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August 10, 2005

DUP Involved In Loyalist Attacks

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News about Ireland & the Irish

SF 08/10/05 DUP Involved In Loyalist Attacks On Homes
UT 08/10/05 Loyalists Stone Police At Republican Parade
BB 08/10/05 Church Attack 'Linked To Parade'
EX 08/10/05 Trio Doing Time In Ireland 'Impossible'
IA 08/10/05 Unsafe Country For Columbia 3
IT 08/11/05 'Colombia Three' Hypocrisy Denied
IT 08/11/05 Sinn Féin Says Garda Know Where Men Are
BB 08/10/05 Tough Summer Ahead For Irish Ministers
UT 08/10/05 Sean Kelly Licence To Be Renewed
BT 08/10/05 Opin: How Low Is Blair Prepared To Stoop?
IA 08/10/05 Clinton Calls For Greater Unity In North
IE 08/10/05 Irish American NYPD Member Slain In Iraq
ST 08/10/05 Former IRA Prisoner Probes Informer Psyche

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http://www.sinnfein.ie/news/detail/10680

DUP Clearly Involved In Organising Loyalist Onslaught On
Catholic Homes

Published: 10 August, 2005

North Antrim Sinn Féin MLA, Philip McGuigan, has said that
the DUP has serious questions to answer about the loyalist
protest toward Fisherwick estate in Ballymena last night.

Mr McGuigan said:

"Last night after loyalists marched over the Ballymena
footbridge from Ballykeel toward Fisherwick with UDA flags,
lambeg drums and tricolours to burn in front of the PSNI,
DUP MLA Mervyn Storey addressed the crowd. I was not
surprised when I saw coverage of him on BBC this morning
thanking the loyalist crowd for coming to the bottom of
Fisherwick.

"This raises serious questions about the role the DUP
played in this proposed loyalist onslaught on Catholic
homes. By thanking them he has made known that his party
had some part to play in the organising of this onslaught.
Indeed as members of the UDA and UVF, some who had come
from Banbridge, Maghera and Belfast, marched toward the
nationalist estate, local DUP Councillors were seen
standing aside with their hands in their pockets.

"This approach is totally reflective of the DUP's attitude
toward attacks on Catholics in the North Antrim area in
recent weeks. They are quite willing to stand back and let
loyalist paramilitaries do whatever they want, and then
provide a minimal token condemnation of their activities
before justifying it by saying that it's in reaction to
something that nationalists have done. It stinks to the
high heavens and shows that the DUP are flirting and
working with the loyalist paramilitaries now more than
ever." ENDS

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http://u.tv/newsroom/indepth.asp?id=63669&pt=n

Loyalists Stone Police At Republican Parade

Loyalists stoned police last night after mounting a protest
at a republican parade.

By:Press Association and UTV

More than 150 loyalists staged the protest in Ballymena, Co
Antrim, at the first republican parade in the town.

The parade passed off peacefully despite police in full
riot gear having to put themselves between the rival
factions.

The event passed off amid heightened tensions following a
series of loyalist attacks on Catholic homes both in the
area and other parts of Northern Ireland. In the latest
incident the home of a Sinn Fein councillor was petrol
bombed in Banbridge, Co Down, early yesterday.

The parade, complete with bands, was in full swing when
loyalists started to stage a protest. Police were forced to
act to keep the rival factions apart when republican
supporters ran towards a car park where the loyalists were
protesting.

After discussions between police chiefs and the republicans
they pulled back, but the loyalist protest continued for
some time.

Later there was stoning of police by loyalists. A police
spokesman said the stone throwers had been pushed back by
officers into the Ballykeel estate and there were no early
reports of any injuries.

Democratic Unionist party politicians assured police there
would be no further trouble and officers on the ground were
hopeful there would be no further stoning.

North Antrim SDLP Assembly member Sean Farren said it was
welcome that the republican parade had passed off
peacefully.

But he said it had created unnecessary tensions in the
town.

He said: "We all welcome the fact that the parade itself
passed off peacefully, but the fact that there was no
welcome for this parade expressed by local people and the
whole demeanour which was militaristic and even fascist,
begs questions about the wisdom and judgment of those who
organised it."

Mr Farren said such events contributed nothing to political
stability or community relations. "Indeed they almost seem
intent on undermining the political process we are supposed
to be involved in at the moment."

