Gerry Adams's Blog, page 16

Bingo; The Protocol debacle; A masterclass of song and music

 

Bingo keeping a wary eye to passing Brits while Joe Austin, mise agus Danny Morrison were showing Ken Livingstone and Kathy Bundred the Falls Road 1983 

Bingo.

My recollections last week on my successful battle against the dreaded nicotine, sparked, pardon the pun, similar recollections from some of my friends. Richard, who never smoked, reminded me of our old comrade Joe ‘Bingo’ Campbell. Bingo used to work in the old Sinn Féin office at the corner of Sevastopol Street. In those days the office was little more than a slum. It housed a number of projects including the Republican Press Centre, the POW Department, An Phoblacht/Republican News and the transport hub for buses taking prisoners’ families to visits in Long Kesh, Armagh and Portlaoise and other jails.

The building was regularly raided. The British Army would wait outside stopping people going in and out, harassing and abusing everyone. It was the target for bomb and gun attacks, including one by a death squad using an RPG rocket launcher. In one attack in 1992 three folks in the Advice Centre were killed, Pat McBride, Paddy Loughran and Michael O Dwyer. Pat Wilson and Nora Larkin were injured.

During these turbulent years Bingo did all the odd jobs about the building. He collected and posted mail, emptied the bins, went for messages, kept an eye on British Army patrols. He was a big man with a ruddy complexion. He was also a very good singer. He used to do a fine rendition of The Bonny Boy in the old Felons in Milltown.

Anyway as I mention above Bingo would do messages for the rest of us. One day during one of my efforts to stop smoking I had a horrific urge for a cigarette. At that time for no good reason I would smoke an occasional cigar instead of cigarettes. I suppose in my nuttiness I thought one cigar was better than a few cigarettes. On the day in question I had stubbornly resisted the temptation to have a smoke but eventually I could stick it no longer. I was relieved when Bingo made his way up the stairs to where I was working to tell me he was going to the shop. He asked me if I wanted anything.

‘Thanks Joe’ I said to him, giving him some money ‘would you get me a Hamlet?’

‘No bother’ Bingo told me cheerfully and away he went.

I went back to my desk to do whatever I was doing. A Hamlet by the way is a small cigar. They used to be very popular. Their advertising slogan was, ‘Happiness is a cigar called Hamlet’. Now that I had broken and given into the nicotine the desire for a Hamlet was pure torture. I paced the floor of our very small office waiting for Bingo to arrive back with my nicotine fix. Minutes slowly ticked by. No sign of Bingo. A half hour later still no Bingo. An hour slipped away as my craving for a smoke became hysterical.

Every time I heard a footstep on the stairs I thought it was Bingo. Those of you who have never smoked will probably not fully understand the agony I was going through. Having crossed the line and given in now all I could think of was the Hamlet Bingo was going to present to me when he got back. If ever he got back.

Maybe he had an accident I fretted. Maybe the Brits had stopped him. Maybe I would never get my smoke. Eventually just when I had almost given up I heard Bingo on the stairs.

‘I’m sorry for being so long,’ he guldered up to me before making his way upwards.

I stood up eagerly and expectantly to greet him. He handed me a hamburger.

‘I’ve been everywhere up and down the road’ he exclaimed, ‘I can’t get an omelette anywhere so I got you a burger instead.’

 

The Protocol debacle

Six years ago on 23 June 2016 the Brexit referendum was passed by a narrow majority. In England and Wales the majority voted to leave the EU. In the North and in Scotland the majority of people voted to remain in the EU. The democratic vote of the people of the North and of Scotland was ignored.

The Protocol keeps the North of Ireland in the European Single Market for goods. This has resulted in a customs border in the Irish Sea, a deepening crisis between the EU and the British government. The DUP is blocking the formation of the Executive unless everyone else concedes to their demand that the Protocol is scrapped.

Almost every day a new claim, a new accusation of blame or a new threat emerges as a result of Brexit.

Consequently, I thought it might be useful to remind us of some of the core facts around an issue which has the potential of collapsing the Good Friday Agreement.

My list is far from exhaustive or exclusive.

·        In the June 2016 Brexit referendum 56% of the population of the North voted to remain in the EU.

·        In 2018 Boris Johnson told a jubilant DUP conference that “no British Conservative government could or should sign up to any … agreement” requiring any sort of frontier within the UK borders.

·        In October 2019 Johnson did exactly that when he negotiated the Withdrawal Agreement and Protocol with the EU.

·        The Tories are for withdrawing from the European Court of Justice (ECJ) and are also committed to withdrawing from the European Convention on Human Rights.

·        Several weeks ago on 13 June the Johnson government published its Protocol Bill. 15 out of 26 clauses provide Ministers with the power to make "any provision the Minister considers appropriate.”  

·        Effectively the British are unilaterally tearing up an international treaty they negotiated.

·        The British claim that the Protocol undermines the Good Friday Agreement is bogus.

·        It is the British government’s threat to withdraw from the European Convention on Human Rights that is a direct attack on the GFA.

·        Data from the Office for National Statistics reveals that the Protocol has ensured that the North’s economy is outperforming Scotland, Wales and England.

·        The Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon recently said that “…if I could get a protocol that would allow Scotland to continue to trade freely across the single market, I’d take that in a heartbeat …”

·        The majority of citizens in the North in the Assembly election voted for parties that support the Protocol.

·        The majority of MLAs elected support the Protocol.

·        The EU and the USA – which is a guarantor of the Good Friday Agreement – have made clear their determination to defend the Agreement.

In the midst of this deepening crisis it is important to remember that in 2017 the EU said that in the context of a united Ireland all of Ireland would automatically become a full member of the EU.

In 2007 when Ian Paisley and Martin McGuinness took up their roles as First and deputy First Minister their first joint act was to send a letter to the British Secretary of State to vacate Stormont Castle. As Ian Paisley said to Martin at the time: ‘We don’t need an Englishman to rule us’.

He was right. We have the intelligence and the wit to rule ourselves and to build a better future for all our people and we can, if the people so decide, do that within the European Union.

 

A masterclass of song and music

Paul McCartney’s opening song for his amazing Glastonbury set on Saturday night was ‘Can’t buy me love’. As the opening bars began to play the years rolled back for this Beatles fan and I was a teenager again listening to their latest hit on the radio. It was March 1964. I was 15. ‘From me to you’ had been their first number one the previous May. ‘She loves you’ their second. ‘I want to hold your hand’ was next and then it was ‘Can’t buy me Love’.

Paul McCartney’s two and a half hour set at Glastonbury was a masterclass in song writing and musicality. The huge audience enthusiastically sang along. Whether to Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da or Get Back or Lady Madonna or Let it Be or Hey Jude. The concert was a joy to watch and to sing along with at home. At least nine Beatles songs. And then there was Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters and one of my favourite musicians Bruce Springsteen on stage rocking with McCartney and his outstanding group of musicians.

It was a remarkable evening of nostalgia and incredible music by one of the great songwriters of any generation. Wouldn’t it be great if Féile an Phobal could persuade Paul McCartney to play the Falls Park!!!

The Collectors Story: No Smoking

 

Tom with Minister Deirdre Hargey and mise
The Collectors Story

I have known Tom Hartley for 55 years. During that time he has given decades of service to the republican cause. He has been an organiser, a writer, a propagandist, a leader. During the anti-internment protests of the early 1970s, and then the H-Block/Armagh campaign he was in the front line. He was Chair of Sinn Féin in Belfast and then during the hunger strikes in 1980 and1981 he was responsible for the Sinn Féin Prisoner of War dept ensuring that we had a line of communication with  the prisons.

In the 1980s Tom was Ard Runai of the party. With the development of the Sinn Fein peace strategy Tom, along with Jim Gibney, led our effort to engage with political and civic unionism and the Protestant Churches. Later Tom became a popular Belfast City Councillor and Mayor of the City

Among Tom’s many talents – a bodhrán maker and player par excellence with a fine taste for good food and fine wine – he is also an historian who has written about the people and history of Belfast through his books on the City Cemetery; Milltown Cemetery, and Balmoral Cemetery.

Tom decided many years ago that the republican history of the city – often ignored by the more established institutions – needed to be told and preserved. So Tom became a collector. Posters, leaflets, badges, publications, books, speeches, in fact anything that wasn’t nailed down would find its way into the Linen Hall library for the perusal and preservation of this and future generations. Mostly republican but his collection also reflects the differences of opinion and politics within our society.

