffin Commemoration will be held on Sunday next at 12 Noon in Bearna , County Galway - details here whilst two other brave Irishmen - Kevin Barry and Frank Driver - will also be remembered by Irish Republicans on that same Sunday , in Kildare and Carlow.
Details here.

"Yes , I am a dreamer. For a dreamer is one who can only find his way by moonlight , and his punishment is that he sees the dawn before the rest of the world."

An 'Oscar Wilde' tribute , from this blog to those three brave men who , having seen the (political) "dawn" , joined like-minded men and women in an organisation which is campaigning to hasten its coming.....
Thanks for reading,
Sharon.

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RSF 107th ARD FHEIS : BRIEF EARLY REPORT AND PICS....



Although we couldn't stay as long as we wanted to at the RSF Ard Fheis , which began today in a Dublin hotel , during the four hours that we were 'on site' (8AM to 12 Noon) we witnessed seven 'Special Branch' cars parked(/abandoned) around the hotel entrance and counted more than one dozen armed representatives of this corrupt State at the hotel door , quizzing every person that went in to or came out from the premises : the 'indirect' message in doing so , of course , is to convince the hotel owner , management , staff and customers that 'having Irish Republicans about the place is bad for business'. It didn't work , as we were made feel most welcome by all concerned except the armed State thugs , who prowled the vicinity looking for 'fresh meat' to contaminate.
However : during out short stay , we were introduced to representatives from Na Fianna Éireann , Cumann na mBan , CABHAIR and a spokesperson representing POW's in Portlaoise and Maghaberry prisons , all of whom were present to read messages of support for Republican Sinn Féin.
The following pictures were taken during the 'build-up' stage ie between 8AM and 9.30AM and , as such , are not representative of the Ard Fheis proper , but we couldn't wait around for the hall to fill up as we had to leave to start organising for the monthly raffle , which is being held tomorrow (Sunday 13th November) in a hotel on the Dublin/Kildare border - we're 'living' in hotels this weekend......;-) !



Speakers lectern 'backdropped' by Flag display.




9AM , in the Main Hall.



9.15AM - getting there....!



9.30AM - and the crowd filters in....



The 2012 RSF Calendar , on sale now for €5.


If we get more pics we will post them here in the next day or two , if we have no more raffles to attend to , that is..... !
Thanks ,
Sharon.

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LAW IN DISORDER.......


The state trumpets every drugs seizure as a major victory over the barons. But the war against drugs is really a murky world characterised by botched operations , questionable use of informers and ego-driven squabbles between the Garda Siochana and customs officials.
Mairead Carey gets the inside story.
From 'MAGILL' magazine , August 2002.

Customs have primary responsibility for the detection of drugs being imported into the State , and the Garda are responsible for drug enforcement internally but , in recent years, the Garda have also developed a 'Garda Coast Watch'.

A Customs officer sums it up like this - " We're now fishing from the same pool. Who do you report to now ? The result is that Joe Bloggs public says 'Fuck the both of you , I won't report it at all'. I'm not saying that our side is all white either , but sharing goes both ways and it's one way only when it comes to the gardai. Information is being sent in but there's nothing coming out...."

1996 also saw the introduction of the 'Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking) Act' which made provision, for the first time, for the attendance of officers of Customs and Excise at , and the participation of such officers in , the questioning of persons detained on drug-trafficking offences. The measure was dependent on the Minister for Justice making regulations for its introduction , however , and the measure has never been brought in. Customs believe it has been blocked.......
(MORE LATER).








THE PETER BERRY PAPERS....... The Top Secret Memoirs of Ireland's Most Powerful Civil Servant : Dirty Tricks, Election '69/ Spying on a Unionist Politician/ Keeping the (State) Taoiseach informed/ The Garda Fallon Murder/ Advice to Jack Lynch- 'Fire the pair of them...'/ Vivion De Valera's advice to O'Malley/ Rumours of a Coup D'Etat/ The Internment Plot, November 1970/ Secret Meeting with William Craig.
From 'MAGILL' magazine , June 1980.

" Briefly , Chief Supt Malone told me that Mr Tony Fagan had telephoned his office a short while before and asked that Chief Supt Fleming should phone him or Mr Haughey at given numbers. I instructed Mr Malone that there should be no telephone contacts between the police and the others , and I told him that Mr Haughey had just phoned me about the cargo. It was as a result of that call that I came to realise the enormity of the attempts that were being made to suborn the security forces.

From my conversation with Mr Haughey it was obvious that my Minister did not have knowledge of the attempted importation from him and that , accordingly, it was not likely to be a Government sponsored effort. I had some lingering doubt that all this could not have gone on for several months without the knowledge of the Taoiseach unless he was wilfully turning the blind eye. But it now seemed evident that, at most , a caucus was involved and that Government qua Government were not behind the arms conspiracy.

In my dilemma I decided to ask the President , Mr de Valera , for advice : analysing my motives afterwards , in speaking to him , I could only suppose that sub-consciously I retained lingering doubts about the Taoiseach and that by consulting the President , and telling the Taoiseach that I had consulted the President , I would be pushing the Taoiseach towards an enforcement of the rule of law. I had not forgotten that the Taoiseach had taken no effective steps to curb the activities of Captain Kelly of Military Intelligence about whom I had given him very definite information on 17th October 1969 in Mount Carmel Hospital......."
(MORE LATER).






GIVE ME AMBIVALENCE.....



.....OR GIVE ME SOMETHING ELSE !

