POLITICOS AND PARAMILITARIES .......
Fionnuala O'Connor on the struggle for the Loyalist leadership as the politicians and their paramilitary allies gear up for a strike .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , March 1986 .
Alan Wright , from the 'Ulster' Clubs , stated - " We recognise there has to be a role for the minority (sic - the Nationalists are not a "minority" in Ireland) , there is a dire need for co-operation . But I firmly believe that the environment for proper politics is not here because of the real source of the poison - militant nationalism . It's a cancer in our society ignored for fifteen years (sic - on so many levels !) . Our aims are to smash the (Hillsborough) Agreement and get the Loyalist people into a position of strength to face the authorities to create that environment .
It could probably be done eventually by sitting round a table . But that could take twenty years and another 2,000 dead . We have'nt the time . " When Alan Wright speaks of "...positions of strength .. " and a new environment , there are echoes of McMichael and the theories of the UDA's political wing . At other times he seems to quote unconsciously from Peter Robinson's pamphlets . He describes McMichael as "...a remarkable political thinker .. " and Robinson as "...the soul of integrity .. " . ( '1169..... ' Comment - "political thinkers (with) integrity" in the UDA/DUP ? Not likely .)
But when Wright speaks of the death-toll , he touches a personal tragedy : in 1979 , his father , Jim , six years out of the RUC Reserve , and his twenty-one year-old sister , got into the family car and began to move off from the house . An INLA booby-trap bomb killed his father and seriously injured his sister . Alan Wright was twenty-five at the time - " I did'nt join anything , I did'nt take up a gun . I did go out once to go down to the Tunnel area and spit in a republican's face and I came near it , but the spittle dried in my mouth . I could not do it . I started clinging on in the hope that the (British) government would do something for the Protestant community .
I joined no organisation , I clung to that . But no - on the 15th November (1985) they sold me out again . " The only organisation Alan Wright joined was the Orange Order .......
(MORE LATER).
FIRE AND BRIMSTONE .......
The Democratic Unionist Party would prefer a Civil War to acquiescence in a role for the Dublin Government in the affairs of the North of Ireland after the Anglo-Irish summit .
FINTAN O'TOOLE spoke to DUP activists about the depth of their opposition to the Anglo-Irish deal and their willingness to resort to violence .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , November 1985 .
Jim Allister , the DUP Chief Whip , stated (re the 1985 Hillsborough Treaty) - " We may not have much confidence that we will achieve that end (doing away with that Treaty) by these methods (ie constitutional and democratic methods) but we have the avenue of trying to thwart and destroy the Treaty through parliament , and that can go out into the avenue of seeking to disrupt the parliamentary process , even to the nitty gritty of seeking to disrupt the (British) government's timetable . Then there is our task of seeking to demonstrate that the community has rejected the Agreement , through petitions , by-elections , a referendum or whatever means we think appropriate . After that we begin the process of making the province (sic) ungovernable , both through learning the lessons of the 1974 Ulster Workers' strike and through pulling out of even lowly local government .
The day Dublin civil servants arrive in any shape or form to administer this province (sic) is the day that we say 'Right , do it on your own , we're pulling out of every tier of government' . If we have done all that and we are still rejected , then they would have rendered me redundant as a politician , but they would not have rendered me redundant as an individual Loyalist , and then I would act in concert with hundreds of thousands of other individual Loyalists in arming ourselves . No self-respecting individual is going to do anything but resist . In those circumstances there are no lengths to which Ulster (sic) men would not go to stop it . None . "
According to Gregory Campbell , the Loyalists , having obtained what they regard as a mandate in a referendum or in by-elections , and having failed to stop Dublin involvement in the North of Ireland , would say "...we must form ourselves into a provisional government ; that provisional government must have a defence ; and that defence must be armed . The Protestant people must be armed . That is my own personal view of how the situation lies ahead . " Gregory Campbell continued - " In the setting up of a provisional government there would be so much community tension that ... well ... I hesitate to use the words civil war ... but there would be so much community tension that we would certainly have the kind of violence that we have'nt seen since the early 1970's .
Even then it was contained to North Belfast , the Bogside , West Belfast , Armagh , Fermanagh . But , in this instance , the whole province (sic) would be embroiled . And there would be much more numerous deaths ....... "
(MORE LATER).
CHAOS IN THE GARDAI .
The Evelyn Glenholmes affair not only involved unlawful activity by gardai , it stemmed from the chaotic condition of the force which has resulted from ignoring the warning signs of the past decade .
By Gene Kerrigan.
First published in ' MAGILL ' magazine , April 1986 .
1. Shooting In The Streets .
Shortly after noon on Saturday March 22 , 1986 , Danny Morrison , a leading member of the Provos , was standing in Prince's Street , Dublin , with a gun pointed at his chest . The gun was held by a garda who had just fired at least three shots across the crowded street .
The garda had been waving the gun around and although there were many garda in the vicinity , none intervened . A few yards away another garda had drawn his automatic gun and was involved in a bit of 'pushing and pulling' with a colleague before crouching down and running back to hide behind a car ; this garda , with the automatic , seemed to be frightened of the garda who had fired the shots .
Meanwhile , Danny Morrison was walking forward towards the garda who had fired the shots - a uniformed garda and a detective to his left tried to hold him back but he brushed them off . Morrison , wearing a brown sweater , his sleeves rolled up , obviously unarmed , walked forward and stood in front of the garda who had fired the shots , remonstrating with him for firing a gun in a crowded street . The garda put his gun away .
A few feet away , inside the BHS department store , Evelyn Glenholmes was being arrested ; a young man who was trying to enter the store was having his shins kicked by a uniformed garda . Against all the received truths about law and order , against all that most people would want to believe , what had happened was that a leading member of the Provos , at mortal risk to himself , had brought to an end a shooting episode in a crowded street .
In the period leading up to this incident , an extraordinary number of criminal and civil offences had been committed ; these were patently not offences committed for personal gain . They were politically motivated offences . They were committed by gardai .......
(MORE LATER).
Thursday, July 28, 2005
Great to be back .... !! Bhi an saoire caite inne ('the holiday was over yesterday') and we hope that this post will signify a return to 'normal service' on '1169 And Counting..... ' . But we are not quite sure that we have shaken-off the holiday 'cobwebs.....' : so check back tomorrow , as well , and see how we are doing ....... ;-) . Sharon .
POLITICOS AND PARAMILITARIES .......
Fionnuala O'Connor on the struggle for the Loyalist leadership as the politicians and their paramilitary allies gear up for a strike .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , March 1986 .
Ask Unionists , either political or paramilitary , or anywhere on the spectrum in between , to explain the 'Ulster' Clubs and they talk first of Carson's legacy , the 'Ulster' Clubs of 1912 , and next of how remarkably naive but sincere Alan Wright is . He resents the pointed queries about the UDA's position in his organisation , and is tired fending off suggestions that he might be easy to manipulate : " No one's behind Alan Wright except the Lord . "
It's an odd habit , referring to yourself in the third person . On the same theme , his independence , he told ' Fortnight' magazine ... " ...Alan Wright's a thirty-one year old man from Portadown ... " , with no political axe to grind . But he does have a religious axe and he keeps it sharp . He's a Salvationist , a Salvation Army man - " At the end of the day my politics are not divisible from my faith . It's Protestantism versus Rome . "
Like all convinced evangelists he speaks of matters spiritual and in his case matters politico-spiritual with complete unselfconsciousness . Basically , it's a harsh message all the more startling for being delivered in an 'unpolished' way . You feel as if you've stumbled on someome completely untried , rehearsing their lines . Smashing the Hillsborough 'Agreement' is his first and prime aim but the Clubs will not go out of existence once that 'Agreement' is scrapped . There can only be peace when a new environment is created : " Militant Nationalism must be addressed . You can't kill the dream but you can remove the dreamer . The Ulster (sic) Clubs are not anti-Roman Catholic for the sake of being anti- Roman Catholic and anyone who smashes a Roman Catholic's windows , say , will have us to deal with , let me tell you . But we are anti-Nationalist...".......
(MORE LATER).
FIRE AND BRIMSTONE .......
The Democratic Unionist Party would prefer a Civil War to acquiescence in a role for the Dublin Government in the affairs of the North of Ireland after the Anglo-Irish summit .
FINTAN O'TOOLE spoke to DUP activists about the depth of their opposition to the Anglo-Irish deal and their willingness to resort to violence .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , November 1985 .
Gregory Campbell , DUP , stated (re Fianna Fail) - " What they are beginning is a process . John Hume calls it a healing process ; well , as far as we are concerned it is to open a wound , to fester the wound and to rub salt in the wound . We will find ourselves at the very end of the constitutional road and we will find ourselves in the very same position as Carson found himself in at Balmoral in 1912 , where we will have to get every able-bodied man in Ulster (sic) armed as best we can , whether it is with guns or sticks . Once the ink is dry and the unionists acquiesce in any way to Dublin involvement , then we are finished . "
Sammy Wilson , DUP , stated - " You don't give a consultative role if it does'nt mean anything . Once that role is conceded , nationalists on both sides of the border would want to work on it and develop it , and what might seem innocuous initially could be the embryo for a huge monster which would eventually gobble us up . Our case is this : that when it comes to the internal arrangements in this province (sic) , to the devolving of powers , the (British) government requires that there be widespread acceptance of any changes . Yet when it comes to a much more major constitutional change , that is giving an outside government (by which he meant Dublin) a role in Northern Ireland (sic) , the (British) government is not prepared to concede that it requires the measurable widespread acceptance of this community . "
According to Jim Allister , the DUP Chief Whip at the Assembly , Unionists have a carefully planned strategy of opposition to the Anglo-Irish package : " If it gives a role to the Dublin government it is unacceptable , no matter how innocuous it may seem . Assuming that that is the case , then we set ourselves on a course of seeking to undo that process . Our first bounded duty is to exhaust each and every constitutional and democratic facility we have ....... "
(MORE LATER).
McFARLANE - THE INSIDE STORY .......
Last month , BRENDAN McFARLANE was ordered by a Dutch court to be extradited back to the North to serve out a sentence of 25 years . He is appealing the decision . His companion GERARD KELLY had his plea accepted that his offences were political . BRENDAN McFARLANE has been on the run since he led thirty-seven men in an escape out of the MAZE PRISON in September 1983 . In an exclusive interview with MAGILL at Bylmerbages Prison in Amsterdam , McFARLANE talks about his life , his youth and upbringing , and his involvement with the ARMED STRUGGLE in the North .
By DEREK DUNNE .
First published in 'MAGILL' magazine , April 1986 .
In prison in Amsterdam , Brendan 'Bic' McFarlane has no association with any of the other prisoners ; he cannot attend Mass with the other men and he is only allowed one hour's fresh air a day , taken separately . In relation to the appeal , he says that he's " ...prepared for the worst , so that when it happens , you're better prepared to deal with it . "
He has a colour TV in his cell , which costs nine guilders - seventy cents a week . But he gets 'paid' three guilders ( eighty cents) a day - just to be in prison . He is very critical of the " ...misinformation .." that is being "..put about.. " regarding the North of Ireland - " People here are educated and they think that there's two religions fighting it out and the poor Brits are stuck in the middle . The BBC version of events always comes across . When an eleven-year-old schoolgirl gets blown away by a plastic bullet , the British Army version comes across . "
When asked if he ever thought of stopping his activity through pressure , he says - " ...you have to soldier on . If you sit down you'd collapse under that pressure . You have to fight . " ('1169..... ' Comment : But , of course - that was 'then' , this is 'now' ; no more fighting for 'Bic' and his colleagues [not against the Brits , anyway...] . Instead , 'concerns' will be raised in Stormont and Leinster House . And Westminster to follow , no doubt . And those same 'concerns' will also , no doubt , be raised on the so-called 'Policing Boards' in the Six Counties when the Provisionals eventually take their seats on same . "Soldering on ... " , Brendan ..... ?)
[END of ' McFARLANE - THE INSIDE STORY ' .]
(Tomorrow - ' CHAOS IN THE GARDAI ' - from 1986 . )
POLITICOS AND PARAMILITARIES .......
Fionnuala O'Connor on the struggle for the Loyalist leadership as the politicians and their paramilitary allies gear up for a strike .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , March 1986 .
Ask Unionists , either political or paramilitary , or anywhere on the spectrum in between , to explain the 'Ulster' Clubs and they talk first of Carson's legacy , the 'Ulster' Clubs of 1912 , and next of how remarkably naive but sincere Alan Wright is . He resents the pointed queries about the UDA's position in his organisation , and is tired fending off suggestions that he might be easy to manipulate : " No one's behind Alan Wright except the Lord . "
It's an odd habit , referring to yourself in the third person . On the same theme , his independence , he told ' Fortnight' magazine ... " ...Alan Wright's a thirty-one year old man from Portadown ... " , with no political axe to grind . But he does have a religious axe and he keeps it sharp . He's a Salvationist , a Salvation Army man - " At the end of the day my politics are not divisible from my faith . It's Protestantism versus Rome . "
Like all convinced evangelists he speaks of matters spiritual and in his case matters politico-spiritual with complete unselfconsciousness . Basically , it's a harsh message all the more startling for being delivered in an 'unpolished' way . You feel as if you've stumbled on someome completely untried , rehearsing their lines . Smashing the Hillsborough 'Agreement' is his first and prime aim but the Clubs will not go out of existence once that 'Agreement' is scrapped . There can only be peace when a new environment is created : " Militant Nationalism must be addressed . You can't kill the dream but you can remove the dreamer . The Ulster (sic) Clubs are not anti-Roman Catholic for the sake of being anti- Roman Catholic and anyone who smashes a Roman Catholic's windows , say , will have us to deal with , let me tell you . But we are anti-Nationalist...".......
(MORE LATER).
FIRE AND BRIMSTONE .......
The Democratic Unionist Party would prefer a Civil War to acquiescence in a role for the Dublin Government in the affairs of the North of Ireland after the Anglo-Irish summit .
FINTAN O'TOOLE spoke to DUP activists about the depth of their opposition to the Anglo-Irish deal and their willingness to resort to violence .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , November 1985 .
Gregory Campbell , DUP , stated (re Fianna Fail) - " What they are beginning is a process . John Hume calls it a healing process ; well , as far as we are concerned it is to open a wound , to fester the wound and to rub salt in the wound . We will find ourselves at the very end of the constitutional road and we will find ourselves in the very same position as Carson found himself in at Balmoral in 1912 , where we will have to get every able-bodied man in Ulster (sic) armed as best we can , whether it is with guns or sticks . Once the ink is dry and the unionists acquiesce in any way to Dublin involvement , then we are finished . "
Sammy Wilson , DUP , stated - " You don't give a consultative role if it does'nt mean anything . Once that role is conceded , nationalists on both sides of the border would want to work on it and develop it , and what might seem innocuous initially could be the embryo for a huge monster which would eventually gobble us up . Our case is this : that when it comes to the internal arrangements in this province (sic) , to the devolving of powers , the (British) government requires that there be widespread acceptance of any changes . Yet when it comes to a much more major constitutional change , that is giving an outside government (by which he meant Dublin) a role in Northern Ireland (sic) , the (British) government is not prepared to concede that it requires the measurable widespread acceptance of this community . "
According to Jim Allister , the DUP Chief Whip at the Assembly , Unionists have a carefully planned strategy of opposition to the Anglo-Irish package : " If it gives a role to the Dublin government it is unacceptable , no matter how innocuous it may seem . Assuming that that is the case , then we set ourselves on a course of seeking to undo that process . Our first bounded duty is to exhaust each and every constitutional and democratic facility we have ....... "
(MORE LATER).
McFARLANE - THE INSIDE STORY .......
Last month , BRENDAN McFARLANE was ordered by a Dutch court to be extradited back to the North to serve out a sentence of 25 years . He is appealing the decision . His companion GERARD KELLY had his plea accepted that his offences were political . BRENDAN McFARLANE has been on the run since he led thirty-seven men in an escape out of the MAZE PRISON in September 1983 . In an exclusive interview with MAGILL at Bylmerbages Prison in Amsterdam , McFARLANE talks about his life , his youth and upbringing , and his involvement with the ARMED STRUGGLE in the North .
By DEREK DUNNE .
First published in 'MAGILL' magazine , April 1986 .