In 2016 the Ulster Museum began its ‘Collecting the Troubles and Beyond’ project to which Tom has donated over 2,000 objects.  Last week Tom opened his own unique collection. A Collectors Story.  At the well attended event he said: “If you’re not seen – you’re not heard. When you’re not heard someone else will steal your voice, either distort or silence your narrative.”

So, take the time to go to the Ulster Museum. You won’t be disappointed. Tom has made an invaluable and innovative contribution to the story telling of Ireland. Well done chara.

 

No Smoking

Back in the day my generation, or most of us, used to smoke. It was the social thing to do at that time. Gallagher’s Blues, Park Drive, Woodbine were the ‘feg’ of choice. Some shops sold them as single cigarettes. Some were also available in packs of five. I came upon an empty packet of 5 Woodbine recently. It sparked memories and a regret that I ever smoked. It was Joe Magee’s fault. Joe was a neighbour and a childhood friend. Joe is my pal to this day. He lives in Australia now. He introduced me to nicotine.  

Later when he joined the Merchant Navy Joe brought home duty free Capstan, Benson and Hedges, Marlboro - I think that featured a cowboy in its adverts.  He also brought Peter Stuyvesant and Camel into our lives. And our lungs.  Once he went very arty with Gauloise Bleu before descending to rolling his own. Rizla cigarette papers wrapped around Golden Virginia tobacco. There was even a little machine for rolling cigarettes, complete with filter tips. When Joe and I started smoking filter tip cigarettes weren’t so popular. 

Trips to Dublin introduced us to Sweet Afton and Major Extra Size along with Carrolls Number 1. It seemed everyone smoked in those days. In this current smoke free era it is hard to imagine how smoggy public places could be back then. Talk of smoke filled rooms? Pubs, cafes vied with Picture Houses and Concert Halls, Committee Rooms and Changing Rooms for that title.

And our houses were the same. Most homes had ash trays. Some were rather stylish perched on their own column of brass or glass or wood. Now they are rarely to be seen except as treasures on the Antique Road Show.  Nowadays smokers stand outside in doorways and little shelters, like banished children of Eve, clustered together in all types of weather having a wee drag. I am told that romance often flourishes in these close encounters. 

I used to smoke everything. Everything legal that is. Cigarettes, Cheroots, Cigars. The Pipe. Sometimes all at the same time. Well not exactly all at once. My mouth isn’t as big as that, contrary to the claims of the usual jealous detractors. 

Then I caught myself on. I started to try to give them up. I did it so many times I got good at it. Sometimes when I was trying to stop I used to keep a few fegs in a packet in my pocket. When the urge was on me to smoke I would take out a cigarette and talk to it. 

‘Do you really think you’re gonna break me?’ I would tell it. 

Some times that worked. Other times the cigarette faced me down. No matter how tough I talked it was well schooled in ant-interrogation techniques. It said nothing. I must confess, pardon the pun, that when I told the cigarette everything I knew about  smoking  and after I strenuously disassociated myself from and repudiated all connections with it, occasionally I broke and succumbed to the urge for one ‘last’ smoke. 

It was the same in prison as it was out of prison. I struggled with my addiction.  Cigarettes are like currency in prison. Especially among the Ordinary Decent Criminals, as the Brits call them. To distinguish them from the political prisoners. Tobacco used to be king in those penal circles. 

Toítíní  was also a highly prized commodity for us politicos. Especially in punishment regimes where they were mostly forbidden. Or very scarce. I remember one comrade smoking tea leaves wrapped in toilet roll. He only managed two drags. Others scrounged discarded cigarette butts and shredded them into rollups. Sometimes using pages from The Bible. Holy Smokes. 

Colette smoked too. Though she confined herself to cigarettes. Then our oldest lad, alerted in school to the dangers of smoking, started to admonish us. So I stopped. But then I broke again. I never let on. It was a temporary lapse I told myself.  

One day I was having a sneaky puff in the toilet. I neglected to lock the door. The oldest lad burst in. He caught me feg in hand. He was so let down and disappointed in me there was only one thing I could do. I stopped smoking there and then. One of the best things I ever did for my health. Go raibh maith agat Gearóid. 

Colette stopped as well, some time afterwards. But better late than never. Since then we live in a smoke free zone.  

 

Three books: International Brigade against Apartheid: Secrets of the People’s War that Liberated South Africa’ Ronnie Kasrils: On the Blanket by Eoghan MacCormaic: United Nation by Frank Connolly

 Three Books

I thought it would be a good idea to dedicate an occasional column to books. We can return to Brexit, the Protocol and other such matters at another time.  So in this column I am reviewing three books. United Nation by Frank Connolly. On The Blanket by Eoghan Mac Cormaic and International Brigade against Apartheid: Secrets of the People’s War that Liberated South Africa’ By Ronnie Kasrils.

These are clearly political books which may not surprise any of you. I am also conscious that these three are written by men. So less I give you the wrong impression let me make it clear that my reading activity is not limited to political books or to male authors. I binge read, so Sebastian Barry’s The Sacred Scripture, Billy Connolly’s Windswept and Interesting are also on the go along with Sylvie Simmons I’m Your Man about Leonard Cohen. I dip in and out of them when I get the chance. I also prefer real books to Kindle or other electronic models. Richard is a Kindleman. But a book is a book and for me there is no substitute. I am also always taken by a nicely presented tome. Imelda May’s A Lick And A Promise is o great example of that. And her poetry is wonderful. I whole heartedly recommend A Lick And A Promise.

International Brigade against Apartheid: Secrets of the People’s War that Liberated South Africa’ Ronnie Kasrils.

I have known Ronnie Kasrils for many years. He is a friend of Ireland and a champion of those struggling around the world for freedom and justice. In 1961 he was a founding member, along with Nelson Mandela and others, of Umkhonto we Siswe – MK for short – the armed wing of the African National Congress. In the post apartheid South Africa he was the Minister for Intelligence and Minister for Water.

Ronnie is currently in Ireland promoting his new book ‘International Brigade against Apartheid: Secrets of the People’s War that Liberated South Africa’ which provides a remarkable insight into the international solidarity that was crucial in achieving a free South Africa. Last week I had the honour and pleasure of launching the book with Ronnie at an event in Áras Uí Chonghaile.

During his long years of service to MK and the ANC Ronnie spent much of his time in exile organising those outside of South Africa who were part of the anti-apartheid campaign as well as those who assisted MK. The International Brigade Ronnie writes, “served a just cause for freedom against tyranny, and were composed of volunteers motivated by the spirit of international solidarity.”

Irish citizens were hugely supportive of the struggle against apartheid. The stand taken by the Dunnes Store workers remains a shining example of the solidarity of workers in one country for workers in another.

Irish republicans too have long had close fraternal links with the ANC and MK. Kadar Asmal who founded the Irish Anti-Apartheid Movement and was later a Minister in post Apartheid South Africa revealed in his book ‘Politics in My Blood’ that the MK attack in June 1980 on the Sasolburg oil refinery – South Africa’s most important – involved the IRA.

In the introduction to his book Ronnie refers to the concept of Ubuntu. It is a recognition that we are all connected together in our humanity. This is the essence of international solidarity. Where we see injustice either in our own place or in Palestine or South Africa we have a responsibility to help end it. Ar scath a cheile a maireann na daoine.

Ronnie’s book is a must read for anyone interested in national liberation struggle. His remarks at the Belfast launch were inspirational and insightful.

Well done Ronnie. 

On the Blanket by Eoghan MacCormaic

Eoghan Mac Cormaic is one of our most willing cheerful modest and clever writers. He is part of that growing band of republicans, particularly former political prisoners, who have produced an account of their experiences. This new book by Eoghan is based on his Pluid-Scéal na mBlocanna H 1976-81. Published by Coiscéim in 2021 it tells the story of Eoghan’s life On the Blanket, mostly in H Block 5. In this English language version he takes us through the A to Z of Prison Resistance. Very clever. And funny as well. Eoghan always had a way with words. He used to produce crosswords in English and Irish for the entertainment of the other blanket men. In 1989 and 1990Sinn Féin’s POW Department published two books of Irish crosswords Eoghan compiled and years later he published another one himself. He still produces a crossword puzzle for Éire Nua, the quarterly on line United Ireland magazine.

