SAOIRSE32

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: 2 Aibreán / April 2008

Internet resources maintained by SAOIRSE-Irish Freedom

http://saoirse.info

In this issue:

1. Harassment in Armagh and Keady
2. Loyalist attack leaves man critically injured
3. Details of a three-page UDA speech are revealed
4. Brit military killings reopened
5. Son of loyalist victim deported from US
6. UVF banner on parade
7. Sr Stan calls for immigration Bill change
8. Memorial to Limerick IRA man restored
9. Teachers oppose British army recruitment
10. Salmond calls for referendum on Scottish independence

1. HARASSMENT IN ARMAGH AND KEADY

IN the weeks before the British queen’s visit to Armagh City, the British colonial police stepped up it’s harassment of Republican Sinn Féin members in the Armagh and Keady areas.

On a number of occasions Republican Sinn Féin members have been stopped, while driving their own cars, under the British Prevention Terrorism Act, three to four times on the same night by the same PSNI/RUC men.

Other members of RSF have been stopped while walking out of there homes and searched again under the PTA. The Vice-Chairperson of the Cumann in Armagh was stopped on his way to work in his own car, which was searched. They followed him to his place of work, waited on him to leave and stopped him again in his work van, searched it and on both occasions nothing was found.

On another occasion another RSF member and the Chairperson of the Armagh Cumann had just got into their car outside the members’ house, when they were stopped under the PTA. They searched the car and again nothing found after a half hour. They were allowed to drive on, but the PSNI/RUC car would not start and they had to wait on a Land Rover to tow them out of the estate while coming under attack from young Republicans from the Estate.

The PSNI/RUC personnel have a lot of time on there hands, they drive past RSF members’ houses every 20 minutes and at one time the Chairperson of the Keady Cumann had five PSNI/RUC cars parked outside his house for 20 minutes, as they tried to intimidated this man’s family.

Republican Sinn Féin in Keady and Armagh condemn the ongoing harassment of our members will not allow it to stop us from rebuilding the true Republican Movement in Armagh and Keady.

2. LOYALIST ATTACK LEAVES MAN CRITICALLY INJURED
A FAN of Glasgow Celtic soccer club was seriously ill in hospital on March 29 after his throat was slashed during a mass loyalist attack on a pub in central Belfast. The supporter was set upon by a mob of up to 70 Linfield fans returning from the Irish Cup semi-final clash with Cliftonville at The Oval.
Eyewitnesses in the mainly nationalist Castle Street said that at around 3.30pm the Linfield supporters alighted from a bus and rushed towards the area.

At first the mob tried to get into the Belfast Bar at the junction of Castle Street and King Street, but were repelled by up to 100 customers who had been watching the Celtic-Rangers Old Firm match on television.

“It was after the Linfield crowd were beaten back from the bar that they singled out a guy in King Street,” said one witness. “They knew he was Catholic (sic) because of his Celtic shirt.”

The RUC/PSNI were informed by city centre bar staff 20 minutes to half an hour before the sectarian attacks that a 30-strong gang of men looked like ‘trouble’.

According to an eyewitness in the city centre bar the gang, which may have links to Neo Nazi group Combat 18, were on the look-out for Cliftonville supporters well before the Irish Cup football clash ended in Linfield’s favour.

“These guys walked in about 1.45pm,” the eyewitness told a Belfast newspaper. “There were about 30 of them, and they were all sober and well-dressed. They were overheard talking about nabbing Cliftonville supporters and giving them a hard time. They left the bar about 3pm and went outside and got photographed holding up a huge Union Jack flag which had ‘No Surrender’ written on it.

“After that, they walked towards the city centre. That’s when bar staff phoned the police to say there’s going to be trouble from this lot.”

The gang then launched a vicious attack on nationalists in and around Cosgrove’s bar in King Street. The most seriously injured during the gang’s rampage half an hour later was Scotsman Hugh ‘Shuggie’ McAnally (32) who had his throat slashed in the vicious onslaught.