Police in Ballymena are examining film footage of last
night`s republican parade and the loyalist counter-
demonstration, to see whether anyone should be prosecuted.

Meanwhile, the Catholic church at Harryville was attacked
with paint-bombs overnight for the third time in a month.

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http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/4138540.stm

Church Attack 'Linked To Parade'

A Catholic church in County Antrim has been vandalised in
an overnight attack.

Paint bombs were thrown at the Church of Our Lady in
Harryville near Ballymena. It is the third attack on the
church in the last month.

Police condemned those responsible and said it was linked
to tensions over a republican parade in the town.

Father Paul Symonds said it was very frustrating and the
attack had come just after the church had been restored
after a previous incident.

"The doors and step had been thoroughly cleaned-up,
initially with help from some of our Protestant neighbours
and the doors had been repainted and now they have been
very badly scarred with the paint bomb," he said.

Ulster Unionist assembly member Rev Robert Coulter
condemned the attack.

"I am absolutely disgusted by this latest attack on a place
of worship. This type of behaviour has no place in our
society," he said.

He also condemned recent sectarian attacks in the nearby
village of Ahoghill, which he said were the work of
"mindless thugs".

Meanwhile, police have praised those with influence in the
loyalist and republican communities for helping avert
trouble at Tuesday's Ballymena parade.

I am generally content in the way the policing operation
went

Superintendent Terry Shevlin

Several hundred loyalists staged a protest over the first
republican parade in the County Antrim town.

Protesters dispersed peacefully after a stand off with
police in riot gear.

The Parades Commission had restricted the march, held to
commemorate the introduction of internment in 1971, to the
nationalist Fisherwick estate.

Some stones were later thrown at the junction of Suffolk
and Sommerfield Streets in the town, but no-one was
injured.

Superintendent Terry Shevlin said the event passed off as
well as he could have hoped.

He said police had been in communication with
representatives from both communities to ensure trouble was
avoided.

"I am generally content in the way the policing operation
went," he said.

Loyalists played Lambeg drums, a feature of Orange parades,
for several minutes in a protest at the march.

The march involved two republican bands from Antrim, a town
about 11 miles from Ballymena, parading the length of
Fisherwick Gardens.

Community relations

Parade organiser Paddy Murray, a republican from Antrim,
said it had been organised to avoid youngsters marking
internment with bonfires.

Mr Murray said that despite many residents being opposed to
the march, some people in the area wanted it to take place.

"There are people here who want it, but there are also
others that don't, so it is about trying to find a happy
medium," he said.

SDLP assembly member for North Antrim Sean Farren said he
believed the parade was bad for community relations.

Sinn Fein councillor Monica Digney said she was "totally
opposed" to the parade taking place and criticised the
Parades Commission for giving the march the go-ahead.

DUP assembly member Mervyn Storey said the parade had been
"organised for confrontation".

The Parades Commission was set up in 1997 to make decisions
on whether or not restrictions should be imposed on
controversial parades during Northern Ireland's marching
season.

Story from BBC NEWS:
Published: 2005/08/10 16:50:11 GMT
© BBC MMV

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http://www.examiner.ie/pport/web/ireland/Full_Story/did-sgn5ZD-4pWSlQsg0aewFBADppk.asp

Trio Doing Time In Ireland 'Impossible'

By Michael O'Farrell, Political Reporter

LEGAL experts yesterday discounted the possibility of the
Colombia Three serving their sentence here, as the
opposition challenged the Taoiseach to say whether he
supported the idea.

Under the plan, Colombia would be required to sign up to a
European Council Convention on the transfer of prisoners
and be accepted by Ireland as an acceptable country from a
human rights point of view.

But Irish Council for Civil Liberties director Ashling
Reidy said she "very much doubted" the move would prove
feasible given that Irish legislation to ratify parts of
the convention had not even been passed yet.

"I fail to see how they could retrospectively apply
legislation which isn't even on the books now," Ms Reidy
said

Ms Reidy joined a growing chorus of legal opinion
discounting the possibility of an extradition to Colombia
taking place, saying the circumstances surrounding the
men's conviction in Bogota would be near impossible to
justify from an Irish legal perspective.

Nevertheless, Tánaiste Mary Harney continued to call
yesterday for the three fugitives to give themselves up and
she challenged Sinn Féin president Gerry Adams to help
locate them.

