THE IRA : the new IRA is younger , more radical and has seen little of life other than violence…….
By Ed Moloney.
From ‘Magill’ magazine, September 1980.

Another principal , if rarely admitted reason for switching to a long war of attrition strategy is that support for widescale IRA activity has declined significantly in recent years . The war-weariness and pessimism evident in the nationalist areas of the North is also reflected in the attitudes of many in the Movement itself who see little to be gained by continuing the fight * . (* ‘1169..’ Comment : that whole paragraph should be read with the author’s name firmly in mind - Moloney had indeed got his contacts in the Movement but was not of the Movement.)

But that sort of thinking is less true of the new IRA ; they are the younger , more radical types who have seen little of life other than violence , dawn raids , interrogations , rioting , shooting and bombing . They have taken over the mantle of militant republicanism from the men and women of the ‘forties , ‘fifties and ’sixties and are increasingly impatient with what many of them see as conservative political and military elements in the old Dublin leadership . And the IRA they have created is much more ruthless and doesn’t need mass popular support .

With the prospect of a ‘long war’ in front of them what then keeps the IRA going ? Prime among the motives for continuing the campaign is the hope that in the harsh economic climate of the 1980’s the cost of the North of Ireland to the British will get so high that they will be forced into looking for a way out . There’s no doubt that the cost of shoring up a degenerating economy in the North combined with the damage caused by the Provisional IRA’s campaign and the cost of the security and prison services has become increasingly burdensome for the British - last year’s subvention to the North from Westminster (ie the money the British have to find to make up the difference between income from taxes and public spending in the North) was equivalent to the five year refund demanded from the EEC budget by Margaret Thatcher…….
(MORE LATER).

RESISTANCE ON ALL FRONTS.
IRIS talks to a spokesperson authorised to speak on behalf of the Irish Republican Army.
From ‘IRIS’ magazine , July/August 1982.

IRIS: ” Recently there was considerable publicity given to alleged IRA attempts to obtain sophisticated heat-seeking missiles . To what extent does the present lack of such weaponry limit the IRA’s operational capacity in rural areas ? “

IRA: ” I would say that if that type of weapon was available to IRA units you would find that we would be able to physically clash with the British face-to-face , that is, do what they are always saying we can’t do - ’stand up and fight’ . There would be a whole new phase of the war , a totally new game altogether. At present there are massive areas of the occupied territory , such as in South Armagh and in parts of Fermanagh , particularly around Lisnaskea , Donagh and Maguiresbridge , where the Brits don’t use vehicles at all . They supply all their outposts by helicopter . The same applies to large areas on the Fermanagh/Donegal and West Tyrone/Donegal borders. Without helicopters , which this kind of missile is designed to attack , there would be a complete inability to continue supplies without mounting a massive operation to secure the area using hundreds of men . So the effect of our lack of this weapon is obvious .”
(MORE LATER).

The Class Of ‘76:(Top row L. to R.) Charlie Fagan (Arthur’s brother) , Dickie Glenholmes (Jnr) , Ciaran ‘Zack’ Smyth (served 9 years in jail) , Philip Rooney (served 8 and a half years) , Seany McVeigh (served 10 years). (Bottom row L. to R.) Eugene Gilmartin (serving life in the H-Blocks) , Arthur O Faogain.
SHEDDING DREAMS…….
The ghettos of Belfast and Derry are filled with stories such as this one. It is not unique. Young men and women, because of the partition of this country by the British, are killed, imprisoned and maimed.
By Artur O Faogain.
From ‘IRIS’ magazine , October 1987.

” We all looked forward to Christmas that year , as we did every year . Sitting together , glasses filled, we enjoyed each other’s company . Shaking the cold from my legs I opened the door to rejoin them . There they sat , laughing, oblivious of the coming nightmare . Blasted against a wall of the bar , I twisted and broke . ‘I’m sorry , son,’ my father said when I awoke . ‘Your legs…’ . ‘I know’ , I replied . Luckily no-one else was seriously hurt . I didn’t go out much in my wheelchair . Friends would call up and we’d talk for hours . I felt so cheated.

Judges sounding like parrots , seated on benches repeating ‘Guilty!’ , endorsed Castlereagh’s methods with a mass of convictions that imprisoned my generation . Listening to the news , the long sentences depressed me . Their time for release would never come , I thought , and, visiting them over the last number of years I have observed how different they have become . No longer the wide-eyed teenagers with adventure in mind…….”
(MORE LATER).

