COLONIAL STATUS PERPETUATED.....



" The failure to break with the colonial past is illustrated by the State’s habit of imitating British practices and conventions. The names and structures of government agencies are copied direct from England: the ‘Special Branch’, the ‘Director of Public Prosecutions’, the ‘Ombudsman’ and so on. Even the forms used in tax assessment are direct copies of those used in Britain. (Originally the Department of Finance wanted to call itself ‘The Treasury’ but this was vetoed by Westminster: there could only be one Treasury and it wasn’t in Dublin!)
It is reflected too in uniforms: the uniforms worn by military personnel, by Civil Defence, even by traffic wardens. As for the police force, it is nominally unarmed but about 25% of it is plain-clothes and armed with Uzis. The Uzi is an Ingram-type machine pistol manufactured in Israel, probably out of re-cycled sardine cans or the like: it is a scatter-fire weapon favoured by security forces in countries where if a few by-standers are mown down then it is of no consequence. The Gardai also have stocks of CS-gas and plastic bullets, though these have only rarely been deployed.

It is often claimed that the State originates in the 1916 Rising and subsequent struggle for freedom. This is of course nonsense. The Free State destroyed and replaced the Republic declared in 1916 and is a continuation of the previous colonial regime by other means. It was established by an act passed at Westminster and it inherited the administrative machinery (and most of the personnel) of Dublin Castle. The State has continued to be ruled by a system of laws devised for a totally different society. British war memorials and the graves of Black-and-Tans are maintained by the Office of Public Works: Republican graves and memorials at private expense...."
(More here....)

Help us to break that 'colonial status...' .

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CURRAGH CONCENTRATION CAMP , 1958...



'IN CURRAGH CONCENTRATION CAMP'.......
From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, January 1958 .

FERMANAGH :

Patrick Connolly , Aughnashannoner , Roslea .
Patrick Tierney , Woghternarry , Enniskillen .
Dan Fitzpatrick , Main Street , Newtownbutler .

GALWAY :

Michael Kelly , Derrea , Killamore , Ballinasloe .
Sean Scott , Ballyforan .
Bart Gormley , 23 Demesne Cottages , Tuam .
Patrick Kelly , Church Street , Ballygar .

KILDARE :

Frank Driver, Ballymore Eustace .
Thomas Stapeleton , Darrs , Sallins .
Chris Kelly , Rathangan .
Denis Harrington , Green Lane , Leixlip.
(MORE LATER).



PUBLIC INQUIRY INTO OUR GREATEST SCANDAL.......
From 'MAGILL' magazine, June 1998.
By Vincent Browne.
('1169...' Comment : please note - the use of the term 'murder' in connection with the death of an informer is not our choice of word.)

On the basis of what he himself now says happened , the only possible defence that Sean O' Callaghan could have to a charge of murder could be that he had informed the Gardai all along about what was happening . If it is the case that O' Callaghan did not keep the Gardai fully informed of what was going on in relation to the kidnap , detention and murder of John Corcoran, then why hasn't he been charged with the murder or at least as being an accessory to the murder ?

The only possible explanation for the failure to charge O' Callaghan with the murder , given what he has now said about the role he played , is that he did indeed keep the Gardai fully informed . John O' Donoghue ordered an inquiry into this affair when he became (State) Minister for Justice in July of last year (ie 1997) and , eventually , in January of this year (ie 1998) , a report on the matter was submitted to him . But that was done before Sean O' Callaghan was even spoken to - via telephone- by the Garda undertaking the investigation !

Indeed , it was only following repeated pressure from 'MAGILL' magazine that the investigating Garda made telephone contact at all : it wasn't until O' Callaghan turned up in Dublin to give evidence in the Thomas Murphy-Sunday Times libel case in May this year (ie 1998) was he interviewed.......
(MORE LATER).





TAKING IT HANDY.......

Provisional Sinn Fein are fighting this election as a party which has just emerged from seventy years of abstentionism. The party is banned from the airwaves and there is a strong apparent bias against the party in the press.
From 'In Dublin' magazine Election Special, 1987.
By Derek Dunne.

In an election that is being fought out almost exclusively in the media , the Provisionals have been hit hard by Section 31 censorship and a general bias against the party . But what comes across very clearly is that Adams is popular in working-class areas .

It has been raining all day and , at the end of the area canvass , everybody is drenched . It's time to call a halt to the electioneering - Gerry Adams has meetings to attend and phone calls to make. 'Take it handy' , he says , and turns his mind towards other matters.

[END of 'TAKING IT HANDY']
(Next : 'John Dunster At Windscale' - from 1986)

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They haven't gone away, ya know.....



...they live in fine big houses but work in a sleezy establishment; they rule over a brow-beaten and morally-exhausted populace yet produce nothing of any value themselves; and , although already wealthy, they will rob from their own kind should the opportunity arise.

They may be off our screens for now - on an extended holiday - but they'll be back.......

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'IN CURRAGH CONCENTRATION CAMP'.......
From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, January 1958 .

DUBLIN:

Eamonn Ladrigan , 19 Merchants Road , East Wall .
Des Webster , 50 Curlew Road , Drimnagh .
Martin Shannon , 46 Griffith Drive , Finglas .
George Kelly , 52 Collins Avenue East , Killester .
John Keane , 30 Upper Dorset Street .
Thomas O' Neill , 5b Mary Aikenhead House , James Street .
Don Merrins , 41 Suir Road , Kilmainham .
Kevin McKay , 351 Captains Road , Crumlin .
Tim Conlon , 22 Turner's Cottages , Ballsbridge .
Liam O' Rourke , 2 Thomond Road , Ballyfermot .
Terry Murray , 16 Harrington Street .
Michael Mann , 57 Tyrconnell Road , Inchicore , Dublin .
(....those from Fermanagh next..)
(MORE LATER).