3. DETAILS OF A THREE-PAGE UDA SPEECH ARE REVEALED

BELFAST Crown Court heard on March 30 that a guarantee that the UDA would not disband was contained in a three-page speech which was to have been given at a UDA show of strength in a north Belfast bar.

The speech, allegedly in the handwriting of 34-year-old Ihab Shoukri, declared while the UDA “must now take our fight into the political arena – it’s not the end of the UDA - which is here to stay”. The speech concluded with the boast: “We will never go away, you know.”

The speech was found in the pocket of one of five men arrested along side Shoukri, of Westland Drive, Belfast.

Shoukri faces charges ranging from UDA membership to supporting the loyalist death squad.

Just prior to the start of the trial trouble flared. British colonial police in riot gear were called to the Langanside courthouse and stood guard as the men were kept separated by prison and security staff in the dock for the Diplock, non-jury case.

Trial judge Mr Justice Gillen heard that the six men were arrested along with a number of other suspects when the RUC/PSNI stormed the Alexander Bar on Belfast`s York Road on March 2, 2006.

4. BRIT MILITARY KILLINGS REOPENED

OVER 150 British Army killings, some already investigated by the Six-County Historical Enquiries Team, are to be probed again. The new examinations into the 1970-1973 killings have been launched due to concerns over the original British Royal Military Police investigations into the 155 deaths.

The news comes in the wake of a third botch-up by the HET who have again got the date of the death of another British Army victim wrong.

Letters revealing the HET are re-examining their own reports into murders which involved the British Royal Military Police (RMP) were sent out to families in February.

In one North Belfast case the widow of Barney Watts and sister of Joseph Parker, Theresa Watts, received two letters which said that although the HET had already looked at the two deaths, they would now be carrying out more probes.

“As the HET’s knowledge and understanding of the Troubles has evolved we now recognise that real concerns exist regarding the effectiveness and independence of the original investigations into deaths in which soldiers were involved, particularly in the years 1970-1973,” the letter reveals

Over 150 murders were investigated by the British army’s RMP in the period 1970-1973 and these cases will now be reopened after “real concerns” regarding the effectiveness and independence of the original investigations were raised.

The review was prompted by Theresa Watts’ victims’ group the Ardoyne Commemoration Project and her solicitor slamming the HET for a superficial probe into the murder.

Barney Watt was shot dead in February 1971 by British soldiers, who said he had a bomb. Forensic evidence later proved that Barney Watts had not thrown nor been in contact with a bomb. His case will now be re-investigated as well.

Theresa Watts aged 62, said the family would only be co-operating with the HET through their legal representative Paddy Murray at Kevin Winters Solicitors.

“For them to turn round and admit they murdered our Jo Jo is never going to happen,” Theresa said. “But I do want them to say he was innocent. The first time they carried out the review they (HET) said, ‘we can’t talk to the soldiers that killed him’. Now they’re saying ‘we’ve found them, we can talk to them’. Why didn’t they do that in the first place?”

HET senior officers are due to go to Europe in April to explain whether their enquiries meet Article 2 obligations of the European Convention on Human Rights.
Victims groups, such as Relatives for Justice, have said they do not believe the team which consists of serving and retired members of the British colonial police is independent and can meet those human right obligations.

Since it was launched two years ago, the team which falls under the command of the head of the British colonial police Sir Hugh Orde, has not ordered one prosecution and that’s despite probing nearly half (1,039) of the overall cases (2,516).

The new batch of HET letters reveal, in the year of 1970 a ‘tea and sandwiches’ agreement was reached between the RUC and the British Army which resulted in the British RMP interviewing a number of soldiers involved in fatal shooting incidents. The reports given to families often raise further questions a HET spokeswoman explained.

“Additionally if families or their representatives are not happy or do not agree with the HET findings the team undertakes to look again at the findings of the reports,” she said.

