rsfcork
11-14-2007, 07:45 PM
Irish Republican Information Service (no. 126)
Teach Dáithí Ó Conaill, 223 Parnell Street, Dublin 1, Ireland
Phone: +353-1-872 9747; FAX: +353-1-872 9757; e-mail: saoirse@iol.ie
Date: 14 Samhain / November 2007
Internet resources maintained by SAOIRSE-Irish Freedom
http://saoirse.info
In this issue:
1. Republican Sinn Féin Ard-Fheis held in Dublin
2. Nationalists remain at risk from loyalist death squads
3. Poppy row at well known Tyrone firm
4. RSF: Tyrone arrests 'deplorable'
5. Ken Saro-Wiwa commemoration in Dublin
6. 26-County police endanger life in Mayo
7. Call for fresh inquest into killing by SAS?
1. REPUBLICAN SINN FÉIN ARD-FHEIS HELD IN DUBLIN
REPUBLICAN Sinn Féin held its 103rd Ard-Fheis in Dublin on the weekend of November 10 and 11. Over a busy weekend Ard-Fheis delegates debated a variety of motions dealing with issues such as electoral policy, social and economic issues and including worker’s rights, health and education as well as the Irish language as well as opposition to the proposed EU constitution.
The Ard-Fheis voted in favour of motions calling for Republican Sinn Féin to “provide leadership in opposing the anti-national agenda of normalising British rule in Ireland”, as well as instructing: “the incoming Ard Chomhairle to initiate a campaign aimed at informing the Irish people that the national question is not solved and that while the British remain in Ireland there will always be a revolutionary movement in Ireland opposed to British rule.”
A motion on electoral policy which was passed said : “Immediate preparations be made to contest the 26-County local elections due in 2009 and that the possibility of contesting local elections in the Six-Counties be explored.”
Other motions called on RSF to campaign against the EU Constitution in 2008. Motions were also passed in support of the Shell to Sea campaign and in opposition to the routing of the M3 motorway through the Tara/Skyrne valley as well as the destruction of the national heritage site at Lismullen, Co Meath.
The Ard-Fheis voiced its opposition to the continued Anglo/US occupation of Iraq as well as the use of Shannon by US warplanes, the ongoing US blockade of Cuba and in support of the establishment of a viable Palestinian state. Motions were also passed expressing solidarity with and support for the cause of an independent Basque country.
International messages of support were read from the Ireland Information Group in Sweden and the Catalan Independence Movement.
The highlight of the weekend was the Presidential Address of Ruairí Ó Brádaigh at 12 noon on November 11. In a wide ranging address Ruairí Ó Brádaigh said that RSF would oppose any state visit by the Queen of England to the 26-Counties: “For the very good reason that as Irish Republicans we dispute the claim of the English Crown to govern any part of Ireland, we must oppose politically such a visit – the first in 100 years – and organise politically against it. It is simply our duty to do so. There will be no toadying or kowtowing as far as we are concerned. We deny the claim of the crown of England to rule here. That is all. Let us organise.”
He spoke about the on-going normalisation of British rule in Ireland, describing it as “the creeping Anglicisation of Ireland” in particular the role played by the Provisionals in this: “in July Gerry Adams sponsored a formal visit to the former No-Go area of Ballymurphy by the head of the British Police in Ireland, Hugh Orde. They shook hands publicly and toured the area, indicating that Ballymurphy, once famous for its resistance to British occupation, was now a place where British forces were in control and were welcome. What an abject political and military surrender!
Next month, August saw what was once the “jewel in the crown” for Republicans – Crossmaglen in South Armagh – ceremonially handed over to the Brits when leading Provo, Conor Murphy, publicly welcomed Hugh Orde there. For decades “the Boys from Crossmaglen” prevented British occupation forces from travelling there except by helicopter. Yet, on an August evening, the name that was honoured around the world for resistance to imperialism and colonialism was brought low in the most slavish and shameful manner. The Brits reign supreme in Crossmaglen! The Newry Democrat quoted Republican Sinn Féin in South Armagh as calling for the rejection of the Provisionals.
“Encouraged by such surrenders, the British police chief ventured as far afield as Rebel Cork in September. There he was met at the entrance to the hotel venue by a Republican Sinn Féin picket, indicating to him that he was not welcome. “The Boys from the County Cork” upheld a most honourable tradition. The local media were told by a Republican Sinn Féin spokesperson that London and Dublin were attempting to “sell the lie that the national question had been settled”. This could only be achieved with Britain’s withdrawal from Ireland, he said.
Other events that were not publicised beforehand and were sprung on the local people included the unveiling of a plaque in Boyle, Co Roscommon to a British soldier from the area who was presented with the VC by Queen Victoria of England 150 years ago for his part in the Crimean War. A high-ranking officer of the 26-County defence forces did the unveiling in the presence of Colonel John Steed, the British military attaché at their Dublin Embassy and Brigadier-General Browne, described by the local papers as “Chief of Staff of the British Army in Northern Ireland”.
“Similar ceremonies arranged without notice and always including both the 26-County state forces and serving British soldiers in uniform have taken place in the 26 Counties in recent years. Among them were a graveside formality in Castlebar, Co Mayo for a British soldier of the 19th century, a memorial at Carrigaline, Co Cork to an official Elizabethan pirate of 400 years ago, and abroad a bicentenary commemoration of the British naval victory at Trafalgar at which units of the 26-County navy took part. Such base grovelling at the feet of an enemy still within our gates would never have taken place while men and women of Dan Keating’s generation, who fought the British to a standstill in 1921, were alive and in their health.”