PUBLIC INQUIRY INTO OUR GREATEST SCANDAL.......
From 'MAGILL' magazine, June 1998.
By Vincent Browne.
('1169...' Comment : please note - the use of the term 'murder' in connection with the death of an informer is not our choice of word.)

It stretches belief that the man said by Gardai to have been "...the most important intelligence agent in the history of the State.." did not tell the Gardai at the time what was happening . Sean O' Callaghan says in his book - and he has said repeatedly since he gave himself up to British police in 1989 - that he kept his Garda 'handler' fully informed at all stages of the John Corcoran kidnap , detention and murder .

The consistency of his account on this score - which contrasts with the flagrant contradictions in his accounts of other events and indeed other aspects of this murder - is impressive and plausible , and on the basis of that account the Gardai knew fully about the imminence of the detention of John Corcoran . They knew where he was being held over a series of days and of the likelihood of his murder . They knew of the decision to murder him and/or where he was to be murdered and yet they did nothing . The institution charged with the protection of the life and liberty of citizens of this State , the Garda Siochána, stood by while a citizen , who happened also to have been one of their own informants , was murdered .

And they had an obvious motive for refusing to intervene to protect John Corcoran's life - the protection of their flow of information from 'the most important intelligence agent in the history of the State' . Sean O' Callaghan has claimed variously that he personally shot John Corcoran in the head and that he was not present when John Corcoran was shot in the head . But even in his sanitised version of what happened , Sean O' Callaghan acknowledges that he was instrumental in the kidnap and detention of John Corcoran , that he took part in the decisions to murder him , that he even took those whom he now claims were the direct murderers to where John Corcoran was being held and that he advised them on where they would find a "quiet place" at which to commit the murder.......
(MORE LATER).





TAKING IT HANDY.......

Provisional Sinn Fein are fighting this election as a party which has just emerged from seventy years of abstentionism. The party is banned from the airwaves and there is a strong apparent bias against the party in the press.
From 'In Dublin' magazine Election Special, 1987.
By Derek Dunne.

Even though the Provos would expect to capitalise on the working-class vote , there were several middle-class looking voters who promised 'to think about it' . Here , as everywhere , the main problem is apathy . Television and radio , newspapers and magazines , have debated endlessly about the election and report all the press conferences , but this enthusiasm is not shared by the electorate .

There is a great cynicism abroad about politicians in general ('1169...' Comment - unjustified , of course..) but the response to the Provos is better , perhaps explained by the fact that , until now , they were pledged not to take their seats when elected ('1169...' Comment - 'pledged' by their membership of the Republican Movement , which they left in November 1986) but , on this occasion , they are fighting on the basis that they will share in the decision as to who will be the next State Taoiseach if and when they are elected . One man tells Gerry Adams that he was voting for the Provos before Adams was born , but that they failed to get Seamus South elected on that occasion . Adams is clearly uncomfortable about approaching people whilst they are out shopping - " I hate this type of canvassing , stopping people , you're almost in their way.." ('1169..' Comment - ...whatever about that(!) , he and his have definitely attempted to 'get in the way' of Irish Republicanism but , like the lackeys that went before them , have failed.)

The word from the various constituencies , especially Cavan-Monaghan , Dublin Central and Louth , is that the Provos are doing exceptionally well , and reports coming in suggest that the party will do much better than expected . But censorship still exists.......
(MORE LATER).

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CURRAGH CAMP/PUBLIC INQUIRY/HANDY.


'IN CURRAGH CONCENTRATION CAMP'.......
From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, January 1958 .

DUBLIN :

Peter Pringle , 2 Alexandra Terrace , South Circular Road .
James Fagan , 171 Windmill Road , Crumlin .
Patrick McLoughlin , 121 Larkhill Road , Whitehall .
Gordon Hyland , 17 McMahon Street , South Circular Road .
Liam Healy , 22 Luke Street .
Sean Garland, 7 Belvedere Place .
Liam Egan , 3 Islington Avenue , Sandymount .
Seamus Doran , 31 Sullivan Street , Infirmary Road .
Frank Ross, 14 The Rise , Glasnevin .
Patrick O' Regan , 1 Goldsmith Street , North Circular Road.
Tomás MacGearáilt , Rathmines Road .
Bernárd Ó Riain , Dun Laoghaire .
Phil O' Donoghue , 95 Lally Road , Ballyfermot .
Peter O' Donoghue , 95 Lally Road , Ballyfermot .
(MORE LATER).



PUBLIC INQUIRY INTO OUR GREATEST SCANDAL.......
From 'MAGILL' magazine, June 1998.
By Vincent Browne.
('1169...' Comment : please note - the use of the term 'murder' in connection with the death of an informer is not our choice of word.)

Amidst the mountain of lies that Sean O' Callaghan has told and probably remains telling about his involvement in the PIRA , there are some things we know for sure about him : the first is that he was a high-ranking member of (P) Sinn Fein and the PIRA in the 1980's ; the second is that he was a high-ranking Garda informant during this time . We also know that John Corcoran was murdered in the area of the country for which Sean O' Callaghan had responsibility as a PIRA operative .

Without believing anything at all that O' Callaghan now says concerning the murder of John Corcoran , we can be reasonably sure that he was somehow implicated in that murder or at least would have been aware that Corcoran was about to be or had been kidnapped and was about to be murdered .

If it were the case that O' Callaghan told the Gardai nothing at all at the time about the kidnapping of John Corcoran and the imminence of his murder , then Gardai would have known themselves that O' Callaghan had been involved somehow . Or at least that the kidnapping and murder of John Corcoran could not have taken place without his knowledge and , almost certainly , his acquiescence . On that basis alone , O' Callaghan should have been charged with the murder of John Corcoran in 1985 . There is no evidence that Sean O' Callaghan was even interrogated about that murder at the time.......
(MORE LATER).