"There is no country in the world so much in need of unpractical people as this country of ours. With us, Thought is degraded by its constant association with practice. Who that moves in the stress and turmoil of actual existence, noisy politician, or brawling social reformer, or poor narrow-minded priest blinded by the sufferings of that unimportant section of the community among whom he has cast his lot, can seriously claim to be able to form a disinterested intellectual judgment about any one thing? Each of the professions means a prejudice. The necessity for a career forces every one to take sides. We live in the age of the overworked, and the under- educated; the age in which people are so industrious that they become absolutely stupid....."
- Oscar Wilde.


Ambivalence
towards the Gravy Train is what happens when you piggy-back on that gravy train but , as with all the political 'elite' in Leinster House - from Fine Gael to Provisional Sinn Féin , and all 'shades' in between - ambivalence of turns into protection of that gravy train , the further you get into it and the longer you stay on it :





Letty Cottin Pogrebin had this to say about ambivalence in her own country - "America is a nation fundamentally ambivalent about its children, often afraid of its children, and frequently punitive toward its children."

Those in Leinster House who are now supposedly 'in charge' of this corrupt State and those who have 'parked' themselves in that lap of luxury in the past have repeatedly shown nothing but contempt for the 'children' and , to their shame - for the most part - those 'children' have accepted that treatment and, indeed , have come to accept such treatment as 'normal'.
The exception to our "most part" comment is an organisation which , this coming weekend , will hold its 107TH Ard Fheis in a Dublin Hotel and which will be harassed over those two days by armed representatives of this State ; those attending the Ard Fheis , and the State harassment of the event , will be ignored by the 'Establishment' media in this State or will be dismissed as 'dangerous elements' or some such slur and , once again , the 'children' will believe that such treatment is 'normal' .
Only in this - an abnormal society - could such a thing happen.
Thanks for reading,
Sharon.

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LAW IN DISORDER.......


The state trumpets every drugs seizure as a major victory over the barons. But the war against drugs is really a murky world characterised by botched operations , questionable use of informers and ego-driven squabbles between the Garda Siochana and customs officials.
Mairead Carey gets the inside story.
From 'MAGILL' magazine , August 2002.

A seizure of €1.4 million worth of cigarettes from a lorry stopped outside Clara , County Offaly , three weeks ago, has also annoyed Customs : cigarette-smuggling is the preserve of the Revenue Commissioners , they say - according to customs officers , no intelligence information was passed on to Customs prior to the haul by the 'National Drugs Unit'.

Since the find, the cigarettes have been stored at a Garda Barracks in Tullamore , County Offaly, when Customs say they should have been immediately handed over to them : " There are lines in the sand and when they are crossed it inevitably creates tension. We are living in an era of glory-hunting but we should be working together , but egos and private agendas are preventing this , " says one customs officer , " Customs are supposedly the frontline defence in terms of drug enforcement, but we are constantly undermined by the gardai."

Another customs officer says he has come across one case already this year where a drug runner who was hauled in by Customs was found in possession of a phone number of a member of the 'National Drug Unit' - " When you ask the gardai they deny that they are the handlers. What can you do ? It's the whole Declan Griffin thing all over again, " he says.......
(MORE LATER).






THE PETER BERRY PAPERS....... The Top Secret Memoirs of Ireland's Most Powerful Civil Servant : Dirty Tricks, Election '69/ Spying on a Unionist Politician/ Keeping the (State) Taoiseach informed/ The Garda Fallon Murder/ Advice to Jack Lynch- 'Fire the pair of them...'/ Vivion De Valera's advice to O'Malley/ Rumours of a Coup D'Etat/ The Internment Plot, November 1970/ Secret Meeting with William Craig.
From 'MAGILL' magazine , June 1980.

" When I picked up the phone I recognised Mr Haughey's voice with which I was familiar. He said - "You know about the cargo that is coming into Dublin Airport on Sunday?" , to which I replied 'Yes. Minister'. "Can it be let through on a guarantee that it will go direct to the North?" I answered 'No' , to which Mr Haughey replied - "I think that is a bad decision." I made no comment , and he asked "Does the man from Mayo know?" to which I stated 'Yes' He asked "What will happen to it when it arrives?" and I replied 'It will be grabbed'.

"I had better have it called off " , he commented. I made cryptic notes there and then in my personal diary , and also made notes of a phone call immediately afterwards from Chief Superintendent Malone of C3 , Garda HQ. In the Department of Justice on Monday 20th April , I made expanded entries of these notes in a Departmental file and those notes were seen on that day by some of my senior colleagues.

Immediately after my conversation with Mr Haughey I had a call with Chief Superintendent Malone......."
(MORE LATER).







ALL LEGITIMATE CONSENT REQUIRES THE ABILITY TO WITHHOLD CONSENT.......



The smarter option -'None Of The Above!'


Those with an open mind in relation to casting a ballot may be interested in the following 'NOTA'-type positions that exist in other jurisdictions :
"None of the Above (NOTA) or against all is a ballot choice in some jurisdictions or organizations, placed so as to allow the voter to indicate his disapproval with all of the candidates in any voting system. It is based on the principle that all legitimate consent requires the ability to withhold consent, allowing voters to withhold their consent in an election to office, just as they can by voting no on ballot questions...."
(From here.)
I particularly like the term - '....all legitimate consent requires the ability to withhold consent..' ; unfortunately , the 'powers-that-be' in this corrupt State have long-since turned their back on 'legitimate consent'.

"The Election Commission (EC) of Bangladesh disclosed a draft proposal few weeks back for introducing a system for casting ‘No Vote’ in parliamentary elections to express voters' lack of confidence in the contesting candidates in a constituency....."
(From here.)
"...to express voters' lack of confidence in the contesting candidates in a constituency.." - a good point : was 'one man,one vote' (sic) secured to demand that a voter should vote for a candidate that that voter had no faith in ? I don't think so , although those 'in power' do , or so it seems.....