"I've heard them say they're not on the run. Those who know
where they are, including Mr Adams I'm sure, should
cooperate," Ms Harney said.

"The gardaí are using every avenue open to them to
establish where these men are, that is my understanding.

"I don't see why they wouldn't go to their local garda
station."

Although it still remains unclear what crime, if any, the
three can be charged with here, Ms Harney again said they
could face charges in Irish courts.

Colombian vice-president Francisco Santos Calderon said the
proposal to imprison the men in Irish jails hit the right
"tone", but he still called for extradition.

"This is where they caused the pain ... this is where they
left us with a problem in which many, many Colombians have
been killed, where the use of explosives has been developed
immensely ... due to their technique and expertise and this
is where they should pay their sentence," he told RTÉ.

Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny welcomed the possibility of the
Colombia Three serving their sentence here, but called on
Mr Ahern to "confirm his support for the idea" since he
appeared to be taking a "softer line" on the issue than Ms
Harney.

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http://www.irishabroad.com/news/irishinamerica/news/unsafecountry-050810.asp

Unsafe Country For Columbia 3

By Sean O'Driscoll

Columbia was an unsafe country for the trial of the
Columbia 3 writes Irish Voice reporter Sean O'Driscoll who
was in Bogota during the proceedings.

I knew Colombia had problems when I watched a group of
prostitutes hold a ladder while a soldier hung up Christmas
lights outside their brothel.

It was December in 2002 and the first day of evidence
against the Colombia Three had completed.

I decided to go for a walk when Paul Hill from the Guilford
Four came out of the hotel to tell me it wasn't safe to go
any further down the road. The receptionist also said it
wasn't safe to take the cable car up to the mountain
overlooking Bogota.

So I walked a short direction in the other way and saw a
group of police stopping to hang up Christmas lights, while
a group of prostitutes pointed up to where they wanted them
hung. They looked like country girls who had somehow ended
up in this cracked pavement ghetto and didn't know any
other way out.

It somehow summed up the country in which James Monaghan,
Niall Connolly, and Martin McAuley were then on trial.

The trial itself was a farce. The best piece of evidence
came when an army general was asked about how he knew that
one of FARC was forging links with terrorist groups in
Europe. After he was pressed for a while, he explained that
he had seen it on television.

Another gem came when the court was told that the army had
raided a FARC camp and found bomb-making manuals supplied
by the IRA.

A military advisor he believed they were supplied by the
IRA because they were written in English.

It later turned out that the manuals were decades only and
could be freely downloaded on the Internet.

Bogota itself was like Belfast in the 70s, with troop
transporters going up and down the street carrying cadres
of teenage soldiers.

The whole city had an ominous atmosphere.

During the visit, I met British journalist, Ruth Morris,
who wrote for the Guardian and LA Times. She offered to
show the Irish journalists around and talk about life in
Bogota.

A month later, she was kidnapped by the ELN, another
Colombian rebel group. She was held for a few days, along
with a photographer, until the LA Times paid a ransom.
Kidnapping was an industry in Colombia. I hung out for a
few days with a translator from the Irish television
station, RTE, who normally worked for a firm who negotiated
the release of prisoners held by a huge array of left wing,
right wing and criminal gangs.

But it was the threat of immediate attack that made Bogota
so off-putting for foreigners. A week after we left, a FARC
bomb blew out the top floor of the hotel where the
journalists and visiting delegation of Irish and US
politicians was staying. The bomb was placed in a suitcase
and detonated in the middle of a Christmas party. The same
month, FARC set off a no-warning bomb at an upscale
nightclub, killing over 30 people.

Even the infrastructure seemed dangerous in Bogata. A
window fell out of an apartment block across the road from
the trial and narrowly missed decapitating Irish journalist
Charlie Bird.

None of this was much preparation for La Modelo prison,
where the Colombia Three were being held.

I managed to get into the prison with the delegation of
visitors that included Paul Hill and Sinn Fein TD, Sean
Crowe.

It was a depressing place, surrounded by rubble and disused
cars. Inside the prison, the FARC and right-wing
paramilitary prisoners continued their battles for
supremacy. I sneaked in a camera down my trouser leg to
take a photo of the dark cells in which some of the
paramilitary prisoners were being held.

The prison had recently increased security, but that would
not be difficult. In 2000, a Colombian journalist was
kidnapped from the prison, taken outside the city and gang
raped. She was found at the side of the road and taken to
safety.