TAKING IT HANDY.......

Provisional Sinn Fein are fighting this election as a party which has just emerged from seventy years of abstentionism. The party is banned from the airwaves and there is a strong apparent bias against the party in the press.
From 'In Dublin' magazine Election Special, 1987.
By Derek Dunne.

Garret FitzGerald finally comes rushing down the stairs , surrounded by handlers and gardai , both of which group have no qualms about pushing , elbowing and shoving their way past the crowd . Gerry Adams is brushed aside before too many words can be exchanged . FitzGerald is pale and tense looking , and there is a general rush towards the narrow exit in the wake of the man . One Fine Gaeler decides to take the law into his own hands and pins Adams against the narrow door , refusing to let him go , while other Fine Gaelers are shouting abuse . Outside a scuffle develops between one Provo supporter and the gardai .

Adams sees the scuffle and approaches the gardai in a conciliatory manner and says 'It's ok , it's ok , I'll take him...' and finally the youth is released and calm has been restored but , by now , FitzGerald has disappeared .

The reception that Adams gets in the Liberties contrasts to that afforded to Dessie O' Malley: Adams is promised a vote by almost every person he talks to . A minibus * goes around , urging support for the party and announcing that Adams is in the area . Many people want to meet him and shake his hand and wish him luck . There is a strong base of support for him in the area and if it transfers into actual votes they could take a seat eventually . Back in Crumlin Shopping Centre , the election workers are sent in first , then the candidates are brought in and , finally , Adams goes in . Unlike most of the other parties , canvassing is done outside . One man remarks that Adams looks much better in reality than he does on television , and wishes him the best of luck.......(*'1169...' Comment : the Provos do their canvassing now from transport supplied by their British and/or Free State paymasters and would scarcely remember what the inside of a minibus looks like..)
(MORE LATER).

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'LOVE TARA' MARCH,DUBLIN,SATURDAY 21 JULY 2007.


RSF protestor , Parnell Monument,O'Connell Street,Dublin,Saturday 21 July 2007, 'Love Tara' March.


Over one-thousand people marched through the centre of Dublin yesterday in support of the campaign to demand that the planned M3 motorway be diverted a safe distance away from the Hill of Tara . In what must have been the first dry day in Dublin in over five weeks (!),the carnival-like procession made its way from the Garden of Remembrance to the State 'Department of the Environment , Heritage and Local Government' in the Custom House in the dockland area , where speeches were delivered calling for , amongst other things , the immediate release of 'The Tara Four'.
'Marchers carrying the flags of all 32 counties gathered at the Gardens of Remembrance and marched up O'Connell St and to the Department of the Environment at the Custom House.' "Apparently Minister Gormley is getting annoyed at people saying that he does have the power to change the M3 route. Perhaps that explains why there were no Green Party representatives at the march today, unlike previous ones....." (Both quotes from here.)
(Incidentally - one of the RSF participants on the 'Love Tara' march had a good conversation with a representative of this group, which deserves to be applauded for its environmental and social science viewpoint.)
It's the politicians that should be buried in concrete , not our heritage centres.

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TARA WAS OLD WHEN CHRIST WAS BORN...



"Picking up yeomanry reinforcements along the way, the combined British force of about 700 troops lost no time in forming up at the bottom of the hill to attack the rebels who had posted themselves behind defenses such as old walls and ditches. An attack up the hill was quickly launched and met strong resistance from the rebels but the superior firepower of the military combined with a well-executed bayonet charge drove the rebels from the hill, dispersing them with much slaughter...."

....and now a like-minded foe has come back for the Hill itself .

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CURRAGH CAMP/PUBLIC INQUIRY/HANDY.


'IN CURRAGH CONCENTRATION CAMP'.......
From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, January 1958 .

DUBLIN :

Eamon Thomas , 30 Goldenbridge Avenue , Inchicore .
Gerald McCarthy , 43 Drimnagh Road .
Frank Delaney , 130 Benmadigan Road , Drimnagh .
Frank Morrissey , 135 South Circular Road , Dolphins Barn .
Noel Kavanagh , 141 Tritonville Road , Sandymount .
Liam Nolan , 67 Bangor Road , Crumlin .
Sean Nolan , 67 Bangor Road , Crumlin .
Dick Burke , 23 Cliftonville Road , Glasnevin .
Paul Gleeson , 446 Galtymore Road , Drimnagh .
James Hayde , 110 Carrow Road , Drimnagh .
Seán Ryan , 1 Spencer Street , South Circular Road .
Bertie Murphy , 1 Leinster Avenue , North Strand .
(MORE LATER).



PUBLIC INQUIRY INTO OUR GREATEST SCANDAL.
From 'MAGILL' magazine, June 1998.
By Vincent Browne.
('1169...' Comment : please note - the use of the term 'murder' in connection with the death of an informer is not our choice of word.)

We return once more to the murder of John Corcoran in Kerry 13 years ago . The cover up of that murder and the obvious complicity of the Gardai in that murder remain by far the greatest scandal of our public life . And yet , apart from a brief intervention by Dick Spring and a broken promise by the now State Justice Minister , John O' Donoghue, not a single public representative has sought as yet to make an issue of this .

The Gardai had a special responsibility to protect the life of John Corcoran for he too , along with Sean O'Callaghan, was an informer , giving the Gardai information about the operation of the PIRA in the Cork area . That makes the Garda complicity in the crime , or his murder , or at least in the crime of the cover up of his murder , all the more outrageous . The prime source for information on the murder of John Corcoran - the IRA informer Sean O' Callaghan - is an inveterate liar . He has directly contradicted several times his account of how John Corcoran was murdered .