RSF 107th ARD FHEIS 2011 ....


"All in favour...." - a scene from the 2010 RSF Ard Fheis.

The Republican Movement will hold its 107th Ard Fheis on Saturday 12th and Sunday 13th November 2011 - at which 166 resolutions , from Ireland and abroad, will be debated - in a Dublin venue : whilst those behind this blog offer our congrats and 'Best Wishes' to Republican Sinn Féin , we won't be there : there is another 'RSF VIP' event being held elsewhere in Dublin on that same weekend (bad timing or wha'!) and we have been requested to give a hand with same - 'more later' , as they (we!) say.... !
Thanks for reading,
Sharon.

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'NONE OF THE ABOVE' VOTE , 27th OCTOBER 2011 , STATE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION......



.....the above sample was registered today (Thursday 27th October 2011) at a polling station in Clondalkin , Dublin.

It has been suggested that those that 'spoil' their vote on purpose "will effect no change..." and/or "are wasting a hard-fought for opportunity.." - however , in the opinion of those of us that work on this blog , those that vote 'NOTA' are to be congratulated for freeing themselves from the 'pack mentality'.

In the case of this particular State presidential election , replacing one rich career politician with a 'different' one from the same 'Establishment' pool 'will effect no change' as far as the employed and the unemployed are concerned and, as for it being a 'hard fought for' privilege , it is a 'privilege' that, as an Irish Republican, I neither asked nor wanted anyone to secure for me - a vote in the running of a corrupt State.
Congrats again to those who , in the 'buzz' words of this failed political entity , 'stepped outside the box' and decided to give the political Establishment a 'haircut , going forward...' , in relation to electing a 'new' political elite.
There is hope for us yet....!
Thanks,
Sharon.

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LAW IN DISORDER.......


The state trumpets every drugs seizure as a major victory over the barons. But the war against drugs is really a murky world characterised by botched operations , questionable use of informers and ego-driven squabbles between the Garda Siochana and customs officials.
Mairead Carey gets the inside story.
From 'MAGILL' magazine , August 2002.

Two months after Urlingford , a memorandum of understanding between Customs and the Garda was signed in a bid to ease tensions between the two organisations. Leinster House was told that the document "would ensure that there would be a co-ordinated approach to the fight against drugs and the criminals who are engaged in this evil trade."

But the memorandum failed to lead to any real improvement in co-operation between the two agencies and, in October 2000, an operational protocol on drug law enforcement was signed by the Garda , Customs and the Naval Service to sort out the day-to-day issues which were still causing problems.

Customs officers throughout the State claim that the protocol is being ignored by the Garda ; a number of customs officers contacted by this magazine pointed to two recent seizures as evidence of the lack of co-operation between the two agencies. Gardai seized cannabis resin with a street value of €2.5 million frm a lorry in County Meath on June 17th . The lorry was stopped at Newtown Commons , outside Ashbourne, and 200 kilos of cannabis resin were found concealed inside a consignment of wine - customs officers say it was a controlled delivery in that the Garda had intelligence that the drugs were being brought in and kept them under surveillance until they reached Ashbourne . One man was arrested in connection with the seizure.

But Customs are supposed to be kept abreast of controlled deliveries , and they asked why the drugs were seized an hour from Dublin Port and why gardai failed to share information with their colleagues on the frontline.......
(MORE LATER).






THE PETER BERRY PAPERS....... The Top Secret Memoirs of Ireland's Most Powerful Civil Servant : Dirty Tricks, Election '69/ Spying on a Unionist Politician/ Keeping the (State) Taoiseach informed/ The Garda Fallon Murder/ Advice to Jack Lynch- 'Fire the pair of them...'/ Vivion De Valera's advice to O'Malley/ Rumours of a Coup D'Etat/ The Internment Plot, November 1970/ Secret Meeting with William Craig.
From 'MAGILL' magazine , June 1980.

" When I was under cross-examination by Mr Maguire , Counsel for Mr Haughey, he tried to attribute matters discussed between myself and Mr O Morain to a conversation between myself and Mr Haughey on Saturday 18th April. In fact , when Mr O Morain phoned me on Saturday I had immediately suggested to him that he should switch to the 'scrambler line' , so that we could talk freely.

Mr Maguire suggested that I had asked Mr Haughey if he had a scrambler which was an absurdity as I was aware of the persons who had 'scramblers' and that Mr Haughey was not one of them. The try-on must have been evident to State Counsel if they had read the documentation which I had supplied well in advance but they made no effort to re-examine me or to cross-examine Mr O Morain on many of his mis-statements some of which were repeated at the second trial.

At 6.30pm the phone rang in my bedroom. I was about to have a sauna and didn't have a stitch of clothes on. I let it ring for a few moments in the hope that it would be answered on my breakfast room or sitting room phone by my wife or daughter : Mr Haughey was to say in evidence that a child answered the phone , but there was no child in the house. While Mr Haughey was speaking the pips for the 6.30pm news from RTE sounded on a transistor radio on my bedside table and he mentioned those pips in his evidence at the arms trial......."
(MORE LATER).





"BANKERS AND SPECULATORS HAVE BOUGHT YOUR PARTY....


.....AND IN RETURN YOU HAVE SACRIFICED THE GREATER GOOD AND PROSPERITY OF THE IRISH NATION (sic) FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE FEW.
TRULY , A GOVERNMENT OF NATIONAL (sic) SABOTAGE."
- a statement directed at Fianna Fáil by the then State Garda Representative Association president Michael O' Boyce , last year.