In prison in Amsterdam , Brendan 'Bic' McFarlane has no association with any of the other prisoners ; he cannot attend Mass with the other men and he is only allowed one hour's fresh air a day , taken separately . In relation to the appeal , he says that he's " ...prepared for the worst , so that when it happens , you're better prepared to deal with it . "
He has a colour TV in his cell , which costs nine guilders - seventy cents a week . But he gets 'paid' three guilders ( eighty cents) a day - just to be in prison . He is very critical of the " ...misinformation .." that is being "..put about.. " regarding the North of Ireland - " People here are educated and they think that there's two religions fighting it out and the poor Brits are stuck in the middle . The BBC version of events always comes across . When an eleven-year-old schoolgirl gets blown away by a plastic bullet , the British Army version comes across . "
When asked if he ever thought of stopping his activity through pressure , he says - " ...you have to soldier on . If you sit down you'd collapse under that pressure . You have to fight . " ('1169..... ' Comment : But , of course - that was 'then' , this is 'now' ; no more fighting for 'Bic' and his colleagues [not against the Brits , anyway...] . Instead , 'concerns' will be raised in Stormont and Leinster House . And Westminster to follow , no doubt . And those same 'concerns' will also , no doubt , be raised on the so-called 'Policing Boards' in the Six Counties when the Provisionals eventually take their seats on same . "Soldering on ... " , Brendan ..... ?)
[END of ' McFARLANE - THE INSIDE STORY ' .]
(Tomorrow - ' CHAOS IN THE GARDAI ' - from 1986 . )
Wednesday, July 27, 2005
Friday, July 15, 2005
POLITICOS AND PARAMILITARIES .......
Fionnuala O'Connor on the struggle for the Loyalist leadership as the politicians and their paramilitary allies gear up for a strike .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , March 1986 .
James Molyneaux watches the intense and emotional Harold McCusker , once a contender for his 'throne' , and he watches the coldly ambitious MEP John Taylor , who wheeled out the remains of the Official Unionist Party 'fur-coat' establishment brigade to take the European selection off McCusker , the 'working-class boy ' . And when there is time , no doubt , Jim Molyneaux also watches the perpetually ambitious Orange Order leader the Reverend Martin Smyth . The Official Unionist Party leader could not be said to take a vital part in the joint working-party .
No more , in fact , than his co-leader , who has his own 'boys' to keep an eye on , and none 'hungrier' than Peter Robinson , and the Ballymena barrister Jim Allister . Ian Paisley's remarkable preoccupation with Unionist unity in this campaign has left Robinson free to cultivate the 'Ulster' Clubs , to make the noises on the ultimate place for the violence that Paisley usually specialises in .
Ian Paisley has 'toned down' the rhetoric , veterans of his campaigns think , because the failure of the 1977 strike still haunts him . As one of his men put it - " He thought he could do it on his own (but) the Official Unionist Party swung in against him and the power-workers did'nt pull the plug . He's not going to make that mistake again . We can only ask the people to do this after everything else . Morally we had to have the elections , the council thing , the Assembly had to be put at risk - because then we can say , as the politicians have done everything , now it's the turn of the Clubs ... " Often Unionist political figures do not finish that sentence , but this was a frank DUP man .
Even he was'nt specific about what happens next , but there was no mistaking his relish for the imminent exhaustion of constitutional means , nor his approval of the 'Ulster' Clubs .......
(MORE LATER).
FIRE AND BRIMSTONE .......
The Democratic Unionist Party would prefer a Civil War to acquiescence in a role for the Dublin Government in the affairs of the North of Ireland after the Anglo-Irish summit .
FINTAN O'TOOLE spoke to DUP activists about the depth of their opposition to the Anglo-Irish deal and their willingness to resort to violence .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , November 1985 .
The DUP is implacably opposed to any role whatsoever for the Irish government (sic) in the running of Northern Ireland , (sic) even if that role is minor , 'consultative' and cosmetic - they see it as the beginning of the end , the road to Armageddon : " While we are interested in the fine print of an agreement , and we will study it carefully , the fact that for the first time the Dublin government are going to be given an input in any way , that will be enough to trigger off all of our opposition , whatever the fine print , " says the DUP's Gregory Campbell .
" If Tom King were to say to us - 'Look , we're only consulting Dublin about the colour of the lamp-posts ' , that is sufficient for us to say that for the first time Dublin has a toe in the door . It's only a few months or a few years from advising us on the colour of the lamp-posts , to telling us what way we will conduct the traffic , to what way we will dress the police , to what way we will arm them . If Dublin is to have a say in any respect , if they are to have a say in that the ' Flags and Emblems Act ' is to be repealed , because Peter Barry and Garret Fitzgerald have said it is offensive to nationalists and must be repealed , something that is regarded as small beer , then the British government will be sitting down and listening to the views of the Dublin government .
Sovereignty is sovereignty . You either are sovereign over a part of a country (sic) or you are not . You either have absolute control or you do not . If Dublin has a consultative role , that is the beginning of the end . I would see the final day had arrived whereby Ulster (sic) had finally been sold , and we would have no other option but to exhaust the constitutional process and then proceed as quickly as possible to arming ourselves and to fighting .
Lets not forget that Charles Haughey is waiting in the wings and if Garret Fitzgerald were to put his toe in the door , Haughey will be coming through the door . Fianna Fail are'nt going to be content with the colour of the lamp-posts or of the police uniforms or with the 'Flags and Emblems Act' . They are going to demand a more meaningful role and subsequent summits will increase that role ....... " ('1169... ' Comment - Fianna Fail continues to 'comment' on how Westminster 'governs' the Six Counties ; however , Fianna Fail never queries Westminster's jurisdictional control over those Six Counties . The Unionists and their 'paymasters' in Westminster have nothing to fear from Fianna Fail - or any other group of Free Staters .)
(MORE LATER).
McFARLANE - THE INSIDE STORY .......
Last month , BRENDAN McFARLANE was ordered by a Dutch court to be extradited back to the North to serve out a sentence of 25 years . He is appealing the decision . His companion GERARD KELLY had his plea accepted that his offences were political . BRENDAN McFARLANE has been on the run since he led thirty-seven men in an escape out of the MAZE PRISON in September 1983 . In an exclusive interview with MAGILL at Bylmerbages Prison in Amsterdam , McFARLANE talks about his life , his youth and upbringing , and his involvement with the ARMED STRUGGLE in the North .
By DEREK DUNNE .
First published in 'MAGILL' magazine , April 1986 .
Brendan McFarlane is not very optimistic about his own future ; he believes that he will be extradited back to the North of Ireland - " When they lock me up , they'll throw away the key . I don't want to go back to H-Blocks , or any prison for that matter . But if they do send me back it's a small price to pay for the political victory we have scored in Holland . I think it's very significant - they recognise that the struggle is political . It was an achievement beyond all expectations . It was also unprecedented in so far as there were two IRA Volunteers in front of cameras for the first time in quite a number of years . "
He was amused at the last court hearing when he was told that he could make a claim for various items that were taken from him when he was arrested , such as jewellery and cassettes : " I was also told that I could claim for the 'equipment' found nearby ! I told them if they were so disposed regarding the found 'equipment' , they could forward it to the Republican Movement ... " It should be noted that Brendan McFarlane has not been charged with any offence in Holland .
He is totally isolated in the Amsterdam prison - he has no association with any of the other prisoners .......
(MORE LATER).
(Please Note - the '1169...' crew will be 'shutting up shop' today , Friday 15th July for at least/about/hopefully (!) one week [maybe two - if the cash stretches... !] - we are off to the 'Sometimes Sunny Southeast' ; Waterford , for a bit of a break . Leave your e-mail address (on the back of a €50 note !) in the 'Guestbook' and we might send you a postcard . And you might also get spammed ... - Sharon :)
Fionnuala O'Connor on the struggle for the Loyalist leadership as the politicians and their paramilitary allies gear up for a strike .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , March 1986 .
James Molyneaux watches the intense and emotional Harold McCusker , once a contender for his 'throne' , and he watches the coldly ambitious MEP John Taylor , who wheeled out the remains of the Official Unionist Party 'fur-coat' establishment brigade to take the European selection off McCusker , the 'working-class boy ' . And when there is time , no doubt , Jim Molyneaux also watches the perpetually ambitious Orange Order leader the Reverend Martin Smyth . The Official Unionist Party leader could not be said to take a vital part in the joint working-party .
No more , in fact , than his co-leader , who has his own 'boys' to keep an eye on , and none 'hungrier' than Peter Robinson , and the Ballymena barrister Jim Allister . Ian Paisley's remarkable preoccupation with Unionist unity in this campaign has left Robinson free to cultivate the 'Ulster' Clubs , to make the noises on the ultimate place for the violence that Paisley usually specialises in .
Ian Paisley has 'toned down' the rhetoric , veterans of his campaigns think , because the failure of the 1977 strike still haunts him . As one of his men put it - " He thought he could do it on his own (but) the Official Unionist Party swung in against him and the power-workers did'nt pull the plug . He's not going to make that mistake again . We can only ask the people to do this after everything else . Morally we had to have the elections , the council thing , the Assembly had to be put at risk - because then we can say , as the politicians have done everything , now it's the turn of the Clubs ... " Often Unionist political figures do not finish that sentence , but this was a frank DUP man .
Even he was'nt specific about what happens next , but there was no mistaking his relish for the imminent exhaustion of constitutional means , nor his approval of the 'Ulster' Clubs .......
(MORE LATER).
FIRE AND BRIMSTONE .......
The Democratic Unionist Party would prefer a Civil War to acquiescence in a role for the Dublin Government in the affairs of the North of Ireland after the Anglo-Irish summit .
FINTAN O'TOOLE spoke to DUP activists about the depth of their opposition to the Anglo-Irish deal and their willingness to resort to violence .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , November 1985 .
The DUP is implacably opposed to any role whatsoever for the Irish government (sic) in the running of Northern Ireland , (sic) even if that role is minor , 'consultative' and cosmetic - they see it as the beginning of the end , the road to Armageddon : " While we are interested in the fine print of an agreement , and we will study it carefully , the fact that for the first time the Dublin government are going to be given an input in any way , that will be enough to trigger off all of our opposition , whatever the fine print , " says the DUP's Gregory Campbell .
" If Tom King were to say to us - 'Look , we're only consulting Dublin about the colour of the lamp-posts ' , that is sufficient for us to say that for the first time Dublin has a toe in the door . It's only a few months or a few years from advising us on the colour of the lamp-posts , to telling us what way we will conduct the traffic , to what way we will dress the police , to what way we will arm them . If Dublin is to have a say in any respect , if they are to have a say in that the ' Flags and Emblems Act ' is to be repealed , because Peter Barry and Garret Fitzgerald have said it is offensive to nationalists and must be repealed , something that is regarded as small beer , then the British government will be sitting down and listening to the views of the Dublin government .
Sovereignty is sovereignty . You either are sovereign over a part of a country (sic) or you are not . You either have absolute control or you do not . If Dublin has a consultative role , that is the beginning of the end . I would see the final day had arrived whereby Ulster (sic) had finally been sold , and we would have no other option but to exhaust the constitutional process and then proceed as quickly as possible to arming ourselves and to fighting .
Lets not forget that Charles Haughey is waiting in the wings and if Garret Fitzgerald were to put his toe in the door , Haughey will be coming through the door . Fianna Fail are'nt going to be content with the colour of the lamp-posts or of the police uniforms or with the 'Flags and Emblems Act' . They are going to demand a more meaningful role and subsequent summits will increase that role ....... " ('1169... ' Comment - Fianna Fail continues to 'comment' on how Westminster 'governs' the Six Counties ; however , Fianna Fail never queries Westminster's jurisdictional control over those Six Counties . The Unionists and their 'paymasters' in Westminster have nothing to fear from Fianna Fail - or any other group of Free Staters .)
(MORE LATER).
McFARLANE - THE INSIDE STORY .......
Last month , BRENDAN McFARLANE was ordered by a Dutch court to be extradited back to the North to serve out a sentence of 25 years . He is appealing the decision . His companion GERARD KELLY had his plea accepted that his offences were political . BRENDAN McFARLANE has been on the run since he led thirty-seven men in an escape out of the MAZE PRISON in September 1983 . In an exclusive interview with MAGILL at Bylmerbages Prison in Amsterdam , McFARLANE talks about his life , his youth and upbringing , and his involvement with the ARMED STRUGGLE in the North .
By DEREK DUNNE .
First published in 'MAGILL' magazine , April 1986 .
Brendan McFarlane is not very optimistic about his own future ; he believes that he will be extradited back to the North of Ireland - " When they lock me up , they'll throw away the key . I don't want to go back to H-Blocks , or any prison for that matter . But if they do send me back it's a small price to pay for the political victory we have scored in Holland . I think it's very significant - they recognise that the struggle is political . It was an achievement beyond all expectations . It was also unprecedented in so far as there were two IRA Volunteers in front of cameras for the first time in quite a number of years . "
He was amused at the last court hearing when he was told that he could make a claim for various items that were taken from him when he was arrested , such as jewellery and cassettes : " I was also told that I could claim for the 'equipment' found nearby ! I told them if they were so disposed regarding the found 'equipment' , they could forward it to the Republican Movement ... " It should be noted that Brendan McFarlane has not been charged with any offence in Holland .
He is totally isolated in the Amsterdam prison - he has no association with any of the other prisoners .......
(MORE LATER).
(Please Note - the '1169...' crew will be 'shutting up shop' today , Friday 15th July for at least/about/hopefully (!) one week [maybe two - if the cash stretches... !] - we are off to the 'Sometimes Sunny Southeast' ; Waterford , for a bit of a break . Leave your e-mail address (on the back of a €50 note !) in the 'Guestbook' and we might send you a postcard . And you might also get spammed ... - Sharon :)
Thursday, July 14, 2005
POLITICOS AND PARAMILITARIES .......
Fionnuala O'Connor on the struggle for the Loyalist leadership as the politicians and their paramilitary allies gear up for a strike .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , March 1986 .
The 'post-mortem' the day after the election count was in Ian Paisley's house ; big , over-heated and a bit overpowering , like its owner . Too many things on the walls , thick carpets . Unusually , they moved the talk from the particular to the general and for about thirty minutes , with souls bared , discussed the viability of the various options for 'governing Northern Ireland' (sic) .
Willie McCrea , the 'country-and-western' singing cleric from bitter South Derry , public ranter supreme , talked very frankly about power-sharing ; he felt no need , obviously , to go through the set-piece denunciation : " I could never sell it to my voters , " he said , " not after all the deaths of the last fifteen years . " Harold McCusker , Deputy Leader of the DUP , is right - he said in public a few weeks ago that the taboo had gone and it was now possible to discuss the previously unmentionable without automatically being called a 'Lundy' .
It sounded , mind you , a bit like the recitation of a 'charm' to ward off retribution - he had just finished proposing a tripartite London-Dublin-Belfast conference with no executive powers to discuss matters of mutual interest . Peter Robinson followed him with his new positive relationship with Dublin . Discussion of anything so sensitive as power-sharing is not frequent , however , in the joint working-party . It's an uneasy group , two mutually suspicious parties , individuals who had'nt much to do with each other prior to the agreement , ill-matched leaders . Ian Paisley blusters , tiredly , with nothing to contribute , really , once the microphones are off and the committee room door closes out the public . Everyone says the 'Big Man' is tired , but that does'nt mean he's going .
James Molyneaux , the bachelor who lives and breaths for politics and eats only as "...fuel.. " , has been shaky since Margaret Thatcher so ruthlessly exposed his mistaken trust in her , his conviction that in direct proportion to his visible love of Westminster and propriety , she would 'stand by Ulster' (sic) - he was wrong . But that does'nt mean that Molyneaux is 'going' , either . At least not yet .......
(MORE LATER).
FIRE AND BRIMSTONE .......
The Democratic Unionist Party would prefer a Civil War to acquiescence in a role for the Dublin Government in the affairs of the North of Ireland after the Anglo-Irish summit .
FINTAN O'TOOLE spoke to DUP activists about the depth of their opposition to the Anglo-Irish deal and their willingness to resort to violence .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , November 1985 .
