[Marxism] IRSP: Statement to the International Symposium Against Isolation

[Danielle Ni Dhighe <danielle@xxxxxxxx>]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Irish Republican Socialist Party
21 December 2003

Statement to the International Symposium Against Isolation

Delivered by Willie Gallagher

Prison struggles have been part and parcel of republicanism since the
imprisonment and death of Wolfe Tone in 1798. It was in his prison
cell 200 years ago that Robert Emmett composed one of the finest
speeches ever culminating in his rallying call that "until Ireland
takes her place among the nations of the world then and only then let
my epitaph be written." The members of the Irish Republican
Brotherhood, imprisoned in England during the latter part of the 19th
century, were treated dreadfully by the British and indeed one or two
of the prisoners went mad from their treatment, but they never
flinched from the struggle for political recognition of their
cause. James Connolly, socialist republican founder of the Irish
Citizen Army, was a hunger striker and during the war of independence
in 1916 many republicans went on hunger strike and indeed some died.

The struggle against criminalisation waged by Irish republican and
republican socialist prisoners of war is among the most heroic
battles in the course of the recent national liberation struggle in
Ireland. For many years, republican and republican socialist
prisoners fought for their identity as prisoners of war against
Britain's criminalisation policy introduced in 1976 with the
withdrawal of political status. They embarked on the blanket protest,
which led to the no-wash protest, the dirty protest, and culminated
in the hunger strikes of 1980 and 1981. It was a Belfast republican,
Billy McKee, who was first to go on hunger strike for political
status. The deadly struggle that took place around the 1981 hunger
strikers finally convinced the world of the legitimacy of our
struggle. Sadly, ten brave Irish republicans had to give their lives
that the world should recognise the legitimacy of the republican
struggle. When we speak of isolation, we in Ireland recall that for
much of the early years of this protracted campaign, the prisoners
fought this battle without the knowledge of the outside world. In all
these prison protests the Republican Socialist prisoners participated
fully and three of our volunteers, Patsy O'Hara, Kevin Lynch and
Mickey Devine, gave their lives on hunger strike.

Living in the most horrendous conditions imaginable, the prisoners
were forced to rely initially on themselves alone. Later, their
relatives were galvanised into action, laying the foundation for the
National H-Block/Armagh Committee. The Irish Republican Socialist
Party recognised the importance of this fight early on, becoming
active participants in the Relatives Action Committees and then the
National H-Block/Armagh Committee at a time when other republicans
were still perceiving this campaign as largely a distraction. With
all other options having been exhausted, the volunteers of the Irish
National Liberation Army and Irish Republican Army were forced, in
1980 to turn to last means of carrying the struggle for justice
forward, the hunger strike. When the prisoners embarked upon that
course, their struggle burst into the awareness of the broader
society of Ireland and it became impossible to miss the reality that
the struggle against criminalisation was, in fact, the most basic
defense of the fight for national liberation. From the near isolation
of the blanket protest and dirty protest, the issue of
criminalisation was taken up by people throughout Ireland's 32-
counties, convinced of the righteousness of the POWs' struggle by the
unmistakably compelling evidence created by the prisoners of their
own bodies. Their bodies were transformed both into graphic argument
in support of their cause, as well as into weapons of the long war,
and with them they brought the masses into the streets in protest
and refocused the eyes of all Ireland, and what is more, of the whole
world, on the partition of Ireland and continued occupation of six
Irish counties by Britain.

The hunger strike and the deaths that accompanied it again riveted
the eyes of the world on Ireland. So eloquent was the statement of
the hunger strikers protest, it easily translated itself into the
many languages of the globe. I remember the beautiful posters created
by the Iranians championing the cause of the hunger strikers. I
remember a memorial service for Bobby Sands where a woman
representing the FMLN of El Salvador referred to Sands as "a modern
Christ."  I remember how a group of German revolutionaries assumed
the name "The Patsy O'Hara Brigade" when striking a blow against the
NATO imperialists. I recall French communist workers on the docks
stuffing leaflets supporting the hunger strikers into each suitcase
and bag of travelers to Britain on the ferries from Le Havre. From
around the world came an outpouring of support and solidarity.

Despite the victory achieved through unity in 1981, towards the end
of 1988 the Republican Socialist prisoners took the decision to leave
the republican blocks and move into their own block. This decision
was not taken lightly nor was it taken alone but together with non-
aligned political prisoners and the League of Communist Republicans.
The Republican Movement had embarked on a campaign of undermining our
movement. They would not recognise our structure inside the prison,
wings were not run democratically but were run by the IRA prisoners,
our prisoners had no say in decisions taken. Verbal abuse was often
used towards our prisoners and many IRA prisoners adopted hostile
attitudes. The sole purpose of this strategy was to force our
prisoners to give up their political identity and come under the
authority of the IRA.