“The investigative process and the interaction with families or their representatives, can throw up new lines of inquiry and new issues. Consultation with Non-Governmental Organisations representing families highlighted concerns over the role of the RMP interviewing soldiers in relevant cases and the HET agreed to re-examine any such cases that it had already completed.”

5. SON OF LOYALIST VICTIM DEPORTED FROM US

JAMIE McAllister — whose father Malachy is facing a battle to remain in the US — was deported from the USA to Ireland in February.

Although the 29-year-old has relatives in Belfast, he has been staying with friends in Dublin over fears he would be targeted by loyalist death squads.

The Belfast-born man was arrested by officials from the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and told that he was being deported.

He was then dressed in a stranger’s clothing and given $20 before he was chained and escorted on to the plane by US federal marshals.

Like his father, Jamie McAllister had been reporting monthly to the DHS in New Jersey since December 2003, under an order of supervision.

He was denied political asylum because of an offence he committed when he was a teenager.

It’s understood he was cautioned, but not jailed for possessing a “controlled substance”.

The deportee had been living in the US for the last 20 years after his family fled Belfast when their home was raked with bullets by the loyalist Red Hand Commando death squad.

Jamie McAllister, who was forced to leave his wife Noelle behind, is now trying to re-build his life in Ireland.

However, it’s still not clear if the local man intends to fight against the decision.
Speaking from New York, McAllister Family Campaign for Justice spokeswoman Carol Russell condemned the decision.

“Now in his late twenties, Jamie’s youthful mistake has condemned him to deportation to a country which he, as a small boy, fled with his family under fire from loyalist paramilitaries. Jamie has known no life other than that of a typical American boy growing up in a New Jersey neighbourhood surrounded by his siblings, parents and a supportive Irish-American community. Although he is married to a US citizen, his fate was sealed. He also lived through the long legal battle his parents fought to gain political asylum for the entire family. Our campaign for justice has always stood firmly on the cornerstone of keeping together this close-knit family that fled from Belfast’s violent past, taking our cue from Article 16 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. But now the family must endure further tragedy as they are separated by an ocean from a son, brother and husband to whom they were not even permitted to say farewell.”

She added: “Clearly, the DHS is moved little by any such humanitarian concerns.”
The young man’s grandmother, Ellen, also hit out at the US authorities to deport her grandson.

Ellen McAllister said: “We are all just devastated and can’t believe this has happened to Jamie. The only thing he has known for the last 20 years is America. This decision is so unfair.

“They have taken a hard-working man away from his wife and family, and we think they have done this just to get back at Malachy. We will give him all the support we can and he’s now just trying to work through the red tape so he can get some work.”

6. UVF BANNER ON PARADE

DESPITE an original determination by the Six-County Parades Commission banning supporters from the march, nationalist residents were outraged when up to 20 loyalist supporters accompanied two lodges and a band down past the Crumlin Road interface.

Residents, who had staged a 30-strong counter protest to the march, were further enraged by a banner commemorating UVF men Sam Rockett and William Hanna which was carried in the parade and by sectarian remarks made by marchers.

Although he admitted the Six-County Parades Commission has not yet sat down with parade monitors to record complaints and breaches from the early morning parade on March 24, a spokesman confirmed this would be a priority in the coming weeks.

“The commission has held its hands up and admitted things could have been done better before Monday’s parade,” the spokesman said. “We were really up against it and time and logistical constraints made things difficult but we are committed to ensuring dialogue continues.”

Speaking after a specially-organised meeting with the Parades Commission one day after the parade took place, s Ardoyne Parades Dialogue Group (APDG) spokesperson Joe Marley said he did not see the commission as a “neutral broker” in the dispute.
“We have been treated as nothing more than second-class citizens in this whole dispute,” Joe Marley said.

“Obviously we would like to see dialogue resume with the North and West Belfast Parades Forum but as it stands we do not feel we have been treated fairly or evenly by the commission.

“We want to continue dialogue which we hope will bear fruit but the commission has to ensure all parties start off on a level playing field.