Francie Brolly’s ‘bunting…’

Kevin Lynch, an INLA Volunteer , died at 1.00 a.m. on Saturday August 1st 1981 in the hospital of Long Kesh after seventy-one days on hunger strike. He was the seventh hunger-striker to die that year . A Commemoration in memory of the man and in honour of that which he gave his life for has been held every year in his hometown of Dungiven , in North Derry, organised by local republicans and supported by the vast majority of the townspeople. A ‘republican’ Stormont representative , a Mr Francis Brolly , has now voiced ‘reservations’ about the manner in which this commemoration is held , and has stated his preference for “bunting” to be displayed rather than the National Flag -
did ten men die on hunger-strike in 1981 in order that the Butchers Apron be replaced with “bunting” ?
Have 22 men died on hunger-strike between the years 1917 and 1981 for “bunting” ?
Have we endured over eight hundred years of struggle for the ‘right’ to display “bunting” on our own streets ?
While you ponder those questions , have a listen to this piece of music (note the title) by that same Stormont ‘republican’ representative and then have a read of how he laughs at those that are not politically financed by the British Crown.
“Take it down from the mast…” , Mr Brolly…..
Sharon.

THE IRA : the new IRA is younger , more radical and has seen little of life other than violence…….
By Ed Moloney.
From ‘Magill’ magazine, September 1980.

Although the re-organisation of the IRA has undoubtedly revitalised the Provos the most significant aspect of that development is that it demonstrated for the first time since the start of the IRA’s campaign that the initiative in security matters was now with the British .

In 1970 , 1971 and 1973 the Provisional IRA had toyed with the concept of ‘cells’ or ‘active service units’ : in 1973 they actually formed a number of such units with 40 men in Andersonstown in West Belfast . But those changes , if they had come about would have been voluntary ; this latest re-organisation was a matter of survival to the organisation , and made it a more efficient killing organisation but it has necessitated a drastic reduction in the numbers of active service Volunteers in their ranks .

A joint RUC/British Army assessment last winter put the IRA’s strength throughout the North of Ireland at around the 300 mark with perhaps as many as 3,000 active sympathisers providing safe houses , transport etc . To put that into proper context the strength of the 1st Battalion of the Belfast Brigade of the IRA in 1972 was 300 with the same in reserve ; the total strength of the IRA in that year was between 1,500 and 2,000 . Instead of growing , as guerrilla armies have to if ultimate victory is to be realised , the Provisional IRA is actually declining in strength…….
(MORE LATER).

ARMAGH JAIL - NO LET UP IN REPRESSION…….
Arrested on active service in April 1976 and sentenced at her ‘trial’ eight months later to 14 years imprisonment , Belfast republican Mairead Farrell became one of the first women POW’s to take part in the protest for political status . Later on she was involved in the ‘no wash’ escalation of the protest in Armagh Jail , and in December 1980 she was one of three women prisoners to join the first hunger-strike . Here , in a smuggled communication to this magazine , she writes about the strip searches , prison work and isolation that are features of the prison regime’s repression in Armagh.
From ‘IRIS’ magazine , July 1983.

” It is plain to see that there is a need for segregation along these lines in Armagh Jail . It is true to say that we do not have a republican/loyalist-type situation here as is the case in the H-Blocks, but the need for segregation is still a major issue .

In my opinion the future ahead for republican POW’s in Armagh looks grim because of the attitude we’re met with on these important issues . It is such a small jail with a low population of inmates that one would think a reasonable existence would be possible with little difficulty . It is , of course , but not under the present circumstances , as for the past year the prison regime has been , and continues to be , geared towards punishment alone and there is no sign that this will change . “

[END of ‘ARMAGH JAIL - NO LET UP IN REPRESSION’]
(Next : ‘Resistance On All Fronts ‘ - an interview with the IRA . From 1982)

The Class Of ‘76:(Top row L. to R.) Charlie Fagan (Arthur’s brother) , Dickie Glenholmes (Jnr) , Ciaran ‘Zack’ Smyth (served 9 years in jail) , Philip Rooney (served 8 and a half years) , Seany McVeigh (served 10 years). (Bottom row L. to R.) Eugene Gilmartin (serving life in the H-Blocks) , Arthur O Faogain.
SHEDDING DREAMS…….
The ghettos of Belfast and Derry are filled with stories such as this one. It is not unique. Young men and women, because of the partition of this country by the British, are killed, imprisoned and maimed.
By Artur O Faogain.
From ‘IRIS’ magazine , October 1987.

” The cries and moans of bewildering pain drew people quickly to the scene . The bomb’s work ‘efficiently’ done , the old public house collapsed . People dug in hope , lights glaring, as the black bodybags filled . Five coffins side-by-side stretched across the street . The British Army watched noisily from the air . Loyalist attacks like this continued throughout the summer .

