SAOIRSE32

The Kerryman

Wednesday November 14 2007

At the RSF conference in Dublin at the weekend members of the Listowel O’Sullivan Enright Cummann of RSF called for a renewed physical struggle against ‘occupation’ forces in Northern Ireland.

The Listowel RSF group paid tribute to rioters who caused chaos in the capital during the Love Ulster march and RSF members who protested against a proposed loyalist march through Dublin earlier this year.

In further motions the O?Sullivan Enright Cummann members called for recognition of ?the right of Irish people to use controlled and disciplined force to drive the British forces of occupation out of Ireland.?

RSF are a breakaway republican group and the political wing of the Continuity IRA the men and women responsible for numerous sectarian murders along with the Omagh bombing atrocity.

CIRA have also been linked to the shooting of two PSNI officers in the last fortnight, in one of the incidents the victim was shot several times outside a school where he had just dropped off his young children,

The political policy motions listed for debate included the following:

A call to ban the flying of the British flag anywhere in Ireland; several calls to continue the armed struggle against the British army and security forces; condemnation of anyone who joins those security forces, and a demand that all members of the government and security forces be barred permanently from playing Gaelic games or even entering GAA stadiums.

Amid calls to tackle global warming, ban pornography and for all RSF members to use ‘Fair Trade’ products RSF called on Aer Lingus to reopen the now infamous Shannon Heathrow route.

CIRA have previously threatened large scale attacks on public transports facilities in Britain, including airports.

In motion 50 the Limerick and Ennis party cummans declared their opposition to the route’s closure and called on their party colleagues to do the same.

The Listowel branch said it was also prepared to stage a major protest in the event of a state visit to Ireland by the Queen. ‘We commend our members and supporters who have protested at the attempted imposition of a loyalist march in Dublin, the presence of the English rugby team in Croke Park and the hosting of a British colonial police team at Esler Park in Newry. We must be prepared to mobilise protests in the event of a visit by the Queen of England to any part of Ireland.’

rte.ie

Friday, 16 November 2007 10:33

The SDLP says it has been warned by police of threats from loyalist paramilitaries in the south-east Antrim area.

It has believed the threat of an attack on a member of the party came from elements once associated with the UDA.

It has also emerged that some Sinn Féin members of district policing partnerships in Northern Ireland have been warned they are being targeted by dissident republicans.

Bray People.ie

Thursday November 08 2007

The assassination of the late Wicklow county councillor, Seamus Costello, was raised in the council chambers on Monday. A notice of motion from Cllr Tommy Cullen, put down in April 2005, called on the Minister for Justice to reopen the investigation in the political assassination of Seamus Costello in the light of an article published in that year by Vincent Browne.

Cullen wants Costello case to be re-opened.

The assassination of the late Wicklow county councillor, Seamus Costello, was raised in the council chambers on Monday.

A notice of motion from Cllr Tommy Cullen, put down in April 2005, called on the Minister for Justice to reopen the investigation in the political assassination of Seamus Costello in the light of an article published in that year by Vincent Browne.

Cllr Cullen stated that the Bray man was assassinated in the 1970s but no one had ever been held to account. He said that Vincent Browne’s article contained a lot of information and suggested that the minister should reopen the investigation in the light of its contents.

I’d like to think that if any member of this council was murdered or assassinated that members would want to see someone held to book,’ he told Monday’s monthly meeting.

Cllr George Jones said he would be nervous of passing such a resolution as Mr Costello’s family was still in the area.

Cllr John Byrne also warned that it would be unwise to make a policy based on an article in a newspaper.

He added that Seamus Costello did a lot of good work for the county but that he was also the leader of an illegal organisation.

He had his own private army which hasn’t accepted the peace process and hasn’t surrendered their arms,’ he stated.

The council’s vice chairperson, Derek Mitchell, said that the consensus was that the council would not be writing to the minister but Cllr Cullen said that the issue should be dealt with. He called on Vincent Browne to give the information he had to the Gardaí.