Ruairí Ó Brádaigh saluted the RSF candidates and those who campaigned for them in the Stormont election in the Six-Counties in March:
“Six candidates were put forward; in East Derry, West Tyrone, Mid-Ulster, Fermanagh-South Tyrone, Upper Bann and West Belfast. A quarter of a million copies of our election manifesto were delivered through the post to every household in the six constituencies and our opening press conference in Belfast was covered by the media.
“Following that, there was almost total media blackout of Republican Sinn Féin throughout the election. Even our name was suppressed by the Stormont regime’s electoral body and a compliant media followed suit. Our candidates were styled as “Independents” taking away our coherent strategy and sense of direction. Although not registered as a “party” at Leinster House for 40 years, the media in the 26-Counties do not class Republican Sinn Féin candidates as “Independents”, but treat them as an organised body.
“Indeed, on the TG4 television programme Seacht Lá on polling day, March 7th, a commentator (Joe Tiernan) stated that there was a complete block on publicity for Republican Sinn Féin and that there appeared to have been an agreement between the various channels to this effect. The result was, that denied publicity and even their organisation’s name, our six candidates were consigned to a welter of 25 Independents, without the distinction of the Republican Sinn Féin title and direction. Of course the harassment by the RUC/PSNI of our election workers continued during the campaign.
“Given these circumstances, the outcome was as expected. Expenses were heavy, of course, especially the printing of posters and manifestos together with advertising in local newspapers. In this regard, our own members rallied in style and with another positive development, we are happy to announce that all debts have been cleared. We, at this Ard-Fheis, applaud all of our candidates, their agents and supporters, who fought a first-rate campaign against very great odds.”
He also informed the Ard-Fheis that Republican Sinn Féin funds stolen by the 26-County Special Branch following the 2004 Ard-Fheis:
“Since a sum of approximately €11,000 of our funds was seized by the 26-County Special Branch from the hotel safe of the venue of our Ard-Fheis three years ago the question of finance was a worry. The Branch gave no receipt for the money. Eventually they admitted having seized it in a letter to our solicitor, but they claimed it was the property of a so-called “illegal organisation”. That was a blatant lie. It was the proceeds of our annual private members’ draw, as well as some affiliation and membership fees and some profit from an Ard-Fheis function. Well they knew that to be the case.
“For three years they held the money. The solicitor demanded its return, as did the national treasurers and secretaries. Then last July- August the Galway Comhairle Ceantair leafleted the Galway Races where Fianna Fáil has a “hospitality tent” each year to collect huge financial subscriptions. The leaflet asked people to demand the return of our 11,000 euro, a mere pittance by Fianna Fáil /PD standards.
“On October 17 the Special Branch returned the funds, as they had taken them, in cash. There was no explanation and no interest was paid. The money was used to clear the remaining election debts and the remainder will help to balance the books for this Ard-Fheis. The whole episode illustrates just the lengths to which the Establishment is prepared to go in its attempts to cripple our organisation.
“Throughout the three years we could not secure even a sentence about the seizure of the funds in the print media, not to mention radio or television. Yet no sooner had the money been returned than the media approached us for a comment. Similarly, our name and standing as Republican Sinn Féin were denied to us by the media during the Stormont elections. Yet as soon as the counting of votes was over they were back again, referring to us by our proper name and title.”
The full text of the Ard-Fheis address can be read at rsf.ie.
2. NATIONALISTS REMAIN AT RISK FROM LOYALIST DEATH SQUADS
REPUBLICAN Sinn Féin warned on November 11 that despite a statement from the UDA on November 11, nationalists remained at risk from loyalist death squads.
Richard Walsh, Publicity Officer, stated that: “The recent statement from the UDA regarding its future intentions clearly emanates from Provo calls for complete collaboration with the British forces of occupation. Their efforts to promote the RUC have led a section of the loyalist community to believe that the maintenance of their death squads is not currently necessary.
“However, the retention of weaponry under UDA/UFF control demonstrates that these British-backed death squads can be reactivated as and when deemed necessary by their masters. Hence nationalists inevitably remain at risk. Indeed two of our members in County Armagh were informed as recently as three months ago that their lives were under threat from an unspecified Loyalist organisation.”
He added that the interests of all the Irish people would best be protected through the adoption of the ÉIRE NUA proposals within the context of a free Ireland.
He said that “We in Republican Sinn Féin will not seek to dissociate ourselves from the ideals of the 1916 Proclamation, namely the 'right of the Irish people to the ownership of Ireland, and to the unfettered control of Irish destinies, to be sovereign and indefeasible.' Present-day Unionists must come to realise that their interests are best served through a federation of the four Irish Provinces, free from all foreign interference. Republican Sinn Féin's ÉIRE NUA programme provides for maximum decentralisation of power to local communities.”
UDA said that that the Ulster Freedom Fighters (UFF) would be stood down from midnight on November 11 and its weaponry will be “put beyond use”
The Ulster Defence Association leadership in statements read out at UDA memorials around the Six-Counties on November 11 said that it believed the “war is over”.