Not long afterwards I started work . My first pay packet , though small , felt like a million . Girls , clothes and music became our priority . The loyalist attacks still continued as did the reprisals . The Sticks and the IRA began a feud that October , similar to the INLA-Stick feud of the previous summer , but bloodier . It too ended with no victor bar the British who , judging correctly that it was safe to do so , gave their sentry posts a fresh coat of paint during the in-fighting . But they were simply waiting for the dust to settle before putting the boot in . While nobody expected to do time over the feud , it was a problem that had to be sorted out , we were told , before getting down once more to the real business of fighting the Brits . But imprisoned some of us were , and still are , because of that feud . The ceasefire started falling apart during the summer and by November it seemed to be over . In Belfast the IRA’s response to its ending was minimal . The ceasefire , feuds and sectarian killings had undermined the purpose of the IRA……. ”
(MORE LATER).

Henry Joy McCracken 1767-1798.
This month 210 years ago , a 31-years-young Irish Rebel was put to death in Belfast by the British : the injustice which he fought against had blighted Irish democracy for 629 years at the time of his death - that same injustice has now cursed this island for 839 years and is still being fought against by Irish Rebels….

“An Ulster man I am proud to be
From the Antrim glens I come
And though I’ve laboured by the sea
I have followed fife and drum

In Belfast town, they built a tree
And the redcoats mustered there
I saw him come as the beat of a drum
Rolled out in the barrack square
He kissed his sister, went aloft
And waved a last good-bye
My God he died, I turned and I cried
They have murdered Henry Joy “
(By the late Tommy Makem)
….and if it takes another 839 years then so be it: this injustice will be put right.
The 1169 Crew.

CROMWELL,WEXFORD - 2nd OCTOBER 1649 :

‘Cromwell arrived at Wexford on the 2nd of October 1649 with about 6000 men, 8 heavy siege guns and 2 mortars. On the 6th of October, Cromwell concentrated his force on the heights overlooking the southern end of the town…..the destruction of Wexford was so severe that it could not be used either as a port or as winter quarters for the Parliamentarian forces. One Parliamentarian source therefore described the sack as “incommodius to ourselves”. Cromwell reported that the remaining civilians had “run off” and asked for soldiers to be sent from England to re-populate the town and re-open its port…..’
(From here)

The Curse Of Cromwell by William Butler Yeats.

‘You ask what - I have found, and far and wide I go:
Nothing but Cromwell’s house and Cromwell’s murderous crew,
The lovers and the dancers are beaten into the clay,
And the tall men and the swordsmen and the horsemen, where are they?
And there is an old beggar wandering in his pride - -
His fathers served their fathers before Christ was crucified.
O what of that, O what of that,
What is there left to say?

I came on a great house in the middle of the night,
Its open lighted doorway and its windows all alight,
And all my friends were there and made me welcome too;
But I woke in an old ruin that the winds howled through;
And when I pay attention I must out and walk
Among the dogs and horses that understand my talk.
O what of that, O what of that,
What is there left to say? ‘

Cromwell’s dead and gone , but the bastard seeds he and his like have planted live on , in our native gombeen men and women and in the actions and deeds of their foreign counterparts…
The 1169 Crew.

THE IRA : the new IRA is younger , more radical and has seen little of life other than violence…….
By Ed Moloney.
From ‘Magill’ magazine, September 1980.

The ‘other’ IRA , the ‘open’ IRA , was to fight the political war . They were mainly IRA men and women well known to the ‘authorities’ who would pass in to a new ‘Civil and Military Administration’ , and would be responsible for ‘policing’ the Republican communities and for pushing Sinn Fein in a ‘radical’ direction .

To the acute embarrassment of the Provisionals, that GHQ ‘think-tank’ report was captured by the Dublin Special Branch in December 1977 when the then IRA Chief of Staff,Seamus Twomey, was re-arrested . That day was an especially ‘good’ one for the Special Branch - they also arrested Seamus McCollum, the man at the centre of an ambitious scheme to smuggle in an arm’s consignment from the Middle East.

Earlier that month Belgian customs officials had discovered nearly six tons of Russian and French-made automatic rifles and machine pistols as well as Bren guns , explosives , mortars , rockets , rocket launchers and ammunition hidden in electrical transformers on board the MV Towerstream which had just docked from Cyprus. The ‘transformers’ were addressed to a ‘front company’ in Dublin established months earlier by Seamus McCollum . The trace back to McCollum’s Dun Laoighaire , Dublin , flat and Special Branch surveillance netted an ‘added bonus’ in the form of Seamus Twomey , who had brazenly eluded capture since his dramatic helicopter escape from Mountjoy Prison in 1973…….
(MORE LATER).

ARMAGH JAIL - NO LET UP IN REPRESSION…….
Arrested on active service in April 1976 and sentenced at her ‘trial’ eight months later to 14 years imprisonment , Belfast republican Mairead Farrell became one of the first women POW’s to take part in the protest for political status . Later on she was involved in the ‘no wash’ escalation of the protest in Armagh Jail , and in December 1980 she was one of three women prisoners to join the first hunger-strike . Here , in a smuggled communication to this magazine , she writes about the strip searches , prison work and isolation that are features of the prison regime’s repression in Armagh.
From ‘IRIS’ magazine , July 1983.