Sammy Wilson , DUP , does not like to be called a 'socialist' ('1169... ' Comment : we would'nt think that would be a big worry for him ... ) : " Socialism is not a term that people use very often in Northern Ireland (sic) and yet if you look at the things that they (ie Irish Republicans) believed and the ideas they would put forward , I suppose if they lived anywhere else they would be socialists . I would prefer , because of the stigma which attaches to socialism , the term 'radicalism' rather that socialism . One of the problems of Irish history is that the concentration on the constitutional question by nationalists gave the excuse for not dealing with , and not prioritising , the social issues which affected the Protestant people as much if not more in some cases , than they affected the Roman Catholic people . " ('1169... ' Comment - Translation = ' Our people were stressed having usurped your land but you ignored our stress ...' )
With that view of the Protestant poverty , there is little sympathy in the DUP for talk of Catholic alienation : " Alienation ?" says Jim Wells , " There's many who feel alienated all the way to the bank . Catholics in West Belfast have houses that would be the pride of Dublin and many of them have top jobs . ('1169... ' Comment - replace the word 'Catholics' with 'Blacks' .......) How many Protestant barristers are there in Northern Ireland ? (sic) Catholics have prospered and increased in numbers here . They have retained their own educational system , the GAA gets more money for facilities from the oppressive British government than they get down south , in some cases they have their own hospitals , all funded by the state .
I do accept that Roman Catholics feel that the old structure of Stormont did not give adequate expression to their viewpoint , and I am realistic enough to accept that there will be no return to a one-party majority rule state . But the SDLP have been given a veto on all new arrangements for devolved government and until that veto is removed they have no incentive to come to terms with the unionists ... " ....
(MORE LATER).
McFARLANE - THE INSIDE STORY .......
Last month , BRENDAN McFARLANE was ordered by a Dutch court to be extradited back to the North to serve out a sentence of 25 years . He is appealing the decision . His companion GERARD KELLY had his plea accepted that his offences were political . BRENDAN McFARLANE has been on the run since he led thirty-seven men in an escape out of the MAZE PRISON in September 1983 . In an exclusive interview with MAGILL at Bylmerbages Prison in Amsterdam , McFARLANE talks about his life , his youth and upbringing , and his involvement with the ARMED STRUGGLE in the North .
By DEREK DUNNE .
First published in 'MAGILL' magazine , April 1986 .
Brendan McFarlane and seven others had escaped from the H-Blocks (on Sunday 25 September 1983) ; they were now 'on the run' . At 8pm that evening they took to the fields again - they were close to the River Bann but could'nt cross it and they made a bed for the night close to a manor house . They then crossed the Bann late that evening and walked towards Scarva ; they walked on the main road to Newry until dawn . On the Wednesday (28 September 1983) they came to a railway line which they followed . It took them across the border - " I still remember every minute of that escape . I did an interview with 'An Phoblacht' two days after I got away . "
Brendan McFarlane is reluctant to say where he has been since the escape ; he claims that to do so would entail giving countries and dates which would in turn identify people . His name was linked with the Don Tidey kidnap and shoot-out at Derrada Wood near Ballinamore towards the end of 1983 , which took place shortly after his escape . However , he says that he was "...definitely not .. " involved with that . Garda Recruit Gary Sheehan and (Free State Army) Private Paddy Kelly were shot dead during that incident . Whilst on the run , he began to learn of other deaths , more friends being killed : on the first Sunday in December 1984 , Provo Antoine MacGiolla Bhrighde was shot dead when an undercover SAS squad was taken on by three Provos . An SAS man was also shot dead . However , a few weeks later , the body of another Provo turned up - that of Kieran Fleming ; he had escaped with Brendan McFarlane from the Maze Prison and had also evaded capture by the SAS squad following the shoot-out .
It was presumed that he had escaped ; he was last seen on the banks of the River Bannagh close to where the shoot-out took place ; he had a fear of water and drowned . Brendan McFarlane says that he "...was out of the country at the time . He (Fleming) had escaped and got out of the ambush and then the water .... I was pretty down when I read about that . It's the type of thing you read about and you say 'Jesus Christ !' "
He laughs when he remembers his arrest ; the Dutch police came through the windows and threw 'flash' grenades - which set fire to the curtains , filling the flat with smoke ! " I was sleeping on the floor . The guys were piling in the windows . I crawled to the door and one of them said to me - ' Excuse me , do you have a key to the front door?' " He declined to give the Dutch police the key ! Among the items that were seized by the Dutch police was an entire collection of Christy Moore albums ; he misses them as they were a tangible link with Ireland at a time when he could not even make a telephone call back , just in case it would be traced and his whereabouts discovered and those who were helping him endangered .......
(MORE LATER).
(Please Note - the '1169...' crew will be 'shutting up shop' on Friday 15th July next for at least/about/hopefully (!) one week [maybe two - if the cash stretches... !] - we are off to the 'Sometimes Sunny Southeast' ; Waterford , for a bit of a break . Leave your e-mail address (on the back of a €50 note !) in the 'Guestbook' and we might send you a postcard . And you might also get spammed ... - Sharon :)
Fionnuala O'Connor on the struggle for the Loyalist leadership as the politicians and their paramilitary allies gear up for a strike .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , March 1986 .
The 'post-mortem' the day after the election count was in Ian Paisley's house ; big , over-heated and a bit overpowering , like its owner . Too many things on the walls , thick carpets . Unusually , they moved the talk from the particular to the general and for about thirty minutes , with souls bared , discussed the viability of the various options for 'governing Northern Ireland' (sic) .
Willie McCrea , the 'country-and-western' singing cleric from bitter South Derry , public ranter supreme , talked very frankly about power-sharing ; he felt no need , obviously , to go through the set-piece denunciation : " I could never sell it to my voters , " he said , " not after all the deaths of the last fifteen years . " Harold McCusker , Deputy Leader of the DUP , is right - he said in public a few weeks ago that the taboo had gone and it was now possible to discuss the previously unmentionable without automatically being called a 'Lundy' .
It sounded , mind you , a bit like the recitation of a 'charm' to ward off retribution - he had just finished proposing a tripartite London-Dublin-Belfast conference with no executive powers to discuss matters of mutual interest . Peter Robinson followed him with his new positive relationship with Dublin . Discussion of anything so sensitive as power-sharing is not frequent , however , in the joint working-party . It's an uneasy group , two mutually suspicious parties , individuals who had'nt much to do with each other prior to the agreement , ill-matched leaders . Ian Paisley blusters , tiredly , with nothing to contribute , really , once the microphones are off and the committee room door closes out the public . Everyone says the 'Big Man' is tired , but that does'nt mean he's going .
James Molyneaux , the bachelor who lives and breaths for politics and eats only as "...fuel.. " , has been shaky since Margaret Thatcher so ruthlessly exposed his mistaken trust in her , his conviction that in direct proportion to his visible love of Westminster and propriety , she would 'stand by Ulster' (sic) - he was wrong . But that does'nt mean that Molyneaux is 'going' , either . At least not yet .......
(MORE LATER).
FIRE AND BRIMSTONE .......
The Democratic Unionist Party would prefer a Civil War to acquiescence in a role for the Dublin Government in the affairs of the North of Ireland after the Anglo-Irish summit .
FINTAN O'TOOLE spoke to DUP activists about the depth of their opposition to the Anglo-Irish deal and their willingness to resort to violence .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , November 1985 .
Sammy Wilson , DUP , does not like to be called a 'socialist' ('1169... ' Comment : we would'nt think that would be a big worry for him ... ) : " Socialism is not a term that people use very often in Northern Ireland (sic) and yet if you look at the things that they (ie Irish Republicans) believed and the ideas they would put forward , I suppose if they lived anywhere else they would be socialists . I would prefer , because of the stigma which attaches to socialism , the term 'radicalism' rather that socialism . One of the problems of Irish history is that the concentration on the constitutional question by nationalists gave the excuse for not dealing with , and not prioritising , the social issues which affected the Protestant people as much if not more in some cases , than they affected the Roman Catholic people . " ('1169... ' Comment - Translation = ' Our people were stressed having usurped your land but you ignored our stress ...' )
With that view of the Protestant poverty , there is little sympathy in the DUP for talk of Catholic alienation : " Alienation ?" says Jim Wells , " There's many who feel alienated all the way to the bank . Catholics in West Belfast have houses that would be the pride of Dublin and many of them have top jobs . ('1169... ' Comment - replace the word 'Catholics' with 'Blacks' .......) How many Protestant barristers are there in Northern Ireland ? (sic) Catholics have prospered and increased in numbers here . They have retained their own educational system , the GAA gets more money for facilities from the oppressive British government than they get down south , in some cases they have their own hospitals , all funded by the state .
I do accept that Roman Catholics feel that the old structure of Stormont did not give adequate expression to their viewpoint , and I am realistic enough to accept that there will be no return to a one-party majority rule state . But the SDLP have been given a veto on all new arrangements for devolved government and until that veto is removed they have no incentive to come to terms with the unionists ... " ....
(MORE LATER).
McFARLANE - THE INSIDE STORY .......
Last month , BRENDAN McFARLANE was ordered by a Dutch court to be extradited back to the North to serve out a sentence of 25 years . He is appealing the decision . His companion GERARD KELLY had his plea accepted that his offences were political . BRENDAN McFARLANE has been on the run since he led thirty-seven men in an escape out of the MAZE PRISON in September 1983 . In an exclusive interview with MAGILL at Bylmerbages Prison in Amsterdam , McFARLANE talks about his life , his youth and upbringing , and his involvement with the ARMED STRUGGLE in the North .
By DEREK DUNNE .
First published in 'MAGILL' magazine , April 1986 .
Brendan McFarlane and seven others had escaped from the H-Blocks (on Sunday 25 September 1983) ; they were now 'on the run' . At 8pm that evening they took to the fields again - they were close to the River Bann but could'nt cross it and they made a bed for the night close to a manor house . They then crossed the Bann late that evening and walked towards Scarva ; they walked on the main road to Newry until dawn . On the Wednesday (28 September 1983) they came to a railway line which they followed . It took them across the border - " I still remember every minute of that escape . I did an interview with 'An Phoblacht' two days after I got away . "
Brendan McFarlane is reluctant to say where he has been since the escape ; he claims that to do so would entail giving countries and dates which would in turn identify people . His name was linked with the Don Tidey kidnap and shoot-out at Derrada Wood near Ballinamore towards the end of 1983 , which took place shortly after his escape . However , he says that he was "...definitely not .. " involved with that . Garda Recruit Gary Sheehan and (Free State Army) Private Paddy Kelly were shot dead during that incident . Whilst on the run , he began to learn of other deaths , more friends being killed : on the first Sunday in December 1984 , Provo Antoine MacGiolla Bhrighde was shot dead when an undercover SAS squad was taken on by three Provos . An SAS man was also shot dead . However , a few weeks later , the body of another Provo turned up - that of Kieran Fleming ; he had escaped with Brendan McFarlane from the Maze Prison and had also evaded capture by the SAS squad following the shoot-out .
It was presumed that he had escaped ; he was last seen on the banks of the River Bannagh close to where the shoot-out took place ; he had a fear of water and drowned . Brendan McFarlane says that he "...was out of the country at the time . He (Fleming) had escaped and got out of the ambush and then the water .... I was pretty down when I read about that . It's the type of thing you read about and you say 'Jesus Christ !' "
He laughs when he remembers his arrest ; the Dutch police came through the windows and threw 'flash' grenades - which set fire to the curtains , filling the flat with smoke ! " I was sleeping on the floor . The guys were piling in the windows . I crawled to the door and one of them said to me - ' Excuse me , do you have a key to the front door?' " He declined to give the Dutch police the key ! Among the items that were seized by the Dutch police was an entire collection of Christy Moore albums ; he misses them as they were a tangible link with Ireland at a time when he could not even make a telephone call back , just in case it would be traced and his whereabouts discovered and those who were helping him endangered .......
(MORE LATER).
(Please Note - the '1169...' crew will be 'shutting up shop' on Friday 15th July next for at least/about/hopefully (!) one week [maybe two - if the cash stretches... !] - we are off to the 'Sometimes Sunny Southeast' ; Waterford , for a bit of a break . Leave your e-mail address (on the back of a €50 note !) in the 'Guestbook' and we might send you a postcard . And you might also get spammed ... - Sharon :)
Wednesday, July 13, 2005
POLITICOS AND PARAMILITARIES .......
Fionnuala O'Connor on the struggle for the Loyalist leadership as the politicians and their paramilitary allies gear up for a strike .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , March 1986 .
Unionist tactics to date have worked well enough as a simple demonstration of implacable resentment , but there is no 'coherent , well-thought out strategy' directed at the achievement of an agreed aim : because there is no post-agreement policy , either inside the respective parties , or in the joint working-party , there can be no clarity now .
On the one hand , the Unionists have talked of wholesale withdrawal , on the other they hold back - urging the councillors to forge ahead , stopping short of total withdrawal at Westminster . Some express relief that the British government's 'goof' of prematurely declaring their power to bring in commissioners to run the councils , not only whipped up a flagging protest , but also may take the councillors off the hook of responsibility for running down local services .
An 'Ulster' Clubs member stated - " And we've got a whole host of other opportunities for causing disruption ; obstructing the commissioners , that kind of thing . " In the wings , the Clubs are looking on , a bit grimly - " This is the politicians' last chance . If the councillors break ....the people won't stand for that , " says one rather bleak young man , over-estimating his own somewhat makeshift organisation . A more detached observer reckons no councillor will have to go the distance and go to jail , thus ending a local government career ! " The government will strike a rate - then what's the point of the courts penalising councillors for failing to ? "
Meanwhile , the 'working party' surveyed the scene in the wake of that damp and cold by-election , weighing the handsome Unionist total vote against Seamus Mallon's Westminster seat , and eventually decided they needed another gimmick . Perhaps a one-day strike ... ?
(MORE LATER).
FIRE AND BRIMSTONE .......
The Democratic Unionist Party would prefer a Civil War to acquiescence in a role for the Dublin Government in the affairs of the North of Ireland after the Anglo-Irish summit .
FINTAN O'TOOLE spoke to DUP activists about the depth of their opposition to the Anglo-Irish deal and their willingness to resort to violence .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , November 1985 .
Gregory Campbell , DUP , states - " Obviously I thought about their ( the Catholics in the Six Counties) deprivation and I thought about what kind of political structures there might be to bring about a better society , but there continued to be an attitude on their part that they were the only ones being discriminated against , and that I was part of the group that was discriminating against them . There seemed to be a continual diatribe against me , against people like me .
We were the first-class citizens and these people were separated , were downtrodden and different . And it never seemed to get across to them that the people they were agitating against were in exactly the same position as them . Maybe in the early days there was a socialist ideology in the Civil Rights Movement , but it was always couched in terms of republicanism which obviously distanced me and people like me from it . I joined the 'Young Unionist Movement' and I found myself campaigning for people that I was still socially opposed to . I found myself campaigning for people like Robin Chichester-Clarke , brother of the former Prime Minister , and to me that person was on a different social scale , a different planet , to me . The guy was a highbrow Tory who cared very little if at all for working-class Protestant people , who were the people who were electing him .
And gradually I moved over to the Protestant Unionist Party which , at that time , 1970-1971 , was just changing over to the DUP . "
Sammy Wilson , the DUP Chairperson of the Planning Committee of Belfast City Council , is also from a working-class background : " I've lived most of my life in East Belfast , which is perhaps in Belfast now the stomping ground for the DUP . It's a strongly traditional Loyalist area where there was a fair amount of social deprivation , far worse housing conditions even at present , and longer waiting lists for houses , than you have in West Belfast . I was attracted by the new dimension which the DUP introduced into Ulster (sic) politics and that was the radicalism which characterises Evangelical Protestantism , and which can be seen for instance in the kind of people who left here and went to form the backbone of the American revolution , their dislike of the old establishment and the system .
In the longer term it's the potential radicalism of the party which attracted me , representing as I do an area where there is terrible housing and other social problems . " He does not , however , like to be called a socialist - " I think it's one of the problems with those kind of labels in Northern Ireland (sic) that the constitutional question has really over-ridden other considerations . Socialism is , mainly because of the actions of the Labour Party , identified with republicanism ......." .......
(MORE LATER).
McFARLANE - THE INSIDE STORY .......