Eoghan brings the same quirkiness with words to On The Blanket. His A - the first chapter - gives us A for Arrival, Agóid, Aire, Authorities, Administration and AGs, Aifreann, Achs. And so on through the alphabet.

But what of Z or X I wondered to myself. No problem to Eoghan. X gives us X-rays and Xenophobia. Z gives us ZZ Top a popular band of musicians of that era with long wild beards much like many of the blanket men. Zinc, part of soft metal tooth paste tubes which were used to write on the cell walls.

Eoghan describes the culture which underpinned the blanket protest, ‘ …confined by the prison but not compliant to the prison. Although locked up twenty four hours a day this community was free from and rejected prison rules. For a period of five years or so they, we, became a people apart with our own rules, our own customs. We showed no respect for the prison, its screws, its governors, its rules, or its buildings because the only respect we had in that place was for ourselves. Degraded and terrorised we prized and maintained our self respect always.’

One of the most moving letters in Eoghan’s alphabet is C for Comradeship. In a page and a half he spells out what this meant in the H Blocks and Armagh Women’s’ Prison. It should continue to guide us today as should the generosity, bravery of our hunger strikers. I was also shocked to read that a third of those who served their time on the blanket are now dead. I don’t know if this is attributable to their prison experience or a sign of the age our generation is at.

Eoghan has ensured that they will not be forgotten.

 

United Nation by Frank Connolly

It took Frank Connolly two years to write United Nation. When he started Brexit negotiations were meandering towards a ‘no deal’. It was just before the arrival of the Covid pandemic. In this very readable book Frank has opted for a narrative style which spells out events like this as they developed instead of a more formal set up dealing with questions on the economy, agriculture, education, health, the environment, constitutional law and the other pertinent issues.

This approach works well. Frank is a very good writer and an accomplished journalist. He has published best sellers including NAMA-LAND and Tom Gilmartin. United Nation is a very accessible and compelling read and an important and timely contribution to the growing debate on the future of Ireland.

Frank also interviews scores of people. These include senior political players from all quarters and experts on various aspects of social, economic, constitutional matters. But he also has a representative sample of opinion from the arts community with singers, writers, actors and poets as well as grassroots community activists, particularly from the north.

As he said at the Belfast launch in the historic Linen Hall he also sought the contributions of those with wisdom and experience on the key areas that required research …. ‘Brendan O’Leary and Colin Harvey on the constitutional questions and future political structures, David McWilliams and Seamus McGuinness on the potential of the all island economy, Dr Gabriel Scally on health and Tony Gallagher, Jarlath Burns and Áine Hyland on education, Mike Tomlinson on social welfare, John Sweeney on the environment, agriculture, transport, Dermot Walsh on the legal system and policing, Patricia King and Orla O’Connor on the rights of workers, of women, migrants and of other cultural and ethnic minorities in a new Ireland……..’

He sought advice and knowledge on the future relationship with Britain, the role of the EU and the US and of wider global relations along with influential figures from a unionist and loyalist cultural background who were willing to discuss the question of Irish unity. He also spoke to a number of academic researchers, historians, political representatives and activists.

Frank Connolly is a longstanding and active United Irelander but this book is not about his opinion on what a new, unified Ireland would look like. Instead United Nation is based on factual and informed research and the views of a wide range of interesting people, their representative organisations and communities.

There are a number of core themes running through United Nation. They include the reality that the type of independent, inclusive, integrated and united Ireland cannot happen without radical transformation in the delivery of basic needs for all our citizens on the island. It has never been about merely joining six and twenty six counties.

Most of those interviewed are agreed, no matter about their different opinions, that the future most be planned.

I will give the last word to Frank Connolly. He says; ‘It is perhaps an irony of history that it will require a strong left wing and radical government to make such a deep and profound transformation.’

The three books reviewed here are available at An Fhuiseog,55 Falls Road, Belfast BT12 4PD; info@thelarkstore.ie: https://www.facebook.com/AnFhuiseog/  

 

Confronting sectarianism: A wedding and a strike: I am not guilty – I want to go home, Leonard Peltier

Confronting sectarianism

The posting online of a vile video showing members of the Orange Order mocking the murder of Michaela McAreavey has been widely condemned. Last week in another video Pastor Barrie Halliday appeared on social media describing Catholics as ‘rats that need to be murdered with rifles and grenades.’

Both of these actions are evidence of an existing underlying sectarianism within northern society that has its roots in English colonialism and in the deliberate fostering by the British state in Ireland of division between Catholics and Protestants. The Loyal Orders have long played a prominent role in promulgating this.

That sectarianism still exists is not surprising. Unionist political leaders and their British allies often play the Orange Card as they seek to maximise their electoral vote or secure an advantage in a negotiation.

Since partition there are few Catholic families in the North that have not had direct experience of sectarianism, of discrimination in employment or housing, of collusion involving unionist death squads, the B Specials, the UDR, RUC and British Army or of pogroms. Orange marches with their ‘kick the Pope bands’ and sectarian songs – like The Famine Song; their posters of nationalist politicians or of religious statues on bonefires and their desire to parade triumphantly through or past nationalist areas have long been part of the nationalist experience.

The dignity and grace of Michaela‘s family is an example to us all.

Words like ‘abhorrent’ or ‘shameful’ or ‘despicable’ readily spring to mind when sectarianism rears its head. But if society is serious about challenging sectarianism there is a need to go beyond the rhetoric of condemnation. The fact is that sectarianism is written into the DNA of the northern state. The celebration/commemoration of the centenary of ‘Northern Ireland’ and the Orange Hall event which was a part of this, are a case in point. It is important to note that those involved are a bigoted minority. But they have to be stood up to.

So, what to do? The reality is that sectarianism will not be wished away. It cannot be ignored. The starting point must positive leadership from political, cultural, religious and civic society. The law and the enforcement of the law also has a crucial role to play in this. That means a new legal definition of sectarianism entrenched in law with legal sanctions and robust incitement to hatred provisions.

All cultural celebrations and expressions should be governed by the principles of respect, equality and parity of esteem. And the allocation of all public funds must be disbursed fairly and proportionately, and on the basis of mutual respect and sensitivity for the identities and aspirations of others. Bigotry and sectarianism should not be publicly funded. It should be illegal.

Frank Connolly

A wedding and a strike

James Connolly is one of my heroes. He was a socialist, a republican, a writer, a thinker, a trade union leader. He fought for the rights of workers and against their exploitation. He joined with Pearse and Clarke and Ceannt and others in the Irish Republican Brotherhood at Easter 1916 in striking for Irish freedom and for the right of the people of Ireland to independence and self-determination. He was vehemently anti-sectarian. Working in Belfast he experienced at first hand the despicable way in which sectarianism was used by unionist and business leaders to divide workers.

Áras Uí Chonghaile – on Belfast’s Falls Road - is a unique tribute to Connolly. It is an exceptional historical and educational interactive experience, containing artefacts from Connolly’s life and from the 1916 period. It is close to 1 Glenalina Terrace, which was Connolly’s home for the last five years of his life.

Last month the Royal Society of Ulster Architects named Áras Uí Chonghaile as the Building of the Year. The distinctive portrait of James Connolly on the perforated-metal gable wall also won the Integration of Art Award.

Last Saturday Frank Connolly, author, SIPTU official and one of Ireland’s leading investigative journalists, formally opened the Leabharlann Uí Chonghaile/James Connolly Library.

The library which is situated on the first floor is a welcoming space in which the visitor can sit and read some of the many books available. It contains accounts of Connolly’s life, including those by his daughters Nora Connolly O’Brien and Ina Connolly Heron, as well as works written by the man himself. It also contains books on politics in Ireland and internationally.

In his remarks Frank Connolly (no relation) described James Connolly as an “extraordinary socialist agitator, writer and anti-imperialist revolutionary...He was killed, not just for his role in organising the Easter Rising, as Commander in the GPO of the Irish Volunteers and members of the Irish Citizen Army, who combined during those weeks to form the Irish Republican Army. It was also because he was a threat to the capitalist class”

But the conversation wasn’t all serious. Frank recalled a letter sent by James Connolly to his future wife Lillie. In it he wrote: “It is such a long time since we met, but I trust we will meet to part no more. Won’t that be pleasant. By the way, if we get married next week, I shall be unable to go to Dundee as I promised as my fellow-workmen in the job are preparing to strike on the end of this month for a reduction in the hours of labour. As my brother and I are ringleaders in the matter it is necessary we should be on the ground.”