” The facilities are available in Armagh Jail for the implementation of a full-time education programme - it would not need a major shift in NIO policy , but would basically be an acknowledgement of the reality that there is no work to be done in the prisons and that an alternative needs to be found.

They formally deny that we are in a separate category but we nonetheless merit special treatment as ‘High Security Risk’ prisoners . It is obvious that those ordinary prisoners feel as uncomfortable with republicans as we do with them - hence their decision to remain in their cells regardless of the Screws’ attempts to shift them out by coercion and threats……. ”
(MORE LATER).

The Class Of ‘76:(Top row L. to R.) Charlie Fagan (Arthur’s brother) , Dickie Glenholmes (Jnr) , Ciaran ‘Zack’ Smyth (served 9 years in jail) , Philip Rooney (served 8 and a half years) , Seany McVeigh (served 10 years). (Bottom row L. to R.) Eugene Gilmartin (serving life in the H-Blocks) , Arthur O Faogain.
SHEDDING DREAMS…….
The ghettos of Belfast and Derry are filled with stories such as this one. It is not unique. Young men and women, because of the partition of this country by the British, are killed, imprisoned and maimed.
By Artur O Faogain.
From ‘IRIS’ magazine , October 1987.

” But now it was our turn to resist and hurt , and, if everything went to plan , ‘heroes’ of those streets we would be . Things , though , never ever seem to go to plan. Even as we stood talking , events had overtaken us. The IRA had decided to extend its Christmas ceasefire. ‘It’s just to re-arm themselves…’ , were the words we often used , ‘after a couple more days the war will continue…’

The ceasefire had made them spectators and they revelled in it and while the IRA ceased attacking the British Army in the first months of 1975 , loyalists stepped up their own attacks . They targetted a pub , full of customers……. “
(MORE LATER).

THE DESTRUCTION OF IRISH TRADE
The early Irish were famous for their excellence in arts and crafts, especially for their wonderful work in metals, bronze, silver and gold. By the beginning of the 14th century trading ships were constantly sailing between Ireland and the leading ports of the Continent.

COMPETITION WITH ENGLAND
This commerce was a threat to English merchants who tried to discourage such trade. They brought pressure on their government, which passed a law in 1494 that prohibited the Irish from exporting any industrial product, unless it was shipped through an English port, with an English permit after paying English fees. However, England was not able to enforce the law. By 1548 British merchants were using armed vessels to attack and plunder trading ships travelling between Ireland and the Continent(unofficial piracy).

ENGLISH MEN, ENGLISH SHIPS, ENGLISH CREWS, ENGLISH PORTS AND IRISH GOODS
In 1571 Queen Elizabeth ordered that no cloth or stuff made in Ireland could be exported, even to England, except by English men in Ireland. The act was amended in 1663 to prohibit the use of all foreign-going ships, except those that were built in England, mastered and three-fourths manned by English, and cleared from English ports. The return cargoes had to be unloaded in England. Ireland’s shipbuilding industry was thus destroyed and her trade with the Continent wiped out.

TRADE WITH THE COLONIES
Ireland then began a lucrative trade with the Colonies. That was “cured” in 1670 by a new law which forbade Ireland to export to the colonies “anything except horses, servants, and victuals.” England followed with a decree that no Colonial products could be landed in Ireland until they had first landed in England and paid all English rates and duties.

Ireland was forbidden to engage in trade with the colonies and plantations of the New World if it involved sugar, tobacco, cotton, wool, rice, and numerous other items. The only item left for Ireland to import was rum. The English wanted to help English rum makers in the West Indies at the expense of Irish farmers and distillers.

IRISH WOOL TRADE CURTAILED, THEN DESTROYED
When the Irish were forbidden to export their sheep, they began a thriving trade in wool. In 1634 The Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, Lord Stafford, wrote to King Charles I: “All wisdom advises us to keep this (Irish) kingdom as much subordinate and dependent on England as possible; and, holding them from manufacture of wool (which unless otherwise directed, I shall by all means discourage), and then enforcing them to fetch their cloth from England, how can they depart from us without nakedness and beggary?”

In 1660 even the export of wool from Ireland to England was forbidden. Other English laws prohibited all exports of Irish wool in any form. In 1673, Sir William Temple advised that the Irish would act wisely by giving up the manufacture of wool even for home use, because “it tended to interfere prejudicially with the English woolen trade.”

George II sent three warships and eight other armed vessels to cruise off the coast of Ireland to seize all vessels carrying woolens from Ireland. “So ended the fairest promise that Ireland had ever known of becoming a prosperous and a happy country.”