The UFF is a component part of the UDA. Its first manifestation was in 1973, two years after the formation of the UDA. It was viewed chiefly as a cover for the UDA, which was responsible for over 400 killings during the Troubles.
The UDA was at its most powerful in 1974 when it helped force the collapse of the Sunningdale power-sharing administration. It is now reckoned to have a few thousand members, compared to 40,000 in the mid-1970s.
3. POPPY ROW AT WELL KNOWN TYRONE FIRM
THE PRO of the McKearney/McCaughey Cumann of Republican Sinn Féin in Dungannon said in a statement on November 9 that Terex Power Screen based in Dungannon had started a row with its work force over the wearing of British Legion poppies.
The statement said: “In the past the firm had a no emblems policy where all emblems were banned from the workplace. Staff have been told they can wear poppies because they do not offend anyone. Power screen has received a large amount of complaints over the wearing of this British Army Rag but has turned a deaf ear to its workforce.
“When people complained, they compared wearing the poppy to wearing ashes on Ash Wednesday and when told by workers that if people could wear poppies that they wanted to be able to wear Easter Lilies at Easter they were told by the company that that would be sectarian.
“It seems it is alright to honour the British army which engaged in murder, collusion and wide scale harassment in Ireland not just over this past 30 years but since Britain set foot in Ireland, Members of the Power Screen workforce have lost loved ones murdered by the British Army, how do they feel when faced with this emblem.
“In a local paper this week a list of members of the UDR killed over this past 30 years named in the poppy appeal included the names of some well-known UVF killers. How do people feel knowing Power Screen openly lets those Killers be remembered?
“Power Screen has a duty to provide a safe and secure working environment, free from symbols and emblems that regurgitate hurt and suffering for many nationalist and Republican people. If they had stuck to their guns and followed their own rules they would not have had a problem, it seems a GAA top is sectarian but an emblem supporting an army that has brought murder, hurt and suffering to thousands of Irish people is totally acceptable, even if that army continues to kill people today in Iraq with their illegal occupation.”
4. RSF: TYRONE ARRESTS 'DEPLORABLE'
REPUBLICAN Sinn Féin deplored the arrests in County Tyrone on November 13 of a recently released Republican Prisoner of War and his sister.
In a statement, Publicity Officer Richard Walsh, said: “Damage was caused to the homes raided, as was the case with recent raids in the Craigavon area of County Armagh. At approximately 1.30am the British colonial police gained entry to the former Republican prisoner's home with a chainsaw. An hour and a half later they kicked the door of his sister's house in. Their father went downstairs to investigate, believing that there had been a break-in. He was instantly surrounded by RUC officers and an infra-red light – presumably the sight of a weapon – was trained on his body.
“The two siblings are currently being interrogated at Antrim Barracks. Our thoughts are with them and their family during this trying time. It is clear that British forces – not content with having stolen several years of the arrested man's life – continue to harass him and his family in a most vindictive fashion.
“Such actions by enemy forces will only increase the resolve of true Republicans to expel the British from our country. Despite the hype of the Provisionals, Free Staters and others, they are in Ireland not as peacekeepers and peacemakers but instead as an occupying power. Their continued presence remains the greatest crime perpetrated against the Irish people.”
5. KEN SARO-WIWA COMMEMORATION IN DUBLIN
A LARGE crowd braved the cold evening weather to attend the first Irish screening of the documentary on the trial of Ken Saro-Wiwa and the Ogoni Eight – “Don't Let Shell Kill Again”, which was appropriately projected onto the outside wall of the Shell headquarters building at 52 Lower Leeson Street in Dublin, on the 12th anniversary of the executions on November 12.
Sister Majella McCarron, in what will probably be her last public appearance, made a short speech to provide a context for the film, remembering Saro-Wiwa and the others who were executed at the behest of Shell, after a series of events which shocked the world in 1995.
Sister Majella gave an insight into the situation in Ogoniland today, Saro-Wiwa's speech at his sentencing hearing in Port Harcourt, when he and his co-defendants heard that the special military tribunal had decreed that they were to be hanged was also read.
The annual Ken Saro-Wiwa Memorial Seminar was also held at UCC in Cork on November 10, and Saro-Wiwa was remembered as well on November 9 in Mayo, where an attempt to hold a peaceful march to the proposed Shell refinery site at Bellinaboy was marred by the 26-County police efforts to force construction traffic along the road.
The large force of 26-County police (including Special Branch) who surrounded those who attended the screening in Dublin reminded many people of attempts to intimidate opponents of Shell in other parts of the world, and their refusal to close a lane of traffic to allow people to pass the commemoration in safety showed that they have much in common with their colleagues in Mayo.
After the film screening, a wreath was laid at the front door of the Shell building.
The following is an excerpt from Saro-Wiwa's speech which was read during the candle-lit vigil:
“We all stand before history.
“I am a man of peace, of ideas.
“Appalled by the denigrating poverty of my people who live on a richly endowed land, distressed by their political marginalisation and economic strangulation, angered by the devastation of their land, their ultimate heritage, anxious to preserve their right to life and to a decent living, and determined to usher to this country as a whole a fair and just democratic system which protects everyone and every ethnic group and gives us all a valid claim to human civilization, I have devoted my intellectual and material resources, my very life, to a cause in which I have total belief and from which I cannot be blackmailed or intimidated.
