May 30, 2005

Blame game falters in Belfast heist

The PSNI police have accepted that the IRA was not behind a cash robbery in Belfast at the weekend which identically mirrored the Northern Bank heist before Christmas.

AHERN INSISTENT ON EUROPEAN CONSTITUTION

Ireland will hold a referendum on a Constitution for the European Union despite France’s rejection of the treaty, 26-County Prime Minister, Taoiseach Bertie Ahern declared today.

Lord plans further allegations against Flynn

The Ulster Unionist Party’s Lord Laird has been accused of hiding behind parliamentary privilege to make unfounded allegations against Irish financier Phil Flynn.

The EU constitution

The following is the edited text of an address by Sinn Féin MEP Mary Lou McDonald, speaking at a major conference on the EU Constitution in Dublin at the weekend.

Jobs inequality for Catholics unchanged

Catholics are still twice as likely to be unemployed as Protestants in the North, with Catholic women battling even greater odds.

Council power-sharing resisted

An ‘unholy alliance’ between Ian Paisley’s DUP and the nationalist SDLP has been blamed for Sinn Féin’s exclusion from both the top posts on Belfast City Council.

Jailing of Basque leader condemned

Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams MP has voiced his concern at the jailing of Basque political leader Arnaldo Otegi and said that is would only serve to setback efforts to establish a peace process.

Good Friday Agreement is all there is

They say the Magic Roundabout is due for a revival. If you remember, it was originally a French programme. For the BBC the puppets were all given names in English like Dougal and Dylan and Zebedee and then a script was written in English to fit around the actions of the puppets.

The EU constitution

The edited text of an address by Sinn Féin MEP Mary Lou McDonald, speaking at a major conference on the EU Constitution in Dublin at the weekend.

May 26, 2005

IMC reports amid talks gloom

The Independent Monitoring Commission’s latest report into paramilitary activity in the North lacks credibility, Sinn Féin has said.

MI5 spy device auctioned off

A device used by British military intelligence to bug Sinn Féin headquarters in Belfast has been put on auction by the party.

Hamill inquiry opens

An inquiry has opened into the murder by a loyalist mob of Portadown Catholic Robert Hamill in the presence of an RUC police patrol eight years ago.

SINN FÉIN HOMES ATTACKED

The home of Gerry Adams and others belonging to Sinn Féin members in west Belfast were targeted in a series of orchestrated loyalist attacks today.

Prisoner seeks help

A letter by dissident republican Aiden Hulme is being circulated by the October Fifth Association, a network of civil rights veterans and supporters, as well as other groups, at home and abroad.

Bus crash horror

The crash of a school bus in County Meath in which five schoolgirls died has caused shock and grief across Ireland and raised questions about the safety of public transport.

Time has come to beat guns into ploughshares

By Tom McGurk (for the Sunday Business Post)

After the Northern election, the wagons are once again slowly starting to circle. As the DUP and Sinn Féin make their trips to Downing Street, the Taoiseach spoke this week in Poland of the debate going on within the Provisional republican movement.

Amnesty demands probe into robbery killings

Amnesty International has called for an independent inquiry into the killing of two criminals in an ambush by Garda police at a rural post office.

May 22, 2005

US rebuff for Sinn Féin representative

Sinn Féin’s representative to Washington, Rita O’Hare, was temporarily denied permission to visit the United States this week following a dispute over her itinerary on her previous trip.

Riot follows attacks, football

There has been rioting this evening on the Crumlin Road in north Belfast. It appears the trouble began after today’s football matches by Glasgow Rangers and Celtic ended.

Omagh charges man ‘facing miscarriage of justice’

The case of Sean Hoey, who is facing 29 murder charges in relation to the 1998 Omagh bombing, has been compared to the cases of the Birmingham Six and Guildford Four.

Inquest to open into Ludlow murder

The family of Louth man Seamus Ludlow will move closer to uncovering the full facts surrounding his murder when a new inquest is opened next week.

