Contents
Press Misinformation
Parades Review and Drumcree
Orange Clerics
The killing of Diarmuid O'Neill
Adams visit cancelled
Loyalist prisoners end support for the peace process
Press Misinformation
Not for the first time the Belfast Newsletter, Northern Ireland's daily
pro-Unionist paper, has managed to be a source of misinformation. On
Friday, 27 September it carried a large article authored by Derry-based
journalist Ian Starrett. Entitled "Before the Dawn is one big
yawn...Adams' autobiography fails to grip the public", it purported to
show that the new autobiography written by Gerry Adam s "wasn't exactly
catching fire in Ulster bookshops." In the report Ian Starrett claimed
that "even in Londonderry, in strong republican areas like Creggan and
Bogside, there was no rush to buy the Adams' book." He then goes on to
quote an unnamed spokeswoman from Bookworm, Derry's oldest bookshop in
support of his story. The next day a member of the Pat Finucane Centre
visited the shop in Derry and discovered that in the morning that Starrett
was reporting about over 15 copies of the hardback book had been sold!
The Belfast Newsletter also claimed that it was "republican arsonists"
who targeted the Church of Ireland Church in Derry that was severely
damaged in the early hours of Friday morning (27 September). In its
report it did not mention that Sinn Féin spokespersons had unambiguously
condemned the attack or that there is a history in Derry of protestant
fundamentalists attacking Protestant churches who participated in
ecumenical services. Last winter there was damage done to the Church of
Ireland cathedral in Derry, St Columb's, following an ecumenical service
involving both cathedrals.
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Parades Review and Drumcree
There is growing criticism of the committee set up by the British
Government to review controversial parades. It has transpired that the
Review Group chaired by a leading member of the British establishment, Dr
Peter North, Vice Chancellor of Oxford University, has visited a number of
the areas where there are contentious parades including Derry but has not
chosen to meet any of the Residents' Groups. Instead he has been meeting
members of the clergy, many of whom have little contact with the local
communities and their concerns. One such group, the Lower Ormeau
Concerned Community has issued a statement saying that it is disturbed by
this news. The group has written to Peter North asking for a meeting.
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Orange Clerics
Tom Hartley, a Belfast city councillor and member of Sinn Fein, has
claimed that his party has obtained a list of 60 clergymen who are senior
Orangemen. His information is contained in a half-yearly report of the
Grand Orange Lodge of Ireland.
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The killing of Diarmuid O'Neill
The parents of Diarmuid O'Neill, the young Irish man who was shot dead by
members of the British Police Force in a raid of a hostel in Hammersmith,
west London have issued a statement in which they said: "Our eldest son,
Diarmuid, was never arrested; he can never be tried, nor can he be
acquitted or convicted other than by the press who have not waited to have
a full and proper picture before judging him. Instead, those who accused
him took the law into their own hands and killed him."
Growing doubts about the way Diarmuid O'Neill was killed have been
increasing in both Ireland and Britain. In an unprecedented development,
police sources gave a briefing to The Guardian , the leading
left-of-centre British newspaper and which, normally, would be the most
likely to be critical of the way the police killed Diarmuid. On Thursday
26 September, The Guardian's main story was entitled "Death at dawn: the
fatal gesture of an IRA man." According to The Guardian Diarmuid was shot
dead by two police officers after he made "a threatening movement." He
was shot six times even though he was unarmed and no weapons or explosives
were found in the hostel where he was saying. The report which is carried
in The Guardian is false in a number of significant ways. The Pat
Finucane Centre has been told by very accurate sources that Diarmuid's
death was actually witnessed by two people. We understand their version
differs significantly from the version carried in The Guardian. The
Guardian itself is already treating part of its story with suspicion. The
police allege that they carried Diarmuid's body out on a stretcher. But
the blood stains on the steps leading into the hostel, suggested that he
was dragged down the stairs by police officers even though he was probably
dead at this stage.
Diarmuid's brother Shane who was arrested along with him has been released
on bail. Four other men have been charged with various conspiracy
charges. One week after the events the IRA has not issued a statement
claiming Diarmuid O'Neill as one of their volunteers,
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Adams visit cancelled
Gerry Adams' meeting with several Labour MPs in the Palace of Westminster
was postponed when Gerry Adams withdrew following threats by the British
Labour party to expel from the parliamentary party the two MPs behind the
visit Jeremy Corbyn and Tony Benn.
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Loyalist prisoners end support for the peace process
There is increasing speculation that the cease-fires by the main Loyalist
paramilitary organisations, the UDA and UVF, could end after UDA prisoners
in Long Kesh prison told their political representatives that they no
longer supported the peace process. Loyalist prisoners have become
increasingly frustrated at the lack of movement by the British Government
on the prisoners issues as well as the continued high level of IRA
operations in London.
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