7. SR STAN CALLS FOR IMMIGRATION BILL CHANGE

THE founder of the Immigrant Council, Sr Stanislaus Kennedy, has called for the 26-County administration’s immigration Bill to be amended so that migrants who have been convicted for actions not considered criminal in the 26 Counties are not refused residence or visa rights here.

She suggested that, because of the way certain sections of the Immigration, Residence and Protection Bill are phrased, those convicted of spitting, chewing gum, or committing adulterous or homosexual acts - all considered offences in some countries - could be refused permission to enter or reside in the 26 Counties.

While acknowledging the right of the 26-County administration to decide what crimes were relevant when deciding on visa and residence applications, she said the proposed law would allow for “fundamental injustices”.

“The legislation allows a person’s criminal convictions, in this country or overseas, to be taken into consideration when they apply for a visa or residence permit or when deciding whether to refuse someone entry into Ireland, or to revoke their existing permit,” Sr Stanislaus said.

“On the surface, that seems fair enough. However, the legislation does not specify that those convictions should be for actions that are considered offences in this country. In some countries, adultery and homosexuality are criminal offences. In Singapore, there are strict penalties for spitting or chewing gum…”

The Bill states that an immigration officer may refuse to permit a foreign national to enter the State if satisfied that the individual has been “convicted of an offence punishable under the law of the place of conviction by imprisonment for a period of one year or by a more severe penalty”.

Another section states that the 26-County Minister for Justice may consider refusing a visa application because of any criminal convictions of the applicant or any member of his or her family.

Convictions may also be considered when deciding on an application for residence.

8. MEMORIAL TO LIMERICK IRA MAN RESTORED

THE first phase of the restoration of a Republican memorial on the Ballysimon Road to a Limerick man murdered by Free State forces has been completed, the secretary of Limerick Republican Graves said on April 1.

Joe Lynch of Beechgrove Avenue in Ballinacurra Weston said that the memorial had been overshadowed by development of an industrial estate on the Ballysimon Road and the memorial had been incorporated into a surrounding wall.

“After discussions and consultations with both Shannon Development owners of the estate, and planning officials at Limerick City Council, the memorial has been moved to a more prominent position where it can be clearly seen by visitors,” he said.

“The memorial marks the place where Limerick man Captain Michael Danford of the Limerick IRA Brigade was brutally executed by Free State Forces during the civil war. He lived in Wolfe Tone Street and some of his surviving relatives alerted us to the condition of the memorial.

“We are now embarking on the second phase which is to clean and repair the memorial which was damaged during the original incorporation into the surrounding wall.

“We are grateful to Shannon Development for their work and assistance to date and we look forward to formally unveiling the restored memorial in due course.”

9. TEACHERS OPPOSE BRITISH ARMY RECRUITMENT

BRITISH teachers voted on March 25 at the conference of the British National Union of Teachers conference to back staff who resist British army recruitment drives and called for “education for peace” to be embedded in the British schools curriculum.

“We would have material from the MoD saying ‘Join the Army and we will send you to carry out the imperialist occupation of other people’s countries.’ ‘Join the army and we will send you to bomb, shoot and possibly torture fellow human beings in other countries’.”

The motion committed the NUT to holding a “summit” to consider the issue of recruitment in schools.

10. SALMOND CALLS FOR REFERENDUM ON SCOTTISH INDEPENDENCE

ON March 26 Scots First Minister Alex Salmond challenged opposition parties to come up with an alternative to independence that could be put to the public in a referendum.

The challenge came when he launched the latest stage of the Scottish Government’s National Conversation on the country’s constitutional future.

The SNP hopes to stage a referendum in 2010 on whether Scotland should become independent.

He suggested the referendum having two other options, more powers for the Scottish Parliament or no change in the present set-up.

And he said that voting in that referendum could be carried out on a system of one-two-three preferences, as used in last year’s local government elections.

This differs markedly from what was set out in a document launched last August when the National Conversation began which envisaged a simple yes or no answer to the question of independence, although Alex Salmond said at the time he was “relaxed” about other options being included.

ENDS