‘Kebabs’ jibe angers Turkish workers

A government junior minister accused of making a racist comment has inflamed a protest by Turkish construction workers, who are now threatening to go on hunger strike over unpaid wages.

AGREEMENT ‘NOT DEAD’ - ADAMS

Nationalists have denied claims last week from DUP leader Ian Paisley that the 1998 Good Friday Agreement is dead and should be given a decent burial.

Landlords’ ‘curse’ could free Lough Neagh

Fishermen and landowners around Ireland’s largest lake have signalled their intention to claim ownership of the famous Lough Neagh, the largest lake in Ireland.

Nationalist parties need a common goal

By Jim Gibney, (for the Irish News)

In the aftermath of the recent elections two main stories continue to dominate northern politics, changing trends within nationalism and unionism. This article looks at the fall out within the nationalist camp.

May 18, 2005

Moderate withdraws from UUP leadership race

The Ulster Unionist Party’s only remaining MP has said that she does not want to succeed David Trimble as leader of the Ulster Unionist Party.

LVF murder silence criticised

A unionist political leader has said it is “beyond doubt” that the paramilitary LVF killed Lisa Dorrian in February.

PEACE EFFORTS RESUME

British Prime Minister Tony Blair is to meet Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams and DUP leader Ian Paisley tomorrow in the first such meeting since the elections earlier this month.

Dublin-Monaghan: time for a real inquiry

An account of the story behind the Dublin and Monaghan bombings and the case for a public inquiry was presented at last year’s European Social Forum by Bernie McNally and Margaret Urwin.

SF opposes EU constitution, ID cards

Sinn Féin has launched a campaign to urge voters to reject the European constitutional treaty, describing it as “the biggest step so far in the creation of a superstate”.

Councils are ‘acid test’ for DUP - Durkan

The British government will be asked to appoint an administrator to run Lisburn council if unionists refuse to power-sharing arrangements with nationalists.

Loyalists attack cars outside besieged church

Cars parked at a Catholic church in Harryville, County Antrim were stoned on Saturday in a troubling reminder of the siege of the church by a unionist mob in the late ‘90s.

No turning back the clock

The following is the edited text of the address by Sinn Féin North Belfast Assembly member Gerry Kelly to the annual Hunger Strike Rally in Dunville Park, Belfast on Sunday.

May 14, 2005

Unionists paramilitaries up violence level

Sectarian attacks have increased over the past week, culminating in a machete attack in which a Catholic man almost bled to death in North Belfast.

Irish language channel to be available in the North?

The Irish language channel TG4 is to be extended across the Six Counties by the end of the year, the British government has promised.

ANGER AT COLOMBIA 3 DECISION

The Dublin government was today urged to intervene in a bid to have three republicans held in Colombia returned home.

Bush to face Irish anti-war protests

The largest public protests seen in Ireland in recent years are being planned for the visit of US President George Bush to Ireland next month.

British fly solo on ‘reconciliation’

A truth and reconciliation process in the North of Ireland will only have credibility if there is an independent and international dimension to it, Sinn Féin said today.

Peace process in free fall

By Gerry Adams (for the Guardian, April 30)

Last year London experienced the largest demonstration in its history - against the war in Iraq. For those who share that position its size was a great encouragement. Here was clear evidence that people in Britain don’t regard their government as infallible; and that there is support for diplomatic measures and opposition to war.

Adams, Ahern confirm prisoners deal

Four members of the Provisional IRA remain in jail despite a deal for their release being reached in negotiations last year, it has been confirmed.

May 13, 2005

Move on without DUP - Adams

Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams has told the new British Direct Ruler that he must now move forward on an “agenda of change” without further delay.

Paisley says never

DUP leader Ian Paisley has said that the DUP will “not be talking to the IRA now, tomorrow or ever” and that general election results in the North of Ireland represent the “burial” of the 1998 Good Friday Agreement.