While the delegation spoke with the three men, I went for a
walk around the back of the prison where a group of
prisoners were standing on a pile of rubble shouting up at
their loved ones. I shouted up at one of the men. He had
killed a man at a festival and his mother and girlfriend
were there to give support outside of visiting hours. He
said that the "Irish guys" were very well known in the
prison. I asked if they are in trouble. "This is Modelo,
everyone is in trouble," he said, which brought a laugh
from his family.

I came away from the trial not trusting the army, the
government, FARC or anyone else who might have a part in
the political strife and with a feeling that Colombia was
in a worse situation than I had thought. People got on with
their lives, but there always a sense that this city just
wasn't safe. Having seen the Colombian court, police and
prison system up close, the Colombian government have a lot
of convincing to do before the Irish government decides to
send the three back to Bogota.

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http://www.ireland.com/newspaper/ireland/2005/0811/2261691388HM7COLOMBIA.html

'Colombia Three' Hypocrisy Denied

Deaglán de Bréadún and Liam Reid

A Fianna Fáil politician has angrily rejected a claim by
the vice-president of Colombia that she was guilty of
"double standards" over the case of the "Colombia Three".

Senator Mary White, who made many Colombian visits to
observe the trial of James Monaghan, Martin McCauley and
Niall Connolly, was responding to a claim by vice-president
Francisco Santos Calderón.

Mr Santos told The Irish Times in a telephone interview
that Irish politicians and several international lawyers
had lobbied him in Bogota on issues related to the case,
but when the men "jumped bail" there had been "total
silence". He was "disappointed", and said this was an
example of "double standards".

Denying the claim, Ms White condemned the manner in which
the appeal hearing in the case "was held in private, with
no new evidence and no lawyers".

A majority of the three-member tribunal reversed the not-
guilty verdict on the charge of training the Farc
guerrillas, and gave the men sentences of 17 to 17½ years,
with large fines.

Mr Santos also called for the immediate arrest of the men
under the Interpol warrant issued for them. "That's a
warrant that should be executed. That's what Interpol is
there for."

However, he praised the attitude of the Government and
Tánaiste Mary Harney in particular. They had taken a
"constructive position", and he expressed confidence this
would bring results. "They understand how grave the
situation is. And where there's a will, there's a way."

He added that Colombia's legal system was independent, and
any petition in relation to the three men would have to
come from the sentence execution judge, who had
responsibility for implementing the appeal verdict, acting
in co-operation with the attorney general's office.

"That's one of the reasons why it's taking time."

He was non-committal as to whether he believed the men
should be extradited or serve their sentences in Ireland.

"We think that constructive ideas might be able to solve
this problem."

He meets Ireland's Ambassador to Mexico, Art Agnew,
tonight.

Meanwhile, the Council of Europe said it would take a
minimum 12 months for Colombia to become a signatory to a
European convention that would allow the men to serve their
jail terms in this State, and that Colombia had yet to make
any request regarding the convention.

The convention on the transfer of prisoners has been cited
by the Government as an option if the three men cannot be
extradited.

Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny has called on Taoiseach Bertie
Ahern "to confirm his support for the idea that, as no
extradition agreement exists between the two countries, the
provisions of the Council of Europe Convention be used to
ensure that the "Colombia Three" terrorists serve their
sentences in Ireland".

He added: "The Taoiseach should immediately direct any
members of his own parliamentary party to come forward with
any information that they have on the men's whereabouts."

He also accused Mr Ahern of taking a "noticeably softer
line" than Ms Harney.

A spokesman for the Taoiseach said Mr Kenny's comments were
mischievous.

Ms White said she did not know of the men's whereabouts.

© The Irish Times

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http://www.ireland.com/newspaper/ireland/2005/0811/92601272HM7NICOLOMBIA.html

Sinn Féin Says Garda Know Where Men Are

Gerry Moriarty, Northern Editor

A senior Sinn Féin source has rejected as "inconceivable"
a statement by Tánaiste Mary Harney that the Garda Síochána
is unaware of the whereabouts of the "Colombia Three".

The issue of whether the three Irishmen who were convicted
of terrorist offences in Colombia are prepared to make
themselves available to the Garda, as one of them stated,
took a strange twist yesterday with both the Garda press
office and Sinn Féin refusing to make any comment.