Last month , BRENDAN McFARLANE was ordered by a Dutch court to be extradited back to the North to serve out a sentence of 25 years . He is appealing the decision . His companion GERARD KELLY had his plea accepted that his offences were political . BRENDAN McFARLANE has been on the run since he led thirty-seven men in an escape out of the MAZE PRISON in September 1983 . In an exclusive interview with MAGILL at Bylmerbages Prison in Amsterdam , McFARLANE talks about his life , his youth and upbringing , and his involvement with the ARMED STRUGGLE in the North .
By DEREK DUNNE .
First published in 'MAGILL' magazine , April 1986 .
At 2.15 pm on Sunday 25 September 1983 , Brendan McFarlane and two others moved into the 'sensitive' area , the 'Circle' , of H-Block 7 . They were armed . The warders were overpowered in Wings A , B , C and D . One of the warders made a move to an alarm button and was shot . Warders were stripped and some of the prisoners put on their clothes . McFarlane walked towards the gate with the 'warders' and was let through ; the plan was to take over each gate , one at a time , and leave Provos behind dressed as warders . They commandeered a food lorry and they intended to replace any warders that challenged them with men from inside the lorry .
However , at what was known as 'the Tally Lodge ' , there were too many warders coming and going ; one of them started to blow his whistle - two cars pulled-up in front of the lorry and scuffles broke out . Some warders were stabbed . The Provos then apparently surrendered , and things calmed down . Then they made a rush across the fence ; the British Army was unable to fire on the fleeing men due to the confusion - there were prisoners dressed as warders , and warders in civilian clothing , all running across the fields . Cars were hijacked as soon as the road was reached . Nineteen men were recaptured almost immediately . Brendan McFarlane , by now dressed as a warder , led seven men to the road , took over three vehicles and drove off in the direction of Moira . They took over a secluded house belonging to a Protestant couple , the McFarlanes (no
relation) .
They were a few miles from the jail and still within roadblocks . McFarlane changed his clothes , took a torch , a map , a compass and food from the house . All eight men headed off to cross the border at 11 pm that night ; at 5 am the following morning , they decided to 'dig in' for the day . They watched as a helicopter flew over and back and listened as Garret FitzGerald ( Free State [Fine Gael] 'Taoiseach' ) said on the radio that if any of the escapees were caught , they would be handed back across the border .......
(MORE LATER).
(Please Note - the '1169...' crew will be 'shutting up shop' on Friday 15th July next for at least/about/hopefully (!) one week [maybe two - if the cash stretches... !] - we are off to the 'Sometimes Sunny Southeast' ; Waterford , for a bit of a break . Leave your e-mail address (on the back of a €50 note !) in the 'Guestbook' and we might send you a postcard . And you might also get spammed ... - Sharon :)
Fionnuala O'Connor on the struggle for the Loyalist leadership as the politicians and their paramilitary allies gear up for a strike .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , March 1986 .
Unionist tactics to date have worked well enough as a simple demonstration of implacable resentment , but there is no 'coherent , well-thought out strategy' directed at the achievement of an agreed aim : because there is no post-agreement policy , either inside the respective parties , or in the joint working-party , there can be no clarity now .
On the one hand , the Unionists have talked of wholesale withdrawal , on the other they hold back - urging the councillors to forge ahead , stopping short of total withdrawal at Westminster . Some express relief that the British government's 'goof' of prematurely declaring their power to bring in commissioners to run the councils , not only whipped up a flagging protest , but also may take the councillors off the hook of responsibility for running down local services .
An 'Ulster' Clubs member stated - " And we've got a whole host of other opportunities for causing disruption ; obstructing the commissioners , that kind of thing . " In the wings , the Clubs are looking on , a bit grimly - " This is the politicians' last chance . If the councillors break ....the people won't stand for that , " says one rather bleak young man , over-estimating his own somewhat makeshift organisation . A more detached observer reckons no councillor will have to go the distance and go to jail , thus ending a local government career ! " The government will strike a rate - then what's the point of the courts penalising councillors for failing to ? "
Meanwhile , the 'working party' surveyed the scene in the wake of that damp and cold by-election , weighing the handsome Unionist total vote against Seamus Mallon's Westminster seat , and eventually decided they needed another gimmick . Perhaps a one-day strike ... ?
(MORE LATER).
FIRE AND BRIMSTONE .......
The Democratic Unionist Party would prefer a Civil War to acquiescence in a role for the Dublin Government in the affairs of the North of Ireland after the Anglo-Irish summit .
FINTAN O'TOOLE spoke to DUP activists about the depth of their opposition to the Anglo-Irish deal and their willingness to resort to violence .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , November 1985 .
Gregory Campbell , DUP , states - " Obviously I thought about their ( the Catholics in the Six Counties) deprivation and I thought about what kind of political structures there might be to bring about a better society , but there continued to be an attitude on their part that they were the only ones being discriminated against , and that I was part of the group that was discriminating against them . There seemed to be a continual diatribe against me , against people like me .
We were the first-class citizens and these people were separated , were downtrodden and different . And it never seemed to get across to them that the people they were agitating against were in exactly the same position as them . Maybe in the early days there was a socialist ideology in the Civil Rights Movement , but it was always couched in terms of republicanism which obviously distanced me and people like me from it . I joined the 'Young Unionist Movement' and I found myself campaigning for people that I was still socially opposed to . I found myself campaigning for people like Robin Chichester-Clarke , brother of the former Prime Minister , and to me that person was on a different social scale , a different planet , to me . The guy was a highbrow Tory who cared very little if at all for working-class Protestant people , who were the people who were electing him .
And gradually I moved over to the Protestant Unionist Party which , at that time , 1970-1971 , was just changing over to the DUP . "
Sammy Wilson , the DUP Chairperson of the Planning Committee of Belfast City Council , is also from a working-class background : " I've lived most of my life in East Belfast , which is perhaps in Belfast now the stomping ground for the DUP . It's a strongly traditional Loyalist area where there was a fair amount of social deprivation , far worse housing conditions even at present , and longer waiting lists for houses , than you have in West Belfast . I was attracted by the new dimension which the DUP introduced into Ulster (sic) politics and that was the radicalism which characterises Evangelical Protestantism , and which can be seen for instance in the kind of people who left here and went to form the backbone of the American revolution , their dislike of the old establishment and the system .
In the longer term it's the potential radicalism of the party which attracted me , representing as I do an area where there is terrible housing and other social problems . " He does not , however , like to be called a socialist - " I think it's one of the problems with those kind of labels in Northern Ireland (sic) that the constitutional question has really over-ridden other considerations . Socialism is , mainly because of the actions of the Labour Party , identified with republicanism ......." .......
(MORE LATER).
McFARLANE - THE INSIDE STORY .......
Last month , BRENDAN McFARLANE was ordered by a Dutch court to be extradited back to the North to serve out a sentence of 25 years . He is appealing the decision . His companion GERARD KELLY had his plea accepted that his offences were political . BRENDAN McFARLANE has been on the run since he led thirty-seven men in an escape out of the MAZE PRISON in September 1983 . In an exclusive interview with MAGILL at Bylmerbages Prison in Amsterdam , McFARLANE talks about his life , his youth and upbringing , and his involvement with the ARMED STRUGGLE in the North .
By DEREK DUNNE .
First published in 'MAGILL' magazine , April 1986 .
At 2.15 pm on Sunday 25 September 1983 , Brendan McFarlane and two others moved into the 'sensitive' area , the 'Circle' , of H-Block 7 . They were armed . The warders were overpowered in Wings A , B , C and D . One of the warders made a move to an alarm button and was shot . Warders were stripped and some of the prisoners put on their clothes . McFarlane walked towards the gate with the 'warders' and was let through ; the plan was to take over each gate , one at a time , and leave Provos behind dressed as warders . They commandeered a food lorry and they intended to replace any warders that challenged them with men from inside the lorry .
However , at what was known as 'the Tally Lodge ' , there were too many warders coming and going ; one of them started to blow his whistle - two cars pulled-up in front of the lorry and scuffles broke out . Some warders were stabbed . The Provos then apparently surrendered , and things calmed down . Then they made a rush across the fence ; the British Army was unable to fire on the fleeing men due to the confusion - there were prisoners dressed as warders , and warders in civilian clothing , all running across the fields . Cars were hijacked as soon as the road was reached . Nineteen men were recaptured almost immediately . Brendan McFarlane , by now dressed as a warder , led seven men to the road , took over three vehicles and drove off in the direction of Moira . They took over a secluded house belonging to a Protestant couple , the McFarlanes (no
relation) .
They were a few miles from the jail and still within roadblocks . McFarlane changed his clothes , took a torch , a map , a compass and food from the house . All eight men headed off to cross the border at 11 pm that night ; at 5 am the following morning , they decided to 'dig in' for the day . They watched as a helicopter flew over and back and listened as Garret FitzGerald ( Free State [Fine Gael] 'Taoiseach' ) said on the radio that if any of the escapees were caught , they would be handed back across the border .......
(MORE LATER).
(Please Note - the '1169...' crew will be 'shutting up shop' on Friday 15th July next for at least/about/hopefully (!) one week [maybe two - if the cash stretches... !] - we are off to the 'Sometimes Sunny Southeast' ; Waterford , for a bit of a break . Leave your e-mail address (on the back of a €50 note !) in the 'Guestbook' and we might send you a postcard . And you might also get spammed ... - Sharon :)
Tuesday, July 12, 2005
POLITICOS AND PARAMILITARIES .......
Fionnuala O'Connor on the struggle for the Loyalist leadership as the politicians and their paramilitary allies gear up for a strike .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , March 1986 .
The DUP's Frank Millar is a much-resented thirty-one year-old with no following ; not least because he repeatedly asks the most belligerent of his colleagues if they will themselves lead the fight they so often predict with apparent glee . Last week he told a BBC radio interviewer that no , he could not envisage any circumstances in which he would take to the streets and fight the members of the RUC .
The trouble is that not only do most of Millar's working party colleagues see the inevitability of confrontation with the RUC , but that there are almost as many different destinations envisaged for the campaign - independence , integration , a confederation of the 'British Isles' (including the 'Republic') , power-sharing of some kind - as there are working party members ! Which is perhaps inevitable , given the different elements of Unionism they represent .
Not to mention the state of Unionism , generally . It is pointless to try fitting the 'Ulster' Clubs , for example , into a neat scheme of Unionist opposition ; the old monolith is long gone and while talk of a mass identity-crisis is overdone , there is no doubt that unthinking allegiances have probably had their day . One of the many Official Unionists who have joined their local 'Ulster' Clubs defends their present function as a neutral , extra-party 'meeting-place' : but maintains their eventual place depends on circumstances -
- " Whether they'll 'slot in' behind the political parties as the infantry or take the lead fronted up by Robinson , who knows ? It's very like 1972-74 , when the lead moved from one group to another depending on circumstances ... " .......
(MORE LATER).
FIRE AND BRIMSTONE .......
The Democratic Unionist Party would prefer a Civil War to acquiescence in a role for the Dublin Government in the affairs of the North of Ireland after the Anglo-Irish summit .
FINTAN O'TOOLE spoke to DUP activists about the depth of their opposition to the Anglo-Irish deal and their willingness to resort to violence .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , November 1985 .
The Reverend Ivan Foster , DUP , states - " I have a dread in my heart at ever being under a Roman Catholic regime . I don't anticipate that if we were under a United Ireland tomorrow , that my house would be burned down and I'd be put out on the street and my children butchered , but without a shadow of a doubt , there are those who at this moment dislike me so much , not me as an individual but me as a being , that they are prepared to back those who would plan my murder and kill me , back them by their votes , back them by their support , back them by not turning them in .
Have I not got grounds for fearing therefore a political change that will give greater freedom to those people who feel that way ; freedom to express their opposition , to act out that opposition , act it out business-wise , social-wise , every way ? "
Gregory Campbell , in another world , might have been a socialist ; the Waterside in Derry where he has always lived is no bastion of Loyalist privilege - " My parents were'nt members of any political party , and paid no heed or interest to politics . My father was a serviceman in the navy . We were just the average Protestant family in Northern Ireland (sic) . The thing that pushed me into involvement in politics was the whole Civil Rights scenario , and the whole nationalist complaint and agitation that they were getting a raw deal . That was the clincher for me because I saw on the television screens and read in the papers where people like John Hume and the beginnings of the SDLP were agitating for Catholic rights , and at that same time I saw the type of community that John Hume was from and the type of living standards that they had , which were very similar to my own .
Barry White's biography of John Hume makes great play of the fact that Hume was a working-class Catholic - no bathroom , two up , two down , outside toilet . Well I had the exact same . I saw the nationalists were campaigning for better living conditions , jobs , voting rights , and yet everything that they were campaigning for , I had'nt got either . I had'nt got hot running water , I had to go outside to the toilet , I had all the disadvantages that the urban Catholic had , and yet they were campaigning as if it were an exclusive prerogative of Catholics to be discriminated against . I felt the exact same way ....... "
('1169... ' Comment : if Mr Gregory Campbell was happy with his lot , then that was his business ; but he had no right to insist that others should not seek to improve their living conditions . Or was it because those 'others' were Catholics ? Perhaps he was of the opinion that they were getting a bit 'uppity' ...)
(MORE LATER).
McFARLANE - THE INSIDE STORY .......
Last month , BRENDAN McFARLANE was ordered by a Dutch court to be extradited back to the North to serve out a sentence of 25 years . He is appealing the decision . His companion GERARD KELLY had his plea accepted that his offences were political . BRENDAN McFARLANE has been on the run since he led thirty-seven men in an escape out of the MAZE PRISON in September 1983 . In an exclusive interview with MAGILL at Bylmerbages Prison in Amsterdam , McFARLANE talks about his life , his youth and upbringing , and his involvement with the ARMED STRUGGLE in the North .
By DEREK DUNNE .
First published in 'MAGILL' magazine , April 1986 .
Brendan McFarlane is still visibly shaken and emotional when he talks about the 1981 hunger-strike : he had smuggled a 'crystal' radio into his cell and had an aerial hooked-up to it - he left it on at night so that he could hear the news in the morning . He listened to the BBC news at 2am , and learned that Bobby Sands had died at 1.17am ; " I was shattered , " he says .
He was considered the 'soft underbelly' by the British , in relation to the hunger strike ; he knew each of the men personally and had a close friendship with Sinn Fein leaders on the outside , especially Gerry Adams . During this time he became pale , tense and nervous . The ten men who died on hunger strike are never far from his mind - " There's not a day goes by but I don't think of them . It was a traumatic experience and it took a lot out of me mentally and physically . I never experienced anything like it in my life , and I don't think I ever will . Just talking with guys two and three and four days before they died . It's very hard to see it , to feel it ...the pressure ... the dedication they had . I've never seen anything like it anywhere . "
After it was over , the men began to re-group and build on the concessions that they had gained from the hunger strike ; they as good as had their five demands , even if they were known by another name . Out of that came the Armalite/Ballot Box strategy - Brendan McFarlane says that "...it came out of the forces of the establishment lined up against the Republican Movement . It was progress on a big scale . Otherwise how could we get 43 per cent of the Nationalist vote ? " ('1169...' Comment - "progress on a big scale" ? Not as far as this scribbler is concerned . It gave the 'wannabe' politicians in the Movement the leverage to eventually 'water down' the actual objectives [as opposed to the then stated objectives] of the Sinn Fein organisation ; 'nationalists' [as opposed to Republicans] began to show an interest in the organisation as they [correctly] figured it was attempting to 'turn its back ' on what they termed "violence" and which we considered , and still do , as self-defence in a just war . If "progress" can be measured in "votes" , then Fianna Fail , for instance , or the Unionist partys , are much more 'progressive' ! And what "per centage" had Wolfe Tone got ? Or Padraig Pearse ? )
Brendan McFarlane subscribes to the idea that no matter what military operations are carried out by the IRA , their support will not fall below a certain level .
But if the men were building on the reforms gained , they were also thinking of escape - Brendan McFarlane was instrumental in the planning of the mass break-out from Long Kesh (re-named the Maze) in September 1983 . He led thirty-seven men through the wire .......
(MORE LATER).
(Please Note - the '1169...' crew will be 'shutting up shop' on Friday 15th July next for at least/about/hopefully (!) one week [maybe two - if the cash stretches... !] - we are off to the 'Sometimes Sunny Southeast' ; Waterford , for a bit of a break . Leave your e-mail address (on the back of a €50 note !) in the 'Guestbook' and we might send you a postcard . And you might also get spammed ... - Sharon :)
Fionnuala O'Connor on the struggle for the Loyalist leadership as the politicians and their paramilitary allies gear up for a strike .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , March 1986 .