But he has , perhaps unwittingly , provided enough information for us to appreciate that the Gardai bear a great responsibility for what happened.......
(MORE LATER).





TAKING IT HANDY.......

Provisional Sinn Fein are fighting this election as a party which has just emerged from seventy years of abstentionism. The party is banned from the airwaves and there is a strong apparent bias against the party in the press.
From 'In Dublin' magazine Election Special, 1987.
By Derek Dunne.

It was too late when Charlie Haughey's handlers noticed that Gerry Adams was making his way towards them - they could not move Haughey , who was surrounded and as good as rooted to the spot . Adams asked Haughey if he would consider voting for the local Republican candidate , and Haughey smiled : " No, I can't ..." , he answered . The irony was not lost on some of those present who remembered that Fianna Fail claim to be 'The Republican Party' .

And then Mr. Haughey wished Mr. Adams 'the best of luck anyway' as he was swept away by handlers and others . It was a great stroke , and one which Haughey himself could hardly help but appreciate . Immediately , Adams had to move on as there was another appointment - this one was with Garret FitzGerald in Dublin's Clarence Hotel. When the Provos got there , Garret was upstairs and the meeting was over : Adams waited in the lobby downstairs , as did the Gardai and the Special Branch who were much in evidence , as were journalists . Adams said he was 'happier defending the (P)IRA on the doorsteps than the record of the present government' . He was asked if it was his intention to canvass Garret FitzGerald for support for the local Republican candidate . He might , he replied , if Mr. FitzGerald ever came down .

By now , Provisional Sinn Fein supporters had gathered outside the hotel - they were young , enthusiastic and they were also waiting for Garret . Section 31 of The Broadcasting Act has banned Provisional Sinn Fein from RTE and the print media have , by and large , ignored the party . This election has been fought out mainly in the media , and the young Provisional Sinn Fein supporters perceive that Garret FitzGerald has supported part of the problem - namely Section 31 of The Broadcasting Act . Now they are waiting for FitzGerald to come out of the hotel.......
(MORE LATER).

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NOT WELCOME WHILE YOU HOLD SIX OF OUR COUNTIES!





"Come forth men of Erin, come forth at my call, My Empire's in danger, I've need of you all-- My own Saxon soldiers can savages hunt, But with Boers to deal with you must be in front. I've treated you badly--had many a row, But my heart's really aching for love of you now...."

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CURRAGH CAMP/PAST PRISONS/HANDY.


'IN CURRAGH CONCENTRATION CAMP'.......
From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, January 1958 .

DUBLIN :

Michael Traynor , 38 South King Street .
Gearóid Ó Broin , 27 Church Avenue , South Circular Road , Rialto .
George Dearle , 82 Lower Drumcondra Road .
Robert Russell , 67 North Strand .
Eddie Gargan , 11 Auburn Street , Broadstone .
Tomás Ó Dubhghaill , 36 Comeragh Road , Drimnagh .
Anthony Magan , 45 Dodder Road , Rathfarnham.
Andy Nathan , 398 Nutgrove Avenue , Churchtown.
Brendan Sealy , 21 Weston Road , Churchtown.
Ruaídhrí Mac Daibhéid , 100 Griffith Avenue , Marino .
Patrick Cosgrove , 21 Dufferin Avenue , South Circular Road .
Michael O' Brien , 32 Hazel Road , Donnycarney .
(MORE LATER).





THE PRISONS OF THE PAST.......
In a jail outside Belfast , republican prisoners have begun smearing their cells with excrement . They are demanding the right to political status . We have been here before.....
From 'MAGILL' magazine August 2003 .
By Niall Stanage.

In the present circumstances , one can entirely disagree with the actions , and the political analysis , of 'dissident republicans' yet still understand why it is crazy to imagine that they will accept being treated only as criminals , or that they and their loyalist counterparts will mix without difficulty .

Here is where pragmatism also enters the equation . The British government has spent millions of pounds erecting ugly 'peace walls' to try to keep the north's warring factions apart . How , then , does it make sense to keep each community's most recalcitrant members cheek-by-jowl in a prison ? To insist on such a system is a receipe for disaster .

History is supposed to teach us lessons . We are not supposed to be doomed to repeat the mistakes of the past. Someone should remind the north's prison authorities of that fact . If they display the same arrogant ineptitude as their predecessors , the grimness of twenty years ago could envelop the jails - and the landscape beyond - once again .

[END of 'THE PRISONS OF THE PAST']
(Next : 'Public Inquiry Into Our Greatest Scandal' - from 1998.)




TAKING IT HANDY.......

Provisional Sinn Fein are fighting this election as a party which has just emerged from seventy years of abstentionism. The party is banned from the airwaves and there is a strong apparent bias against the party in the press.
From 'In Dublin' magazine Election Special, 1987.
By Derek Dunne.

On another doorstep , one woman complains that they are unable to get an Irish school going because of local objections . Gerry Adams suggests that , since it is a local issue , locals must sort it out between themselves . Throughout the day , four State air-force planes have been flying over the area and the noise is deafening . There have been complaints about the noise but seemingly to no avail . People wonder why the planes do not fly over less densely-populated areas , but nobody knows the answer .

In contrast with other political parties who bring journalists to bars and hotels for food and drink , Provisional Sinn Fein hospitality involves invading the house of a supporter for coffee . As it grows dark , many people have still not returned home . Most of those canvassed expressed either support or total apathy , but the PIRA was never mentioned . It is clear that the PIRA campaign is not an issue with most working class people , and there was no hostility towards Adams because of it . Generally , people were of the opinion that the country was in a dreadful mess and that they were tired of it all .