And neither could the Sinn Féin spokeswoman for the Bring
Them Home campaign, Caitríona Ruane MLA, be contacted. She
has changed her mobile number and the Sinn Féin press
office refused to release it.

Around the same time Ms Harney, in her role as acting
Minister for Justice in the absence on holiday of Michael
McDowell, was telling RTÉ's Morning Ireland yesterday that
the Garda could not locate the three men - James Monaghan,
Niall Connolly and Martin McCauley.

Asked were the Garda looking for them, Ms Harney replied,
"I think they are, yes, most certainly." And had they not
been able to find them? "No," said Ms Harney.

She added the Garda were "using every avenue to try to
establish where they are, that is my understanding".

"And those who know where they are, including Mr [ Gerry]
Adams I am sure, should co-operate," she said.

The Sinn Féin president is on holidays, although his chief
spokesman told The Irish Times earlier this week that there
was no need for Mr Adams to intervene as Mr Monaghan of the
"Colombia Three" said they were willing to talk to the
Garda. Now the chief spokesman is on holidays and was not
contactable by phone or text message yesterday.

The circular nature of this journalistic enterprise
continued apace when the Sinn Féin press office in Belfast
was contacted yesterday. "Absolutely no comment," said the
press officer.

But Mr Adams says the men are available to meet the Garda
while Ms Harney says the Garda can't find them. Which is
it? "Are the gardaí saying they can't contact them?" the
press officer retorted, obviously aware the Garda press
office is saying nothing.

Later a senior Sinn Féiner opened up a little to accuse Ms
Harney of "playing politics" with the issue. He was
absolutely certain the Garda know where the men are. "It is
inconceivable that they don't have that information," he
said.

© The Irish Times

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http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/world/europe/4140108.stm

Tough Summer Ahead For Irish Ministers

By James Helm
BBC Dublin correspondent

In the depths of summer, when most of Ireland's leading
politicians would be hoping to relax and enjoy their
holidays, its government has a major political headache.

The men who are becoming known as the "Colombia 3" - James
Monaghan, Niall Connolly and Martin McCauley - are back in
Ireland.

They disappeared while on bail after being sentenced to 17
years in prison in Colombia last year.

Their supporters were delighted to welcome them back after
a long campaign to bring them home.

Ireland's government, though, is less than pleased.

The appearance of one of the men, Mr Monaghan, out of the
blue on Irish television last Friday has brought acute
diplomatic embarrassment.

Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern, had to interrupt his
holiday in the west of Ireland. Now his government is
talking of what to do next.

Mr Monaghan, Mr Connolly and Mr McCauley are all Irish
republicans.

They were arrested at Bogota Airport in August 2001 as they
were about to leave Colombia, and they were travelling on
false passports.

They had been in areas of the country controlled by the
Farc rebels. The men maintained they were there for bird
watching, and to lend their support to the Colombian peace
process.

But they were accused by the Colombian authorities of
aiding the rebels and teaching them bomb-making techniques.

They were initially acquitted, but last December a
government appeal led to the men's conviction and 17-year
jail sentences.

Released on bail, they then disappeared.

Then, last Friday, came their startling re-appearance on
Irish soil.

Mr Monaghan insisted he was not on the run, but would not
say how the trio travelled back to Ireland - a source of
much speculation in the country.

The Irish police are searching for the men. The Colombian
government wants them back immediately, stressing Ireland's
"legal and moral obligation" to return them.

Unionist politicians in Northern Ireland are furious, but
Sinn Fein has welcomed their safe return.

Some in Ireland have wondered whether the men's return was
part of some political deal - an idea the Irish government
has firmly rejected. It has hurriedly briefed officials
from the British and American embassies in Dublin.

Now, Mr Ahern's deputy, Mary Harney, has entered the fray.
She called on the three men to walk into their nearest
police station and give themselves up.

She has also suggested that new legislation might enable
the men to serve out the remainder of their prison
sentences on Irish soil.

"These three individuals were no ordinary tourists visiting
Colombia, and justice must be seen to be done," she said.

Of their return, Ms Harney added: "I'm extraordinarily
concerned about how they got back into the country. The
fight against international terrorism is something we all
have a huge role to play in."

She called on the Sinn Fein leader, Gerry Adams, to help
the police in their search for the men.

On the legal front, Ireland has no extradition treaty with
Colombia and no formal request for the men's extradition
has yet been received.