Those words could have been and, indeed , should have been , directed at ALL of those in Leinster House , and not just at Fianna Fáil ; that institution in Kildare Street in Dublin City Centre and those who endorse it have brought only shame on that section of the Irish people that it claims to 'govern' on behalf of.
The members and supporters of that institution have now directed that seven of its own sort be placed before the electorate in this State for election to what they deem to be 'the highest Office in the land' - the State Presidency. We have written before about this waste-of-space position which is due to be voted on tomorrow (Thursday 27th October 2011) and would , even at this late stage , refer our readers to the statement issued by the Republican Movement in relation to this issue and again ask our readers , our colleagues and our comrades to 'VOTE NOTA' tomorrow. You will have a choice in the polling booth to favour one rich career politician (or wannabe) over another , or telling them all that you have had enough of keeping them in a style that they don't deserve : use your vote as a protest - VOTE N.O.T.A. !
Thanks,
Sharon.

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LAW IN DISORDER.......


The state trumpets every drugs seizure as a major victory over the barons. But the war against drugs is really a murky world characterised by botched operations , questionable use of informers and ego-driven squabbles between the Garda Siochana and customs officials.
Mairead Carey gets the inside story.
From 'MAGILL' magazine , August 2002.

In Ireland , the issue of entrapment has rarely appeared before the courts , although some commentators believe that the courts would be favourably disposed to such a defence.

In a 1981 case , King v Attorney General , Mr Justice Henchy , speaking of the Constitutional guarantee that personal liberty would not be removed other than in due course of law , stated that "due course of law" meant "without stooping to methods which ignore the fundamental norms of the legal order postulated by the Constitution."

A barrister stated - " There is no provision in law that gives the Garda an exemption for being in possession of illicit drugs. If the Garda seize drugs for the purpose of using them as evidence in a criminal trial , that's fine. But if they go beyond that and use them to set up some other operation , for example, that would not be covered......."
(MORE LATER).






THE PETER BERRY PAPERS....... The Top Secret Memoirs of Ireland's Most Powerful Civil Servant : Dirty Tricks, Election '69/ Spying on a Unionist Politician/ Keeping the (State) Taoiseach informed/ The Garda Fallon Murder/ Advice to Jack Lynch- 'Fire the pair of them...'/ Vivion De Valera's advice to O'Malley/ Rumours of a Coup D'Etat/ The Internment Plot, November 1970/ Secret Meeting with William Craig.
From 'MAGILL' magazine , June 1980.

" During his evidence in the Arms Trial on 28th September 1970 , Mr O Morain said that he was in the West of Ireland on Saturday , that he had been informed by Mr Berry on the previous Thursday or Friday of information about the importation of arms and that it was after the weekend that he had heard from me "of the ring of steel" around Dublin Airport.

Mr O Morain made quite a number of false statement which could be totally disproved ; the next day , 29th September 1970, I had the very detailed newspaper reports divided in columns which were pasted to blank sheets of paper on which I made comments at the appropriate points in which I indicated for State Counsel the errors of fact.

I attached a photostat copy of the log-book of the Minister's car and a copy of the police driver's subsistence claim , each of which showed that the Garda car had clocked out of the Garda Depot at 9.30AM on Sunday 19th April . This documentation was in the hands of State Counsel before the second Trial began but no use whatsoever was made of it......."
(MORE LATER).





IN THE 12TH IN THE '11 , THE 35TH WILL BE HELD ON THE 25TH.....!

CABHAIR Christmas Day Swim , December 25th 2010.

The above picture was taken at the 2010 CABHAIR Christmas Swim on December 25th 2010 , at Inchicore , Dublin. That event marked the 34th successive year of the Christmas Swim and, as you can see from the link , it was held in sub-zero temperatures in an area that offers no shelter, natural or otherwise, from the elements.

A brief history of the CABHAIR Swim can re read here , and contact details for the CABHAIR organisation can be viewed here : this blog will be highlighting this event again , between now and the date involved , and we remind our readers that all funds raised for the Swim go directly to the families of the POW's which CABHAIR looks after , as not one of the many people involved in organising it claims expenses - the position within the Republican Movement is as it always has been ; they try to look after their own and do not seek or receive any funding whatsoever from Leinster House , Stormont , or Westminster , nor will (or has) any such funding been sought to organise the 2011 Swim , the 35th such event.
If you are unable to assist financially , the organisers would appreciate if you could 'spread the word' in whatever way you can, and as often as you can : the mainstream media in this State have consistently ignored this event since it began (although the 'Special Branch' haven't ; seen here , harassing Santa at the Swim) and have always refused to give it a 'mention' , either before or after. At the time of writing , four swimmers have been confirmed and are seeking sponsorship , and more will be 'booked' in the coming weeks.
The organisers , and those that actually swim , and those that take the time on Christmas morning to attend as observers are to be congratulated for , between them , managing to keep this event going for 35 successive years , despite the best efforts of hostile weather and an equally hostile State !
Thanks,
Sharon.

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LAW IN DISORDER.......


The state trumpets every drugs seizure as a major victory over the barons. But the war against drugs is really a murky world characterised by botched operations , questionable use of informers and ego-driven squabbles between the Garda Siochana and customs officials.
Mairead Carey gets the inside story.
From 'MAGILL' magazine , August 2002.

Journalist Paul Williams said - " In Cork , there was Tommy O' Callaghan and Paddy McSweeney , who is now fighting the Criminal Assets Bureau over a bill for more than €1m. There were dozens of people operating on a smaller level at that time , but the State had no mechanism to take them on - they were driving Jags and drawing the dole , and seemed to be operating with impunity."