If someone murdered Jimmy O’Shaughnessy, God between us and all harm, I would like to think that we would support an investigation,’ he stated.

Cllr Nicky Kelly pointed out that there was precedent in councils calling for investigations to be reopened in Donegal.

He seconded Cllr Cullen’s motion to call on Vincent Browne to bring his information to the Gardaí.

Newry Democrat

Wednesday, November 14, 2007

Mr Quinn, 21, was beaten to death by a masked gang after being lured to a remote farmhouse in Co Monaghan. In the immediate aftermath of the murder, his family blamed the Provisional IRA and claimed that the victim had become involved in disputes with, and been threatened by, individuals with links to the organisation in the weeks before his death.

Now, however, a spokesman for the south Armagh branch of the 32 County Sovereignty Movement has alleged that what he described as a whispering campaign is trying to link groups opposed to the Good Friday Agreement to the killing. Rejecting the suggestion, the spokesman “categorically denied any republican involvement in this crime”.

“The attempt to apportion blame to anti-Agreement republicanism is nothing more than a pathetic attempt to deflect attention from the real perpetrators and an attempt to sully the name of republican separatism,” he insisted.

“Thankfully, the people of Cullyhanna and the surrounding areas are aware of the truth behind these baseless rumours.” Those behind the murder have nothing in common with south Armagh’s “noble tradition as a place of resistance to English law”, the spokesman added. “Whatever law they thought they were upholding, it was certainly not republican law or the will of the people,” he stated.

Meanwhile, the SDLP’s Newry and Armagh MLA Dominic Bradley has rejected criticism of the investigation into Mr Quinn’s murder from his Ulster Unionist counterpart Danny Kennedy.

Mr Kennedy had expressed concern after Gardaí were allowed to carry out enquiries in the Cullyhanna area, claiming that the development would undermine the authority of the PSNI.

According to Mr Bradley, the decision to allow Garda officers to cross the border was good practice and evidence of close co-operation between the two police forces.

“It is disingenuous of Mr Kennedy to make these comments in the midst of this very serious investigation,” he commented. “The priority for all politicians at this particular time should be the apprehension of those responsible for Paul Quinn’s murder and not petty political point scoring.

“What Mr Kennedy should be doing is encouraging the public to co-operate fully with the investigation by bringing any information which may be of use to the enquiry to either the Gardaí or the PSNI. It is ironic that only a few weeks ago, Mr Kennedy was calling for hot pursuit by the PSNI across the border. These two issues are closely related and he can’t have it both ways.”

BBC

Belfast’s Lord Mayor has appealed to a loyalist band barred from a city street to “take the high ground” and withdraw its application for a parade.

Jim Rodgers has appealed to the band to resubmit its application

The Parades Commission has banned the Pride of the Raven band from going along Donegall Pass next Saturday.

This followed concerns it could intimidate members of the Chinese community living and working there.

Jim Rodgers, an Orange Order member, called on the band to withdraw and submit a fresh application in January.

“The Parades Commission has been a big disappointment to the Pride of the Raven band. They are very respectable and have been in business for many many years,” he said.

“I don’t think for one moment they were trying to cause offence.”

“But traders in the city centre are very concerned this parade would disrupt business and many traders are struggling to make ends meet,” he said.

Form

The Pride of the Raven Band said they were unhappy that a form with one of their member’s names on it had been passed to Alliance assembly member Anna Lo.

They claimed this compromised one of their member’s security.

But Ms Lo said she had no direct link with the road and many view the route request as an attempt to intimidate people.

“This is a protest parade going down Donegall Pass and really there is no connection with Donegall Pass at all in terms of the protest,” she said.

“My constituency office is not in Donegall Pass, I have no connection at all with Donegall Pass - so why pick Donegall Pass?”

On Thursday, the Parades Commission banned the march from going along Donegall Pass.

It allowed an alternative route on the condition there was only one band, no more than 40 people and that the march which is due to start at 1000GMT on 24 November finishes by 1230GMT.