The DUP's Frank Millar is a much-resented thirty-one year-old with no following ; not least because he repeatedly asks the most belligerent of his colleagues if they will themselves lead the fight they so often predict with apparent glee . Last week he told a BBC radio interviewer that no , he could not envisage any circumstances in which he would take to the streets and fight the members of the RUC .
The trouble is that not only do most of Millar's working party colleagues see the inevitability of confrontation with the RUC , but that there are almost as many different destinations envisaged for the campaign - independence , integration , a confederation of the 'British Isles' (including the 'Republic') , power-sharing of some kind - as there are working party members ! Which is perhaps inevitable , given the different elements of Unionism they represent .
Not to mention the state of Unionism , generally . It is pointless to try fitting the 'Ulster' Clubs , for example , into a neat scheme of Unionist opposition ; the old monolith is long gone and while talk of a mass identity-crisis is overdone , there is no doubt that unthinking allegiances have probably had their day . One of the many Official Unionists who have joined their local 'Ulster' Clubs defends their present function as a neutral , extra-party 'meeting-place' : but maintains their eventual place depends on circumstances -
- " Whether they'll 'slot in' behind the political parties as the infantry or take the lead fronted up by Robinson , who knows ? It's very like 1972-74 , when the lead moved from one group to another depending on circumstances ... " .......
(MORE LATER).
FIRE AND BRIMSTONE .......
The Democratic Unionist Party would prefer a Civil War to acquiescence in a role for the Dublin Government in the affairs of the North of Ireland after the Anglo-Irish summit .
FINTAN O'TOOLE spoke to DUP activists about the depth of their opposition to the Anglo-Irish deal and their willingness to resort to violence .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , November 1985 .
The Reverend Ivan Foster , DUP , states - " I have a dread in my heart at ever being under a Roman Catholic regime . I don't anticipate that if we were under a United Ireland tomorrow , that my house would be burned down and I'd be put out on the street and my children butchered , but without a shadow of a doubt , there are those who at this moment dislike me so much , not me as an individual but me as a being , that they are prepared to back those who would plan my murder and kill me , back them by their votes , back them by their support , back them by not turning them in .
Have I not got grounds for fearing therefore a political change that will give greater freedom to those people who feel that way ; freedom to express their opposition , to act out that opposition , act it out business-wise , social-wise , every way ? "
Gregory Campbell , in another world , might have been a socialist ; the Waterside in Derry where he has always lived is no bastion of Loyalist privilege - " My parents were'nt members of any political party , and paid no heed or interest to politics . My father was a serviceman in the navy . We were just the average Protestant family in Northern Ireland (sic) . The thing that pushed me into involvement in politics was the whole Civil Rights scenario , and the whole nationalist complaint and agitation that they were getting a raw deal . That was the clincher for me because I saw on the television screens and read in the papers where people like John Hume and the beginnings of the SDLP were agitating for Catholic rights , and at that same time I saw the type of community that John Hume was from and the type of living standards that they had , which were very similar to my own .
Barry White's biography of John Hume makes great play of the fact that Hume was a working-class Catholic - no bathroom , two up , two down , outside toilet . Well I had the exact same . I saw the nationalists were campaigning for better living conditions , jobs , voting rights , and yet everything that they were campaigning for , I had'nt got either . I had'nt got hot running water , I had to go outside to the toilet , I had all the disadvantages that the urban Catholic had , and yet they were campaigning as if it were an exclusive prerogative of Catholics to be discriminated against . I felt the exact same way ....... "
('1169... ' Comment : if Mr Gregory Campbell was happy with his lot , then that was his business ; but he had no right to insist that others should not seek to improve their living conditions . Or was it because those 'others' were Catholics ? Perhaps he was of the opinion that they were getting a bit 'uppity' ...)
(MORE LATER).
McFARLANE - THE INSIDE STORY .......
Last month , BRENDAN McFARLANE was ordered by a Dutch court to be extradited back to the North to serve out a sentence of 25 years . He is appealing the decision . His companion GERARD KELLY had his plea accepted that his offences were political . BRENDAN McFARLANE has been on the run since he led thirty-seven men in an escape out of the MAZE PRISON in September 1983 . In an exclusive interview with MAGILL at Bylmerbages Prison in Amsterdam , McFARLANE talks about his life , his youth and upbringing , and his involvement with the ARMED STRUGGLE in the North .
By DEREK DUNNE .
First published in 'MAGILL' magazine , April 1986 .
Brendan McFarlane is still visibly shaken and emotional when he talks about the 1981 hunger-strike : he had smuggled a 'crystal' radio into his cell and had an aerial hooked-up to it - he left it on at night so that he could hear the news in the morning . He listened to the BBC news at 2am , and learned that Bobby Sands had died at 1.17am ; " I was shattered , " he says .
He was considered the 'soft underbelly' by the British , in relation to the hunger strike ; he knew each of the men personally and had a close friendship with Sinn Fein leaders on the outside , especially Gerry Adams . During this time he became pale , tense and nervous . The ten men who died on hunger strike are never far from his mind - " There's not a day goes by but I don't think of them . It was a traumatic experience and it took a lot out of me mentally and physically . I never experienced anything like it in my life , and I don't think I ever will . Just talking with guys two and three and four days before they died . It's very hard to see it , to feel it ...the pressure ... the dedication they had . I've never seen anything like it anywhere . "
After it was over , the men began to re-group and build on the concessions that they had gained from the hunger strike ; they as good as had their five demands , even if they were known by another name . Out of that came the Armalite/Ballot Box strategy - Brendan McFarlane says that "...it came out of the forces of the establishment lined up against the Republican Movement . It was progress on a big scale . Otherwise how could we get 43 per cent of the Nationalist vote ? " ('1169...' Comment - "progress on a big scale" ? Not as far as this scribbler is concerned . It gave the 'wannabe' politicians in the Movement the leverage to eventually 'water down' the actual objectives [as opposed to the then stated objectives] of the Sinn Fein organisation ; 'nationalists' [as opposed to Republicans] began to show an interest in the organisation as they [correctly] figured it was attempting to 'turn its back ' on what they termed "violence" and which we considered , and still do , as self-defence in a just war . If "progress" can be measured in "votes" , then Fianna Fail , for instance , or the Unionist partys , are much more 'progressive' ! And what "per centage" had Wolfe Tone got ? Or Padraig Pearse ? )
Brendan McFarlane subscribes to the idea that no matter what military operations are carried out by the IRA , their support will not fall below a certain level .
But if the men were building on the reforms gained , they were also thinking of escape - Brendan McFarlane was instrumental in the planning of the mass break-out from Long Kesh (re-named the Maze) in September 1983 . He led thirty-seven men through the wire .......
(MORE LATER).
(Please Note - the '1169...' crew will be 'shutting up shop' on Friday 15th July next for at least/about/hopefully (!) one week [maybe two - if the cash stretches... !] - we are off to the 'Sometimes Sunny Southeast' ; Waterford , for a bit of a break . Leave your e-mail address (on the back of a €50 note !) in the 'Guestbook' and we might send you a postcard . And you might also get spammed ... - Sharon :)
Monday, July 11, 2005
POLITICOS AND PARAMILITARIES .......
Fionnuala O'Connor on the struggle for the Loyalist leadership as the politicians and their paramilitary allies gear up for a strike .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , March 1986 .
The Unionist political parties and the 'Ulster' Clubs have worked together on plans for a one-day strike ; the push came from the DUP , through their representatives on the joint Official Unionist /DUP anti-agreement working party .
Peter Robinson and Harold McCusker duly went off to meet the Clubs' Steering Committee - the UDA's John McMichael among them . " Well , they needed us , did'nt they ? " says a cynical Clubs man . " They need someone to do the blockades , cut the power , stop the milk ... " He would'nt be drawn on the details , nor on whether he - and the politicians - had in mind a re-run of the unsavoury scenes in the 1974 strike's first uncertain week , when the presence of large numbers of paramilitaries at barricades on the streets over successive days convinced the workers to stay at home .
What is becoming clearer is that the DUP people on the joint political working party want a full-scale strike after their rehearsal , and they want it soon . Frank Millar's statement on the 'Panorama' programme constituted the first public comment from within the joint Unionist working party on the risks and difficulties of the present campaign , especially for Official Unionists ; he wound-up ringingly .... " I am re-echoing the oft-repeated declaration of Mr. Molyneaux and Dr. Paisley that violence has no part to play in the Anglo-Irish Agreement - that we as politicians are resolved , as we can only be resolved , to defeat that Agreement by way of political action .
The 420,000 who voted for us want us to do whatever is necessary to defeat the Anglo-Irish Agreement and we have undertaken to do that . We are confident we can do that . I think they equally expect us to give them the assurance that we know where we are intending to go , that we have a coherent , well-thought-out strategy and that our intention at all times is to steer a steady course through danger to safety . "
Frank Millar is highly articulate , perhaps the Unionist most aware of British perceptions of Unionist behaviour and the most capable of tailoring a campaign to suit . He is also a much-resented thirty-one year-old with no following .......
(MORE LATER).
FIRE AND BRIMSTONE .......
The Democratic Unionist Party would prefer a Civil War to acquiescence in a role for the Dublin Government in the affairs of the North of Ireland after the Anglo-Irish summit .
FINTAN O'TOOLE spoke to DUP activists about the depth of their opposition to the Anglo-Irish deal and their willingness to resort to violence .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , November 1985 .
Jim Allister , the DUP's Chief Whip and former 'Personal Assistant' to Ian Paisley , says that his own parents "...had to move north out of the Irish republic (sic) where they were born . "
" I live in Fermanagh , " says Ivan Foster , " I have always lived in Fermanagh . That's only a hop and a skip across the border . I know the Protestants across the border , and I know what they endured . Nothing visible , but what they had to put up with when they went to the mart , when they went to the shop , when they were looking for financial assistance . Whenever anyone else had a problem , they had ten problems . It was civilised behaviour , it may have forbade the use of the scythe and the billhook , but it did'nt stop the manifestation of that animosity towards them .
And I think it has been subdued so much over the last forty , fifty years because there was still a section of Ireland that had to be re-taken , as it were , and it was no good pretending to be the best of friends while at the same time you were openly hammering the life out of Protestants . So the very existence of the Protestant majority in the north (sic) was the greatest guarantee that the Protestants in the south were at least given some degree of freedom .
Even if that were not the case , you can't tell me that the people who are prepared to back murderers will not do me any harm if they get the chance ....... "
(MORE LATER).
McFARLANE - THE INSIDE STORY .......
Last month , BRENDAN McFARLANE was ordered by a Dutch court to be extradited back to the North to serve out a sentence of 25 years . He is appealing the decision . His companion GERARD KELLY had his plea accepted that his offences were political . BRENDAN McFARLANE has been on the run since he led thirty-seven men in an escape out of the MAZE PRISON in September 1983 . In an exclusive interview with MAGILL at Bylmerbages Prison in Amsterdam , McFARLANE talks about his life , his youth and upbringing , and his involvement with the ARMED STRUGGLE in the North .
By DEREK DUNNE .
First published in 'MAGILL' magazine , April 1986 .
The 3 Republican prisoners - Brendan McFarlane , Pat McKeon and Larry Marley - had escaped from Long Kesh , but were re-captured almost immediately . They were deemed to have left Cage 11 , Long Kesh , voluntarily , lost their political status and were transferred to the H-Blocks ; Brendan McFarlane had his clothes taken from him and was told to do prison work - he refused and joined others 'on the blanket ' : the men were locked in their cells , with no association . Their new environment was very restricted .
The prisoners shouted to each other from cell to cell , passing information , learning Irish , and so on . They sang and played quizzes to keep their spirits up ; they had reckoned that it was going to be a short protest . Towards the end of 1978 , forced washes and hair cuts were being introduced . Brendan McFarlane resisted and got a busted eye . As the men in H-Blocks began to be moved from cell to cell , they were learning from the writing on the wall . For example , the past tense of an Irish verb might be on one wall , the future tense on another and the present tense on another - "Jailic" , they called it ! In the beginning , they were scratched out . Later on , they were written in shit . Gradually , they came to accept that it was going to be a long-term struggle and resigned themselves to it .
Thirty-two men were put in isolation in an attempt to break the protests - it had the opposite effect and even more men went 'on the blanket.' Outside the prison , the Republican leadership was less than enthusiastic about taking on the political status issue in a major way for fear that it would hijack the entire Movement , and everything else would take second place . By the end of 1979 , the prisoners decided to take matters into their own hands : a hunger strike was decided and Brendan McFarlane volunteered - he was'nt chosen . The hunger strike went on for seven weeks and was called off coming up to Christmas in 1980 . The men believed that their five demands had been acceded to ; these included association , their own clothes , visits , parcels and remission . However , the deal did'nt stand up .
With the failure of the hunger strike , the men on the inside formulated another strategy , which both Brendan McFarlane and Bobby Sands were instrumental in shaping . McFarlane took over as 'Officer in Command' of the H-Blocks , representing over 400 men , on 1st March 1981 , when Bobby Sands went on hunger strike . Sands had passed the leadership to him , and it had also been ratified by the men .
Brendan McFarlane did'nt get to see Bobby Sands until almost the end , when he was very weak . All he said to him was " I'm dying ... " .......
(MORE LATER).
(Please Note - the '1169...' crew will be 'shutting up shop' on Friday 15th July next for at least/about/hopefully (!) one week [maybe two - if the cash stretches... !] - we are off to the 'Sometimes Sunny Southeast' ; Waterford , for a bit of a break . Leave your e-mail address (on the back of a €50 note !) in the 'Guestbook' and we might send you a postcard . And you might also get spammed ... - Sharon :)
Fionnuala O'Connor on the struggle for the Loyalist leadership as the politicians and their paramilitary allies gear up for a strike .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , March 1986 .
The Unionist political parties and the 'Ulster' Clubs have worked together on plans for a one-day strike ; the push came from the DUP , through their representatives on the joint Official Unionist /DUP anti-agreement working party .
Peter Robinson and Harold McCusker duly went off to meet the Clubs' Steering Committee - the UDA's John McMichael among them . " Well , they needed us , did'nt they ? " says a cynical Clubs man . " They need someone to do the blockades , cut the power , stop the milk ... " He would'nt be drawn on the details , nor on whether he - and the politicians - had in mind a re-run of the unsavoury scenes in the 1974 strike's first uncertain week , when the presence of large numbers of paramilitaries at barricades on the streets over successive days convinced the workers to stay at home .
What is becoming clearer is that the DUP people on the joint political working party want a full-scale strike after their rehearsal , and they want it soon . Frank Millar's statement on the 'Panorama' programme constituted the first public comment from within the joint Unionist working party on the risks and difficulties of the present campaign , especially for Official Unionists ; he wound-up ringingly .... " I am re-echoing the oft-repeated declaration of Mr. Molyneaux and Dr. Paisley that violence has no part to play in the Anglo-Irish Agreement - that we as politicians are resolved , as we can only be resolved , to defeat that Agreement by way of political action .
The 420,000 who voted for us want us to do whatever is necessary to defeat the Anglo-Irish Agreement and we have undertaken to do that . We are confident we can do that . I think they equally expect us to give them the assurance that we know where we are intending to go , that we have a coherent , well-thought-out strategy and that our intention at all times is to steer a steady course through danger to safety . "
Frank Millar is highly articulate , perhaps the Unionist most aware of British perceptions of Unionist behaviour and the most capable of tailoring a campaign to suit . He is also a much-resented thirty-one year-old with no following .......
(MORE LATER).
FIRE AND BRIMSTONE .......
The Democratic Unionist Party would prefer a Civil War to acquiescence in a role for the Dublin Government in the affairs of the North of Ireland after the Anglo-Irish summit .
FINTAN O'TOOLE spoke to DUP activists about the depth of their opposition to the Anglo-Irish deal and their willingness to resort to violence .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , November 1985 .