“I have no doubt at all about the ultimate success of my cause, no matter the trials and tribulations which I and those who believe with me may encounter on our journey. No imprisonment nor death can stop our ultimate victory.”
To watch the short film click these clicks : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YZhy_VaYisU
6. 26-COUNTY POLICE ENDANGER LIFE IN MAYO
GARY Ronaghan, the man struck by a lorry at the anti-Shell protest in Bellinaboy county Mayo on November 9, is to make a formal complaint to the Garda Ombudsman in relation to the events leading up to, and following on from, the incident which saw the Monaghan man’s life placed in extreme danger.
Gary Ronaghan, had his foot trapped for several seconds under the rear wheel of a large lorry belonging to Lennon’s Quarries Ltd - a company which has been supplying stone to the Shell site in Bellinaboy. Following treatment in Mayo General Hospital in Castlebar it emerged that his foot had suffered tissue damage, in addition to severe bruising and swelling. Medical staff believe that, had Gary Ronaghan not been wearing steel-toe-capped boots, the damage would have been far worse.
Gary Ronaghan’s complaint to the Ombudsman will focus on both the manner in which the 26-County police dealt with the sit-down protest and the manner in which the Gardaí dealt with him following the crushing of his foot.
Speaking on November 11 Gary Ronaghan said, “I went to Mayo on Friday to protest at the giveaway of the Corrib gas-field and the way in which Shell and the government are forcing a gas refinery and experimental pipeline upon the people of Erris. I was willing to take part in a peaceful sit-down protest if need be and having seen how the Gardaí previously dealt with these protests I knew I might expect to wake up with a few bruises on Saturday morning. At no time did I expect to end up being almost killed by a lorry.
“I have no problem admitting that I was part of a sit-down protest. I believe that the issues surrounding the Corrib Gas controversy are of such importance that the use of non-violent civil disobedience tactics is justified. It was clearly apparent on Friday that the Gardaí are completely unable, or unwilling, to deal with such protests in a proper manner.
“It was nothing short of lunacy to attempt to move a massive, fully-loaded lorry through hundreds of people, many of whom were lying or sitting on the road. The Garda appeared to be making it up as they went along. When faced with scores of people sitting on a road would it not have made far more sense to ensure that the road was fully safe before instructing the driver of the lorry to move forwards?
“While my foot has been seriously injured it could have been far worse. It could have been someone’s head or body that went under that lorry. Indeed the negligence of the Garda operation put not only protesters lives at risk but also those of the Gardaí themselves.
“The driver of that lorry could not have been able to clearly see around the entire vehicle. He was following the direction of the Gardaí who were instructing him when to move forward and when to stop. And yet, not one Garda could possibly have been able to see all around that lorry to ensure that it was safe to proceed.
“When the lorry went over my foot I was being manhandled by at least two Gardaí. The entire situation was in a state of flux with a mass of bodies, both protesters and Gardaí within inches of the moving vehicle. Why did the Gardaí not instruct the driver to wait until it was safe to move on?
“The worst part was when the lorry actually came to a stop on top of my foot. The pain was excruciating, I thought my entire foot had been crushed. As soon as I started shouting for help other protesters saw what was happening and began shouting at the Gardaí to move the lorry off my foot, but it still took a couple seconds for the lorry to move on.
“I was told later that a number of Gardaí who were asked to take witness statements in relation to the incident refused to do so. One Garda actually told a witness that he hadn’t ‘got the faculty’ to take a statement’ – which is absolutely bizarre. The numbers of these Gardaí were noted and this will form part of my complaint to the Ombudsman.
“In addition, it appears that all of the normal protocols relating to road traffic accidents were ignored. As far as I can determine the driver of the lorry that ran over my foot was not stopped or questioned at the scene, nor were witness statements sought. Indeed, it appears that the driver was directed by the Gardaí away from the scene of the incident and that witnesses were deliberately discouraged from making statements.”
7. CALL FOR FRESH INQUEST INTO KILLING BY SAS
THE British attorney general has been asked to order a fresh inquest into the SAS killing of a Derry man more than 20 years ago, the Belfast High Court heard on November 5.
Danny Doherty (23) was shot in the grounds of Gransha Hospital in 1984.
His widow Julie and the next of kin of two other men shot dead in the 1980s applied for orders to compel the RUC/PSNI chief constable to provide the Six-Counties Coroners Service with documents withheld at the original inquests.
The other victims were Francis Bradley (20), shot by the SAS near Toomebridge in 1986, and Gerard Casey (29), murdered by the UFF in his Rasharkin home in 1989.
The court action followed a recent ruling in the British House of Lords that the RUC/PSNI are obliged to give a coroner all the documentation in their possession.
Barry MacDonald QC said that in all three cases the RUC had filed affidavits listing the documents that had been withheld from coroners.
He said the documents included lists of suspects, statements by civilian witnesses, intelligence papers and information about the weapons used.
“These were all material documents which throw new light on the killings," Barry MacDonald said.
“They would never have come to light but for these applications for judicial review."”
Barry MacDonald said an application had already been made for a new inquest into Danny Doherty's death.
He said the British attorney general had postponed making a decision until the outcome of the court case. Judgment was reserved as the judge said he wished to consider the matter as his ruling would have implications for many other inquests.