There are no clear rules in terms of how far the Garda can go in their fight against the drug barons . In Britain , legislation has been introduced to deal with undercover operations but there are no such laws in Ireland , and this issue has never really been tested in the courts either.

Entrapment as a defence to a criminal charge has been recognised in America - it arises where a defendant is induced to commit a crime by a police officer , or someone working on behalf of the police. In one American case , Sherman v United States, the defendant had been asked on several occasions by a man working for the government to buy him heroin ; he did so , reluctantly, and was arrested. The Supreme Court quashed his conviction , saying that the police had effectively created the crime , although it accepted that stealthy police undercover work was necessary for the prevention of crime it stated that such work "....manifestly....does not include the manufacture of crime...."
(MORE LATER).






THE PETER BERRY PAPERS....... The Top Secret Memoirs of Ireland's Most Powerful Civil Servant : Dirty Tricks, Election '69/ Spying on a Unionist Politician/ Keeping the (State) Taoiseach informed/ The Garda Fallon Murder/ Advice to Jack Lynch- 'Fire the pair of them...'/ Vivion De Valera's advice to O'Malley/ Rumours of a Coup D'Etat/ The Internment Plot, November 1970/ Secret Meeting with William Craig.
From 'MAGILL' magazine , June 1980.

" From then on , I was in almost continuous telephonic communication with the Commissioner , C3 in Garda HQ , the Head of the 'S Branch' and the Department of T and P , as to what airports , other than Dublin, could land a plane with 6.8 tons of cargo , and the answer was Shannon , Cork , Farranfore in Kerry and Castlebar in Mayo. I also made enquiries as to the ceiling below which an approaching plane could divert to another airport without coming under radar notice. "

18th APRIL 1970 :

" My security arrangements recommenced early next morning with constant incoming calls according as arrangements were concluded and it was not until 12.30pm that I was able to receive a call from the Minister who was angry that I had not been in touch with him ; I explained that my line or his line had been blocked every moment that I had thought to get in touch with him but that I could assure him now that everything was safe.

I said ' You can sleep easy tonight , there is a ring of steel around Dublin Airport.' That phrase had appeared in the newspapers shortly before this in a description of the Soviet troops around Prague. I also told the Minister about my arrangements to cover the other four airports......."
(MORE LATER).






8 WINNERS WHO PAID FOR THEIR PRIZE...



Another very successful monthly raffle was held in our usual hotel venue last Sunday (9th October 2011) at which the full compliment of 650 tickets were sold : a well-attended birthday party in an adjoining function room would have guaranteed the sale of at least 100 extra tickets , had they been available for sale but , unfortunately , that was not to be - this time : the organising committee are seriously considering increasing the number of tickets in the raffle , such is the demand for them , and this is my little contribution towards nudging them in the right direction !
Anyway - congrats to Frank W , Mark Corcoran , Frank O , Natasha , Mark Kelly , Billy , Alan Hughes and Ryan on buying a winning ticket , the numbers of which were 596 , 667, 643, 685, 231, 188, 227 and 157 : perhaps in the New Year it will take us a wee bit longer to record the names and numbers of our raffle winners....!



...AND ONE WINNER THAT THE REST OF US WILL PAY FOR :


Vote 'None Of The Above' leaflets re the up-coming 27th October 2011 State Presidential election.










€5187 weekly wage , treated like the 'VIP' you believe yourself to be and never having to work a day in your life again : the rewards , at tax-payers expense , for the winner - having to foot the bill and trying not to vomit when you hear yet another "Going forward...." -type speech from the holder of the Office of State President ; the 'reward' for those that voted him/her into that position.
The above leaflets are being distributed in their thousands around ever-increasing parts of Dublin in what has become a 'viral' effect - for every 100 leaflets that are distributed door-to-door , for instance , an average of seven householders have approached the leaflet distributor and requested a few hundred leaflets which they themselves want to distribute ! Indeed , at the above-mentioned raffle , a 'block' of 500 leaflets was distributed , between 'table drops' and customers asking for a few dozen which they themselves will pass around in work , on the dole queue , or door-to-door.
This blog is of the opinion that the best way to appoint a 'new' State President - if such a position should exist at all , and it shouldn't , in our opinion - would be to line all seven candidates in a row , have each one hold a scissors in their left hand , with their right arm and hand being held in a position as if to shake hands with somebody and announce that the candidate who looks best in that position be declared the winner : because that will be all required from them for at least the next seven years !
If you can get your hands on a ballot paper on October 27th next , use it wisely : write 'None Of The Above' on it , or a message of your own choosing.....
Thanks,
Sharon.

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LAW IN DISORDER.......


The state trumpets every drugs seizure as a major victory over the barons. But the war against drugs is really a murky world characterised by botched operations , questionable use of informers and ego-driven squabbles between the Garda Siochana and customs officials.
Mairead Carey gets the inside story.
From 'MAGILL' magazine , August 2002.

It is not known exactly how much of the 2,000 kilos of cannabis that garda informant Edward Keating claimed to have imported into Ireland in controlled deliveries was ever seized : in 1996 , gardai seized a total of 1,993 kilos of cannabis resin in the State , involving 3,233 cases , and the following year they seized 1,247 kilos.

But Cork criminal Tommy O' Callaghan and his gang was only one of many bringing drugs into the State at that time : "There was at least a hard core of a dozen gangs , operating on an international level , bringing drugs into Ireland in the mid-90's...." , says 'Sunday World' crime correspondent , Paul Williams - ".....the 'Penguin' , George Mitchell , was the biggest operator. His people were caught trying to set up an E-factory in a farm shed in Dublin capable of turning out ecstasy with a street value of a couple of million a week.