:::u.tv:::

FRIDAY 16/11/2007 15:01:48

Four members of the Orange Order in Northern Ireland have been warned to be on their guard against a dissident republican attack.

The Protestant marching organisation revealed the threat after Sinn Fein named 16 members in Belfast who were told they are being targeted by hard-line republicans.

The entire nationalist SDLP has also been advised by police to step up its members` security amid concerns that loyalist paramilitaries are preparing an attack.

The Orange Order revealed four members of the institution had been advised to be on their guard and they were also told hard-line republicans were planning an attack on the caretaker of an Orange Hall in Antrim.

The organisation`s grand secretary Drew Nelson said: “We believe that dissident republicans have been responsible for recent attacks on Orange Halls in Armagh and Tyrone. It now appears that this campaign has spread to Co. Antrim and has taken a more sinister turn with a direct threat against our members.”

He continued: “We are extremely concerned that the police are not treating this campaign as seriously as they should be.”

The latest threats were condemned by Northern Ireland Policing Board chairman Sir Desmond Rea.

4ni.co.uk

16 November 2007

Traffic is being diverted away from the scene of a bomb alert at a shopping complex in south Belfast.

Army technical experts were called to the Boucher Road at about 11.15am on Friday.

It is understood that a suspect package was discovered at Boucher Plaza. A number of premises have been evacuated.

A controlled explosion has since been carried out and the area around the shopping complex has been closed to traffic. A police spokesman appealed to motorists to avoid the area.

Meanwhile, suspect devices are still being examined by an army bomb disposal team in Dublin.

They have been found in Fairview Park in north Dublin and the army bomb disposal team is on the scene and currently examining the devices, one of which is thought to be a pipe bomb. The two devices were reported at 8.30am.

Fairview Park is an open area of parkland, built on reclaimed land, which was reduced in size in recent years due to the development of the Dublin Port Tunnel, whose entrance is just beyond the old park perimeter.

Irelandclick

By Áine McEntee
16/11/2007

The Historical Enquiries Team and PSNI are due to meet with relatives of the McGurk’s bar massacre today (Thursday) to discuss investigations into the 1971 atrocity.
Assistant Chief Constable Alistair Finlay, Policing board member Alex Maskey and a HET representative will meet with Alex McLaughlin in Stormont to discuss concerns raised by victims of the atrocity about the progress of the HET’s investigations.
Some 15 people were slaughtered in the bombing that ripped through the small family run bar on the corner of Great George’s Street and North Queen Street in December 1971.
Alex McLaughlin’s father Thomas was one of those who lost his life in the bombing.
But though loyalists carried out the bombing – the UVF – the bombing was immediately blamed in the misinformation spin of the security forces
The British army said the IRA put a 50lb gelignite bomb inside McGurk’s bar, but local people said it had been placed in the doorway by a carload of loyalists.
Stormont Minister John Taylor repeated the official denial of loyalist responsibility and blamed the IRA.
Last month the North Belfast News reported that another enquiry instigated by the Police Ombudsman two years ago was due for publication this month.
This may not be case and it could be early 2008 before it is released.
The families have long insisted that loyalists acted in collusion with British military agents to carry out the bombing.
Former North Belfast UVF man and a British Army agent known only as John Black alleged earlier this year that the bombing, one of the most deadly in the Troubles, was organised by his handlers in the British Army’s Military Reconnaissance Force.

BBC

Restrictions have been placed on a loyalist protest parade planned for south Belfast next Saturday.

The Parades Commission has barred the Pride of the Raven band from going along Donegal Pass.

This is amid concerns it could intimidate members of the Chinese community living and working there.

It has also been stipulated only the Pride of the Raven band and no more than 40 people take part. The entire event must be finished by noon.

The band is unhappy that a form with one of their member’s names on it was passed to Alliance MLA Anna Lo.

It claims this incident compromised the security of the individual concerned.