ENDS
Sinn Féin Poblachtach - Cork (http://www.rsfcork.com)
Saoirse Republican Forum (http://saoirse.21.forumer.com)
Teach Dáithí Ó Conaill, 223 Parnell Street, Dublin 1, Ireland
Phone: +353-1-872 9747; FAX: +353-1-872 9757; e-mail: saoirse@iol.ie
Date: 14 Samhain / November 2007
Internet resources maintained by SAOIRSE-Irish Freedom
http://saoirse.info
In this issue:
1. Republican Sinn Féin Ard-Fheis held in Dublin
2. Nationalists remain at risk from loyalist death squads
3. Poppy row at well known Tyrone firm
4. RSF: Tyrone arrests 'deplorable'
5. Ken Saro-Wiwa commemoration in Dublin
6. 26-County police endanger life in Mayo
7. Call for fresh inquest into killing by SAS?
1. REPUBLICAN SINN FÉIN ARD-FHEIS HELD IN DUBLIN
REPUBLICAN Sinn Féin held its 103rd Ard-Fheis in Dublin on the weekend of November 10 and 11. Over a busy weekend Ard-Fheis delegates debated a variety of motions dealing with issues such as electoral policy, social and economic issues and including worker’s rights, health and education as well as the Irish language as well as opposition to the proposed EU constitution.
The Ard-Fheis voted in favour of motions calling for Republican Sinn Féin to “provide leadership in opposing the anti-national agenda of normalising British rule in Ireland”, as well as instructing: “the incoming Ard Chomhairle to initiate a campaign aimed at informing the Irish people that the national question is not solved and that while the British remain in Ireland there will always be a revolutionary movement in Ireland opposed to British rule.”
A motion on electoral policy which was passed said : “Immediate preparations be made to contest the 26-County local elections due in 2009 and that the possibility of contesting local elections in the Six-Counties be explored.”
Other motions called on RSF to campaign against the EU Constitution in 2008. Motions were also passed in support of the Shell to Sea campaign and in opposition to the routing of the M3 motorway through the Tara/Skyrne valley as well as the destruction of the national heritage site at Lismullen, Co Meath.
The Ard-Fheis voiced its opposition to the continued Anglo/US occupation of Iraq as well as the use of Shannon by US warplanes, the ongoing US blockade of Cuba and in support of the establishment of a viable Palestinian state. Motions were also passed expressing solidarity with and support for the cause of an independent Basque country.
International messages of support were read from the Ireland Information Group in Sweden and the Catalan Independence Movement.
The highlight of the weekend was the Presidential Address of Ruairí Ó Brádaigh at 12 noon on November 11. In a wide ranging address Ruairí Ó Brádaigh said that RSF would oppose any state visit by the Queen of England to the 26-Counties: “For the very good reason that as Irish Republicans we dispute the claim of the English Crown to govern any part of Ireland, we must oppose politically such a visit – the first in 100 years – and organise politically against it. It is simply our duty to do so. There will be no toadying or kowtowing as far as we are concerned. We deny the claim of the crown of England to rule here. That is all. Let us organise.”
He spoke about the on-going normalisation of British rule in Ireland, describing it as “the creeping Anglicisation of Ireland” in particular the role played by the Provisionals in this: “in July Gerry Adams sponsored a formal visit to the former No-Go area of Ballymurphy by the head of the British Police in Ireland, Hugh Orde. They shook hands publicly and toured the area, indicating that Ballymurphy, once famous for its resistance to British occupation, was now a place where British forces were in control and were welcome. What an abject political and military surrender!
Next month, August saw what was once the “jewel in the crown” for Republicans – Crossmaglen in South Armagh – ceremonially handed over to the Brits when leading Provo, Conor Murphy, publicly welcomed Hugh Orde there. For decades “the Boys from Crossmaglen” prevented British occupation forces from travelling there except by helicopter. Yet, on an August evening, the name that was honoured around the world for resistance to imperialism and colonialism was brought low in the most slavish and shameful manner. The Brits reign supreme in Crossmaglen! The Newry Democrat quoted Republican Sinn Féin in South Armagh as calling for the rejection of the Provisionals.
“Encouraged by such surrenders, the British police chief ventured as far afield as Rebel Cork in September. There he was met at the entrance to the hotel venue by a Republican Sinn Féin picket, indicating to him that he was not welcome. “The Boys from the County Cork” upheld a most honourable tradition. The local media were told by a Republican Sinn Féin spokesperson that London and Dublin were attempting to “sell the lie that the national question had been settled”. This could only be achieved with Britain’s withdrawal from Ireland, he said.
Other events that were not publicised beforehand and were sprung on the local people included the unveiling of a plaque in Boyle, Co Roscommon to a British soldier from the area who was presented with the VC by Queen Victoria of England 150 years ago for his part in the Crimean War. A high-ranking officer of the 26-County defence forces did the unveiling in the presence of Colonel John Steed, the British military attaché at their Dublin Embassy and Brigadier-General Browne, described by the local papers as “Chief of Staff of the British Army in Northern Ireland”.
“Similar ceremonies arranged without notice and always including both the 26-County state forces and serving British soldiers in uniform have taken place in the 26 Counties in recent years. Among them were a graveside formality in Castlebar, Co Mayo for a British soldier of the 19th century, a memorial at Carrigaline, Co Cork to an official Elizabethan pirate of 400 years ago, and abroad a bicentenary commemoration of the British naval victory at Trafalgar at which units of the 26-County navy took part. Such base grovelling at the feet of an enemy still within our gates would never have taken place while men and women of Dan Keating’s generation, who fought the British to a standstill in 1921, were alive and in their health.”
