Mary Hughes
By Marie Moore
I first met Mary Hughes in the early 1970s when she was appointed to
represent the New Lodge Road's Fergal O'Hanlon Sinn Féin cumann on
what was then the Belfast Comhairle. With her trademark dry wit and
sharp tongue, Mary quickly proved herself a diligent worker who
involved herself in all aspects of Comhairle Ceantair life.
It was not long before Mary's exceptional organising ability was
discovered and put to use when she, Tom Hartley and others were
tasked to organise the Easter parade. Likewise, when the Prisoner of
War Department was established and the office opened, Mary played a
central role in organising the running of the office. She remained in
the POW department throughout the no wash protest and both hunger
strikes. She was one of a number of women who at that time assisted
with the trafficking of communications to and from the jails, between
wings and blocks and with the women in Armagh Jail. At a time when
communication from the jails was of crucial importance to efforts
aimed at highlighting the appalling conditions to which political
prisoners were subjected, Mary played a leading role in the process.
In the course of this work, she met most of the hunger strikers in
person and endured the traumatic experience of talking to their
families before and after visits. She is remembered for this in the
book ``Ten Men Dead'', in which she is referred to as ``Kitten'', a name
given to her by the prisoners.
In the 1980s, Mary moved from the POW Deprtment to the An
Phoblacht office in Belfast and at the same time took
charge of Sinn Féin finances in the city, where her legendary
thriftiness ensured tightest possible control of party coffers.
Running the paper's office with a strong hand, Mary was successful in
extracting it from a position of debt and placing it for the first
time in the black.
After leaving the paper, Mary became part of the Sinn Féin Six-County
Comhairle, serving initially as organiser before assuming the role of
secretary, a position she held at the time of her death. During her
long period of service on this body, Mary made an impression in her
inimitable fashion. She will be remembered by comrades and friends as
the person who streamlined the Comhairle office, who kept the
organisation in the Six Counties abreast of policy developments and
decisions and for her sterling efforts with regard to the
organisation of the party's Ard Fheis. Such was Mary's commitment
that despite the severity of her illness, she continued with this
work until her death.
Those who knew her will confirm that Mary was a very private person
and one who had a very strong sense of family. When her father became
ill, it was Mary who took time off to nurse him. It was Mary to whom
family members turned when they needed help with a problem. There can
be no doubting the enormity of the loss suffered by Mary's family
with her death. In extending to them the heartfelt condolences of the
entire republican community, I would urge family members to remember
in times of despair what Mary often said to those in need of
assistance - ``I cannot solve your problem but I will advise and find
out what is needed. You're the person to solve the problem.''
From the day she became a member of the republican movement until
that of her death after a short battle against cancer, Mary Hughes
was a shoulder upon which we were all invited to lean. While Mary
would have been the first to argue that nobody is indispensable,
those of us in Sinn Féin who have survived her will know only too
well that replacing her will be difficult if not impossible.
All of us have lost something with the death of Mary Hughes. All of
us will have our own memories of her. Some will remember her dry wit
while others will remember her work as a republican and others still
the craic, the fun, the incomparable hostess, companion and friend.
Old friend and very dear comrade slan leat from us all.
Carmella Dowen
Carmella, who was born in Ireland, was a founding member of
Australian Aid to Ireland and a tireless worker and educator on the
Irish question. Carmella engaged in many struggles, including
Aboriginal land rights, the abolition of the white Australia policy,
the Aliens Act, and full equal opportunity for the Aboriginal people
to enter universities. Carmella is survived by her family.
Sister Kathleen McEvoy
Sister McEvoy (Sister Joseph) formally of Abbeyleix, Co. Laois, was a
tireless worker through Amnesty International for Irish republican
prisoners and raised the question with the pope on his visit to
Australia. Kathleen said she thought "His Holiness' was not well
informed.
Grace Swebel
Mrs Grace Swebel, 86 years, who was of Irish origin, through her
trade union work and many international contacts, never failed in
highlighting the atrocities of the British army and their cohorts in
occupied Ireland.
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