Irish Republican News: Archives

September 30, 2006

McDOWELL SITS IN JUDGEMENT

The Dublin government is divided by the deep facing 26-County Prime Minister, Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, over cash payments he accepted when Minister for Finance in the 1990s.

Omagh bomb trial opens

A former British army major conceded yesterday that parts of a bomb examined in 1998 may have been “forensically altered”.

DUP man guilty of vote fraud

A former DUP mayor of Coleraine has admitted six charges of electoral fraud.

Sean O Cealleagh deported

A man jailed for life over the 1988 killing of two British army corporals in west Belfast has been deported from the U.S.

‘Groundhog day’ talks must end - Hain

DUP leader Ian Paisley has said that his party “will not be bullied” by a British government which has declared that a November 24th deadline for an agreement in talks is legally binding.

British troops ‘involved in showband massacre’

A member of the Miami showband who was injured in an attack which killed three of his bandmates in 1975 has said it is his belief that the checkpoint at which his band’s minibus was stopped was commanded by a British army officer.

DNA and Diplock: A Recipe for Injustice

Fears are being voiced that “Birmingham Six” style justice is about to be meted out to South Armagh Republican Sean Hoey, with suspect DNA evidence being the lynchpin of the framework.

CRC article relates more to unionist thinking

The British has created a series of shop-window fronts to give the false impression, particularly to those looking from abroad, that Britain is addressing the unique problems here.

September 26, 2006

Ahern admits receiving payments

In an interview on Irish television this evening, the 26-County Prime Minister, Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, admitted receiving sums of almost forty thousand Euro from business figures he described as “long standing friends”.

September 25, 2006

NO ANSWERS TO AHERN QUESTIONS

The Dublin government is enveloped in a new and potentially critical corruption scandal over revelations of payments made to the 26-County Prime Minister, Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, in 1993.

Sudden death of Michael Ferguson

Sinn Féin Assembly member Michael Ferguson died suddenly last night at his home in Belfast at the age of 53.

Paisley rejects policing overtures

DUP leader Ian Paisley has set out a number of preconditions ahead a planned political summit in Scotland, including that the IRA “be stood down and abandoned”.

Drumcree marchers taunt Garvaghy residents

Unionists mocked the murder of a Catholic teenager during a controversial weekend march to Drumcree in Portadown by the Protestant Orange Order.

Inequality doesn’t pay for DUP

DUP councillors in Coleraine have paid almost thirty thousands Euros towards a legal bill over a decision to exclude Sinn Féin from last year’s Christmas dinner.

Sinn Féin councillors resign

The brother of a former hunger striker has left Sinn Féin following a dispute within its south Derry branch.

Hunger strike message echoes down the years

The prisoners died but a generation later as one contributor describes it, “....they shine a light that is purer than ever and that points a steady beam to our future”.

Ministers have lost interest in north-south links

The nature and extent of all-Ireland arrangements are likely to become political issues in the South instead of matters on which all Irish parties agree and take for granted as a national objective.

September 19, 2006

DUP CAN END DEADLOCK - SF

Sinn Féin’s spokesperson on policing, Gerry Kelly, has said the parties could be “very, very close” to an agreement on policing if Ian Paisley’s DUP were to be engage with Sinn Féin in a positive manner.

Hain makes u-turn on McCord killing

A Police Ombudsman report on the murder of Raymond McCord may be “extremely uncomfortable for the British state”, British Direct Ruler Peter Hain has admitted.

PSNI clash with Belfast youths

The PSNI police have been accused of heavy handedness after an armoured police vehicle crashed into a car in north Belfast on Sunday night.

Historic peace move in Derry

Sinn Féin and representatives of the unionist paramilitary UVF have taken part in ground-breaking talks in Derry.

Gloves off for Portadown Orangemen

Residents of the nationalist Garavaghy Road in Portadown have called on the Parades Commission to review a decision not to impose restrictions on an Orange Order march due to take place in the town later this week.

Farmer gets bill for British Army base

A 69-year-old south Armagh farmer has been landed with a tax bill for land adjacent to his property occupied by the British Army.

Equality - the rhetoric and the reality

A new report by the Belfast-based civil liberties group, the Committee on the Administration of Justice (CAJ), has criticised the British government's sectarian approach to targeting social need.