Ruairí Ó Brádaigh saluted the RSF candidates and those who campaigned for them in the Stormont election in the Six-Counties in March:
“Six candidates were put forward; in East Derry, West Tyrone, Mid-Ulster, Fermanagh-South Tyrone, Upper Bann and West Belfast. A quarter of a million copies of our election manifesto were delivered through the post to every household in the six constituencies and our opening press conference in Belfast was covered by the media.
“Following that, there was almost total media blackout of Republican Sinn Féin throughout the election. Even our name was suppressed by the Stormont regime’s electoral body and a compliant media followed suit. Our candidates were styled as “Independents” taking away our coherent strategy and sense of direction. Although not registered as a “party” at Leinster House for 40 years, the media in the 26-Counties do not class Republican Sinn Féin candidates as “Independents”, but treat them as an organised body.
“Indeed, on the TG4 television programme Seacht Lá on polling day, March 7th, a commentator (Joe Tiernan) stated that there was a complete block on publicity for Republican Sinn Féin and that there appeared to have been an agreement between the various channels to this effect. The result was, that denied publicity and even their organisation’s name, our six candidates were consigned to a welter of 25 Independents, without the distinction of the Republican Sinn Féin title and direction. Of course the harassment by the RUC/PSNI of our election workers continued during the campaign.
“Given these circumstances, the outcome was as expected. Expenses were heavy, of course, especially the printing of posters and manifestos together with advertising in local newspapers. In this regard, our own members rallied in style and with another positive development, we are happy to announce that all debts have been cleared. We, at this Ard-Fheis, applaud all of our candidates, their agents and supporters, who fought a first-rate campaign against very great odds.”
He also informed the Ard-Fheis that Republican Sinn Féin funds stolen by the 26-County Special Branch following the 2004 Ard-Fheis:
“Since a sum of approximately €11,000 of our funds was seized by the 26-County Special Branch from the hotel safe of the venue of our Ard-Fheis three years ago the question of finance was a worry. The Branch gave no receipt for the money. Eventually they admitted having seized it in a letter to our solicitor, but they claimed it was the property of a so-called “illegal organisation”. That was a blatant lie. It was the proceeds of our annual private members’ draw, as well as some affiliation and membership fees and some profit from an Ard-Fheis function. Well they knew that to be the case.
“For three years they held the money. The solicitor demanded its return, as did the national treasurers and secretaries. Then last July- August the Galway Comhairle Ceantair leafleted the Galway Races where Fianna Fáil has a “hospitality tent” each year to collect huge financial subscriptions. The leaflet asked people to demand the return of our 11,000 euro, a mere pittance by Fianna Fáil /PD standards.
“On October 17 the Special Branch returned the funds, as they had taken them, in cash. There was no explanation and no interest was paid. The money was used to clear the remaining election debts and the remainder will help to balance the books for this Ard-Fheis. The whole episode illustrates just the lengths to which the Establishment is prepared to go in its attempts to cripple our organisation.
“Throughout the three years we could not secure even a sentence about the seizure of the funds in the print media, not to mention radio or television. Yet no sooner had the money been returned than the media approached us for a comment. Similarly, our name and standing as Republican Sinn Féin were denied to us by the media during the Stormont elections. Yet as soon as the counting of votes was over they were back again, referring to us by our proper name and title.”
The full text of the Ard-Fheis address can be read at rsf.ie.
2. NATIONALISTS REMAIN AT RISK FROM LOYALIST DEATH SQUADS
REPUBLICAN Sinn Féin warned on November 11 that despite a statement from the UDA on November 11, nationalists remained at risk from loyalist death squads.
Richard Walsh, Publicity Officer, stated that: “The recent statement from the UDA regarding its future intentions clearly emanates from Provo calls for complete collaboration with the British forces of occupation. Their efforts to promote the RUC have led a section of the loyalist community to believe that the maintenance of their death squads is not currently necessary.
“However, the retention of weaponry under UDA/UFF control demonstrates that these British-backed death squads can be reactivated as and when deemed necessary by their masters. Hence nationalists inevitably remain at risk. Indeed two of our members in County Armagh were informed as recently as three months ago that their lives were under threat from an unspecified Loyalist organisation.”
He added that the interests of all the Irish people would best be protected through the adoption of the ÉIRE NUA proposals within the context of a free Ireland.
He said that “We in Republican Sinn Féin will not seek to dissociate ourselves from the ideals of the 1916 Proclamation, namely the 'right of the Irish people to the ownership of Ireland, and to the unfettered control of Irish destinies, to be sovereign and indefeasible.' Present-day Unionists must come to realise that their interests are best served through a federation of the four Irish Provinces, free from all foreign interference. Republican Sinn Féin's ÉIRE NUA programme provides for maximum decentralisation of power to local communities.”
UDA said that that the Ulster Freedom Fighters (UFF) would be stood down from midnight on November 11 and its weaponry will be “put beyond use”
The Ulster Defence Association leadership in statements read out at UDA memorials around the Six-Counties on November 11 said that it believed the “war is over”.