Jim Allister , the DUP's Chief Whip and former 'Personal Assistant' to Ian Paisley , says that his own parents "...had to move north out of the Irish republic (sic) where they were born . "
" I live in Fermanagh , " says Ivan Foster , " I have always lived in Fermanagh . That's only a hop and a skip across the border . I know the Protestants across the border , and I know what they endured . Nothing visible , but what they had to put up with when they went to the mart , when they went to the shop , when they were looking for financial assistance . Whenever anyone else had a problem , they had ten problems . It was civilised behaviour , it may have forbade the use of the scythe and the billhook , but it did'nt stop the manifestation of that animosity towards them .
And I think it has been subdued so much over the last forty , fifty years because there was still a section of Ireland that had to be re-taken , as it were , and it was no good pretending to be the best of friends while at the same time you were openly hammering the life out of Protestants . So the very existence of the Protestant majority in the north (sic) was the greatest guarantee that the Protestants in the south were at least given some degree of freedom .
Even if that were not the case , you can't tell me that the people who are prepared to back murderers will not do me any harm if they get the chance ....... "
(MORE LATER).
McFARLANE - THE INSIDE STORY .......
Last month , BRENDAN McFARLANE was ordered by a Dutch court to be extradited back to the North to serve out a sentence of 25 years . He is appealing the decision . His companion GERARD KELLY had his plea accepted that his offences were political . BRENDAN McFARLANE has been on the run since he led thirty-seven men in an escape out of the MAZE PRISON in September 1983 . In an exclusive interview with MAGILL at Bylmerbages Prison in Amsterdam , McFARLANE talks about his life , his youth and upbringing , and his involvement with the ARMED STRUGGLE in the North .
By DEREK DUNNE .
First published in 'MAGILL' magazine , April 1986 .
The 3 Republican prisoners - Brendan McFarlane , Pat McKeon and Larry Marley - had escaped from Long Kesh , but were re-captured almost immediately . They were deemed to have left Cage 11 , Long Kesh , voluntarily , lost their political status and were transferred to the H-Blocks ; Brendan McFarlane had his clothes taken from him and was told to do prison work - he refused and joined others 'on the blanket ' : the men were locked in their cells , with no association . Their new environment was very restricted .
The prisoners shouted to each other from cell to cell , passing information , learning Irish , and so on . They sang and played quizzes to keep their spirits up ; they had reckoned that it was going to be a short protest . Towards the end of 1978 , forced washes and hair cuts were being introduced . Brendan McFarlane resisted and got a busted eye . As the men in H-Blocks began to be moved from cell to cell , they were learning from the writing on the wall . For example , the past tense of an Irish verb might be on one wall , the future tense on another and the present tense on another - "Jailic" , they called it ! In the beginning , they were scratched out . Later on , they were written in shit . Gradually , they came to accept that it was going to be a long-term struggle and resigned themselves to it .
Thirty-two men were put in isolation in an attempt to break the protests - it had the opposite effect and even more men went 'on the blanket.' Outside the prison , the Republican leadership was less than enthusiastic about taking on the political status issue in a major way for fear that it would hijack the entire Movement , and everything else would take second place . By the end of 1979 , the prisoners decided to take matters into their own hands : a hunger strike was decided and Brendan McFarlane volunteered - he was'nt chosen . The hunger strike went on for seven weeks and was called off coming up to Christmas in 1980 . The men believed that their five demands had been acceded to ; these included association , their own clothes , visits , parcels and remission . However , the deal did'nt stand up .
With the failure of the hunger strike , the men on the inside formulated another strategy , which both Brendan McFarlane and Bobby Sands were instrumental in shaping . McFarlane took over as 'Officer in Command' of the H-Blocks , representing over 400 men , on 1st March 1981 , when Bobby Sands went on hunger strike . Sands had passed the leadership to him , and it had also been ratified by the men .
Brendan McFarlane did'nt get to see Bobby Sands until almost the end , when he was very weak . All he said to him was " I'm dying ... " .......
(MORE LATER).
(Please Note - the '1169...' crew will be 'shutting up shop' on Friday 15th July next for at least/about/hopefully (!) one week [maybe two - if the cash stretches... !] - we are off to the 'Sometimes Sunny Southeast' ; Waterford , for a bit of a break . Leave your e-mail address (on the back of a €50 note !) in the 'Guestbook' and we might send you a postcard . And you might also get spammed ... - Sharon :)
Friday, July 08, 2005
POLITICOS AND PARAMILITARIES .......
Fionnuala O'Connor on the struggle for the Loyalist leadership as the politicians and their paramilitary allies gear up for a strike .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , March 1986 .
Frank Millar , General Secretary of the Official Unionist Party , said what concerned him about that TV 'Panorama' programme (on the Hillsborough Treaty) were the conclusions that a " .. national audience .. " (sic : he meant 'British') might draw from it - " They might easily have concluded that the politicians were redundant or soon to be so , or worse, that the politicians were working in consort with the Ulster Clubs and other individuals featured in pursuit of a common goal and a common destination . That is not the case . "
But whatever about the goal and the destination , the politicians have been working with the Ulster Clubs ! There may be no co-ordinating 'Ulster' Workers' Council , as in the Loyalist general strike of 1974 , to unite paramilitaries and politicians in daily planning - as yet . Perhaps the time simply has'nt come yet ...
In the meanwhile frequent meetings of leading individuals supplement the considerable dual membership of both political parties and the clubs . Frank Millar's party's Deputy Leader , Harold McCusker , is in constant contact with Alan Wright , a near neighbour in Portadown , where the whole 'Clubs' business started . The two Unionist party leaders , Ian Paisley and Millar's boss Jim Molyneaux , have been kept informed by the Clubs every step of the way of their progress and intentions ; they were sent the Clubs' constitution to consider as soon as it was drawn up .
DUP Deputy Leader Peter Robinson , more than any other leading politician , has kept the lines of contact open , and is said by Clubs people to be Alan Wright's guide and hero .......
(MORE LATER).
FIRE AND BRIMSTONE .......
The Democratic Unionist Party would prefer a Civil War to acquiescence in a role for the Dublin Government in the affairs of the North of Ireland after the Anglo-Irish summit .
FINTAN O'TOOLE spoke to DUP activists about the depth of their opposition to the Anglo-Irish deal and their willingness to resort to violence .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , November 1985 .
Jim Wells (DUP) stated - " If the (Catholic) priests can get twelve million pounds for an airport in the middle of a bog in Mayo , what can they not do to Protestants ? Many Protestants would just have to get up and leave under those circumstances , they just would'nt tolerate it . My view of the south is coloured by the experience of my relatives who refused to live in the south .
My wife's mother was born in the Irish republic and all her folk lived in Cavan and Monaghan . And one hears the experience that they went through as Protestants in the Irish republic , and the way that they were discriminated against overtly and covertly , and the way in which for instance they found it difficult to be educated except by nuns and priests and found it difficult to get teaching jobs because they could'nt speak Irish .
Their civil liberties , in the form of birth control , divorce , that sort of thing , were controlled by a Catholic-dominated state , and many thousands of them were forced to come up here and live in Northern Ireland . (sic) When we see the way they were treated in the south , then that is enough to convince us that we don't want to go there .
But could I say that even if the streets of Dublin were paved with gold and even if Ian Paisley were allowed to write the constitution , and if Dublin was a state (sic) flowing with milk and honey and motorways - which you don't have , by the way - and all the paraphernalia of a western civilised society , we still would not be interested . "
That sense of a threat to Protestant faith by the southern state goes deep in the DUP .......
(MORE LATER).
McFARLANE - THE INSIDE STORY .......
Last month , BRENDAN McFARLANE was ordered by a Dutch court to be extradited back to the North to serve out a sentence of 25 years . He is appealing the decision . His companion GERARD KELLY had his plea accepted that his offences were political . BRENDAN McFARLANE has been on the run since he led thirty-seven men in an escape out of the MAZE PRISON in September 1983 . In an exclusive interview with MAGILL at Bylmerbages Prison in Amsterdam , McFARLANE talks about his life , his youth and upbringing , and his involvement with the ARMED STRUGGLE in the North .
By DEREK DUNNE .
First published in 'MAGILL' magazine , April 1986 .
In 1976 , the British withdrew political status from the prisoners ; in this period , the Provos announced that prison warders were now legitimate targets . One was shot dead outside Crumlin Road Prison , leading to increased tension in the prison which in turn led to disturbances .
After sentence in the middle of 1976 , Brendan McFarlane was moved to Cage 11 , Long Kesh , to serve out his sentence until the year 2001 . Life was more relaxed there than it had been in Crumlin Road , and contact with prison warders was minimal . The 'Truce' was over and the Provos were being jailed in increasing numbers ; among those who were serving sentences there at that time was current Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams . The Provos had lectures and discussion groups and had their own command structure . Brendan McFarlane was already very highly politicised .
And then on the last day of March 1978 , McFarlane , Pat McKeon and Larry Marley donned prison officer uniforms they had made themselves and tried to escape . Brendan McFarlane had been well-liked by the prison warders ; he was out-going and played various musical instruments . The warders had built up a relationship with him , and even though they knew how dangerous he was , they could'nt square that with the man they knew , according to those who were serving time with him .
The three prisoners made their way to the gate , intending to take a warder's car ; they had forged passes but before they reached the gates , they discovered that the style of the passes had been changed the previous week . Seeing vans coming and going , they decided to sneak out on the blind-side of one of them . A prison warder who knew them spotted them but did'nt say anything - just let them through : they had an imitation firearm . Once outside , they were caught almost immediately .......
(MORE LATER).
Fionnuala O'Connor on the struggle for the Loyalist leadership as the politicians and their paramilitary allies gear up for a strike .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , March 1986 .
Frank Millar , General Secretary of the Official Unionist Party , said what concerned him about that TV 'Panorama' programme (on the Hillsborough Treaty) were the conclusions that a " .. national audience .. " (sic : he meant 'British') might draw from it - " They might easily have concluded that the politicians were redundant or soon to be so , or worse, that the politicians were working in consort with the Ulster Clubs and other individuals featured in pursuit of a common goal and a common destination . That is not the case . "
But whatever about the goal and the destination , the politicians have been working with the Ulster Clubs ! There may be no co-ordinating 'Ulster' Workers' Council , as in the Loyalist general strike of 1974 , to unite paramilitaries and politicians in daily planning - as yet . Perhaps the time simply has'nt come yet ...
In the meanwhile frequent meetings of leading individuals supplement the considerable dual membership of both political parties and the clubs . Frank Millar's party's Deputy Leader , Harold McCusker , is in constant contact with Alan Wright , a near neighbour in Portadown , where the whole 'Clubs' business started . The two Unionist party leaders , Ian Paisley and Millar's boss Jim Molyneaux , have been kept informed by the Clubs every step of the way of their progress and intentions ; they were sent the Clubs' constitution to consider as soon as it was drawn up .
DUP Deputy Leader Peter Robinson , more than any other leading politician , has kept the lines of contact open , and is said by Clubs people to be Alan Wright's guide and hero .......
(MORE LATER).
FIRE AND BRIMSTONE .......
The Democratic Unionist Party would prefer a Civil War to acquiescence in a role for the Dublin Government in the affairs of the North of Ireland after the Anglo-Irish summit .
FINTAN O'TOOLE spoke to DUP activists about the depth of their opposition to the Anglo-Irish deal and their willingness to resort to violence .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , November 1985 .
Jim Wells (DUP) stated - " If the (Catholic) priests can get twelve million pounds for an airport in the middle of a bog in Mayo , what can they not do to Protestants ? Many Protestants would just have to get up and leave under those circumstances , they just would'nt tolerate it . My view of the south is coloured by the experience of my relatives who refused to live in the south .
My wife's mother was born in the Irish republic and all her folk lived in Cavan and Monaghan . And one hears the experience that they went through as Protestants in the Irish republic , and the way that they were discriminated against overtly and covertly , and the way in which for instance they found it difficult to be educated except by nuns and priests and found it difficult to get teaching jobs because they could'nt speak Irish .
Their civil liberties , in the form of birth control , divorce , that sort of thing , were controlled by a Catholic-dominated state , and many thousands of them were forced to come up here and live in Northern Ireland . (sic) When we see the way they were treated in the south , then that is enough to convince us that we don't want to go there .
But could I say that even if the streets of Dublin were paved with gold and even if Ian Paisley were allowed to write the constitution , and if Dublin was a state (sic) flowing with milk and honey and motorways - which you don't have , by the way - and all the paraphernalia of a western civilised society , we still would not be interested . "
That sense of a threat to Protestant faith by the southern state goes deep in the DUP .......
(MORE LATER).
McFARLANE - THE INSIDE STORY .......
Last month , BRENDAN McFARLANE was ordered by a Dutch court to be extradited back to the North to serve out a sentence of 25 years . He is appealing the decision . His companion GERARD KELLY had his plea accepted that his offences were political . BRENDAN McFARLANE has been on the run since he led thirty-seven men in an escape out of the MAZE PRISON in September 1983 . In an exclusive interview with MAGILL at Bylmerbages Prison in Amsterdam , McFARLANE talks about his life , his youth and upbringing , and his involvement with the ARMED STRUGGLE in the North .
By DEREK DUNNE .
First published in 'MAGILL' magazine , April 1986 .
In 1976 , the British withdrew political status from the prisoners ; in this period , the Provos announced that prison warders were now legitimate targets . One was shot dead outside Crumlin Road Prison , leading to increased tension in the prison which in turn led to disturbances .
After sentence in the middle of 1976 , Brendan McFarlane was moved to Cage 11 , Long Kesh , to serve out his sentence until the year 2001 . Life was more relaxed there than it had been in Crumlin Road , and contact with prison warders was minimal . The 'Truce' was over and the Provos were being jailed in increasing numbers ; among those who were serving sentences there at that time was current Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams . The Provos had lectures and discussion groups and had their own command structure . Brendan McFarlane was already very highly politicised .
And then on the last day of March 1978 , McFarlane , Pat McKeon and Larry Marley donned prison officer uniforms they had made themselves and tried to escape . Brendan McFarlane had been well-liked by the prison warders ; he was out-going and played various musical instruments . The warders had built up a relationship with him , and even though they knew how dangerous he was , they could'nt square that with the man they knew , according to those who were serving time with him .
The three prisoners made their way to the gate , intending to take a warder's car ; they had forged passes but before they reached the gates , they discovered that the style of the passes had been changed the previous week . Seeing vans coming and going , they decided to sneak out on the blind-side of one of them . A prison warder who knew them spotted them but did'nt say anything - just let them through : they had an imitation firearm . Once outside , they were caught almost immediately .......
(MORE LATER).
Thursday, July 07, 2005
POLITICOS AND PARAMILITARIES .
Fionnuala O'Connor on the struggle for the Loyalist leadership as the politicians and their paramilitary allies gear up for a strike .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , March 1986 .
A week ago , a leading Official Unionist thought it necessary to put out a statement of re-assurance - to his own Loyalist community , and to the British public . He was upset by a BBC TV 'Panorama' programme on the Unionist response to the Anglo-Irish Agreement (ie the 1985 Hillsborough Treaty) .
In particular he had clearly been annoyed by the rhetoric of Alan Wright , spokesman for the 'Ulster Clubs' , and by that of one of his own Official Unionist Party members , the outspoken County Derry man , Esmond Thompson : Wright spoke of a people's army and the inevitability of conflict with the RUC , while Thompson spoke of the preparations under way for a last-ditch struggle , the "...specifications.. " already issued for necessary materials .
The UDA's second-in-command , John McMichael , a founder-member of the 'Ulster Clubs' , appeared on screen taking industrious notes in the front row at a meeting addressed by Alan Wright . 'Ulster Clubs' people were'nt altogether happy with the loose talk on the TV programme either - but their reason was entirely to do with security and timing . Esmond Thompson had no right to appear as a spokesman and was a little premature , Wright was too chatty , "...a bit carried away .. " .
But it is honestly , if privately , admitted that Esmond Thompson , in his talk of warlike preparations , spoke nothing but the truth .......
(MORE LATER).
FIRE AND BRIMSTONE .......
The Democratic Unionist Party would prefer a Civil War to acquiescence in a role for the Dublin Government in the affairs of the North of Ireland after the Anglo-Irish summit .
FINTAN O'TOOLE spoke to DUP activists about the depth of their opposition to the Anglo-Irish deal and their willingness to resort to violence .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , November 1985 .