Renaissance Republicanism

It is hardly surprising three dozen or so Irish Republicans considered getting together in Toomebridge to have a chat about the future of their country and the role of Irish Republicanism within it.

September 15, 2006

PSNI’S FILEGATE

Up to 1,000 murder files held by the Crown police in the North of Ireland have simply “gone missing”, the PSNI have admitted.

Catholics attacking themselves - Paisley

Nationalists have hit out after Ian Paisley jnr claimed a wave of attacks on Catholic homes in the greater Ballymena area were “self- inflicted”.

DUP seen stalling talks

DUP leader Ian Paisley has declared that a deal by the November 24th deadline set by the British and 26 County governments is unlikely and branded proposed peace talks in Scotland “a waste of money”.

McDowell becomes Tanaiste

26 County Justice Minister Michael McDowell has succeeded Mary Harney to become the new leader of the Progressive Democrats and will also take over the role of Tanaiste, or Deputy Prime Minister.

Policing issues provoke controversy

Police Ombudsman Nuala O’Loan has defended herself after a fierce attack by the chairman of the North’s Police Federation.

North inequality worsening

The poorest members of society in the North are worse off than they were a decade ago despite rhetoric by the British government to the contrary, a new report has found.

Healthcare is a right

A summary of Sinn Féin’s new all-Ireland policy document on healthcare.

Peelers Give You Trouble

With Sinn Fein's ratification of the British constabulary on the political agenda, Martin Galvin join's Danny Morrison's call for a serious debate on the future of Irish Republicanism.

September 10, 2006

CHANGING OF THE GUARD

Tony Blair's promise to step down as British Prime Minister within 12 months threatens to derail the Irish peace process.

McDowell in power grab

The hardline right-winger Michael McDowell looks set to be elected leader of the Progressive Democrats in a move that could herald a shift in politics in the 26 Counties and an early election.

IMC backs IRA leadership

The official body set up to report on IRA and unionist paramilitary activity has said the IRA is committed to following a peaceful political path.

West Belfast Gaeltacht wins official status

Belfast City Council has voted to officially designate part of the largely nationalist Falls Road as a Gaeltacht area.

Diplock conviction 'unsafe'

Almost 30 years after a teenager was jailed for being in the junior wing of the IRA, his conviction was overturned yesterday.

Dialogue key to ending conflict - Adams

Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams has urged the US to adopt a similar approach to that used in the Irish peace process in efforts to resolve the Israel-Palestine conflict.

Irish process is template for peace worldwide

Gerry Adams has brought a message of hope to the Israeli and Palestinian people.

When one doesn't mind being called a Provo

The sincerity of those dissident republicans who believe that the strategy of the Republican Movement is wrong is easily tested.

September 7, 2006

Mary Harney resigns

The 26-County Deputy Prime Minister, Tanaiste Mary Harney, has announced she is stepping down as leader of the Progressive Democrats.

September 5, 2006

TALKS HEADED FOR SCOTLAND

A fresh attempt to end the political deadlock in the North of Ireland is to be made next month with intensive talks in Scotland.

Adams leaves on Mid-East trip

Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams is en route to the Middle East to meet with peace workers and political figures in Palestine and Israel.

Prison fasts continue

Protesting republican prisoners in Maghaberry have completed another 48-hour fast, the fourth to be held since prisoners began a campaign for political status on June 19.

Sectarian provocation in Ballymena

The Parades Commission, which is supposed to adjudicate in disputes over sectarian parades in Catholic areas, has been accused of blithely ignoring breaches of its determinations by Protestant marchers.

PSNI admits using chidren as spies

The PSNI police in the North of Ireland has confirmed it is using nationalist children to inform, even on their own family.

US immigration ruling baffles republicans

The Board of Immigration Appeals in the United States has overturned a lower court decision to rule that Sean O Cealleagh, convicted of playing a role in the deaths of two British soldiers in 1988, can be deported.

Relatives of bomb victims need to know truth

Even if the involvement of British intelligence is proven in the Dublin and Monaghan bombings, it may still be kept secret.

Public commitment or public relations

Many Republicans believe that as part of the negotiations for a return to a DUP headed Stormont, Sinn Fein will be obliged to accept not only policing boards but the British constabulary.