The UFF is a component part of the UDA. Its first manifestation was in 1973, two years after the formation of the UDA. It was viewed chiefly as a cover for the UDA, which was responsible for over 400 killings during the Troubles.
The UDA was at its most powerful in 1974 when it helped force the collapse of the Sunningdale power-sharing administration. It is now reckoned to have a few thousand members, compared to 40,000 in the mid-1970s.
3. POPPY ROW AT WELL KNOWN TYRONE FIRM
THE PRO of the McKearney/McCaughey Cumann of Republican Sinn Féin in Dungannon said in a statement on November 9 that Terex Power Screen based in Dungannon had started a row with its work force over the wearing of British Legion poppies.
The statement said: “In the past the firm had a no emblems policy where all emblems were banned from the workplace. Staff have been told they can wear poppies because they do not offend anyone. Power screen has received a large amount of complaints over the wearing of this British Army Rag but has turned a deaf ear to its workforce.
“When people complained, they compared wearing the poppy to wearing ashes on Ash Wednesday and when told by workers that if people could wear poppies that they wanted to be able to wear Easter Lilies at Easter they were told by the company that that would be sectarian.
“It seems it is alright to honour the British army which engaged in murder, collusion and wide scale harassment in Ireland not just over this past 30 years but since Britain set foot in Ireland, Members of the Power Screen workforce have lost loved ones murdered by the British Army, how do they feel when faced with this emblem.
“In a local paper this week a list of members of the UDR killed over this past 30 years named in the poppy appeal included the names of some well-known UVF killers. How do people feel knowing Power Screen openly lets those Killers be remembered?
“Power Screen has a duty to provide a safe and secure working environment, free from symbols and emblems that regurgitate hurt and suffering for many nationalist and Republican people. If they had stuck to their guns and followed their own rules they would not have had a problem, it seems a GAA top is sectarian but an emblem supporting an army that has brought murder, hurt and suffering to thousands of Irish people is totally acceptable, even if that army continues to kill people today in Iraq with their illegal occupation.”
4. RSF: TYRONE ARRESTS 'DEPLORABLE'
REPUBLICAN Sinn Féin deplored the arrests in County Tyrone on November 13 of a recently released Republican Prisoner of War and his sister.
In a statement, Publicity Officer Richard Walsh, said: “Damage was caused to the homes raided, as was the case with recent raids in the Craigavon area of County Armagh. At approximately 1.30am the British colonial police gained entry to the former Republican prisoner's home with a chainsaw. An hour and a half later they kicked the door of his sister's house in. Their father went downstairs to investigate, believing that there had been a break-in. He was instantly surrounded by RUC officers and an infra-red light – presumably the sight of a weapon – was trained on his body.
“The two siblings are currently being interrogated at Antrim Barracks. Our thoughts are with them and their family during this trying time. It is clear that British forces – not content with having stolen several years of the arrested man's life – continue to harass him and his family in a most vindictive fashion.
“Such actions by enemy forces will only increase the resolve of true Republicans to expel the British from our country. Despite the hype of the Provisionals, Free Staters and others, they are in Ireland not as peacekeepers and peacemakers but instead as an occupying power. Their continued presence remains the greatest crime perpetrated against the Irish people.”
5. KEN SARO-WIWA COMMEMORATION IN DUBLIN
A LARGE crowd braved the cold evening weather to attend the first Irish screening of the documentary on the trial of Ken Saro-Wiwa and the Ogoni Eight – “Don't Let Shell Kill Again”, which was appropriately projected onto the outside wall of the Shell headquarters building at 52 Lower Leeson Street in Dublin, on the 12th anniversary of the executions on November 12.
Sister Majella McCarron, in what will probably be her last public appearance, made a short speech to provide a context for the film, remembering Saro-Wiwa and the others who were executed at the behest of Shell, after a series of events which shocked the world in 1995.
Sister Majella gave an insight into the situation in Ogoniland today, Saro-Wiwa's speech at his sentencing hearing in Port Harcourt, when he and his co-defendants heard that the special military tribunal had decreed that they were to be hanged was also read.
The annual Ken Saro-Wiwa Memorial Seminar was also held at UCC in Cork on November 10, and Saro-Wiwa was remembered as well on November 9 in Mayo, where an attempt to hold a peaceful march to the proposed Shell refinery site at Bellinaboy was marred by the 26-County police efforts to force construction traffic along the road.
The large force of 26-County police (including Special Branch) who surrounded those who attended the screening in Dublin reminded many people of attempts to intimidate opponents of Shell in other parts of the world, and their refusal to close a lane of traffic to allow people to pass the commemoration in safety showed that they have much in common with their colleagues in Mayo.
After the film screening, a wreath was laid at the front door of the Shell building.
The following is an excerpt from Saro-Wiwa's speech which was read during the candle-lit vigil:
“We all stand before history.
“I am a man of peace, of ideas.
“Appalled by the denigrating poverty of my people who live on a richly endowed land, distressed by their political marginalisation and economic strangulation, angered by the devastation of their land, their ultimate heritage, anxious to preserve their right to life and to a decent living, and determined to usher to this country as a whole a fair and just democratic system which protects everyone and every ethnic group and gives us all a valid claim to human civilization, I have devoted my intellectual and material resources, my very life, to a cause in which I have total belief and from which I cannot be blackmailed or intimidated.