His daughter Ina remarked: “I have always thought it the hallmark of my mother’s character that she should accept the hand of a man who could mention wedding plans and a strike action in the same letter.”

Leabharlann Uí Chonghaile is now open for those who want a quiet place to read, to think, to write. Its museum experience is amazing and I would strongly encourage readers – if you haven’t called in yet – to make it a point of visiting Áras Uí Chonghaile. For information:

ÁRAS UÍ CHONGHAILE
374-376 Falls Road
Belfast, BT12 6DG

Telephone: 02890 991 005Email: info@arasuichonghaile.com

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I am not guilty – I want to go home

This week I wrote again to Leonard Peltier, the native American rights activist who has been imprisoned for 46 years. Regular readers will know that over the years I have written about his continued wrongful imprisonment – he is America’s longest serving political prisoner.

Leonard was convicted in 1977 of the killing of 2 FBI agents at the Pine Ridge Indian reservation in South Dakota. He has always protested his innocence. Last year James H. Reynolds the former US Attorney General whose office handled the prosecution in the Leonard Peltier case appealed for Leonard’s sentence to be commuted. In recent months three Democratic Senators – Sen. Patrick Leahy and Sen. Brian Schtaz and Sen. Mazie Hirono urged President Biden to show clemency and free

Leonard. President Biden has an opportunity to do the right thing.

In an interview recently with HuffPost Leonard said: “I’m not guilty of this shooting. I’m not guilty. I would like to go home to spend what years I have left with my great-grandkids and my people.”

If you have a moment write a letter or send a card. Remember Leonard Peltier.

Leonard Peltier

#89637-132 USP Coleman

US Penitentiary PO Box 1033

Coleman,

FL, 33521

USA

 

The Planter and the Gael: Time for Truth: The Springhill/Westrock Massacre

Last week US Congress member Richie Neal, Chair of the Ways and Means Committee on Capitol Hill, led a Congressional delegation from Washington to Brussels, London, Dublin, the Blasket’s, Derry and Belfast. The delegation met with a very wide range of political representatives including Government representatives as well as civic society. 

The Blasket’s you ask?  Why there? Well, in 1953 the last people who lived on the Blasket islands were forced to leave their beautiful islands off the coast of Kerry because of the lack of necessary services. Some of them went to Springfield in Massachusetts in the USA. That’s Richie’s district. So naturally a visit to Ireland had to include a visit to Dunquin and then a short helicopter flight to the Great Blasket. I wonder what Peig would have thought of that? 

But I digress! 

‘Aris,’ says you. 

So, to the point of this epistle. In the course of his visit to our part of Ireland Congressman Neal spoke of the Planter and the Gael. Now way back in the day one of my Adams ancestors was almost certainly a Planter. So I have a certain connection with that term. Although I am avowedly a Gael I have no wish to ignore my roots.  We all have to come from somewhere.   Indeed I would love to have the time to delve into my Planter history.

Richie Neal’s comment was benign. The first time I heard the phrase the ‘Planter and the Gael’ was when Peter Robinson used it in a speech in  2004. He said: “When I speak of 'our people' I speak of those who share my unionist philosophy and those who do not – I speak of both the Planter and the Gael," he said. 

He was talking at that time about his hopes of an outcome to negotiations. 

He used the same term again in 2006 when a deal was put together. 

"I hope that the sons and daughters of the Planter and Gael have found a way to share the land of their birth and live together in peace," he said.  

I liked Peter’s remarks at that time. I still do.  I saw his use of Planter and Gael as being well intended. Like Richie Neal’s comments.  

I was puzzled then last week to learn that some Unionist leaders had taken umbrage at Richie. They claimed the Planter term was offensive. Maybe in a different context they might have a point. But if they didn’t take the needle at Peter Robinson why be offended by Richie Neal?

All of us who live here should know by now that this is where we all belong. This is our home. Wherever we came from this is now our native land. So we should make the most of it and make this the best place it can be, inclusive of all of us. 

Poets John Hewitt and John Montague did that very well in a series of readings they conducted across the North in November 1970. The poems they read were published by the Arts Council.

They are available at:

https://wakespace.lib.wfu.edu/bitstream/handle/10339/95550/Planter_and_the_Gael.pdf?sequence=1

 

I recommend them. I am a fan of both John Montague and John Hewitt. In this collection both poets explore their experience of Ulster and the tradition which shaped their verses.  As the Arts Council introduction says “The two bodies of work complement each other…” 

Much like we should do. Unless we want to be separate. Unless we believe in division. No sensible person would want that surely? It is much better to live in harmony and equality with a benign tolerance for difference. 

As Peter Robinson said:  "I hope that the sons and daughters of the Planter and Gael have found a way to share the land of their birth and live together in peace," 

Let’s get on with it and make that happen. 

 

Time for Truth

Natasha Butler’s grandfather Paddy was killed by the British Army on the evening of 9 July 1972. He was one of two adults and three children shot dead during the Springhill/Westrock massacre. The 50th anniversary of this event will take place in five weeks.

This week Natasha posted a video asking the public to support a sponsored walk by the Time for Truth campaign which is being held on Saturday morning 4 June. The walk will take place on the National Trust land on the Black Mountain and Divis Mountain.

Natasha ButlerThe aim of the walk is to raise public awareness around the British government’s current efforts to pass legislation in the British Parliament that will protect British Army and RUC personnel responsible for the deaths of over 700 people. The law, which has been branded a Bill of Shame by victim’s relatives, will make it virtually impossible for victims and their families to secure truth.

In her video, which is available here; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5K1qOmb0sUU

Natasha says:

“ My name is Natasha Butler. My grandfather Paddy Butler was 38 years old when he was shot dead by the British Army here in Springhill in July 1972, along with 3 local teenagers and our parish priest. My mother was only 20 months old at the time.

For 50 years my grandmother, my mother and now myself, have fought to have the truth told about what happened during the Springhill/Westrock Massacre.

The British Government are now telling those Legacy Families who are still waiting for their Inquest dates that they have no right to the truth.

No right to justice.

To them, we are irrelevant. We are invisible.

I and the other Legacy families will never accept this.

This Saturday the 4th June the Time for Truth campaign will hold sponsored walks along Divis Mountain to raise funds to help continue our campaign for truth and justice.
I do not want my children to have to carry on this fight. We have all suffered long enough. It MUST stop here, with my generation.

I am asking you to help us keep the pressure on the British government. We need your help for this campaign.

So please, walk for Time for Truth, walk for the Legacy families or sponsor someone who will.

Stand with us as we tell the British Government that we are not invisible.

Stand with us as we tell the British Government it is not invincible.

Walk for Time For Truth this Saturday 4th June.

Thank you from us all.”

The walk was very successful. Thanks to all who participated. 

The Springhill/Westrock Massacre

On a quiet summer’s evening in July 1972 British soldiers shot dead Fr. Noel Fitzpatrick as he went to administer the last rites to the dead and dying. 38 year old Paddy Butler died after he was hit by the bullet that killed Fr. Fitzpatrick. 19 year old Martin Dudley was shot in the back of the head by a second British Army sniper and seriously wounded as he got out of a car. 17 year old John Dougal was shot dead and his friend Brian Pettigrew was seriously injured as they tried to assist Martin Dudley. 13 year old Margaret Gargan was shot dead by another British Army sniper. And 15 year old David McCaffrey was shot dead as he tried to pull Fr. Fitzpatrick and Paddy Butler out of the line of fire.

The British propaganda machine immediately went into action and, as they had done the previous August in Ballymurphy and in January in Derry after Bloody Sunday, the British Army branded those they had murdered as ‘gunmen’ killed during a gun battle with the IRA. 

The local community and the families knew that there had been no gun battle. They knew that no one had fired at the British Army. But in the media reports the lie was told and repeated.

The Springhill/Westrock Massacre inquest is part of the series of legacy inquests that are being held. The Springhill/Westrock families and their legal team hope it will be listed before the end of April 2023 and are pressing the Coroner’s office to list it for a preliminary hearing. However, the British government’s Bill of Shame now places a concern over this.

The Springhill/Westrock Massacre families are to be commended – like those hundreds of others in similar circumstances - for their courage and resilience in the face of British government intransigence and efforts to cover-up the violent and criminal actions of its forces.