LINEN TRADE REPRESSED
Irish linen manufacturing met with the same fate when the Irish were forbidden to export their product to all other countries except England. A thirty percent duty was levied in England, effectively prohibiting the trade. English manufacturers, on the other hand, were granted a bounty for all linen exports.

BEEF, PORK, BUTTER AND CHEESE
In 1665 Irish cattle were no longer welcome in England, so the Irish began killing them and exporting the meat. King Charles II declared that the importation of cattle, sheep, swine and beef from Ireland was henceforth a common nuisance, and forbidden. Pork and bacon were soon prohibited, followed by butter and cheese.

SILK AND TOBACCO
In the middle of the 18th century, Ireland began developing a silk weaving industry. Britain imposed a heavy duty on Irish silk, but British manufactured silk was admitted to Ireland duty-free. Ireland attempted to develop her tobacco industry, but that too was prohibited.

FISH
In 1819 England withdrew the subsidy for Irish fisheries and increased the subsidies to British fishermen - with the result that Ireland’s possession of one of the longest coastlines in Europe, still left it with one of the most miserable fisheries.

GLASS
Late in the 18th century the Irish became known for their manufacture of glass. George II forbade the Irish to export glass to any country whatsoever under penalty of forfeiting ship, cargo and ten shillings per pound weight.

THE RESULT
By 1839, a French visitor to Ireland, Gustave de Beaumont, was able to write:

“In all countries, more or less, paupers may be discovered; but an entire nation of paupers is what was never seen until it was shown in Ireland. To explain the social condition of such a country, it would be only necessary to recount its miseries and its sufferings; the history of the poor is the history of Ireland.”

CONCLUSION

From the 15th through the 19th centuries, successive English monarchies and governments enacted laws designed to suppress and destroy Irish manufacturing and trade. These repressive Acts, coupled with the Penal Laws, reduced the Irish people to “nakedness and beggary” in a very direct and purposeful way. The destitute Irish then stood at the very brink of the bottomless pit. When the potato blight struck in 1845, it was but time for the final push…..
(From here)

We are no longer bitter to the point of distraction , nor do we seek ‘revenge’ .
But we continue to demand Justice .
The 1169 Team.

THE IRA : the new IRA is younger , more radical and has seen little of life other than violence…….
By Ed Moloney.
From ‘Magill’ magazine, September 1980.

The IRA of the 1980’s which resulted from the re-think was no longer the victorious ‘people’s army’ of the early 1970’s which would push the British into Belfast Lough , but a small , highly organised band of politically dedicated guerrillas prepared to fight for years.

One current IRA Army Council member summed-up the new strategy in the following way : ” The IRA has the ability to force the British out but by that I don’t mean militarily . But we can make Ireland so unpopular an issue they will be forced to leave. Even at the lowest level the IRA has the capability to be a major de-stabilising force and we’re prepared for the long haul ; 30,40 or even 50 years if necessary.” (’1169…’ Comment : what rubbish! Within three years of those words been spoken [that is, by 1983] plans were enacted by the then new leadership to begin the process of winding down the struggle . In 1986 a further step along the constitutional road was taken , leading to where the Provisionals are today : salaried administrators for Westminster’s interests in Ireland!)

In late 1976 the IRA’s General Headquarters Staff established a ‘think-tank’ which was to examine ways of implementing this new thinking and to report back directly to the Provisional IRA Army Council : the ‘think-tank’ itself was dominated by two Northern radicals , both former IRA Brigade Commanders recently released from jail. In early 1977 it reported back to the IRA Army Council and recommended that the IRA should be split into two - one part was to be responsible for fighting the war and was to consist in the main of new 4 or 5 person ‘cells’ or Active Service Units and the old British Army-style organisation of companies , battalions and brigades were to be largely scrapped. The ‘cells’ were to be responsible in the first instance to local IRA Commands or Brigades but ultimately to a new ‘IRA Northern Command’ which would replace IRA GHQ as the main IRA co-ordinating body .

The ‘other’ IRA , the ‘open’ IRA , was to fight the political war…….
(MORE LATER).

ARMAGH JAIL - NO LET UP IN REPRESSION…….
Arrested on active service in April 1976 and sentenced at her ‘trial’ eight months later to 14 years imprisonment , Belfast republican Mairead Farrell became one of the first women POW’s to take part in the protest for political status . Later on she was involved in the ‘no wash’ escalation of the protest in Armagh Jail , and in December 1980 she was one of three women prisoners to join the first hunger-strike . Here , in a smuggled communication to this magazine , she writes about the strip searches , prison work and isolation that are features of the prison regime’s repression in Armagh.
From ‘IRIS’ magazine , July 1983.

” This repressive attitude is mirrored in all areas , and in none more so than in the area of prison work . Throughout Europe many prisons have abolished prison work due to the economic recession - since work is so scarce on the outside it is impossible to secure contracts for work within the prisons.