“I have no doubt at all about the ultimate success of my cause, no matter the trials and tribulations which I and those who believe with me may encounter on our journey. No imprisonment nor death can stop our ultimate victory.”
To watch the short film click these clicks : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YZhy_VaYisU
6. 26-COUNTY POLICE ENDANGER LIFE IN MAYO
GARY Ronaghan, the man struck by a lorry at the anti-Shell protest in Bellinaboy county Mayo on November 9, is to make a formal complaint to the Garda Ombudsman in relation to the events leading up to, and following on from, the incident which saw the Monaghan man’s life placed in extreme danger.
Gary Ronaghan, had his foot trapped for several seconds under the rear wheel of a large lorry belonging to Lennon’s Quarries Ltd - a company which has been supplying stone to the Shell site in Bellinaboy. Following treatment in Mayo General Hospital in Castlebar it emerged that his foot had suffered tissue damage, in addition to severe bruising and swelling. Medical staff believe that, had Gary Ronaghan not been wearing steel-toe-capped boots, the damage would have been far worse.
Gary Ronaghan’s complaint to the Ombudsman will focus on both the manner in which the 26-County police dealt with the sit-down protest and the manner in which the Gardaí dealt with him following the crushing of his foot.
Speaking on November 11 Gary Ronaghan said, “I went to Mayo on Friday to protest at the giveaway of the Corrib gas-field and the way in which Shell and the government are forcing a gas refinery and experimental pipeline upon the people of Erris. I was willing to take part in a peaceful sit-down protest if need be and having seen how the Gardaí previously dealt with these protests I knew I might expect to wake up with a few bruises on Saturday morning. At no time did I expect to end up being almost killed by a lorry.
“I have no problem admitting that I was part of a sit-down protest. I believe that the issues surrounding the Corrib Gas controversy are of such importance that the use of non-violent civil disobedience tactics is justified. It was clearly apparent on Friday that the Gardaí are completely unable, or unwilling, to deal with such protests in a proper manner.
“It was nothing short of lunacy to attempt to move a massive, fully-loaded lorry through hundreds of people, many of whom were lying or sitting on the road. The Garda appeared to be making it up as they went along. When faced with scores of people sitting on a road would it not have made far more sense to ensure that the road was fully safe before instructing the driver of the lorry to move forwards?
“While my foot has been seriously injured it could have been far worse. It could have been someone’s head or body that went under that lorry. Indeed the negligence of the Garda operation put not only protesters lives at risk but also those of the Gardaí themselves.
“The driver of that lorry could not have been able to clearly see around the entire vehicle. He was following the direction of the Gardaí who were instructing him when to move forward and when to stop. And yet, not one Garda could possibly have been able to see all around that lorry to ensure that it was safe to proceed.
“When the lorry went over my foot I was being manhandled by at least two Gardaí. The entire situation was in a state of flux with a mass of bodies, both protesters and Gardaí within inches of the moving vehicle. Why did the Gardaí not instruct the driver to wait until it was safe to move on?
“The worst part was when the lorry actually came to a stop on top of my foot. The pain was excruciating, I thought my entire foot had been crushed. As soon as I started shouting for help other protesters saw what was happening and began shouting at the Gardaí to move the lorry off my foot, but it still took a couple seconds for the lorry to move on.
“I was told later that a number of Gardaí who were asked to take witness statements in relation to the incident refused to do so. One Garda actually told a witness that he hadn’t ‘got the faculty’ to take a statement’ – which is absolutely bizarre. The numbers of these Gardaí were noted and this will form part of my complaint to the Ombudsman.
“In addition, it appears that all of the normal protocols relating to road traffic accidents were ignored. As far as I can determine the driver of the lorry that ran over my foot was not stopped or questioned at the scene, nor were witness statements sought. Indeed, it appears that the driver was directed by the Gardaí away from the scene of the incident and that witnesses were deliberately discouraged from making statements.”
7. CALL FOR FRESH INQUEST INTO KILLING BY SAS
THE British attorney general has been asked to order a fresh inquest into the SAS killing of a Derry man more than 20 years ago, the Belfast High Court heard on November 5.
Danny Doherty (23) was shot in the grounds of Gransha Hospital in 1984.
His widow Julie and the next of kin of two other men shot dead in the 1980s applied for orders to compel the RUC/PSNI chief constable to provide the Six-Counties Coroners Service with documents withheld at the original inquests.
The other victims were Francis Bradley (20), shot by the SAS near Toomebridge in 1986, and Gerard Casey (29), murdered by the UFF in his Rasharkin home in 1989.
The court action followed a recent ruling in the British House of Lords that the RUC/PSNI are obliged to give a coroner all the documentation in their possession.
Barry MacDonald QC said that in all three cases the RUC had filed affidavits listing the documents that had been withheld from coroners.
He said the documents included lists of suspects, statements by civilian witnesses, intelligence papers and information about the weapons used.
“These were all material documents which throw new light on the killings," Barry MacDonald said.
“They would never have come to light but for these applications for judicial review."”
Barry MacDonald said an application had already been made for a new inquest into Danny Doherty's death.
He said the British attorney general had postponed making a decision until the outcome of the court case. Judgment was reserved as the judge said he wished to consider the matter as his ruling would have implications for many other inquests.
ENDS
Sinn Féin Poblachtach - Cork (http://www.rsfcork.com)
Saoirse Republican Forum (http://saoirse.21.forumer.com)