 

British government cannot be trusted with our future: Acht na Gaeilge – Anois: Defending journalists

Sunday marked 24 years from the historic referendum in May 1998 that saw almost three quarters of people in the North vote in support of the Good Friday Agreement.  Despite the twists and turns in the years since then the Agreement has proved resilient in maintaining peace and in plotting a course for constitutional, political and economic change in the North and across these islands.

Now the Good Friday Agreement is under threat. Arguably that has always been the case as far as elements of unionism are concerned. But for their part successive British governments have refused to implement parts of the Agreement. The Tories in particular have been guilty of this. Especially the current crowd.

The Agreement was a defining moment in our recent history.  It underpinned the peace process. However the Good Friday Agreement was not a settlement. It provided the space in which our different political and constitutional perspectives, that are part of our shared colonial experience, can be debated and discussed and out of which a new future can be agreed.

For those of us who want it the Agreement provides a mechanism to  achieve self determination  and an opportunity to undo the disaster of partition and achieve a united Ireland democratically. 

This essential part of the Agreement is now being targeted. The Agreement is clear. A majority is needed for constitutional change. However, there is currently a sinister effort underway by some to attack this core principle of the Agreement. There is a suggestion being made that it might be time for the provisions of the Good Friday Agreement to be rewritten. The Tánaiste Leo Varadkar went so far as to propose that any decision on a unity referendum should have a role for The Assembly. 

The real politic is that any decision on a referendum will be taken by the two governments – not by a British Secretary of State. It is above his/her pay grade. Clarification on the criteria for this may be useful but any suggestion that the Good Friday Agreement should be rewritten and this crucial aspect of it be amended, must be resisted.

The Good Friday Agreement has stood the test of time. Its flaws rest primarily with the failures of the two governments to fulfil commitments made. The British Government is not to be trusted with our future.  That is for the people of this island to decide.

The Agreement and the people of the North have not been well served so far by the current Irish Government. An Taoiseach Micheál Martin has allowed relationships with the British government to almost disappear. Arguably this is the British Governments fault. I accept that.  But An Taoiseach has done little to counter this. He rarely mentions the North unless it is to attack Sinn Féin. His instinct on the issue is not good. For months there was no worthwhile contact between the two governments. That surely is An Taoiseach’s responsibility.  

His government has refused to challenge the British Government in a strategic and consistent way. When moved, by dint of public pressure, for example on London’s Amnesty for its forces or their  allies, its attitude has usually been rhetorical and without real substance.

So the Irish Government has a lot to do. It should be planning for the future in an inclusive, transparent democratic way. And it should be defending and implementing the Good Friday Agreement. 

 

Acht na Gaeilge – Anois

The echo of thousands of cheerful, excited voices raised in defiance reverberated off the buildings along Royal Avenue and into Donegall Place to the front of Belfast City Hall. The raised voices called for Irish language rights – for equality and respect. The slogans demanded:

Acht na Gaeilge – Anois (Irish Language Act – Now!!).

Tír gan teanga, tir gan anam (A country without a language is a country without a soul.

Saturday’s Lá Mor Dearg march, organised by An Dream Dearg, was undoubtedly one of the most colourful, exuberant, and spectacular protest marches that Belfast has witnessed in many years. From just before noon they began to arrive in their hundreds at An Cultúrlann McAdam Ó Fiaich on the Falls Road. Most were wearing the familiar red tee shirt with the white circle that is the symbol of Lá Dearg - the campaign for Irish language rights.

By 1 pm the hundreds had become thousands. A sea of red stretching across the Falls Road and packed into the small streets around it. Families pushing prams, parents carrying small children on shoulders, other children carrying their home made little posters -‘Acht Anois’; young people in their thousands. Laughing. Enthusiastic. Eager. Animated. Determined.

Banners from solidarity groups, trade unions, political parties. Colourful ethnic groups singing and dancing.  

Unsurprisingly the march was late starting but as it slowly made its way down the Falls Road in bright sunshine the extent of the huge number of people participating quickly became apparent. One enterprising activist put up a drone. The video footage is startling. The Falls Road and Belfast City Centre are filled by a long river of red shirts. The chants of the marchers can be heard plainly.

Cearta Anois, Acht anois (Rights Now, Act Now).

Támid dearg: Dearg le fearg (We are red, Red with anger).

Saturday’s march and the growth in Irish medium education is an example of what can be achieved even when British governments and unionist political leaders refuse to honour commitments and legislate for rights. The Good Friday Agreement in 1998 said that; “All participants recognise the importance of respect, understanding and tolerance in relation to linguistic diversity” in respect of the“Irish language, Ulster-Scots and the languages of the various ethnic communities, all of which are part of the cultural wealth of the island of Ireland.”

Specifically, and in relation to the Irish language the British government committed to take “resolute action to promote the language”and to “facilitate and encourage the use of the language in speech and writing in public and private life where there is appropriate demand” and to “seek to remove, where possible, restrictions which would discourage or work against the maintenance or development of the language”.

These commitments were not honoured. Eight years later at the St. Andrew’s negotiations the British government committed to the introduction of Acht nba Gaeilge. In the 16 years since then one promise has followed on from another and all have fallen as one deadline for Acht na Gaeilge has passed without the  legislation being introduced.

Despite the prevarication, the stalling, the discrimination and antipathy toward the Irish language and Gaelgeoirí the resilience and resolve of Irish language activists and those citizens who support language rights has frustrated the naysayers and begrudgers. The use of the Irish language and the numbers of young people attending Irish medium education has grown year on year.

If you were not able to get along to Saturday’s Lá Mor Dearg then click onto the link and watch six minutes of video that will do your heart good. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oAhzTS-avtc

Defending journalists

The shameful decision by Israel to cover-up the murder of Palestinian/American journalist Shireen Abu Aqleh by refusing to hold a criminal investigation into her killing will have come as no surprise to most people. In our own situation there are victims groups, representing hundreds of families struggling for truth decades after their loved ones were killed by British state forces. Last week the London government introduced its so-called ‘Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Bill’ which makes future efforts at truth almost impossible for victims.

Its real objective is set out in the second paragraph of the Bill which states: “For too long, veterans and former service personnel have lived in fear of prosecution for actions taken whilst serving their country in order to uphold the rule of law”.

This is what rogue states do. They cover-up and protect the criminal actions of those charged with defending the policies, strategies and self-interests of governments involved in conflict. The apartheid Israeli regime has a long track record of this. So too have the British.

The families and victims are in the front line of challenging these decisions. So too are journalists many of whom are the target of vilification, censorship, threats and increasingly death.

According to Reporters without Borders Shireen Abu Akleh is one of 35 journalists to have been killed and 144 to have been wounded by the apartheid Israeli regime since 2000.

Israel isn’t the only dangerous place for journalists. In the North Martin O’Hagan and Lyra McKee were both killed as they carried out their work as journalists. Since the invasion of Ukraine media reports have put the number of journalists killed at around 20. Last year, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisaiton (UNESCO) reported that 55 journalists were killed worldwide.

There is an imperative on governments and the international community to defend a free press and to protect journalists.

Lá Mór Dearg: Employers must talk to workers: Murder of Shireen Abu Akleh: Moore St raffle winner presented with 1914 Mauser rifle

 

Lá Mór Dearg

This column was written before the huge weekend march in Belfast in support of Lá Dearg - more on that next week. 

However, a few words on the Irish language. Every day I learn a little bit more Irish. An extra word or two. For me there is a great joy in being able to speak and to read Irish. And to write a wee bit. I especially take great pleasure in speaking in Irish to the growing number of young people I meet every day. They use Gaeilge fluently and naturally. And they correct me when necessary. 

Two weeks ago scores of children, parents and staff from Gaelscoil an Lonnáin on the Falls Road held a noisy and joyful protest outside their school in support of Lá Mór Dearg and an Acht na Gaeilge. We heard them from the office. Full of craic and fun. And Gaeilge. 

On Saturday – 21 May – thousands more joined with An Dream Dearg for a march and rally in Belfast in support of Acht na Gaeilge and for the rights of Irish language speakers. More on that next week.

The growth in the Irish language and in Irish medium education has been phenomenal over recent years. Despite significant efforts by past British and Unionist governments to suppress the language and indifference by successive Irish governments, the revival of Irish in recent years has gone from strength to strength. Thousands of young Gaels are being educated every day through the medium of Irish. 