Such work is monotonous , and one would think that the prison administration’s interest would be in keeping minds occupied and in providing some type of mind-stimulating alternative to demeaning work which can only increase tension and discontent throughout the jail. It is hypocritical of the NIO to even speak of work inside the prisons when tens of thousands in the occupied six counties remain unemployed……. “
(MORE LATER).

The Class Of ‘76:(Top row L. to R.) Charlie Fagan (Arthur’s brother) , Dickie Glenholmes (Jnr) , Ciaran ‘Zack’ Smyth (served 9 years in jail) , Philip Rooney (served 8 and a half years) , Seany McVeigh (served 10 years). (Bottom row L. to R.) Eugene Gilmartin (serving life in the H-Blocks) , Arthur O Faogain.
SHEDDING DREAMS.
The ghettos of Belfast and Derry are filled with stories such as this one. It is not unique. Young men and women, because of the partition of this country by the British, are killed, imprisoned and maimed.
By Artur O Faogain.
From ‘IRIS’ magazine , October 1987.

” They will all be out soon . Between now and February * 1987 , one by one, they will all be released . Just two more years then freedom ; teenage friends , now grown men . A whole generation gone missing. And yet for two the torment will continue - one imprisoned for life , and me crippled for it . The Brits have stolen our time .

On a cold , clear January night in 1975 , a group of friends walked slowly down an empty street . Laughing , shouting , kicking and pushing , eager for the future . Stopping on a corner , one spoke - “I wonder how many of us will be here by this time next year?” These words , spoken in a lighthearted way , give that moment a poignance that only years later I understood . It was as if we had all accepted a violent fate for ourselves , both ‘romantic’ and eventful . Our minds were filled with images of events and people that we would someday portray in those dark empty streets .

To be IRA Volunteers was our dream and to take on the British Army was our goal . Motives were all around us , in memories and surroundings - we had all witnessed the sectarian riots of the late 1960’s and 1970’s . We had all witnessed , too , the British Army’s arrival as ‘protectors’ , and internment and its ensuing turmoil . Gun-battles at night and funerals during the day . The resistance of our people and the oppression of them by the Brits……. “

(* ” I wrote ‘Shedding Dreams’ in 1985 before the release from prison of friends that I grew up with . Their release gave me great heart but sadness still persists . For although most were released one is still held , under the ‘Secretary of States Pleasure’ . Sammy was 17 the last summer he was free - he’s now 29. The British ‘direct ruler’ must get great pleasure from that fact . Last October [1986] another friend , Sammy’s cousin , Eugene, also got life in prison .”)
(MORE LATER).

” Eighty-six years ago, in December 1922, the Curragh Camp was the scene of a terrible tragedy; it was the execution, by firing squad, of seven young men in the Military Detention Barracks, now the Curragh Prison. The full story of the events of the week from 13 December 1922, when the men were arrested, to 19 December 1922, when they were executed, is not now known. All of the people involved are dead, and with them their stories. It appears that all official records of the executions have been lost or destroyed…..”
(From here)

FOR THE RECORD…..

Between 17 November 1922 and 2 May 1923 , seventy-seven Republican prisoners were removed from their prison cells and shot dead by order of the Free State administration . In this post we name those 77 men and list where each man was executed and the date of same : we do so in the hope that , after the search engines have archived this information it will be retrieved by those who , like us , are of the opinion that these men should not be forgotten.

1922 :
James Fisher , Dublin , November 17.
Peter Cassidy , Dublin , November 17.
Richard Twohig , Dublin , November 17.
John Gaffney , Dublin , November 17.
Erskine Childers , Dublin , November 24.
Joseph Spooner , Dublin , November 30.
Patrick Farrelly , Dublin , November 30.
John Murphy , Dublin , November 30.
Rory O Connor , Dublin , December 8.
Liam Mellows , Dublin , December 8.
Joseph McKelvey , Dublin , December 8.
Richard Barrett , Dublin , December 8.
Stephen White , Dublin , December 19.
Joseph Johnston , Dublin , December19.
Patrick Mangan , Dublin , December 19.
Patrick Nolan , Dublin , December 19.
Brian Moore , Dublin , December 19.
James O’ Connor , Dublin , December 19.
Patrick Bagnel , Dublin , December 19.
John Phelan , Kilkenny , December 29.
John Murphy , Kilkenny , December 29.