After much discussion amongst themselves and with other prisoners who
were experiencing the same hostility they decided that they had no
alternative but to leave the republican wings. All the prisoners for
transfer were put into one wing of H6. It was decided not to make
this public at the time, as they did not want opportunistic elements
on the outside to use this as a means of undermining the struggle as
a whole. Leaving the blocks was not done in order to undermine the
republican structure nor to undermine the struggle, but to assert the
right of political prisoners to their own political identity. This
development completed a long battle waged against isolation of our
prisoners within the general prison population and it transformed the
experience of Republican Socialist POWs. Until recently that is. Now
we face that battle all over again in the prisons of the six county
statelet of occupied Ireland.

An IRSP spokesperson said recently at a commemoration for one of our
martyred hunger strikers: "As a former prisoner in Long Kesh, I know
what it was like to do time for taking the struggle to the Brits.
Many fine republicans were incarcerated in the prisons of the Brits
as they sought to repress the spirit of resistance. Republicans have
gone on hunger strikes throughout our history to re-affirm their
political struggle. Given the continuing dirty protest at Maghaberry
involving republican prisoners, it is imperative that all republicans
in support of segregation take a united stance. The IRSP fully
support the right of the republican prisoners to segregation. We
clearly recognise that they are political prisoners involved in a
legitimate form of protest within the jail. As a former prisoner
myself, I fully understand the frustrations that have driven the
prisoners to undertake a dirty protest.

"Irish Republicans led by Bobby Sands and Patsy O'Hara refused to
accept the tag of criminal in 1981. Irish republicans today are faced
with a similar battle. In Maghaberry the authorities are determined
to tell the world that there are no political prisoners in the six
counties when the reality we all know is that there are. They have
created a powder keg and it seems as if those in charge want
confrontation in the prisons. They want republicans and loyalists to
be at each other's throats. Attacks on republican prisoners have been
increasing. Segregation is a priority for these prisoners and we
demand that."

We fully supported the struggle that was waged for the right of the
republican prisoners in Maghaberry to segregation. We clearly
recognised that they are political prisoners involved in a legitimate
form of protest within the jail. Those of us who have been prisoners
of war ourselves understand the frustrations that have driven the
prisoners to undertake a dirty protest. While segregation has been
granted, political status remains to be won.  It is all the more
bitter, therefore, that having commemorated the struggle and
sacrifice of the 1980 and 1981 hunger strikers just two years ago, we
do so with the recognition that the political status they suffered
and died to win are gone. Long Kesh stands empty, but in Maghaberry
Prison, republican and republican socialist prisoners of war remain
incarcerated, stripped of the status that speaks to why they are
there, that is their participation in a struggle for national
liberation and social justice in Ireland. Once again, Britain, unable
to defeat the struggle of the Irish people, has sought to criminalise
the young women and men who resist their continued occupation and the
long partition of the Irish nation. That this hard won objective was
traded away as part of the empty promises known as the Good Friday
Agreement is nothing short of criminal.

It was this experience with prisoner isolation and their struggle in
response to it that led the IRSP to support the prisoners of the DHKC
and other Turkish and Kurdish revolutionaries in the prisons of
Turkey. During the death fast, deaths were occurring at an alarming
rate. In all, there were hundreds of prisoners on hunger strike in
the prisons of Turkey, seeking the same freedom of assembly that
Irish revolutionaries of the INLA and IRA gave their lives for in
1981. The Turkish fascist regime attempted to crush the prisoners'
ongoing resistance. One reporter who spoke to prisoners as part of an
international human rights delegation was told "tell them Bobby Sands
is not dead, he is alive and well in a cell in Turkey!" Let today's
republican prisoners take inspiration from our comrades in Turkey and
the sacrifice of 1981.

Moving on to another contemporary prison struggle in Ireland. To date
Dessie O'Hare has spent over 13 years in jail. However, under strand
three of the Good Friday Agreement it states that all prisoners whose
organisations are on ceasefire will benefit from the early release
scheme. Dessie is a recognised Irish National Liberation Army
prisoner of war. Therefore, as the INLA is an organisation that is
currently on ceasefire, Dessie O'Hare should benefit from the early
release scheme, a scheme that is afforded to all other political
prisoners who qualify. Dessie O'Hare, the sole prisoner entitled to
release under the terms of the GFA, is still being incarcerated. The
Irish Republican Socialist Party call upon the 26-County
administration to immediately release prisoner of war Dessie O'Hare
from incarceration as outlined under the Good Friday Agreement.