In 2006 the British government committed to an Acht na Gaeilge. In the 16 years since then successive British governments have failed to deliver on this commitment. Nothing surprising about that. Mr Johnson won’t be here at the weekend but I appeal to everyone who supports the right of citizens to respect and equality to join with us. March in support of the rights of Irish speakers.  See you on Saturday. And remember use whatever Irish you have whenever you can.

 

Employers must talk to workers

Several trade unions are involved in industrial action in the public and private sectors in an effort to get employers to increase wages and improve conditions for workers. With inflation heading toward 10% some current pay rates are clearly inadequate, especially given the cost of living crisis and  huge increases  in fuel, food and energy costs.

Some public service workers have been striking since late March resulting in disruption to waste collection services, schools, further education colleges, youth services, the Housing Executive and public transport.

Inevitably, trade union action can have a negative impact on those who rely on their services, and there has been a particular adverse affect on parents with children at special schools. There is an onus therefore on the employers to acknowledge the challenges facing workers and to do all within their power to ensure a sufficient outcome for their employees. They should talk to the workers.

 

Murder of Shireen Abu Akleh

On Wednesday 11 May Israeli forces in the occupied west Bank deliberately targeted and murdered a Palestinian journalist. Shireen Abu Akleh was a well respected Palestinian/American reporter working for Al Jazeera. The 51 year old veteran journalist was wearing a clearly visible press vest and helmet. She was in the Jenin refugee camp covering an attack by Israeli forces when she was shot in the face by a single shot from an Israeli sniper. A second Palestinian journalist, Ali al-Samoudi was also wounded.

A video covering the minutes around Shireen Abu Akleh’s murder was widely broadcast. The Israeli authorities then published a video which they claimed showed a Palestinian fighter firing at Israeli troops. Their claim is that it was he who killed Shireen. This claim was quickly rubbished by other media outlets.

In addition a researcher for B'Tselem - the Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories - filmed the locality and “documented the exact locations in which the Palestinian gunman depicted in a video distributed by the Israeli army, fired, as well as the exact location in which Journalist Shireen Abu Akleh was killed.” Their video is available at:

https://twitter.com/i/status/1524346246743396355

It proved that the Israeli claim is bogus.

Subsequently, in horrifying scenes reminiscent of RUC attacks on Republican funerals in the North during the period known as the Battle of the Funerals, Israeli forces raided Shireen Abu Akleh’s home during the wake and then launched a major attack on the funeral. Israeli troops viciously assaulted mourners, some of whom were carrying the coffin. There was widespread international condemnation of the assassination and the attack on the funeral.

Minister for Foreign Affairs, Simon Coveney said: “No self-respecting democracy could stand over this treatment of people.”

He’s right. And no self-respecting democracy can stand back and fail to take action against such behaviour. In the week that the Palestinian people commemorate Nakba – the time when more than 700,000 Palestinian Arabs fled or were expelled from their homes as Israel declared its independence - the Irish government should now move to positively use its position on the United Nations Security Council in support of Palestinian rights; recognise the State of Palestine 

and stop blocking the passing into law of the Occupied Territories Bill.

 

Moore St raffle winner presented with 1914 Mauser rifle

The iconic Mauser rifle, generously donated by collector Pat O’Hagan, was recently presented to Conor Downes who won it in the raffle held by the Moore Street Preservation Trust. The historic Mauser rifle was part of the shipment smuggled into Howth in July 1914 which armed the Irish Volunteers for the 1916 Rising.

The raffle raised over twelve thousand euro to help fund the battle to save the 1916 Moore Street Battlefield site from destruction by a London based developer.  

Micheál MacDonncha, Secretary of the Trust, and Proinsias Ó Rathaille, grandson of The O’Rahilly who helped to organise the gunrunning in 1914, and who was killed on Moore Street in 1916 leading a charge of Volunteers against a British Army barricade ,presented Conor Downes with his prize.

I want to thank all of those who bought tickets and supported the draw. The decision by the planners to accept the developers’ proposal, and the refusal of an oral hearing by An Bord Pleanála, mean that the battle to save Moore Street is set to significantly increase in the months ahead. The Moore Street Preservation Trust is determined to oppose the Hammerson plans for the area and if necessary take the case to court. This is an expensive process and this column appeals again for people to donate to the Trust’s appeal.

 If you wish to contribute to the #SaveMooreStreet campaign, you can do so here:

https://pay-payzone.easypaymentsplus.com/fund.../campaign/26

Míle buíochas le gach duine a thacaigh leis an chrannchur. Ar aghaidh linn le chéile.

 

A transformative election: Attack on Human Rights Act is attack on GFA

It was never supposed to be like this. I watched with interest as one BBC presenter, reporting on the Assembly election results, told his largely British audience that the northern state was deliberately created to ensure that nationalists and republicans would be a permanent minority and that no nationalist/republican leader could ever take up the mantle of Prime Minister or First Minister.

No way. It was to be a unionist state ruled in perpetuity by a permanent unionist majority. Special laws; gerrymandered electoral boundaries; the Special Powers Act; the repression of the state police (the RUC) and the B Specials; and a deep rooted sectarian system of political and religious discrimination all combined to create an apartheid-like state.

The civil rights campaign, the decades of conflict and eventually the peace process and Good Friday Agreement in 1998 changed this by gradually transforming the political landscape.

Regrettably not everyone has embraced the new dispensation. There remain those within unionism who still see nationalists and republicans as second class, not worthy of respect, not worthy of equality, not worthy to hold the position of First Minister. They remain trapped in an ethos and culture that that has long passed its sell by date.

Notwithstanding this, last week’s Assembly election changed the fundamentals. There is now a Sinn Féin First Minister Designate. Sinn Féin is the largest party in the Assembly. It received a historic quarter of a million first preference votes. The increase in support for the Alliance Party and the drop in support for unionist parties is also evidence of a fundamental shift in our electoral politics.

The priority now is to get the Assembly and Executive up and running. Political leaders need to face up to the mounting challenge for citizens of increasing fuel, energy and food costs. People are confronted by a cost of living crisis unparalleled in recent decades and need urgent government support to chart a way forward. Almost all of the political parties are ready, willing and able to come together to meet this challenge. The DUP are not. That is their choice.

But their determination to hold everyone else to ransom over a protocol they negotiated and which was introduced by the British government, starkly underlines once again the deeply flawed nature of the northern state.

Republicans are prepared to work the institutions in the interest of all of our people. To do so does not diminish our commitment to or our ongoing efforts to persuade others of the merits of a united Ireland. On the contrary through greater all-island cooperation and harmonisation the imperative of unity will became even clearer. In addition, tackling the cost of living crisis in the longer term, and confronting poverty and inequality is only possible in the context of a united Ireland in which the people of our island have control over our own affairs.

No British government is going to tackle the cost of living crisis or pay for the policies needed to meet these challenges. This reality underlines the need for planning for change and for a rigorous debate on the merits of unity. I

100 years ago constitutional change was imposed by fear and intimidation, at the point of a gun and under threat of terrible war. That cannot be the way forward today. Any constitutional change must be democratic and peaceful. It must be rooted in the principles and ethos of equality, parity of esteem and equality. It has to be planned for. The Irish government cannot continue to bury its head in the sand and say no to the logic of dialogue. A citizens’ assembly in which all matters pertinent to constitutional change can be discussed imaginatively and in good faith is an obvious forum for this.

There will be a unity referendum. Republicans are not seeking it today or tomorrow. We want an inclusive empowering process leading to an informed decision. We don’t need a rerun of Brexit. That means planning and working with others to build the best possible future.

The reality is that the Assembly election marks a dramatic step change – another of those historic moments when hope and history has rhymed.

The overwhelming majority of citizens on this island want our future to be different from what went before. Those who voted last Thursday want those they have elected to represent their interests, to make power sharing work and to shape a new future.

 

Attacks on Human Rights laws must be opposed

The British government confirmed this week that it plans to replace the Human Rights Act with a British Bill of Rights. In a letter to Boris Johnson over 50 human rights groups warned of the “dire consequences” this move will have particularly in respect of the Good Friday Agreement.

