There was widespread indignation last weekend at the IRA's shooting of a police officer guarding the secretary of the Democratic Unionist party (DUP) Nigel Dodds, while he was visiting his sick son in a children's hospital. The DUP is led by the Reverend Ian Paisley and Nigel Dodds is a Belfast City Councillor. Sinn Fein's national chairperson Mitchel McLaughlin said that he was "horrified", while Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams was "outraged" at the attack. These events mark a grave development in the peace process as they appear to be a serious escalation in the military campaign by the IRA. Gerry Adams has extended his sympathy to both the Dodds family and to the family of the RUC officer injured in the attack, but refused to condemn it outright pointing out that ultimate responsibility for the failure of the peace process lay with the British government for squandering 18 months of an IRA ceasefire and failing to move the process forward.
According to the local nationalist newspaper, the Derry Journal, many shopkeepers in Derry have threatened to with hold rates after suffering a severe disruption to business as a result of the Apprentice Boys march on Saturday, 14 December in the centre of the historic city. This traditional parade, held on the second weekend before Christmas, culminates in the burning of an effigy of Lundy close by the Court House. Lundy was the Governor of the city of Derry who, during the Great Siege of 1689, suggested yielding to the forces of Catholic King James II. His effigy is burnt annually after a pre-christmas parade which is facing increasing hostility from the citizens of Derry, both Protestant and Catholic. This years parade was noticeably larger than previous years. Many of those on the parade were drunk, shouted sectarian abuse of shoppers, urinated in the streets and even fought amongst themselves. A number of shops had to close early because of the inability of the RUC to provide protection from drunken paraders.
For the second year running the main parade included a colour party and banner from the illegal UFF, a cover name used by the loyalist paramilitary organisation, the Ulster Defence Association. Several eyewitnesses,including a member of the Pat Finucane Centre, saw a steward of the Apprentice Boys Association marshalling the UDA colour party into the parade. Initially the Apprentice Boys leadership claimed that they were "unaware" of the UDA's presence but when the colour party was shown on local television and the RUC announced that they had seized the banner from a bus leaving the city,the Governor of the Apprentice Boys announced an "inquiry".
The RUC arrived one hour after the ambulance had left the scene following the attempted murder of prominent Belfast Republican Eddie Copeland on Saturday, 21 December. A neighbour of Mr.Copeland said "The ambulance showed up minutes after the bomb, reporters were here before they (the RUC) arrived, and now they show up with no forensic people... One hour, it was one hour before they showed up. That house is under 24 hour surveillance by the RUC, there's a British Army watch tower that looks directly over here and yet nothing was done or seen". The car bomb caused what were described by a doctor as non life-threatening injuries to Mr.Copeland. Three years ago Eddie Copeland survived an attempt on his life by a British soldier who sprayed mourners at a wake with machine gun fire. Although not claimed yet, this bomb is believed to be the work of Loyalists.
The numbers at last weeks loyalist picket of Our Lady's Catholic church in Harryville in Ballymena were down to fifty. Unlike previous weeks there were no violent incidents reported.
The announcement by the British government that all three Battalions of the Parachute regiment are to be sent to Northern Ireland has been widely condemned by the relatives of those killed by members of the Parachute Regiment on Bloody Sunday (30 January 1972) and human rights organisations. The Pat Finucane Centre said that the decision by the British to send all three regiments was a clear signal that the British Government did not seek to govern in Northern Ireland with any element of non-unionist consent.
Danny McNamee is an Irish prisoner serving a life sentence in England for alleged IRA activities. He has consistently argued his innocence and there is growing support for him in both Ireland and Britain. Recently Claire Casey and Francis McNamee (Danny's brother) were over in London and talked to Gareth Peirce, the British solicitor acting for Danny McNamee and who was immortalised by Emma Thompson in the film "In the Name of the Father". They are awaiting a decision of Michael Howard, the Government Minister responsible for Irish prisoners in British jails. He will probably make a decision whether or not to refer Danny's case back to the Court of Appeal within the next two months.
The Campaign group in England has printed several thousand postcards to be sent to Michael Howard, calling on him to refer Danny's case back to the Appeal Court.Copies of the card can be obtained from:
the Danny McNamee Support Group, c/o Claire Casey, 3 Sillogue Road, Ballymun, Dublin 11, Ireland. (Tel: +3531 8420100 during working hours; Fax: +3531 8420450)
The Pat Finucane Centre will shortly be placing full information about the campaign to free Danny McNamee on our website hopefully within the next week.
Programme (subject to change)
Friday 31 January.
8.00 pm Annual Bloody Sunday Commemoration Lecture in the
Guildhall. Prominent
Speaker.
Organised by Bloody Sunday Justice Campaign.
Friday, 31 January.
Fundraiser in the Gweedore bar.
Organised by the Bloody Sunday Week End Committee.
Saturday 1 February.
All events at Pilot1s Row Community Centre.
10:30 am Alternative Tour of Derry for visitors.
11:00 to 5 pm: Bloody Sunday footage/documentary screening.
12 noon to 5 pm: Video voice box will be available to allow
people to record their
memories of Bloody Sunday. This will be added to the Bloody
Sunday archive which
is being collected.
12:00 noon -2:30 pm : Truth and Justice.
In an event led by Eamonn McCann local people Śremember1
Bloody Sunday, and give
eyewitness accounts of what happened on the day.
LUNCH available at the Centre.
3:30 pm - 5:00 pm : Secrets and Lies
25 years on, why Bloody Sunday is still unresolved. Focus on
how Bloody Sunday set
the agenda for 25 years of state killing and how "official"
history still deals with the
event.
Event Chaired by Seamus Deane, Derry born author and
academic.
Saturday evening
8:00 pm Pilots Row Centre. "Who Fears Peace".
Prominent speakers :
Mary Harney, leader of the Progressive Democrat
Party in Dail Eireann;
Seamus Mallon, Deputy Leader of SDLP
Rev Roy Magee, Presbyterian Minister who brokered the
loyalist ceasfires.
Mitchel McLaughlin Chairperson of Sinn Fein.
9:00 pm Fundraiser in Dungloe Bar, upstairs. Live bands.
Sunday 2nd February
11 am Short service of commemoration at the Bloody Sunday
memorial led by
relatives of those killed.
2.30 pm 25th Anniversary of Bloody Sunday March and rally.
Sunday night. Dungloe Bar. Special session for
stragglers.
For more information contact:
Maeve McLaughlin at the Pat Finucane Centre.
Tel: 01504 268846 Fax: 01504 266453
Members and friends of the Pat Finucane Centre wish all our readers a very happy christmas and an enjoyable new year.
If you want to know more about the centre and its work, please
remember
that you can email us at: Email:
pfc@www.serve.com
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