One woman wants to know if Provisional Sinn Fein will change all of that . " You have to change it..." , answers Adams . One of the biggest problems facing the party may be getting their voters out on the day . That particular canvass lasted only a couple of hours and the plan was to continue it the following day - a Saturday . And on that Saturday , it was known that Charlie Haughey would be in Crumlin Shopping Centre in Dublin and it was agreed that it would be a good opportunity to canvass his vote . And sure enough , when Adams and his team arrived at the shopping centre , there was Haughey , surrounded on all sides by handlers , gardai and journalists.......

(MORE LATER).

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TARA WAS OLD WHEN CHRIST WAS BORN....


"For many centuries, historians worked to uncover Tara's mysteries, and suggested that from the time of the first Celtic influence until the 1169 invasion of Richard de Clare, the Hill of Tara was the island's political and spiritual capital. Due to the history and archaeology of Ireland being not well-integrated, archaeologists involved in recent research suggest that the complete story of the Hill of Tara remains untold...."




In his excellent book 'WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN : war and peace in rebel Cork , in the turbulent years 1916-21'(published 1965), Micheal O'Suilleabhain wrote that Tara was abandoned in the second-half of the 6th Century , that 153 Irish Kings had reigned there before A.D.563 and that 400 Pikemen of 1798 are buried there.

Now a Free State combination of political self-serving money-grabbing leeches are attempting to destroy that area by building a motorway in the (too-near) vicinity :


Some of us are trying to stop them...







...and your assistance would be appreciated !

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CURRAGH CAMP/PAST PRISONS/HANDY


'IN CURRAGH CONCENTRATION CAMP'.......
From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, January 1958 .

CORK :
Tomás Mac Curtáin, Rosebank , Douglas Road .
Liam Early , Martinville , Commons Road .
David O' Connell , 26 Lough Road , The Lough .
Pádraig Ó Cuanacháin , 7 Bóthar na mBráthar Uacht , Crosaire Tuirnéire .
Seán Kenny , Cork City .

CLARE :
Martin White , Lisdoonvarna .
Francis Lyons , Erna , Fountain , Ennis .
Lot O' Halloran , Ballygriffey , Ennis .
Michael O' Keefe , Churchill House , Ennistymon .
Martin McCormack.

DERRY :
Laurence Bateson , Ballyroan Road , Magherafelt.

DONEGAL :
Patrick Dawson , 33 Lower Main Street , Letterkenny .
Tommy Breslin , Lifford .
Norman Daly , Lifford .
(MORE LATER).





THE PRISONS OF THE PAST.......
In a jail outside Belfast , republican prisoners have begun smearing their cells with excrement . They are demanding the right to political status . We have been here before.....
From 'MAGILL' magazine August 2003 .
By Niall Stanage.

The fear lurks in many minds - not all of them republican - that a prison struggle , with all its inherent evocativeness , could be just the thing to breath life into the cause of the 'dissidents' . Unyielding action from the prison authorities , if resisted with enough fervour inside the jails , could invest them with a credibility they have signally lacked so far .

The authorities have shown no signs of conceding the point on segregation ; they are wrong , just as those who were in the same position at the tail-end of the 1970's were wrong . There are good reasons , both principled and pragmatic , for separating prisoners of contrasting allegiances in northern jails .

The original H-Block hunger strikes were the ultimate response to the British policy of criminalisation , an initiative intended to disguise the political nature of the northern conflict and instead present paramilitaries as 'common criminals' . One among the many problems with this move was that it was , simply , wrong - irrespective of whether one supported , sympathised with , or was disgusted by , the actions of paramilitaries - they were different from other prisoners and were , therefore , always likely to resist efforts to conceal that difference . They were in jail , after all , for acting on political beliefs and - however ignoble some of their actions were - their mindset was demonstrably different from that of 'ordinary criminals'.......
(MORE LATER).





TAKING IT HANDY.......

Provisional Sinn Fein are fighting this election as a party which has just emerged from seventy years of abstentionism. The party is banned from the airwaves and there is a strong apparent bias against the party in the press.
From 'In Dublin' magazine Election Special, 1987.
By Derek Dunne.

People want to know about the state of the roads , about water rates , about jobs . One couple say that they are sick and tired of all the electioneering and that they are not going to vote for anybody - " If you don't vote for us , you're better off not voting for anybody " , says Gerry Adams .

His style on the doorstep is easygoing . Because his voice is not that well known , as a result of censorship , people are slightly taken aback that it does not fit in with the generally portrayed austere image of the man . He is uneasy about stopping people and asking them to vote for his party , because there is an invasion of privacy there .

Throughout Tallaght , many of the houses display Provisional Sinn Fein posters, and as many display Workers' Party posters. Some voters say they will either vote for the Provos or for the Workers' Party : here , at least , the distinctions between the two organisations have become blurred * to the point where people would vote First and Second preference , for each/either group . ('1169...' Comment - those 'distinctions' have , if anything , become harder to distinguish over the years as the Provos are now handling the mantle of 'New Stickies' with ease!) In one instance , a man on his doorstep says that he is quite definite that he will not vote 'Sinn Fein' , at which point Gerry Adams notices that he is involved in sport . The fact that there is no vote in it doesn't matter , as Adams spends at least five minutes talking to him about who won what and when . As he leaves , he is wished the best of luck.......
(MORE LATER).

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NOT WELCOME!





"Republicans throughout Ireland are strongly opposed to the impending visit by British Queen Elizabeth, who is also the British head of State, and will protest at this extravagant display of pomp and wealth.

But not alone for these reasons. Queen Elizabeth saw fit to award an OBE to Colonel Derek Wilford, Officer Commanding the Parachute Regiment on Bloody Sunday in Derry when they shot dead 14 unarmed civilians. Not exactly an inspiring role model for women? It matters not a whit that some of those armed forces are leaving Irish soil because their place will be taken by MI5 who are deeply embedded here.