Spellar out as new Ministers move in

The North’s most controversial Minister, John Spellar, has been replaced by a millionaire Tory renegade as part of British Prime Minister Tony Blair’s cabinet reshuffle.

ROAD TO NOWHERE

The 26 County government has given final approval to the construction of a motorway through the Hill of Tara, the ancient seat of the High Kings of Ireland.

Council elelction results

The successful republican candidates in last week's local ouncil elections in the North.

Northern MPs not wanted in Dail - McDowell

Sinn Féin has clashed with Dublin’s Minister for Justice Michael McDowell on the issue of the right of northern MPs to representation in the 26-County parliament.

McCartneys allege fresh threats

The family of Robert McCartney say they have been warned of threats from criminal elements to have them “burnt out” of their homes and business.

DUP triumph kills off Agreement

By Damien Kiberd (for Daily Ireland)

There is a lot of vainglorious talk about the place, but the reality of the matter is as follows. The politics of the Six Counties are now controlled by two political parties, one of which is linked to an army and the other of which is linked to a church.

May 9, 2005

Mob attack kids’ bus

A junior soccer team have pulled out of their football league after a sectarian mob attacked their minibus in County Antrim.

Concern at Omagh charge ‘stunt’

A lawyer acting for Omagh bomb accused, Sean Hoey, has said he is profoundly disturbed at reports alleging that his client will be charged with murder in relation to the 1998 Omagh bombing.

Hain the Pain?

The new British Direct Ruler in Ireland, Peter Hain, has insisted today that securing a lasting peace settlement was a priority for Labour’s third term.

UUP CRUSHED

Blame and retribution have replaced joy and sorrow following a crushing defeat for David Trimble and his Ulster Unionist Party and Sinn Féin’s eclipsing of the rival nationalist SDLP in the North’s elections.

Remembering James Connolly

The story of the Easter rising is well known. The story of James Connolly, however, is less well known.

Election news round-up

A summary of the news from each of the 18 Westminster constituencies.

Don’t mention the Famine - Ahern

Irish Taoiseach Bertie Ahern has ruled out a national day to mark Ireland’s Great Famine -- in case “nobody turns up”.

Trimble’s road to nowhere

When the historical archive of David Trimble’s political life is assembled, the infamous Drumcree sequence will reemerge in all its irony.

May 3, 2005

Video highlights PSNI violence

The Police Ombudsman is to be asked to investigate an incident in Derry at the weekend in which a group of PSNI police were caught on video punching and kicking members of the public.

British favour united Ireland - poll

Less than one in three of British voters want the North of Ireland to remain part of their country, according to a new opinion poll.

‘No dispute’ as loyalists march

Sinn Féin have lambasted the Parades Commission for failing to place restrictions on a massive late night loyalist band parade north of Belfast.

BRAGGING RIGHTS

The Westminster election in the North of Ireland on Thursday has become a two-horse race between Sinn Féin and Ian Paisley’s DUP. Both parties are hoping to gain bargaining power as the North’s largest party in the upcoming peace process negotiations.

Sinn Féin election manifesto

The following is an appeal for the Westminster election by Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams, followed by the key points of the party’s election manifesto.

Pipe-bomb disrupts Belfast marathon

Republican dissidents were accused of targeting PSNI police chief constable Hugh Orde with a bomb planted on the route of Belfast’s marathon run on Monday.

A defining point

By Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams (for Irish News)

This is a crucially important election. It is about the future - the type of Ireland we want to build in the 21st century.

No cure for ‘The Doc’ if IRA disband

By Danny Morrison

The remark at a DUP press conference that David Trimble is facing not just “the electric chair” but “the rope” was vintage Paisley. Cocky, vainglorious, petty stuff that had his merry band of followers roaring in the aisles at Trimble being ‘executed’ twice - across the North as leader of the UUP, and at a personal level at the hands of David Simpson in Upper Bann.


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