A key component of the Agreement was its recognition of the importance of protecting and safeguarding human rights. The Agreement affirmed a series of core rights;

• the right of free political thought;

• the right to freedom and expression of religion;

• the right to pursue democratically national and political aspirations;

• the right to seek constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate means;

• the right to freely choose one’s place of residence;

• the right to equal opportunity in all social and economic activity, regardless of class, creed, disability, gender or ethnicity;

• the right to freedom from sectarian harassment; and

• the right of women to full and equal political participation.

Underpinning these rights the British government introduced the Human Rights Act in 1998 and completed the incorporation of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) into law. In addition, there was to be a separate Bill of Rights for the North.

Almost immediately the Conservatives and Unionists opposed the introduction of a Bill of Rights. They successfully fought its introduction at every opportunity. To further their attack on the concept of citizens’ rights the Tories announced in the 2015 election manifesto that they would “scrap” the Human Rights Act 1998 (“HRA”). In its place they would “introduce a British Bill of Rights which will restore common sense to the application of human rights in the UK.”

The Bill of Rights the Tories now propose falls far short of what is needed to protect rights.

Recently, Barbara Bolton who is head of legal and policy at the Scottish Human Rights Commission said: “The reality is the rights enshrined in the Human Rights Act (HRA) touch all areas of our lives. Our family life, freedoms, privacy and right to be protected by the state from violence and harm.”

Additionally and in the North the Human Rights Act is also the foundation of rights protections in the exercise of policing.

The decision to scrap the Human Rights Act is a direct attack on the Good Friday Agreement. One result of such a move would be the British government breaching its international obligations. However, as we know only too well from the Brexit experience Tory governments and especially Boris Johnson, don’t accept that they are bound by international law. Breaking agreements is second nature.

The British government is intent on diluting human rights and abandoning any notion of accountability. This would make it more difficult for citizens to challenge bad decisions by government through the courts. Its underlying ethos is about promoting inequality in society and denying justice.

Amnesty International has said that the Human Rights Act “carefully and precisely” protects individuals’ rights. It dismisses Tory claims that there is public support for reform. Amnesty also warned that the repeal of the HRA could undercut “public confidence in the new political and policing arrangements” that emerged from the Good Friday Agreement (GFA).

A former Chief Commissioner of the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission, Emily Logan warned some years ago that a repeal of the Human Rights Act “would have negative consequences for the uniformity of human rights standards across these islands.” 

No effort should be spared in opposing any effort to subvert the human rights components of that Agreement.

 

Bad Manners

Simon Coveney, Irish Foreign Affairs Minister was gracious in his response to the election results and Michelle O Neill’s success in becoming First Minister Designate. An Tánaiste Leo Varadkar was most ungracious. An Taoiseach Micheál Martin was even worse. I wonder why? Sore losers. Or just bad manners.

 

Candidatitis

 Candidatitis

I first published this article in 2005 and then, slightly amended in 2016. It is dedicated to all candidates from all parties and none and their families as well as all the valiant souls who work hard on their behalf.  By the time you get to read or hear these insightful comments the outcome of the Assembly election should be clear.  So I thought this would be a good time to republish it again, slightly amended once more, with a special thought for the majority of candidates who won’t get elected. In West Belfast there are seventeen candidates battling for five seats. Seventeen into five won’t go.  Think of them as you digest all the outcomes.  

Good luck to them all. Good luck especially to all Sinn Féin’s candidates. It is a great honour to represent Sinn Féin in any capacity and a huge privilege to seek a mandate from your peers for our historic republican mission. I hope we have a great result. 

That’s all in the gift of the electorate. So I thank all the voters as well as all the candidates. 

Opinion polls have become an integral part of every election campaign. Many newspaper and broadcast outlets try to second guess the electorate by commissioning polls. And then their columnists or pundits spend a huge amount of time analysing the poll they just commissioned.

 So do many candidates. And their supporters. This can be very stressful. So every candidate and everyone else should be mindful of the particular and peculiar stresses and strains that come with being a candidate. It’s a form of ailment called Candidatitis. It begins with the candidate coming to believe – with a certainty known only to the prophets of old – that they are going to win.

This syndrome is capable of moving even the most rational aspirant or shy wallflower into a state of extreme self belief. It strikes without warning, is no respecter of gender, and can infect the lowly municipal hopeful, the aspiring Parliamentarian, as well as the lofty presidential wannabe.

The late Screaming Lord Sutch, or his Irish equivalent, who stand just for the craic, can fall victim of Candidatitis as much as the most committed and earnest political activist. I believe this is due to two factors. First of all most people standing for election see little point in telling the voters that they are not going to win. That just wouldn’t make sense. Of course not. So they say they are going to win.

That's when Candidatitis starts. As the 'we are going to win' is repeated time and time again it starts to have a hypnotic effect on the person intoning the mantra. By this time it’s too late. 

Which brings me to the second factor.  Most people encourage Candidatitis. Unintentionally. Not even the candidate’s best friend will say hold on, you haven't a chance. Except for the media. But no candidate believes the media. And most candidates are never interviewed by the media anyway.

So a victim of Candidatitis will take succour from any friendly word from any punter. Even a 'good luck' takes on new meaning and 'I won't forget ye' is akin to a full blooded endorsement.

 So are we to pity sufferers of this ailment? Probably not. But we should be kind to them. 

They are mostly consenting adults, although some parties occasionally run conscripts. In the main these are staunch party people who are persuaded to run by more sinister elements who play on their loyalty and commitment. In some cases these reluctant candidates run on the understanding that they are not going to get elected. Their intervention, they are told, is to stop the vote going elsewhere or to maintain the party's representative share of the vote. In some cases this works. But in other cases, despite everything, our reluctant hero, or heroine, actually gets elected. A friend of mine was condemned to years on Belfast City council years ago when his election campaign went horribly wrong. He topped the poll.

That’s another problem in elections based on proportional representation. Topping the poll is a must for some candidates. But in PR elections such ambition creates a headache for party managers. If the aim is to get a panel of party representatives elected they all have to come in fairly evenly. This requires meticulous negotiations to carve up constituencies.  Implementing such arrangements make the implementation of the Good Friday Agreement look easy.

It means only placing posters and distributing leaflets in specific areas with clear instructions to the electorate on how we would like them to vote. In some elections I have noticed that some candidates (not Sinn Féin candidates folks) putting up posters in their colleagues territory. Not a good sign.

It requires an inordinate amount of discipline on the candidates' behalf not to fall into this trap. Many do. Some don’t. Some get really sneaky. Particularly as the day of reckoning comes closer. Panic attacks and an allergy to losing can lead to some sufferers poaching a colleague's votes. This is a very painful condition leading to serious outbreaks of nastiness and reprisals and recriminations if detected before polling day. It usually cannot be treated and can have long term effects.

So dear readers all of this is by way of lifting the veil on these usually unreported problems which infect our election contests. Politicians are a much maligned species. In some cases not without cause.

So the next time you look at a poster or get a leaflet through the letterbox or are confronted at your door by a wild eyed candidate – occasionally  accompanied by a posse of cameras – then take a more tolerant and benign view of the sometimes strange behaviour of those citizens who contest elections .

Love them or hate them you usually get the politicians you deserve. Granted this might not always extend to governments, especially in the South, given the coalitions which come together there in blatant contradiction of all election promises or commitments. The lust for power causes this. 

So too with the refusal to accept the outcome of this Assembly election unless it returns a unionist First Minister. This condition is probably the most serious ailment affecting our political system at this time. It could be terminal and will be a challenge for those returned as MLAs. 

Before they get to that point, if they ever do, this exclusive insight shows that candidates suffer many torments. Space restrictions prevent me from documenting them all.

So, don’t ignore the visages on the multitudes of posters which defile lamp posts and telegraph poles during election times and in some cases for years afterwards. Think of the torment that poor soul is suffering.

When you are accosted by a pamphlet waving candidate, as you shop in the supermarket or collect the children at school or are minding your own business as you walk down the main street, try to see beyond the brash exterior. If they get carried away with themselves it’s not really their fault you see. Big boys and girls make them do it. 

Most candidates are decent well meaning civic minded citizens.  It’s a pity some have awful politics. So your votes should not encourage them. They will have difficulties enough dealing with defeat as well as the outworking of Candidatitis. But they will recover eventually. 

If they get elected they or we may never recover. Please spare us from that. 

 

The Sun Is Setting.

The legacy of empire, of colonialism and of slavery is for many still a matter of the present and not the past. This is especially true for many of the former British colonies in the Caribbean. Last November Barbados formally removed Queen Elizabeth II as its Head of State. Since then the British government sent two groups of British royals as part of a charm offensive to the region in an effort to solidify waning British influence. The tours had the opposite effect.