There remains one huge obstacle to reconciliation between us and Britain and that obstacle is Partition. Part of the process of putting the past behind us and moving forward would be the removal of the illegal and unjust border that divides our country and our people. Have the courage Elizabeth Windsor and begin the process of handing back what has never belonged to you - the Six northeastern Counties. That would indeed be called a 'historic event'.

It has nothing to do with maturity on our part that we should welcome the Queen of England to our shores, rather it is the same slavish attitude that has always existed in Ireland. Being an occupied and colonised people for so long can make us willing participants in our own domination.

We reject the fraudulent claims of the English Queen to be 'Queen of Northern Ireland' ".
-statement from Cathleen Knowles McGuirk, Vice-President Republican Sinn Féin
June 26, 2007.
The Dublin Executive of Republican Sinn Fein intends to protest the visit of this English queen by holding a peaceful picket in Dublin on the day of her visit. This protest will take place at the GPO in O'Connell Street, and not on O'Connell Bridge as previously stated. Full details will be announced at a later stage. All welcome!

"There is always more brass than brains in an aristocracy."
- Oscar Wilde.

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'CURRAGH CAMP/PAST PRISONS/HANDY'


'IN CURRAGH CONCENTRATION CAMP'.
From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, January 1958 .

The following is a list of Irish Republican prisoners held in the Curragh Concentration Camp :

ANTRIM :
John Duggan , Dunloy .
Thomas Montgomery , 20 St. James' Place , Donegal Road , Belfast .

ARMAGH :
Hugh and Brian O' Hagan , Lathbirget , Mullaghbawn .
Vincent Conlon , Drumsollen , Killylea .

CAVAN :
Patrick Duffy , Dernacrieve .
Francis O' Reilly , Bridge Street , Belturbet.
(MORE LATER).





THE PRISONS OF THE PAST.......
In a jail outside Belfast , republican prisoners have begun smearing their cells with excrement . They are demanding the right to political status . We have been here before.....
From 'MAGILL' magazine August 2003 .
By Niall Stanage.

There are , of course , real differences between the situation now and that which pertained in the run-up to the H-Block hunger strikes of 1980 and 1981 and , most importantly of all , there is peace - of a kind * - in the north , and heightened passions are much less likely to lead to bodies on the streets . ('1169...' Comment * - 'peace of a kind' in that the potential for conflict remains as long as Westminster continues to claim jurisdiction over any part of this island.)

Equally , 'dissident republicans' ('1169...' Comment - ...that is , those republicans who refuse to implement British policy on Irish soil) have very little support ('1169..' Comment - there is more support for us 'dissidents' in wanting to end the British connection than there is for wanting to continue same) : twenty-odd years ago , the PIRA was able to tap into a broad sympathy for its aims within the nationalist community but that kind of sympathy just doesn't exist for organisations like the RIRA and the CIRA . But any prison dispute in the north of Ireland will be , by its very nature , inflammatory .

There have already been stirrings of discontent within Provisional Sinn Fein about the party leadership's reticence on the issue . North Belfast Stormont member Gerry Kelly eventually put his head above the parapet to declare - albeit somewhat equivocally - his support for the prisoners' stand . ('1169..' Comment - the Provisionals have placed themselves between a rock and a hard place : their 'new friends' in Leinster House , Stormont and Westminster have hired them in the [mistaken] belief that , once the Adams Family are safely neutered then republican opposition will be , too but , aware of what happened to the Stickies [who 'turned' too quick] , the Provisionals are prepared to be seen playing both sides of the political fence until they are sure that their financial futures are secure and that they can take a large section of what remains of their support base with them into the political 'establishment' . However , Irish Republicans will not be
bought or intimidated into changing our position in regards to the unwanted British political and military presence on this island.)
(MORE LATER).





TAKING IT HANDY.

Provisional Sinn Fein are fighting this election as a party which has just emerged from seventy years of abstentionism. The party is banned from the airwaves and there is a strong apparent bias against the party in the press.
From 'In Dublin' magazine Election Special, 1987.
By Derek Dunne.

The first thing people notice about Gerry Adams is that he is a very tall man . Television has reduced everyone to the same size , so that the smallest looks the same as the largest . But in the flesh , Adams is tall , and people find themselves looking up into his face when they stop and meet him on the street . ('1169...' Comment - republicans , however , do not 'look-up' to the man at all...)

In Tallaght , Dublin, the cars got lost very early on : Adams was in one car , and workers and journalists were in other assorted vehicles of varying degrees of road worthiness . Getting lost in Tallaght can be fatal - it has the same population roughly as Limerick City and all the houses look similar , as on most housing estates . And , as with most housing estates , there is poverty . Urban housing estates are where the Provos expect to draw most of their support from in the coming years . Their policies will increasingly reflect the concerns of housing estates .

Adams and his election workers and journalists eventually find each other again , and the canvass starts at a shopping centre , where John Noonan and Christy Dunne are running . On the door-to-door canvass , Adams appears slightly embarrassed at interrupting people in their homes . There is something very personal about knocking on a door and being able to tell the person that answers it their name , which has been obtained from the register of electors . But the problem in Tallaght is that many have moved , therefore , in many instances , the register is inaccurate . Also , many people are still at work . Of those that answer the door , some say they will 'consider it on the day' and others will definitely give 'a number One' . John Noonan is well known in the area and he epitomises a genuine concern for the problems of the people in the constituency.......
(MORE LATER).

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TARA WAS OLD WHEN CHRIST WAS BORN....



"For many centuries, historians worked to uncover Tara's mysteries, and suggested that from the time of the first Celtic influence until the 1169 invasion of Richard de Clare, the Hill of Tara was the island's political and spiritual capital. Due to the history and archaeology of Ireland being not well-integrated, archaeologists involved in recent research suggest that the complete story of the Hill of Tara remains untold...."