Mitchell later developed major links with the Russian mafia and Colombian cartels . Now , he is regarded as one of the biggest drug barons in Europe. There was John Noonan , from Fairview , in Dublin, who was the target of the Urlingford operation , and there was obviously John Gilligan's gang and Tommy Savage , ex-INLA , and Mickey Weldon , both of whom went on to become major international players......."
(MORE LATER).







THE PETER BERRY PAPERS....... The Top Secret Memoirs of Ireland's Most Powerful Civil Servant : Dirty Tricks, Election '69/ Spying on a Unionist Politician/ Keeping the (State) Taoiseach informed/ The Garda Fallon Murder/ Advice to Jack Lynch- 'Fire the pair of them...'/ Vivion De Valera's advice to O'Malley/ Rumours of a Coup D'Etat/ The Internment Plot, November 1970/ Secret Meeting with William Craig.
From 'MAGILL' magazine , June 1980.

" We were told that a telephone call had been received from the Department of Transport and Power that a plane was chartered to bring a cargo of 6.8 tons of arms and ammunition from Hamburg to Dublin Airport for the use of the Garda and the Army and that a Captain Kelly's name was associated with the charter. The Department asked if it was in order to facilitate the flight. I was told that the receiving officer had communicated the message to Garda HQ for observations.

We returned to the Minister and I told him of the enquiry , adding that this was the Military Intelligence Officer of whom he had adverse police reports in September/October 1969 . Mr Ward , too, mentioned reports which had come to his notice in my absence on sick leave : the Minister was in a quandry as to what to do and I suggested that we should tell Transport and Power that it was in order for the cargo to come and that we would seize it on arrival at Dublin Airport.

The Minister asked why should we not stop it at Hamburg and I said that by seizing the arms we would be depriving the IRA of trying again later , that we would be putting a drain on their financial resources. The Minister approved , and mentioned that it had been his intention to leave that evening - it was now about 5.30pm - for his constituency but that he would stay over until I would report to him as early as I could on Saturday......."
(MORE LATER).





EXCLUSIVE !!
WE NAME THE LOSERS IN THE 27TH OCTOBER 2011 FREE STATE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION......


Seven candidates , each representative of the same or slightly different
'economic class' in this corrupt State (ie the wealthy or the very wealthy) would like you to vote for them on the 27th of this month to ensure that they become ever wealthier ; the 'winner' will receive a weekly salary of €5187 for , basically, entertaining 'fellow dignitaries' in a posh State-funded mansion in the Phoenix Park in Dublin ; up until recently , that position paid €6781 a week , but sure we're all feeling the pinch.....

One candidate looks like rigamortis has already set-in , physically as well as mentally ,and he lives his live through the poems he has read and memorised - a handy way to impress the aforementioned 'dignitaries' , I suppose - and is being supported by the State Labour Party who, between them, wouldn't recognise a days labour even if it was pointed out to them by James Connolly , whilst another candidate , a self-declared gay man, is said by the media to be almost blind and fond of the drink, and has been 'doing-the-double' for the last 16 years ie claiming disability benefit (of €2500 a month!) whilst 'working' as a State Senator.

A third contestant is a millionaire businessman who was a member of the Fianna Fail 'National Executive' whilst that party was operating its 'Galway Tent' policies (see 'Have-A-Flutter...' , here) , one of the two female candidates is a singer who is closely associated with right-wing 'catholicism' whilst the other is a 'charity worker' and 'Board-Member-For-Hire' who, between both 'professions', recently banked €390,000. One of the remaining male candidates is a leading-light in the right-wing 'Fine Gael' political party whilst the other is a leading-light in a so-called 'Irish Republican' political party and helps to administer British rule in the Stormont puppet 'parliament' in the Occupied Six Counties.

However : as per our headline , we will now 'name the losers' - YOU , the voters! Or , at least, those of you who claim your ballot and fill it in in the manner that is expected of you. But there is a way by which you can claim your ballot , fill it in - and exclude yourself from the 'Losers Circle' : by purposely spoiling it ! Write a wee 'message' on it , such as 'NOTA' , or something stronger!
But please remember : the candidates asking you to vote for them are representative of those that told you to 'Vote Yes For Jobs' in the Lisbon referendum - how's that workin' for ya ? - or are representative of those that make a very good living from your 'Yes' vote : as George Bush Junior tried to say - "Fool me once , shame on you , fool me twice , shame on me".
Don't get fooled (again) - vote 'NOTA' in the State Presidential election on 27th October 2011 : you don't owe anything to those candidates , so give them just that : nothing!
Thanks,
Sharon.

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LAW IN DISORDER.......


The state trumpets every drugs seizure as a major victory over the barons. But the war against drugs is really a murky world characterised by botched operations , questionable use of informers and ego-driven squabbles between the Garda Siochana and customs officials.
Mairead Carey gets the inside story.
From 'MAGILL' magazine , August 2002.

Garda Supt. John Farrelly told the 'Irish Times' newspaper that where Garda officers attempted to get close to the nucleus of a gang "over a period of years" , they would "obviously not have prevented the drugs getting to where they were going." This, he said , was in order to trace the individuals involved and it was not the same as Garda officers "importing" drugs into the State as alleged in the TV programme.

There has been no investigation since into the allegations. When 'Magill' magazine asked the Garda Press Office to respond to ex-Garda Jack Doyle's claims, they refused to comment.

In 2001 , Garda informant Edward Keating sold his bungalow and stables outside Blarney , Cork, and is understood to have left the country and Cork criminal Tommy O'Callaghan is believed to be living in Spain - he was never convicted by the Garda.......
(MORE LATER).