In March the Cambridge’s visited Belize, Jamaica, and the Bahamas. Their first official engagement in Belize was cancelled after the Q’eqehi Maya people organised protests about a land dispute involving a charity which William is a patron of. 

In Jamaica the issue of slavery and the profits which the British monarchy accrued from that despicable practice generated more negative publicity and protests. The Royals offered no apology and made no reference to the role of the British Monarchy in transporting slaves from Africa to the region.

The local media recalled that when enslaved Africans arrived in the Caribbean the slave ships were owned by the Royal African Company and the slaves were branded with the initials ‘DV’ – Duke of York – their owner. 

More recently the Wessexes spent six days visiting Antigua and Barbuda, St. Lucia, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines. 

The refusal of successive British governments to properly address the issue of reparations arising from slavery and to acknowledge and apologise for it has added fuel to the increasing demand for independence in Belize, the Bahamas, Jamaica, Grenada, Antigua and Barbuda, and St. Kitts and Nevis. 

The chair of Jamaica’s National Commission on Reparations and chair of the U.N. Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, Verene Shepherd said, “The move towards republicanism is grounded in the belief that it’s time for formerly colonized nations to really live their independence and claim self-determination and not be under a monarchical system.” 

Instead of cementing Britain’s influence over the region the royal visits have helped galvanise a renewed interest in and demand for an end to colonialism, for reparations and for self-determination for the Caribbean nations. The Empire on which the sun never sat is reaching its end stage. Part of that is playing out in the Caribbean. Part of it is also playing out in Scotland and Wales. And here.

May 5th - The Peoples Day

 May 5th - The Peoples Day

One day to polling day and the pundits and pollsters have been filling the airways and column inches with their take on who will be the big winners and who will be the losers. Who will emerge with more or fewer Assembly seats? Will the Protocol galvanise a so far lack lustre unionist campaign? Will the DUP/TUV and their loyalist allies succeed in frightening unionist voters into toeing the line?  Or will Sinn Féin up-end a century of partition and the northern state by taking enough seats for Michelle O’Neill to become First Minister?

Most of the parties have now published their election manifestos. Where they stand on the constitutional issue; the cost of living crisis; Brexit and a host of other matters that are of varying importance to the electorate are pretty well understood by the public. 

I folded my first election leaflets in 1964. A long time ago. The actions of the RUC, at the behest of Ian Paisley, in smashing the window of the republican election office in Divis Street to steal the tricolour, encouraged me to buy a copy of the Special Powers Act and to begin a process of personal learning and politicisation which continues to this day. There have been many other elections, North and South since then. All of them in their own way significant. Even those in which Sinn Féin did not fare as well as we hoped. All part of the learning process.

Tomorrow's election - 5 May - is a date seared into the memory of republicans as the date in 1981 on which Bobby Sands MP and hunger striker died.

The Fermanagh South Tyrone by-election was an education for republicans. I was rarely at home during that time, spending almost the entire campaign in the constituency. I met scores of great people. We learned about form filling, polling agents, presiding officers, personation officers, how to campaign. How to canvass. It was exhilarating.

The British government and opposition, followed enthusiastically by elements of the media, had consistently asserted that republicans – and especially the hunger strikers – represented nobody and enjoyed no support. The election result confounded them all.

41 years later and the political landscape has changed. New opportunities are emerging. Opportunities for reconciliation and peace; for economic and political equality; for a new shared Ireland shaped by the people of this island. For an end to division. We will be forever grateful to the 30,493 citizens in Fermanagh and South Tyrone who voted for Bobby. On Thursday you can join them. Thursday is the voters’ day. Your day. Vote for real change. 

 

Taking a stand against hate crime

At the start of the year people across Ireland were shocked by the brutal murder of Ashling Murphy. The 23 year old primary school teacher was attacked while out jogging along the Grand Canal at Tullamore in County Offaly. The outrage and condemnation of her murder reflected the enormous frustration and anger that exists at the regular reports of violence against women, much of it related to domestic violence. Women’s Aid in the South has recorded 244 murders of women since 1996, when they first started keeping a record. 

Two weeks ago 64-year-old Alyson Nelson, a retired nurse was murdered in Whitehead, County Antrim. Her death brought to 14 the number of women violently killed in the North in the last two years. Statistics from the PSNI reveal that between 2017 and 2021 a total of 26 women were murdered by either a partner, family member of relative. 

This month also witnessed the cruel murder of Aidan Moffitt aged 42 in Sligo on April 10th. Two days later, also in Sligo, Michael Snee aged 58 was viciously killed. Both men were gay. It is widely believed that their murders were hate crimes. Both men were well known and widely respected.

In Dublin Evan Somers was attacked in Dublin City Centre. In a tweet on social media he described being assaulted by a stranger who “called me a faggot before beating the shit out of me. He left me with a fractured eye socket, 2 fractures in my ankle, a dislocation in my ankle & some other minor injuries.”

The Sligo deaths and the Dublin assault are evidence of a growing trend in hate crime directed at the LGBTQI community. The Rainbow Project in Belfast reported that between 2017 and 2019 there was a serious rise in homophobic attacks in the North. The number reported rose from 163 to 281. 

Violence and the threat of violence against women and members of the LGBTQI community, or against those of a different colour or ethnicity whether in the home, in the workplace, while socialising and relaxing, and on social media, are too common. Condemnation is not enough. We all have a responsibility to ensure that there is zero tolerance of racism and of violence against women and against the LGBTQI community. That means tough legislation tackling hate crime in all its manifestations. But it also demands that as a society we stand for equality. Instead of shame, persecution or discrimination on the basis of sexuality or gender identity, everyone must have the freedom to love and to express his or her or their true identity. We have a responsibility to stand against hate crime.

 

In Praise Of Napping. 

Our dogs seem to sleep a lot. They just lie down, close their eyes and doze off whenever the notion takes them.  Especially in this good weather. They pick a sunny spot and drift off into doggie dreamland. I suppose that’s one of the advantages of being a dog. As long as you don’t annoy the humans too much you can generally laze about. Cats are the same. They also lie in favoured spots and doze off whenever they feel like it. From them we get the term catnap.  We humans could learn a lot from dogs. And cats. 

The older I get the more I appreciate the benefits of a wee sleep in the course of an afternoon. Or an early evening. It makes sense. But sometimes its hard to get the time to do nothing. I love my sleep. I also like to get up relatively early in the morning. So by the time late afternoon sneaks up on me I need to recharge my batteries. Easier said than done. Especially if Im in the office. When I  was a TD I had a reclining chair in my room in Leinster House for sneaky power naps. Before that up in Stormont I got a settee. During the Good Friday Agreement negotiations I commissioned a folding bed which Siobhan O Hanlon procured. It was put to good use. 

But there is nothing to lie down on in the office I work from nowadays. Not even space for a hammock.  It’s the desk or the floor.  Of course if I’m working from home it is much easier.  Or at least there is comfortable furniture on which to repose. If you are allowed. But you usually actually have to get permission or negotiate the time for napping with other members of the household, especially the main  female member who will always find something that she needs you to do just as you are ready to lie down. So having the house to yourself is almost a precondition for napping there. A dog doesn’t have that problem. Or a cat. 

By the way we don’t have a cat. I have nothing against cats. They do lack the humility of dogs. But they can’t help that. Cats have a certain arrogance. Maybe because they are more independent from humans than dogs. Although we don’t have cats there are cats in our street who think they own our yard wall. They slink along our wall before they stretch themselves with a certain disdain towards the rest of us, into luxurious slumber. There they snooze beyond the reach of our dogs. I can only look up enviously at them. 

The dogs have learned to ignore them. Except occasionally during the night when more amorous felines outrage them with their banshee wailing and other courting rituals. That provokes howls of indignant protest from our canine chums. I’m sure the neighbours are disturbed by all the clamour. I know I am. All other annoyances to one side, a night of broken sleep makes a nap a necessity the following day.  

So that’s what I’m going to do now. A siesta is a very civilised little break from the travails of the day. We could learn a lot from our friends in warmer climes who build a siesta into their daily routine. Or we could just follow the example of our canine and feline pals. Either way the point is to take time to nap. You won’t regret it. Zzzzzzzzzzzzz.