In his excellent book 'WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN : war and peace in rebel Cork , in the turbulent years 1916-21'(published 1965), Micheal O'Suilleabhain wrote that Tara was abandoned in the second-half of the 6th Century , that 153 Irish Kings had reigned there before A.D.563 and that 400 Pikemen of 1798 are buried there.

Now a Free State combination of political self-serving money-grabbing leeches are attempting to destroy that area by building a motorway in the (too-near) vicinity :


Some of us are trying to stop them...









...and your assistance would be appreciated !

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'CHARGES/PAST PRISONS/CRISIS'


'ARE THESE CHARGES TRUE....... ?'
From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, January 1958 .

Such torture will not come as a surprise to veterans in the fight for independence ('1169...' Comment - the on-going fight for independence , that is...) here who have painful memories of what happened them when they fell to the 'tender mercies' of the Black and Tans.

These allegations are so serious that they warrant immediate investigation and if Stormont and the British occupation forces are to clear themselves in the eyes of the world they will expose the torturers or convincingly disprove the charges that have been levelled against them .

[END of 'ARE THESE CHARGES TRUE ?']
(Next : ' In Curragh Concentration Camp...' - from the same source)




THE PRISONS OF THE PAST.......
In a jail outside Belfast , republican prisoners have begun smearing their cells with excrement . They are demanding the right to political status . We have been here before.....
From 'MAGILL' magazine August 2003 .
By Niall Stanage.

There are currently over 500 prisoners in Maghaberry Prison : many of them are charged with , or have been convicted of , non-paramilitary offences : there are also a small number of so-called 'immigration detainees' (asylum-seekers) who are not charged with any crime . But also included in the mix are around 25 'dissident republicans' and a significantly larger number of loyalists .

One loyalist , Johnny 'Mad Dog' Adair, is by far the prison's most 'famous' resident , though for him segregation has never been a problem - he is kept in isolation for his own safety .

The 'dissident republicans' complain that the prison authorities have been pressing them into closer and closer proximity with loyalists , and the loyalists are equally dissatisfied with this state of affairs . At the end of June (2003) eight prisoners staged a rooftop protest and , soon afterwards , the republicans began wrecking their cells . By early July , they began a 'dirty protest'- that is , they started to smear their cells with their own excrement . The protest continues at the time of writing.......
(MORE LATER).



CRISIS - WHICH CRISIS.......?

This election is not about the 'economy' . It's about the survival of sectional interests , clearly divided in a broader , simpler way than for many a long day . This election is not about the survival of the country (sic) : it's about choosing who will bear the cost of that survival.

From 'IN DUBLIN' magazine, 'Election Special' , 1987.
By David McKenna.

This election is not about 'the economy' : it's about the survival of sectional interests , clearly divided in a broader , simplier way than for many a long day . On the one hand , there are those people , many of them writers and readers of 'quality' Sunday newspapers , who are in a position to ride out the consequences of the cuts in public spending which they propose .

And on the other , there are the people who would bear the brunt of those cuts . This election is not about the survival of the country - it's about choosing who will bear the cost of that survival .

[END of 'CRISIS-WHICH CRISIS ?']
(Next : 'Taking It Handy' : from the same source)

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'CHARGES/PAST PRISONS/CRISIS'


'ARE THESE CHARGES TRUE....... ?'
From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, January 1958 .

A cloth soaked in a foul-smelling liquid was pushed against their faces while their noses were held . They were thrown on the floor , their arms pinioned , the cloth around the neck was woven tighter and tighter . Then it would be snapped and they'd be told "to confess" . It is also alleged that these men were beaten around the head and body with rubber truncheons , and that these beatings continued in different forms for a full day and until six a.m. the following day .

If there is any truth in these allegations , it is a shocking indictment of the Stormont regime; it is claimed that scores of young men have been arrested , interrogated , beaten , released , re-arrested - and the torture process repeated to force 'confessions' . This is something we would expect behind the Iron Curtain, but to think that such treatment is meted out in the name of British 'law' in the North of Ireland is simply astounding.......
(MORE LATER).





THE PRISONS OF THE PAST.
In a jail outside Belfast , republican prisoners have begun smearing their cells with excrement . They are demanding the right to political status . We have been here before.....
From 'MAGILL' magazine August 2003 .
By Niall Stanage.

" Tony Friel and Seamus Doherty , both from Derry , [stated] that they were political prisoners and as such should not be treated as criminals . The actions of the prison authorities were obviously designed to cause aggravation and ill feeling amongst the prisoners and to let them know that they were still going to be treated as common criminals . At seven o' clock the prison was said to have erupted..."

The language seems to belong to another era - an era of graffiti urging 'SMASH THE H-BLOCKS !', of television footage showing men with straggy beards across emaciated faces , of Bobby Sands and Margaret Thatcher and the Five Demands and 'crime is crime' .

But in fact those words come from a press release issued barely a month ago (ie July 2003) - it was authored by the Irish Republican Prisoners' Welfare Association, as they campaigned for the segregation of republican and loyalist inmates of Maghaberry Prison outside Belfast.......
(MORE LATER).



CRISIS - WHICH CRISIS.......?

This election is not about the 'economy' . It's about the survival of sectional interests , clearly divided in a broader , simpler way than for many a long day . This election is not about the survival of the country (sic) : it's about choosing who will bear the cost of that survival.

From 'IN DUBLIN' magazine, 'Election Special' , 1987.
By David McKenna.

Fianna Fail, having absolutely no ideological background of any kind whatsoever , are promising a somewhat vague combination of all economic approaches ! Or to put it another way , while Fine Gael and the Progressive Democrats seem to have pretty well decided to plump for the taxpayers' vote , Fianna Fail are still making a play for both the taxpayers and the unemployed .