THE PETER BERRY PAPERS....... The Top Secret Memoirs of Ireland's Most Powerful Civil Servant : Dirty Tricks, Election '69/ Spying on a Unionist Politician/ Keeping the (State) Taoiseach informed/ The Garda Fallon Murder/ Advice to Jack Lynch- 'Fire the pair of them...'/ Vivion De Valera's advice to O'Malley/ Rumours of a Coup D'Etat/ The Internment Plot, November 1970/ Secret Meeting with William Craig.
From 'MAGILL' magazine , June 1980.

" When in the course of conversation with the Taoiseach I mentioned the Minister's meeting with the Commissioner and the head of the 'S Branch' in the previous December and the police information about the participation of Ministers in supplying arms to the IRA , he seemed to be genuinely surprised ; up to then , my feeling was that Mr. O Morain simply couldn't have kept the Taoiseach in the dark but that it was not polite to let me know.

The Taoiseach told me that he had been asked who were the IRA leaders in the North, the men who really mattered , that an eminent Church leader felt that a direct appeal from person to person might achieve a good result in bringing an end to violence. I said that I would find out . Later on - on 16th May 1970 - the Taoiseach was to ask me if Mr. O Morain would remember his conversation with me on 13th April 1970."

APRIL 17TH 1970 :

" In the afternoon , in the aftermath of a Government meeting , the Minister had a prolonged discussion with me and an Assistant Secretary , a Mr. Ward , who was suddenly summoned from the room. He returned to say that the matter required my personal attention and , with the Minister's permission , I left the room with Mr. Ward. An IRA arms shipment from Germany was apparently on its way......"
(MORE LATER).





CANDLES......




Republican Sinn Fein is organising a candlelight vigil for Wednesday, October 5th ,2011, at the GPO, Dublin from 6pm - 7pm on the 30th Anniversary of the ending of the 1981 hunger strike. All those who took part in the 1980/81 hunger strikes will be remembered as indeed will the 22 men who died on hunger strike in the cause of Irish freedom since 1917.
Please bring some candles with you and ask your neighbours and friends to do likewise.


.....AND CONIFERS -



All branches of the media in this State have gone into overdrive in relation to the State presidential election and the fact that seven candidates are now in the running for that well-salaried position [€5187 a week salary , recently reduced from €6781 a week - even the rich must suffer.... ;-) ] and the fact that a 65-year-old female pensioner has been jailed for trying to protect her land is not featuring in the news bulletins.
In 2006 , two electricity supply companies wanted to 'improve service for customers' by running overhead power cables across fields and farmlands that they had no claim over , and various community meetings etc were held in the areas that would be affected by the work involved : 65-year-old Teresa Treacy , living just outside Tullamore , in County Offaly, was one of those whose house and adjoining lands would have to be 'crossed' , with the removal of 12,000 trees, in order that those supply companies could 'improve service' (ie 'up their profits') and, as is her right, she objected to the proposals outlined to her by company reps - instead , she suggested that they go underground with their cables , thereby causing minimal damage to her property and also addressing her concerns re health implications ie exposed high-voltage cables and , over a five-year period, repeatedly offered the use of her property for same : just over two weeks ago , Teresa was jailed, for an indeterminate time (that is, until she surrenders the [ab]use of her land to the power companies) for 'contempt'.

Even for this corrupt State , this is a disturbing development and one which the mainstream media , and each of the above-mentioned seven State presidential candidates , would prefer to see 'buried' , unlike the high-voltage power cables which are the cause of this injustice. You might sign the petition for Teresa here , and/or write to the lady at ' Dóchas Centre, Mountjoy Women's Prison, North Circular Road, Dublin 7'.
Thanks for reading,
Sharon.

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LAW IN DISORDER.......


The state trumpets every drugs seizure as a major victory over the barons. But the war against drugs is really a murky world characterised by botched operations , questionable use of informers and ego-driven squabbles between the Garda Siochana and customs officials.
Mairead Carey gets the inside story.
From 'MAGILL' magazine , August 2002.

The 'Prime Time' TV programme was aired in July 2001 but became controversial for all the wrong reasons : 'Prime Time' decided to conceal the informant Keating's identity and his name was to be electronically 'blotted out' but it didn't work and he was in fact named several times during the programme. The cock-up became the story and RTE launched an internal investigation.

The Garda slammed the programme-makers , saying that "it was totally inappropriate for the programme to identify any individual who may or may not have been in contact with the Garda in relation to a controlled operation." The allegations were never aired again.

In relation to the programme itself , the Garda Press Office said that the force was involved in "controlled operations" in the Cork area a number of years ago which involved monitoring the movement of drugs into the State.......
(MORE LATER).






THE PETER BERRY PAPERS....... The Top Secret Memoirs of Ireland's Most Powerful Civil Servant : Dirty Tricks, Election '69/ Spying on a Unionist Politician/ Keeping the (State) Taoiseach informed/ The Garda Fallon Murder/ Advice to Jack Lynch- 'Fire the pair of them...'/ Vivion De Valera's advice to O'Malley/ Rumours of a Coup D'Etat/ The Internment Plot, November 1970/ Secret Meeting with William Craig.
From 'MAGILL' magazine , June 1980.

" In my room I phoned Dr. Nolan and explained the circumstances of the press release and then I went on to ask that the Government decision on the question of a 'native medal' be communicated to me formally so that I would know precisely what the Government had in mind. He said that he did not understand to what I was referring and when I explained he said that the Minister had not raised the matter at all. Stout Cortez never looked with such wild surmise, silent on the peaks of Darian as we, in my room, looked at one another. A gold medal was awarded posthumously to Garda Fallon a year later."