We have seen widespread protests by relatives, friends and comrades
of INLA prisoner of war Dessie O'Hare in support of his immediate
release from incarceration as a qualifying political prisoner of war
outlined under the Belfast Agreement. An international day of action
coordinated by the Free Dessie O'Hare Campaign linked friends and
supporters of Dessie O'Hare's fight for freedom around the world in
protest and with one voice. The campaign had reports that protest
actions had taken place in Belfast, Dublin, London, in North America
and across the continent of Europe, which should have been seen by
the Irish Justice Minister as an expression of the depth of anger at
the lack of movement on his behalf, but Dessie remains incarcerated.

Recently Dessie was permitted out for a single day to attend a
conference, but at present he is again incarcerated and it is clear
the Irish government has no intention of granting him the immediate
release due to him under the agreement they are party to.

Last year, an IRSP spokesperson said of the incarcerated PFLP leader:
"Ahmad Saadat is the Dessie O'Hare of Palestine. The Palestinian
Supreme Court has found Saadat guilty of no crime and ordered his
release. In both cases, the courts have ruled that they should be
released and in both cases a government disregards its own courts and
manufactures excuses for continuing to incarcerate someone on purely
political grounds, displaying absolute disregard for human rights and
justice."

Once again, our own experience with the prison struggle laid the
foundation for our solidarity. We in the Irish Republican Socialist
Party joined in demanding the immediate release of Ahmad Saadat and
called upon the Palestinian Authority to demonstrate their respect
for the independence of their judiciary by abiding by its ruling to
release Saadat. Saadat's only crime is his continued opposition to
the Zionist state, much as Dessie O'Hare is being unfairly treated
for the IRSP's continued opposition to the Good Friday Agreement.

In another example of how our experience with the struggle of
political prisoners for justice has influenced our international
expressions of solidarity, the IRSP brought to public attention the
case of the Action Directe prisoners in France. In March 2002, a law
was passed in France demanding the immediate release of prisoners
whose "health condition is incompatible with incarceration". Under
that law, Maurice Papon, a Nazi collaborator working for the Vichy
regime was able to walk free after serving only a few years in jail.
The same Maurice Papon was further responsible for the massacre of
hundreds of Algerian civilians in 1961, when he was in charge of the
police in Paris. However, the French authorities failed to apply this
law to hundreds of ordinary prisoners.

At least 94 people died in French prisons because of health related
problems during 2002. We said regarding the situation: "If the French
authorities had no qualms about releasing a fascist mass murderer on
health grounds, then there should be no reason why this law should
not be applied to revolutionary militants, who have already served
more than 15 years in inhuman conditions of incarceration. Those
conditions caused them serious health problems. Nathalie Meginon has
suffered three cardio-vascular incidents since 1993, which led to
Meginon suffering memory losses. Another Action Directe prisoner,
Georges Cipriani, became insane after having spent many years in
solitary confinement. Action Directe has not carried any actions in
the last 15 years and prison authorities have said they do not
consider the incarcerated militants to pose a threat to society any
longer.

"Acknowledging that many people in Ireland have had a personal
experience of inhuman conditions of incarceration, and remembering
the support given to the Irish National Liberation Army by Action
Directe during the national liberation struggle in Ireland, we in the
IRSP called upon the French government to apply the March 4th decree
to all prisoners in France universally and immediately, and to
release Nathalie Meginon and Georges Cipriani."

In like manner, the IRSP has extended its solidarity to Chilean
prisoners of war, Puerto Rican POWs, Basque political prisoners,
Breton political prisoners, political prisoners in Peru, in the
United States, and around the globe. And it is why we join you here
today.  Each of us here, if we have had the experience of isolation,
criminalisation, torture, abuse, and dehumanisation through the
prison systems in our own nations, cannot look upon the struggles of
others elsewhere in the world against similar evils and remain
unmoved. And so, in conclusion, we in the Irish Republican Socialist
Party join with you all in demanding an end to the isolation of
political prisoners and prisoners of war.

In unity, let us find strength. Through that strength, let us find
victory! Long live the solidarity of those who struggle for justice!

###

Republican Socialist Publicity Bureau
392 Falls Road, Belfast, BT12 6DH, Ireland
Tel/Fax: 028 90 330786
http://www.irsm.org/irsm.html



_______________________________________________
Marxism mailing list
Marxism@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/listinfo/marxism