For the unemployed , deciding who to vote for could be difficult - in theory , the trade union parties are on your side but then neither of them stand a chance of forming a government , although thanks to the small wonder of proportional representation that doesn't leave them out of the picture entirely .

For someone who is unemployed to vote for Fine Gael or the Progressive Democrats would seem much like a turkey voting to have Christmas every Sunday : to be sure , both of those parties promise that sometime in the future everything will be stable , secure and blooming but , in the meantime , cuts in public spending is a nice way of saying that people will be hungrier , colder and even more up the walls than they are at the moment , that people will die because there aren't hospital beds available for operations and people will worry themselves sick because they can't afford to bring their children to the doctor.......
(MORE LATER).

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NOT WELCOME!






"Republicans throughout Ireland are strongly opposed to the impending visit by British Queen Elizabeth, who is also the British head of State, and will protest at this extravagant display of pomp and wealth.

But not alone for these reasons. Queen Elizabeth saw fit to award an OBE to Colonel Derek Wilford, Officer Commanding the Parachute Regiment on Bloody Sunday in Derry when they shot dead 14 unarmed civilians. Not exactly an inspiring role model for women? It matters not a whit that some of those armed forces are leaving Irish soil because their place will be taken by MI5 who are deeply embedded here.

There remains one huge obstacle to reconciliation between us and Britain and that obstacle is Partition. Part of the process of putting the past behind us and moving forward would be the removal of the illegal and unjust border that divides our country and our people. Have the courage Elizabeth Windsor and begin the process of handing back what has never belonged to you - the Six northeastern Counties. That would indeed be called a 'historic event'.

It has nothing to do with maturity on our part that we should welcome the Queen of England to our shores, rather it is the same slavish attitude that has always existed in Ireland. Being an occupied and colonised people for so long can make us willing participants in our own domination.

We reject the fraudulent claims of the English Queen to be 'Queen of Northern Ireland' ".
-statement from Cathleen Knowles McGuirk, Vice-President Republican Sinn Féin
June 26, 2007.
The Dublin Executive of Republican Sinn Fein intends to protest the visit of this English queen by holding a peaceful picket at 5PM on O'Connell Bridge in Dublin on the day of her visit . All welcome!
"There is always more brass than brains in an aristocracy."
- Oscar Wilde.

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'TORTURE CHARGES/COMRADES/CRISIS'


'ARE THESE CHARGES TRUE ?'
From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, January 1958 .

Under the above heading the following editorial appeared in 'The Longford Leader'newspaper on December 14 , 1957 :

' When he addressed Queen's University Literary and Scientific Society in Belfast on Wednesday night , Mr. H. Montgomery M.P., said there is no member of the bench in the North of Ireland today who has ever ordered a man to be flogged .

He then went on to make the signigficant statement that it was understandable that the Six-County Parliament might consider it necessary to keep flogging in reserve , particularly at present . He was hinting , of course , at the present trouble in the North .

Allegations have been made by an organisation in this country that political prisoners in the North are being subjected to torture and inhuman treatment . Can these charges be substantiated ? They certainly call for a full inquiry . In one case it is alleged that four prisoners were pulled out of their cells and squads of three men started questioning them in relays . Cocked revolvers were placed against their stomachs , throats and temples and sticks were pressed into their bodies . Handkerchiefs were twisted around their necks.......'
(MORE LATER).




SOUNDING OFF-COMRADES AND CALCULATORS.......

From 'Gralton' magazine, August/September 1983.
By Gene Kerrigan.

Governments rarely achieve a mandate for anything . In February 1982 Garret Fitzgerald sought a mandate on a 'hairshirt' programme and was rejected . Charlie Haughey, who was still in his boom and bloom phase, was elected . In November 1982 Haughey , with the Estimates published , had to seek a mandate for 'hairshirt' policies - he was rejected .

Garret Fitzgerald , who refused to say what his policies were , won . In November 1982 , neither Fine Gael nor Labour sought a mandate for the policies they are now implementing . They let the party machines gather the vote - the main job of the politicians was not to present policies which would win votes but to avoid saying anything which would lose votes !

The second consequence is that anyone trying to break into the system is playing against the odds . Again , there's no use moaning about it : it's a fact of life .

[END of 'Sounding Off - Comrades And Calculators']
(Next : ' The Prisons Of The Past' - from 2003)


CRISIS - WHICH CRISIS.......?

This election is not about the 'economy' . It's about the survival of sectional interests , clearly divided in a broader , simpler way than for many a long day . This election is not about the survival of the country (sic) : it's about choosing who will bear the cost of that survival.

From 'IN DUBLIN' magazine, 'Election Special' , 1987.
By David McKenna.

We are good , though , at attracting 'foreign investment' or , to put it another way - what with straight grants and low rates of tax - it's a great little country for the multinationals ! But the multinationals take their profits out of the country . Indeed , when the grants and the low tax rates come to an end , they take their whole operation out of the country !

The trade unions and the trade union parties such as Labour and The Workers'Party take a different slant - they claim that the entrepreneur is dead , finished - a nineteenth-century notion . Planning , they say , is the answer , the creation of properly structured industries producing goods and services for which there is a definite market at home and abroad .

The trade union parties are not being ideological about this : the implication is that 'planning' includes going easy on the wage demands for the time being . The Workers' Party want to see the development of industrial Ireland , creating a workforce which , according to their 'book' , will then vote for them ! And The Labour Party have always been dead pragmatic , and are known to be so . But Fine Gael and The Progressive Democrats aren't that crazy about 'planning' - of the business parties , theirs comes closest to the 'song' sung by Maggie Thatcher over the water : cut public spending , cut taxes and stand well back - the economy will then ignite itself.......
(MORE LATER).

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