1923:
Leo Dowling , Dublin , January 8.
Sylvester Heaney , Dublin , January 8.
Laurence Sheeky , Dublin , January 8.
Anthony O’ Reilly , Dublin , January 8.
Terence Brady , Dublin , January 8.
Thomas McKeown , Louth , January 13.
John McNulty , Louth , January 13.
Thomas Murray , Louth , January 13.
Frederick Burke , Tipperary , January 15.
Patrick Russell , Tipperary , January 15.
Martin O’ Shea , Tipperary , January 15.
Patrick McNamara , Tipperary , January 15.
James Lillis , Carlow , January 15.
James Daly , Kerry , January 20.
John Clifford , Kerry , January 20.
Michael Brosnan , Kerry , January 20.
James Hanlon , Kerry , January 20.
Cornelius McMahon , Limerick , January 20.
Patrick Hennesy , Limerick , January 20.
Thomas Hughes , Westmeath , January 20.
Michael Walsh , Westmeath , January 20.
Herbert Collins , Westmeath , January 20.
Stephen Joyce , Westmeath , January 20.
Martin Bourke , Westmeath , January 20.
James Melia , Louth , January 22.
Thomas Lennon , Louth , January 22.
Joseph Ferguson , Louth , January 22.
Michael Fitzgerald , Waterford , January 25.
Patrick O’ Reilly , Offaly , January 26.
Patrick Cunningham , Offaly , January 26.
Willie Conroy , Offaly , January 26.
Colum Kelly , Offaly , January 26.
Patrick Geraghty , Laoise , January 27.
Joseph Byrne , Laoise , January 27.
Thomas Gibson , Laoise , February 26.
James O’ Rourke , Dublin , March 13.
William Healy , Cork , March 13.
James Parle , Wexford , March 13.
Patrick Hogan , Wexford , March 13.
John Creane , Wexford , March 13.
Séan Larkin , Donegal , March 14.
Tim O’ Sullivan , Donegal , March 14.
Daniel Enright , Donegal , March 14.
Charles Daly , Donegal , March 14.
James O’ Malley , Galway , April 11.
Francis Cunnane , Galway , April 11.
Michael Monaghan , Galway , April 11.
John Newell , Galway , April 11.
John McGuire , Galway , April 11.
Martin Moylan , Galway , April 11.
Richard Hatheway , Kerry , April 25.
James McEnery , Kerry , April 25.
Edward Greaney , Kerry , April 25.
Patrick Mahoney , Clare , April 26.
Christopher Quinn , Clare , May 02.
William Shaughnessy , Clare , May 02.

The above-listed 77 men did not take up arms in the belief that they were fighting for the establishment of a morally-corrupt so-called ‘half-way-house’ institution , nor did they do so to assist the British in the ‘governance’ of one of their ‘part’ colonies : that which those men and many others fought for remains to be achieved . You can help present-day Irish Republicans to achieve that aim…….

LEST WE FORGET…
Thomas Ashe, Kerry, 5 days, 25 September 1917 (force fed by tube , died as a result).
Terrence McSweeny, Cork, 74 days, 25 October 1920.
Michael Fitzgerald, Cork, 67 days, 17 October 1920.
Joseph Murphy, Cork, 76 days , 25 October 1920 .
Joe Witty, Wexford , 2 September 1923.
Dennis Barry, Cork, 34 days, 20 November 1923.
Andy O Sullivan , Cork, 40 days, 22 November 1923.
Tony Darcy, Galway, 52 days, 16 April 1940.
Jack ‘Sean’ McNeela, Mayo, 55 days, 19 April 1940.
Sean McCaughey, Tyrone ,22 days, 11 May 1946 (hunger and thirst Strike).
Michael Gaughan, Mayo , 64 days, 3 June 1974.
Frank Stagg, Mayo , 62 days, 12 February 1976.
Bobby Sands, Belfast , 66 days, 5 May 1981.
Frank Hughes , Bellaghy (Derry), 59 days, 12 May 1981.
Raymond McCreesh , South Armagh , 61 days, 21 May 1981.
Patsy O Hara , Derry , 61 days, 21 May 1981.
Joe McDonnell , Belfast , 61 days, 8 July 1981.
Martin Hurson , Tyrone , 46 days, 13 July 1981.
Kevin Lynch, Dungiven ( Derry) ,71 days, 1 August 1981.
Kieran Doherty , Belfast , 73 days, 2 August 1981.
Tom McIlwee , Bellaghy (Derry) , 62 days, 8 August 1981.
Micky Devine , Derry , 60 days, 20 August 1981.

“Dear Christ! the very prison walls
Suddenly seemed to reel,
And the sky above my head became
Like a casque of scorching steel;
And, though I was a soul in pain,
My pain I could not feel.”
(’The Ballad of Reading Gaol’, by Oscar Wilde, written after his release from Reading prison on 19 May 1897.)

THE IRA : the new IRA is younger , more radical and has seen little of life other than violence…….
By Ed Moloney.
From ‘Magill’ magazine, September 1980.

With hindsight the IRA was the net loser from the 1975/76 ceasefire and the subject itself remains a major and bitter bone of contention within the Movement . The ceasefire forced on the Provisionals a major political , military and strategic re-think of which the 1977 military re-organisation was an integral part . It also paved the way for a change in the leadership of the IRA ; the present 7-person Army Council is dominated by Northern ‘hawks’ and radicals who vow never to speak to Westminster again except from a position of absolute strength (’1169…’ Comment - strong handgrip anyway. Almost like Martin is hanging-on for his [political] life….) .