APRIL 13TH 1970 :

" I had a phone call from the Taoiseach - the first in some months - to say that he had been unable to contact Mr O Morain ; I replied that it was the Minister's practice to go to his constituency , Mayo, at each week end and that, this being Monday, he might not return to the office until this morning.

The Taoiseach said that I should come to Government Buildings that evening , that he wanted a run-down on the IRA situation vis-a-vis the North . Before I left to see the Taoiseach I learnt that the Minister had arrived , and I told him of the Taoiseach's phone call and said that I could not give a full picture without recounting the police information as to the involvement of Mr Haughey and Mr Blaney.

The Minister said : "Tell the Taoiseach whatever you feel and you should tell him " - he appeared to be in a very fatigued condition , as he muttered and was listless. I felt that he was scarcely conscious of what we were talking about....... "
(MORE LATER).






CLONDALKIN JI : NO SIPTU REPORT , WAGE TOP-UP STOPPED AND UNION-NOMINATED BOARD REPRESENTATIVE RESIGNS POST.



In the days following our recent piece on this subject , we were contacted by colleagues in Clondalkin JI and by a friend of ours in Liberty Hall - we have confirmed that a Clondalkin JI meeting was held last Wednesday night (14th September 2011) in the Neilstown area of Clondalkin , at which a SIPTU official was present. Angry and determined JI workers were "firm" in questioning him in relation to the LRC 'slip-up' (re case decision and appeal period) to which he gently replied that he doesn't know what happened in regards to that "communication error" as he is not the SIPTU official who was charged with processing the case (that person was "not available to attend the Clondalkin meeting..."!) and had no input whatsoever re the LRC case or 'slip-up'. He said that the SIPTU official involved had prepared "a report" on the matter , that it was to be studied by Branch officials that very day (Wednesday 14-9-11) and declared that same would be made known and available to Clondalkin JI 'as soon as possible'.
One week later and still no report : despite requests from Clondalkin to Liberty Hall for a copy of same or even, at least, an indictation of what it contains, the report - if , indeed, it exists at all - remains a mystery document as far as Clondalkin JI are concerned.
As if that wasn't enough on its own for these shabbily-treated workers to contend with ,FÁS announced in the last 48 hours that it had withdrawn the financial 'Top-Up' (which didn't exceed €20 a week) which it paid to a minority of JI workers within the State whom it deemed to be in extra need : again - as with imposed wage reductions - no consultation was entered into in relation to this matter.
Also within the last two days , the SIPTU-nominated JI worker in Clondalkin who was to take a seat , as a worker-representative, on the Board of the 'Clondalkin Partnership' group (which is 'in charge' of Clondalkin JI) withdrew from the position as it entailed 'working with SIPTU' , something she is not now prepared to do.
Due to its incompetence - or worse - SIPTU has worsened the already-poor position of these low-paid workers and has , as far as they are concerned , abandoned them to fend for themselves against the cruel dictat of an uncaring boss. And this from the Union with a social conscience.....
Thanks for reading,
Sharon.

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EVE OF ALL-IRELAND RALLY 2011 : BRIEF REPORT AND PICS.

RSF , 17-9-11 , Dublin : from GoR to GPO...


The RSF-organised 'Eve of All-Ireland Rally' was held yesterday (Saturday 17th September 2011) in O'Connell Street , Dublin and, between the traffic isle on which it was held, and the footpaths on both sides of O'Connell Street , it was observed by about 200 people. Both uniformed and 'Special Branch' State operatives were 'on hand' but caused no trouble to or for the organisers , although the 'SB' men and women tried their best to deter the crowd from remaining in observation of the Republican proceedings but to no avail. They also made their presence known to the organisers and to the crowd after the event had finished , as usual.

The day began , as is usual for this event , at 12.30PM when a van dropped-off the small stage unit etc and the 'electrics' (amp , speakers , control-box etc) in O'Connell Street , where the six-person RSF crew was waiting :the gear was then assembled on the traffic isle facing the GPO following which a three-person 'crew' was left to keep an eye on same whilst other RSF members and supporters made their way up O'Connell Street to the assembly point outside the Garden of Remembrance from where , at 2PM , a contingent of Irish Republicans, led by a Piper , Cumann na mBan representatives and an RSF Colour Party , made their way , marching down O'Connell Street , to the GPO.

The proceedings were Chaired by Andy Connolly , Dublin, who, in the course of his introductory speech , highlighted the fact that, although this was an 'Eve of All-Ireland' Rally , Republicans remain conscious of the fact that a British-imposed partition means that this is not , yet , an 'All-Ireland' Ireland , an injustice which Republican Sinn Féin is working to correct. The two main speeches were delivered by Róisín Hayden and Geraldine McNamara and , on command, the Flags were dipped in memory of all those who have given their lives to obtain that objective. The Rally was brought to an end after Séan , the Piper, played the National Anthem.
Both speeches , and more photographs , will be published in the October 2011 issue of 'Saoirse' , which goes to print on Wednesday 5th of that month : meanwhile , we post a few pics we managed to round-up and, if you are signed-in to 'Facebook' , there are more on view here.

A Cumann na mBan rep at the 'Eve Rally' , Dublin.




RSF Colour Party at the 'Eve Rally' , Dublin , 17-9-11.




Cumann na mBan and an RSF Colour Party at the Rally.




Over 750 in total of the above three types of leaflets were distributed at the Dublin 'Eve Rally' on Saturday 17-9-11 , mostly to American and Italian tourists - and Kerry people !

Thanks,
Sharon.

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