Gregory Campbell also wants to 'preserve' the purity (sic) of the Protestant people and is against mixed marriages - " I make a distinction between integrated schooling and mixed marriages . I would be quite happy for my child to go to a school where Protestants and Catholics were taught together , but I would not be happy for my child to marry a Roman Catholic . I would be quite happy that the way I am bringing up my children would be sufficient to enable them to hold to their Protestantism no matter what their school environment would be .
But that would be a different step from the child growing into a mature adult and then marrying a person who is not of the faith which she has been brought up to believe is the correct faith . If she chooses to do that , that's her affair , but it would not be with my blessing . I would hope that my children would grow up to be evangelical Protestants with a belief in the bible . That belief in the bible should preclude them from marrying someone who does not have the faith in the bible that they have . Also from a political point of view essentially what you are doing is asking a unionist to marry a nationalist and that is too much to ask . "
That deep-seated evangelical Protestantism is central to the DUP , and the fear of religious persecution is a large part of their fear of a United Ireland . Jim Wells sums up the objections to Catholicism : " We find much of Roman Catholic doctrine repugnant . I find repugnant the fact that any man has the right to forgive sins , that Christ can be recreated on the alter of the Mass , Sunday after Sunday ; that the Virgin Mary is regarded as a deity that can be prayed to , who can forgive sins and heal the sick and all that , that shrines which can supposedly move in Ballinspittle or wherever it is can delude thousands into believing that there are some magical powers .
That is superstition of almost African tribal levels , which we find totally repugnant , and we just do not wish a situation to arise where we would find ourselves dominated by that type of system ....... "
(MORE LATER).
McFARLANE - THE INSIDE STORY .......
Last month , BRENDAN McFARLANE was ordered by a Dutch court to be extradited back to the North to serve out a sentence of 25 years . He is appealing the decision . His companion GERARD KELLY had his plea accepted that his offences were political . BRENDAN McFARLANE has been on the run since he led thirty-seven men in an escape out of the MAZE PRISON in September 1983 . In an exclusive interview with MAGILL at Bylmerbages Prison in Amsterdam , McFARLANE talks about his life , his youth and upbringing , and his involvement with the ARMED STRUGGLE in the North .
By DEREK DUNNE .
First published in 'MAGILL' magazine , April 1986 .
At the start of 1975 , the Provisionals' truce came into effect and loyalist assassination gangs re-emerged ; Ardoyne was a prime target for them , and the truce came under considerable strain . In July 1975 , four British soldiers were killed in retaliation for the shooting dead of two Provos , Francis Jordan in Bessbrook and Charles Irvine in Divis Flats . In August 1975 , the Miami Showband was gunned down . By 13th August 1975 , there were sectarian gun battles going on all across Belfast between the Provos and the loyalists . On that day , the Bayardo Bar on the Shankill was attacked in a gun and bomb attack - gunfire raked the front of the bar and a duffle-bag with a bomb was placed by a man who ran from a waiting car . Five people were killed .
Within minutes , Brendan McFarlane was stopped at a road block ; spent bullet cases and the fingerprints of all three later convicted for the attack , including McFarlane , were found in the car . They were each sentenced to twenty-five years minimum (no remission) . In an unsigned statement used at his 'trial' , Brendan McFarlane said he drove the car . While not denying that he was involved in the attack , he disputed " ...the circumstances under which the statement was made .. "
Brendan McFarlane is "...affected personally .. " by the victims of violence ; he does'nt like it but believes it an "...absolute necessity .. " . Asked about whether he was afraid on the streets , he says that he "..never worries about things until they happen .. " because people who do "..cease to function .. " . He does admit , though , that he was depressed throughout the blanket protest and the hunger strikes .
By the time Brendan McFarlane was jailed in May 1976 , the British had removed political status from the prisoners ; while on remand in Crumlin Road Prison , McFarlane was involved in disturbances arising out of that removal .......
(MORE LATER).
Fionnuala O'Connor on the struggle for the Loyalist leadership as the politicians and their paramilitary allies gear up for a strike .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , March 1986 .
A week ago , a leading Official Unionist thought it necessary to put out a statement of re-assurance - to his own Loyalist community , and to the British public . He was upset by a BBC TV 'Panorama' programme on the Unionist response to the Anglo-Irish Agreement (ie the 1985 Hillsborough Treaty) .
In particular he had clearly been annoyed by the rhetoric of Alan Wright , spokesman for the 'Ulster Clubs' , and by that of one of his own Official Unionist Party members , the outspoken County Derry man , Esmond Thompson : Wright spoke of a people's army and the inevitability of conflict with the RUC , while Thompson spoke of the preparations under way for a last-ditch struggle , the "...specifications.. " already issued for necessary materials .
The UDA's second-in-command , John McMichael , a founder-member of the 'Ulster Clubs' , appeared on screen taking industrious notes in the front row at a meeting addressed by Alan Wright . 'Ulster Clubs' people were'nt altogether happy with the loose talk on the TV programme either - but their reason was entirely to do with security and timing . Esmond Thompson had no right to appear as a spokesman and was a little premature , Wright was too chatty , "...a bit carried away .. " .
But it is honestly , if privately , admitted that Esmond Thompson , in his talk of warlike preparations , spoke nothing but the truth .......
(MORE LATER).
FIRE AND BRIMSTONE .......
The Democratic Unionist Party would prefer a Civil War to acquiescence in a role for the Dublin Government in the affairs of the North of Ireland after the Anglo-Irish summit .
FINTAN O'TOOLE spoke to DUP activists about the depth of their opposition to the Anglo-Irish deal and their willingness to resort to violence .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , November 1985 .
Gregory Campbell also wants to 'preserve' the purity (sic) of the Protestant people and is against mixed marriages - " I make a distinction between integrated schooling and mixed marriages . I would be quite happy for my child to go to a school where Protestants and Catholics were taught together , but I would not be happy for my child to marry a Roman Catholic . I would be quite happy that the way I am bringing up my children would be sufficient to enable them to hold to their Protestantism no matter what their school environment would be .
But that would be a different step from the child growing into a mature adult and then marrying a person who is not of the faith which she has been brought up to believe is the correct faith . If she chooses to do that , that's her affair , but it would not be with my blessing . I would hope that my children would grow up to be evangelical Protestants with a belief in the bible . That belief in the bible should preclude them from marrying someone who does not have the faith in the bible that they have . Also from a political point of view essentially what you are doing is asking a unionist to marry a nationalist and that is too much to ask . "
That deep-seated evangelical Protestantism is central to the DUP , and the fear of religious persecution is a large part of their fear of a United Ireland . Jim Wells sums up the objections to Catholicism : " We find much of Roman Catholic doctrine repugnant . I find repugnant the fact that any man has the right to forgive sins , that Christ can be recreated on the alter of the Mass , Sunday after Sunday ; that the Virgin Mary is regarded as a deity that can be prayed to , who can forgive sins and heal the sick and all that , that shrines which can supposedly move in Ballinspittle or wherever it is can delude thousands into believing that there are some magical powers .
That is superstition of almost African tribal levels , which we find totally repugnant , and we just do not wish a situation to arise where we would find ourselves dominated by that type of system ....... "
(MORE LATER).
McFARLANE - THE INSIDE STORY .......
Last month , BRENDAN McFARLANE was ordered by a Dutch court to be extradited back to the North to serve out a sentence of 25 years . He is appealing the decision . His companion GERARD KELLY had his plea accepted that his offences were political . BRENDAN McFARLANE has been on the run since he led thirty-seven men in an escape out of the MAZE PRISON in September 1983 . In an exclusive interview with MAGILL at Bylmerbages Prison in Amsterdam , McFARLANE talks about his life , his youth and upbringing , and his involvement with the ARMED STRUGGLE in the North .
By DEREK DUNNE .
First published in 'MAGILL' magazine , April 1986 .
At the start of 1975 , the Provisionals' truce came into effect and loyalist assassination gangs re-emerged ; Ardoyne was a prime target for them , and the truce came under considerable strain . In July 1975 , four British soldiers were killed in retaliation for the shooting dead of two Provos , Francis Jordan in Bessbrook and Charles Irvine in Divis Flats . In August 1975 , the Miami Showband was gunned down . By 13th August 1975 , there were sectarian gun battles going on all across Belfast between the Provos and the loyalists . On that day , the Bayardo Bar on the Shankill was attacked in a gun and bomb attack - gunfire raked the front of the bar and a duffle-bag with a bomb was placed by a man who ran from a waiting car . Five people were killed .
Within minutes , Brendan McFarlane was stopped at a road block ; spent bullet cases and the fingerprints of all three later convicted for the attack , including McFarlane , were found in the car . They were each sentenced to twenty-five years minimum (no remission) . In an unsigned statement used at his 'trial' , Brendan McFarlane said he drove the car . While not denying that he was involved in the attack , he disputed " ...the circumstances under which the statement was made .. "
Brendan McFarlane is "...affected personally .. " by the victims of violence ; he does'nt like it but believes it an "...absolute necessity .. " . Asked about whether he was afraid on the streets , he says that he "..never worries about things until they happen .. " because people who do "..cease to function .. " . He does admit , though , that he was depressed throughout the blanket protest and the hunger strikes .
By the time Brendan McFarlane was jailed in May 1976 , the British had removed political status from the prisoners ; while on remand in Crumlin Road Prison , McFarlane was involved in disturbances arising out of that removal .......
(MORE LATER).
Wednesday, July 06, 2005
THE DEATH OF FRANK HAND .......
On February 10 , 1986 , the courts turned down the appeals of three men sentenced to hang . The men now face , on commutation of sentence by the (Free State) government , 40 years in prison without remission , for their involvement in the Drumree robbery and killing .
By GENE KERRIGAN.
First published in ' MAGILL' magazine , March 1986 .
Paddy Duffy claimed in court that he thought the cars he was providing were to be used by the IRA in the North ; he was found guilty of non-capital murder and sentenced to penal servitude for life .
Of the four found guilty of murder , only Paddy Duffy had a previous conviction , for possession of a revolver . Seamus Lynch was found guilty of robbery and was sentenced to four years ; Joe Gargan was found guilty of robbery and was given 10 years , suspended . None of those mentioned was present at Drumree when Detective Garda Frank Hand was killed .
Paul Finnegan was picked up a couple of times by the gardai but made no statement ; at least one , if not two or three more were involved in the robbery and have never been charged . 'Paul Finnegan' is no longer wanted for the Drumree robbery and murder . The gardai have no evidence against him . It is thought that he may be living abroad .
[END of 'THE DEATH OF FRANK HAND'.]
(Tomorrow : 'Politicos And Paramilitaries' ; from 1986.)
FIRE AND BRIMSTONE .......
The Democratic Unionist Party would prefer a Civil War to acquiescence in a role for the Dublin Government in the affairs of the North of Ireland after the Anglo-Irish summit .
FINTAN O'TOOLE spoke to DUP activists about the depth of their opposition to the Anglo-Irish deal and their willingness to resort to violence .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , November 1985 .
Jim Wells , DUP , is one of those who frowns on mixed marriage - " I am totally opposed to mixed marriage . Of course I am . First of all because of the authoritarian attitude of the Roman Catholic church , which demands that the children must be brought up as Catholics , but secondly because I believe that anyone who indulges in a mixed marriage is betraying the Protestant cause .
There is no excuse for mixed marriages in the North , not like in the South where the small number of Protestants means that to be blunt there's many a young man and young girl who would'nt marry at all if they did'nt marry a Roman Catholic . There is no problem such as that in the North where there are plenty of suitable Protestant partners . I would be against anything that would lead to a dilution of the Protestant population of this province (sic) " .
Gregory Campbell has no mythology of the planter stock ; in the Waterside area there are no family farms , no tradition of property handed down over the generations . His legend of the Protestant race is different - " I think that that Ulster Protestant is a separate race of people from the rest of the island . In the general area that is now called Northern Ireland (sic) there has always been a separate and distinct type of people , code of ethics , morality . Everything about the way of life in the northern part of the island has been different to the southern part of the island , even before the plantation .
There has always been a different race of people who inhabited the north . It happens at this stage to be the Protestant people who inhabit it . I have a different view from Gerry Adams as to how we came to inhabit this part of the island . He says we just came over as part of the plantation and usurped the Gaelic Catholics . I happen to believe that way before that , when the Picts came from central Europe , there were a people here who were different , who were usurped at that stage . "
For a working-class loyalist like Gregory Campbell the 'mythology' of plantation becomes a 'mythology' of dispossession .......
(MORE LATER).
McFARLANE - THE INSIDE STORY .......
Last month , BRENDAN McFARLANE was ordered by a Dutch court to be extradited back to the North to serve out a sentence of 25 years . He is appealing the decision . His companion GERARD KELLY had his plea accepted that his offences were political . BRENDAN McFARLANE has been on the run since he led thirty-seven men in an escape out of the MAZE PRISON in September 1983 . In an exclusive interview with MAGILL at Bylmerbages Prison in Amsterdam , McFARLANE talks about his life , his youth and upbringing , and his involvement with the ARMED STRUGGLE in the North .
By DEREK DUNNE .
First published in 'MAGILL' magazine , April 1986 .
After internment , Brendan 'Bic' McFarlane joined the Provisional IRA and became active on the streets ; he was involved primarily in defence . The previous year (ie 1970) the IRA had earned itself the name ' I Ran Away' when it failed to defend Ardoyne during gun battles . The British Parachute Regiment patrolled the area and were vicious .
In September 1971 , Brendan McFarlane was arrested during a gun battle in which two British soldiers were killed ; he was held for three days and released without charge . He also became very involved with rebuilding part of Ardoyne that had been burned by loyalists . At this time many of his close friends were being killed . He talks casually about his own involvement but when he discusses friends that have been killed , he looks visibly upset . He finds it quite difficult to articulate his feelings and the fact that he was very close to a particular person .
On 11 July 1971 , the Provos were operating cover for people coming out of drinking clubs , and they were waiting for the loyalists to open fire ; the shooting started late that night and then the British Army opened fire with machine guns from three different places . Two men , including McFarlane's close friend , James Reid , were killed behind some sandbags , during the two-hour gun battle . The Provos abandoned their position and re-grouped . Five people were killed in total . Provo leader Martin Meehan was in charge of operations in the Ardoyne and he and Brendan McFarlane were close .
The main thrust of the campaign up to the end of 1974 , when the IRA/British Army truce came into effect , was the bombing campaign : dozens of civilians were killed . Today , Brendan McFarlane thinks the campaign was justified . The object was to "...damage Britain economically .. " . At the time , he was working in a Belfast printing house and , later on , as a fork lift driver . He declines to say what specific operations he was invoved with - " If I tell you that , they'll charge me with it when I get home . They'll say 'Here's something else we forgot' . " He was " ... moderately active .. " in Ardoyne , as distinct from others who were carrying out shootings , bombings and ambushes every day .
He was "...an ordinary Volunteer .. " , not holding any rank . And then , in 1975 , he got caught .......
(MORE LATER).
On February 10 , 1986 , the courts turned down the appeals of three men sentenced to hang . The men now face , on commutation of sentence by the (Free State) government , 40 years in prison without remission , for their involvement in the Drumree robbery and killing .
By GENE KERRIGAN.
First published in ' MAGILL' magazine , March 1986 .
Paddy Duffy claimed in court that he thought the cars he was providing were to be used by the IRA in the North ; he was found guilty of non-capital murder and sentenced to penal servitude for life .
Of the four found guilty of murder , only Paddy Duffy had a previous conviction , for possession of a revolver . Seamus Lynch was found guilty of robbery and was sentenced to four years ; Joe Gargan was found guilty of robbery and was given 10 years , suspended . None of those mentioned was present at Drumree when Detective Garda Frank Hand was killed .
Paul Finnegan was picked up a couple of times by the gardai but made no statement ; at least one , if not two or three more were involved in the robbery and have never been charged . 'Paul Finnegan' is no longer wanted for the Drumree robbery and murder . The gardai have no evidence against him . It is thought that he may be living abroad .
[END of 'THE DEATH OF FRANK HAND'.]
(Tomorrow : 'Politicos And Paramilitaries' ; from 1986.)
FIRE AND BRIMSTONE .......
The Democratic Unionist Party would prefer a Civil War to acquiescence in a role for the Dublin Government in the affairs of the North of Ireland after the Anglo-Irish summit .