The result of the re-think was two fundamental changes in policy : the first was the concept of ‘the long way’ which was first outlined by Jimmy Drumm , ironically one of those intimately involved in the ceasefire talks with the British government . That concept was articulated by him at Bodenstown in June 1977 as was the second major change - the political one .

The political change involved pushing the IRA and Sinn Fein in a radical direction and to involvement in trade union , poverty , housing and unemployment issues - what Sinn Fein President Ruairi O Bradaigh now calls “…occupying ground vacated by the Sticks (’Official Sinn Fein’) ….” . That particular move has been far from as successful or complete as its architects planned and has caused the greatest tensions within the Republican Movement since the Official/Provisional split of 1970. The fact that it has been at all successful rests entirely on the fact that those responsible for the military rebirth of the IRA were also those backing the advocates of radicalism . In republican politics the sword has always been mightier than the pen and this time in the IRA’s history both sword and pen were pointing in the same direction……. (’1169…’ Comment : it was obvious to some at the time , and suspected by others , that some of those rising through the ranks of the Movement wanted to ‘point the pen’ towards constitutionalism and destroy ‘the sword’ on their way there.)
(MORE LATER).

ARMAGH JAIL - NO LET UP IN REPRESSION…….
Arrested on active service in April 1976 and sentenced at her ‘trial’ eight months later to 14 years imprisonment , Belfast republican Mairead Farrell became one of the first women POW’s to take part in the protest for political status . Later on she was involved in the ‘no wash’ escalation of the protest in Armagh Jail , and in December 1980 she was one of three women prisoners to join the first hunger-strike . Here , in a smuggled communication to this magazine , she writes about the strip searches , prison work and isolation that are features of the prison regime’s repression in Armagh.
From ‘IRIS’ magazine , July 1983.

” A prime example of this is the continuation of strip searching despite the public outcry it provoked . The NIO have attempted to play down this degrading practice by saying that it is necessary when moving high security-risk prisoners to and from the jail , while a notice displayed in the strip-search area states that all prisoners must be stripped naked leaving and entering the jail because of ‘prohibited articles’ being smuggled in .

This refers to the incident last November which sparked off the strip searching when two ‘YOP’s’ (’ordinary prisoners’) stole the keys of a magistrate’s car “for a laugh” while in RUC custody and brought them back into the jail . The two ‘YOP’s’ have since been released . Ironic ? Maybe , but having listened to three women who have endured this disgusting practice daily for months , as have those in the Black informer trial, I can only think of the enormous mental effect this must have at what is already a stressful period .

Each of these women has been stripped over 135 times . This is not ‘in the interests of security’ , it is psychological torture . The prison administration have agreed it is an unnecessary practice , yet it continues because it’s a new-found weapon in the attempt to rob republicans of dignity……. ”
(MORE LATER).

OPERATIONAL COMMENTS OF A BRITISH ARMY OFFICER…….
British Lieutenant-Colonel Michael Dewar of the Royal Green Jackets has served in Cyprus , Borneo and Malaya , as well as in the Occupied Six Irish Counties . He has written three previous books - ‘Internal Security Weapons And Equipment Of The World’ and ‘Brushfire Wars’ . The extracts reproduced here are from ‘The British Army In Northern Ireland’ , which was published by ‘Arms and Armour Press’ in 1985 . The underlined comments in this article are ours . This article reflects the operational thinking of a British military commander , more so than his political or ideological outlook.
From ‘IRIS’ magazine , October 1987.

British Army covert operations in the North of Ireland result in more preventive that reactive operations . In rural areas , close observation platoons dig into hides for long periods and watch known border crossing-points or known IRA houses. They can then steer other patrols on to the enemy if they see them.

In urban areas , British Army Observation Posts are set up in derelict houses and on rooftops : in one incident , in Belfast , a BA platoon Commander had set up an OP in a derelict semi-detatched house , with a good area of observation and field of fire looking down to the Springfield Road . After the OP had been in position for two days , a shot rang out from what sounded like the other side of the wall against which the three men in the OP were leaning .

After extricating themselves from their cramped positions , they were just in time to see a gunman disappearing around a street corner 150 yards away . It transpired that the gunman had taken up a position very quietly several hours before , in the other of the two semi-detatched houses , which was lived in , and had fired a shot at a BA patrol on the Springfield Road , but missed . This is illustrative of that sort of cat and mouse game that is played out in the backstreets of Belfast .

[END of ‘OPERATIONAL COMMENTS OF A BRITISH ARMY OFFICER’]
(Next- “Shedding Dreams” ; from October 1987)