FINTAN O'TOOLE spoke to DUP activists about the depth of their opposition to the Anglo-Irish deal and their willingness to resort to violence .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , November 1985 .
Jim Wells , DUP , is one of those who frowns on mixed marriage - " I am totally opposed to mixed marriage . Of course I am . First of all because of the authoritarian attitude of the Roman Catholic church , which demands that the children must be brought up as Catholics , but secondly because I believe that anyone who indulges in a mixed marriage is betraying the Protestant cause .
There is no excuse for mixed marriages in the North , not like in the South where the small number of Protestants means that to be blunt there's many a young man and young girl who would'nt marry at all if they did'nt marry a Roman Catholic . There is no problem such as that in the North where there are plenty of suitable Protestant partners . I would be against anything that would lead to a dilution of the Protestant population of this province (sic) " .
Gregory Campbell has no mythology of the planter stock ; in the Waterside area there are no family farms , no tradition of property handed down over the generations . His legend of the Protestant race is different - " I think that that Ulster Protestant is a separate race of people from the rest of the island . In the general area that is now called Northern Ireland (sic) there has always been a separate and distinct type of people , code of ethics , morality . Everything about the way of life in the northern part of the island has been different to the southern part of the island , even before the plantation .
There has always been a different race of people who inhabited the north . It happens at this stage to be the Protestant people who inhabit it . I have a different view from Gerry Adams as to how we came to inhabit this part of the island . He says we just came over as part of the plantation and usurped the Gaelic Catholics . I happen to believe that way before that , when the Picts came from central Europe , there were a people here who were different , who were usurped at that stage . "
For a working-class loyalist like Gregory Campbell the 'mythology' of plantation becomes a 'mythology' of dispossession .......
(MORE LATER).
McFARLANE - THE INSIDE STORY .......
Last month , BRENDAN McFARLANE was ordered by a Dutch court to be extradited back to the North to serve out a sentence of 25 years . He is appealing the decision . His companion GERARD KELLY had his plea accepted that his offences were political . BRENDAN McFARLANE has been on the run since he led thirty-seven men in an escape out of the MAZE PRISON in September 1983 . In an exclusive interview with MAGILL at Bylmerbages Prison in Amsterdam , McFARLANE talks about his life , his youth and upbringing , and his involvement with the ARMED STRUGGLE in the North .
By DEREK DUNNE .
First published in 'MAGILL' magazine , April 1986 .
After internment , Brendan 'Bic' McFarlane joined the Provisional IRA and became active on the streets ; he was involved primarily in defence . The previous year (ie 1970) the IRA had earned itself the name ' I Ran Away' when it failed to defend Ardoyne during gun battles . The British Parachute Regiment patrolled the area and were vicious .
In September 1971 , Brendan McFarlane was arrested during a gun battle in which two British soldiers were killed ; he was held for three days and released without charge . He also became very involved with rebuilding part of Ardoyne that had been burned by loyalists . At this time many of his close friends were being killed . He talks casually about his own involvement but when he discusses friends that have been killed , he looks visibly upset . He finds it quite difficult to articulate his feelings and the fact that he was very close to a particular person .
On 11 July 1971 , the Provos were operating cover for people coming out of drinking clubs , and they were waiting for the loyalists to open fire ; the shooting started late that night and then the British Army opened fire with machine guns from three different places . Two men , including McFarlane's close friend , James Reid , were killed behind some sandbags , during the two-hour gun battle . The Provos abandoned their position and re-grouped . Five people were killed in total . Provo leader Martin Meehan was in charge of operations in the Ardoyne and he and Brendan McFarlane were close .
The main thrust of the campaign up to the end of 1974 , when the IRA/British Army truce came into effect , was the bombing campaign : dozens of civilians were killed . Today , Brendan McFarlane thinks the campaign was justified . The object was to "...damage Britain economically .. " . At the time , he was working in a Belfast printing house and , later on , as a fork lift driver . He declines to say what specific operations he was invoved with - " If I tell you that , they'll charge me with it when I get home . They'll say 'Here's something else we forgot' . " He was " ... moderately active .. " in Ardoyne , as distinct from others who were carrying out shootings , bombings and ambushes every day .
He was "...an ordinary Volunteer .. " , not holding any rank . And then , in 1975 , he got caught .......
(MORE LATER).
Tuesday, July 05, 2005
THE DEATH OF FRANK HAND .......
On February 10 , 1986 , the courts turned down the appeals of three men sentenced to hang . The men now face , on commutation of sentence by the (Free State) government , 40 years in prison without remission , for their involvement in the Drumree robbery and killing .
By GENE KERRIGAN.
First published in ' MAGILL' magazine , March 1986 .
Noel McCabe spent six weeks in solitary confinement in Portlaoise Prison , as a protective measure . In the course of the subsequent trial , in February and March 1985 , he pleaded guilty to robbery and received a 10-year sentence , suspended - there was uproar in the public gallery of the Special Criminal Court and a man named Eoin McKenna , from Darndale , Dublin , shouted at McCabe - " McCabe , you are a supergrass , the first Free State supergrass ! " McKenna was ordered to apologise to the court ; he refused and was immediately sentenced to 12 months for contempt of court .
The accusation of 'supergrass' was silly ; Noel McCabe made his statement on August 29 ; Seamus Lynch and Joe Gargan made statements on August 15 ; Paddy Duffy made a statement on August 22 , Tommy Eccles on August 23 . The only person named in McCabe's statement who was subsequently convicted and who had not himself made a statement by that time was Pat McPhillips .
It suited the gardai and the courts to portray the affair as a well-planned and professionally executed robbery ; the Provos have their own macho reasons for believing in their own professionalism . The evidence is that the Drumree raid was poorly organised , dependent on amateurs , panicky in its execution and counter-productive in its political effects . And they got no money . The net effect was the death of a 25 year-old garda .
Tommy Eccles , Brian McShane and Pat McPhillips pleaded not guilty to capital murder and claimed their statements were untrue and involuntary . The statements were declared admissible and the three were found guilty of capital murder and sentenced to death . Their appeal was dismissed on February 10 and , on February 21 , their sentences were commuted to forty years without remission .......
(MORE LATER).
FIRE AND BRIMSTONE .......
The Democratic Unionist Party would prefer a Civil War to acquiescence in a role for the Dublin Government in the affairs of the North of Ireland after the Anglo-Irish summit .
FINTAN O'TOOLE spoke to DUP activists about the depth of their opposition to the Anglo-Irish deal and their willingness to resort to violence .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , November 1985 .
Jim Wells joined the DUP " ... because I like my politics cut and dried . If I'm in a party which favours the use of punishment for terrorists , I don't want to find , as you find in the Official Unionist Party , that half the party does'nt agree with that policy . I like to know exactly where I stand . "
Where Jim Wells stands is with the planter stock he came from . He believes in a separate Protestant race in the North of Ireland and in preserving the purity of that race : " I'm descended from settlers who came over from England and Scotland - my mother's side was Scottish and my father's side was English . There has been no intermarriage with Celts in the four centuries that we have been over here . There's been no intermarriage in any section of the family over those centuries . And that's the same for many Protestant families .
So we are direct descendants of mainland (sic) British residents , who carry British passports , who regard the Queen (..the 'Queen' of England , that is .. ) as their sovereign , and regard parliament as the sovereign body of this province , who regard themselves as an integral part of the United Kingdom , no different from Scotland or Wales . It's a fact , not something to be debated about . We don't feel British , we are British . That is what Southern people cannot grasp .
They believe that because we live on the island of Ireland that we regard ourselves as Irish . Nothing could be further from the truth . I think we regard ourselves as more British than the British . I think we're the first to stand for the (British) National Anthem and to show respect for the (British) Queen , even more so than many mainland (sic) British subjects , many of whom have intermarried with Pakistanis and West Indians and allowed a dilution of their Britishness . That has'nt happened here and we remain militant British subjects .
Here there has been very little intermarriage with immigrants or with native Irish , and mixed marriage is frowned upon . I only know of one mixed marriage . We at least have maintained our Britishness , even if other parts (sic) of Britain have wavered somewhat ....... "
(MORE LATER).
McFARLANE - THE INSIDE STORY .......
Last month , BRENDAN McFARLANE was ordered by a Dutch court to be extradited back to the North to serve out a sentence of 25 years . He is appealing the decision . His companion GERARD KELLY had his plea accepted that his offences were political . BRENDAN McFARLANE has been on the run since he led thirty-seven men in an escape out of the MAZE PRISON in September 1983 . In an exclusive interview with MAGILL at Bylmerbages Prison in Amsterdam , McFARLANE talks about his life , his youth and upbringing , and his involvement with the ARMED STRUGGLE in the North .
By DEREK DUNNE .
First published in 'MAGILL' magazine , April 1986 .
Brendan McFarlane is unassuming about the almost legendary status he has achieved among his fellow Provisionals ; he has no illusions about his own part in the scheme of things - he jokes easily too . For example , when asked if he "specialised" in any particular area of activity when he was on the streets and active between 1972 and 1975 , before answering " No , " he says , " Yes . I could talk the leg off a dresser . The Provos were going to send me in as a secret weapon to talk the Brits to sleep . "
Brendan McFarlane does not conform to the typical profile of a Provisional ; he is extremely articulate and does not come from a republican background . Born in 1951 in Ardoyne in Belfast , he attended Holy Cross Primary School and Saint Malachy's College . His father worked in Michelin's tyre firm in the city ; his family , especially his mother , were staunch Catholics , and even though they came from a republican area , they did not subscribe to that ethos . He was bright at school . His friends nicknamed him 'Bic' and the name has stuck ever since . (The name came from McFarlane's biscuits.)
In 1968 , he decided to enter the priesthood and joined the SVD Missionary Order ; he went to study in North Wales and returned home for holidays - " I was always pretty religious and I believed I had a vocation at the time , " he says . He came home in the summer of 1969 and Ardoyne was attacked by loyalist mobs ; he returned to the seminary . There was " ...a continuous question and answer session going on in my head . " He quit and returned home the following year .
" I know now I was right I did'nt continue . I still don't know why . I thought about it often when I was in H-Blocks but I still can't answer that . " He says he missed completely the "...upheaval in the Republican Movement .." when the Provos split from the Officials ; he had many friends in both wings and did'nt know which one to join . Ardoyne was a particularly vulnerable area , being bordered on all sides by loyalist strongholds .......
(MORE LATER).
On February 10 , 1986 , the courts turned down the appeals of three men sentenced to hang . The men now face , on commutation of sentence by the (Free State) government , 40 years in prison without remission , for their involvement in the Drumree robbery and killing .
By GENE KERRIGAN.
First published in ' MAGILL' magazine , March 1986 .
Noel McCabe spent six weeks in solitary confinement in Portlaoise Prison , as a protective measure . In the course of the subsequent trial , in February and March 1985 , he pleaded guilty to robbery and received a 10-year sentence , suspended - there was uproar in the public gallery of the Special Criminal Court and a man named Eoin McKenna , from Darndale , Dublin , shouted at McCabe - " McCabe , you are a supergrass , the first Free State supergrass ! " McKenna was ordered to apologise to the court ; he refused and was immediately sentenced to 12 months for contempt of court .
The accusation of 'supergrass' was silly ; Noel McCabe made his statement on August 29 ; Seamus Lynch and Joe Gargan made statements on August 15 ; Paddy Duffy made a statement on August 22 , Tommy Eccles on August 23 . The only person named in McCabe's statement who was subsequently convicted and who had not himself made a statement by that time was Pat McPhillips .
It suited the gardai and the courts to portray the affair as a well-planned and professionally executed robbery ; the Provos have their own macho reasons for believing in their own professionalism . The evidence is that the Drumree raid was poorly organised , dependent on amateurs , panicky in its execution and counter-productive in its political effects . And they got no money . The net effect was the death of a 25 year-old garda .
Tommy Eccles , Brian McShane and Pat McPhillips pleaded not guilty to capital murder and claimed their statements were untrue and involuntary . The statements were declared admissible and the three were found guilty of capital murder and sentenced to death . Their appeal was dismissed on February 10 and , on February 21 , their sentences were commuted to forty years without remission .......
(MORE LATER).
FIRE AND BRIMSTONE .......
The Democratic Unionist Party would prefer a Civil War to acquiescence in a role for the Dublin Government in the affairs of the North of Ireland after the Anglo-Irish summit .
FINTAN O'TOOLE spoke to DUP activists about the depth of their opposition to the Anglo-Irish deal and their willingness to resort to violence .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , November 1985 .
Jim Wells joined the DUP " ... because I like my politics cut and dried . If I'm in a party which favours the use of punishment for terrorists , I don't want to find , as you find in the Official Unionist Party , that half the party does'nt agree with that policy . I like to know exactly where I stand . "
Where Jim Wells stands is with the planter stock he came from . He believes in a separate Protestant race in the North of Ireland and in preserving the purity of that race : " I'm descended from settlers who came over from England and Scotland - my mother's side was Scottish and my father's side was English . There has been no intermarriage with Celts in the four centuries that we have been over here . There's been no intermarriage in any section of the family over those centuries . And that's the same for many Protestant families .
So we are direct descendants of mainland (sic) British residents , who carry British passports , who regard the Queen (..the 'Queen' of England , that is .. ) as their sovereign , and regard parliament as the sovereign body of this province , who regard themselves as an integral part of the United Kingdom , no different from Scotland or Wales . It's a fact , not something to be debated about . We don't feel British , we are British . That is what Southern people cannot grasp .
They believe that because we live on the island of Ireland that we regard ourselves as Irish . Nothing could be further from the truth . I think we regard ourselves as more British than the British . I think we're the first to stand for the (British) National Anthem and to show respect for the (British) Queen , even more so than many mainland (sic) British subjects , many of whom have intermarried with Pakistanis and West Indians and allowed a dilution of their Britishness . That has'nt happened here and we remain militant British subjects .
Here there has been very little intermarriage with immigrants or with native Irish , and mixed marriage is frowned upon . I only know of one mixed marriage . We at least have maintained our Britishness , even if other parts (sic) of Britain have wavered somewhat ....... "
(MORE LATER).
McFARLANE - THE INSIDE STORY .......
Last month , BRENDAN McFARLANE was ordered by a Dutch court to be extradited back to the North to serve out a sentence of 25 years . He is appealing the decision . His companion GERARD KELLY had his plea accepted that his offences were political . BRENDAN McFARLANE has been on the run since he led thirty-seven men in an escape out of the MAZE PRISON in September 1983 . In an exclusive interview with MAGILL at Bylmerbages Prison in Amsterdam , McFARLANE talks about his life , his youth and upbringing , and his involvement with the ARMED STRUGGLE in the North .
By DEREK DUNNE .
First published in 'MAGILL' magazine , April 1986 .
Brendan McFarlane is unassuming about the almost legendary status he has achieved among his fellow Provisionals ; he has no illusions about his own part in the scheme of things - he jokes easily too . For example , when asked if he "specialised" in any particular area of activity when he was on the streets and active between 1972 and 1975 , before answering " No , " he says , " Yes . I could talk the leg off a dresser . The Provos were going to send me in as a secret weapon to talk the Brits to sleep . "
Brendan McFarlane does not conform to the typical profile of a Provisional ; he is extremely articulate and does not come from a republican background . Born in 1951 in Ardoyne in Belfast , he attended Holy Cross Primary School and Saint Malachy's College . His father worked in Michelin's tyre firm in the city ; his family , especially his mother , were staunch Catholics , and even though they came from a republican area , they did not subscribe to that ethos . He was bright at school . His friends nicknamed him 'Bic' and the name has stuck ever since . (The name came from McFarlane's biscuits.)
In 1968 , he decided to enter the priesthood and joined the SVD Missionary Order ; he went to study in North Wales and returned home for holidays - " I was always pretty religious and I believed I had a vocation at the time , " he says . He came home in the summer of 1969 and Ardoyne was attacked by loyalist mobs ; he returned to the seminary . There was " ...a continuous question and answer session going on in my head . " He quit and returned home the following year .
" I know now I was right I did'nt continue . I still don't know why . I thought about it often when I was in H-Blocks but I still can't answer that . " He says he missed completely the "...upheaval in the Republican Movement .." when the Provos split from the Officials ; he had many friends in both wings and did'nt know which one to join . Ardoyne was a particularly vulnerable area , being bordered on all sides by loyalist strongholds .......
(MORE LATER).
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