Supporters of the men point to Colombia's human rights
record as a reason for them not to be sent back.

They have complained throughout that the men were not
treated fairly. Mr Adams, for his part, has said the men
should now be left alone with their families.

For all its talk and angry words, it is not clear if the
Irish government can actually do much just yet.

As Ms Harney pointed out, extradition is a legal matter and
the legal wheels may now take some time to turn.

First, of course, the men have to be found.

For some Irish politicians, the appearance of Mr Monaghan
on their TV screens meant their hopes of a quiet summer
disappeared - and a legal and political problem arrived.

Story from BBC NEWS:
Published: 2005/08/10 22:52:20 GMT
© BBC MMV

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http://www.utvinternet.com/newsroom/indepth.asp?pt=n&id=63670

Kelly Licence To Be Renewed

Shankill bomber Sean Kelly's licence is set to be renewed
on Friday officially making him a free man.

It is believed the Northern Ireland Office will not be
challenging the decision of the Sentence Review
Commissioners.

Relatives of those killed are now planning to challenge the
decision through a judicial review.

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http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/opinion/story.jsp?story=656276

Opin: How Low Is Blair Prepared To Stoop?

Lindy McDowell
10 August 2005

There's more chance of Jeffrey Donaldson becoming Taoiseach
than there is of the Irish Government extraditing the
Colombia Three back to Bogota.

Put it like this, as with the possibility of a DUPer in the
Dail, there's not exactly a whole lot of precedent.

Why should an Irish government extradite all the way to a
tough prison in Colombia three men convicted of training
terrorists there?

Given that over the years, successive Irish governments
refused to extradite terrorist killers a few miles up the
road to Northern Ireland - and the comparatively cushy
regime chez our fabulously well-appointed, five-star Maze
(free association, visits as and when you like, fly-fishing
classes, sausage rolls baked to your specifications. . . )

Back then, the excuse given was that the killers in
question could not be extradited because their crimes were
"political."

Oddly though, the Irish government has never accepted that
"political" killing could take place on its own patch.

Thus, when a policeman was gunned down by IRA terrorists in
the north it may have been regarded as "political" by our
neighbours in the south.

But when a policeman (Garda McCabe) was gunned down by IRA
terrorists in their own jurisdiction, that was a criminal
killing.

Irish television viewers may have gasped when Justice
Minister Michael McDowell winkled out of Mitchell
McLaughlin the shocking Shinner verdict on the horrific
murder of Jean McConville - wrong but not a crime.

They appear to forget that for years their own government
operated much the same policy with regard to the murder of
human beings on this side of the border.

Political - so not a crime.

And let's not kid ourselves, there are many in Ireland
today who would still regard the exploits of the Colombia
Three as "wrong but not a crime."

Certainly not a crime that warrants their extradition to a
smelly, dodgy cell on the other side of the world.

The greatest pressure on Bertie then, is likely to come not
from within the Irish state - but from without.

The Americans in particular are unlikely to be too highly
impressed by the recent re-emergence on RTE of the Three
Amigos whose links to the narco-terrorist outfit Farc, has
particular significance in their own country.

Farc is the terrorist organisation that supplies America's
drug dealers with most of their cocaine. In this instance
the American administration will understandably wish to
back up the calls by the Colombian government for the trio
to be send back to face justice.

But again isn't there just a whiff of double standards at
work here too?

For again, over the years, the American government hasn't
exactly shown willing about extraditing back to this place
wanted terrorists including high profile IRA killers.

And again, it was a case of excusing murder as being
"political" - and agonising about the conditions those poor
murdering souls might face back in the aforementioned Maze.

Ironic that, given that those same high-minded Americans
now appear to have no pangs of guilt whatsoever about
consigning terrorists on their own patch to the blatantly
human-rights-free zone that is Guantanamo

Meanwhile as the Irish, the Colombians and the Yanks try to
sort out the extradition mess between them, Gerry Adams
sees it in much simpler terms.

Gerry's delighted they're back.

"I'm delighted the three of them are back. I'm delighted
for themselves as individuals but I'm especially delighted
for their families. They're back and that's a good thing,"
says Gerry.

That would be the same Gerry Adams who, when the three were
originally scooped, implied he had no idea who on earth
they were and that he had absolutely no connection with
them.

That would be the same Gerry Adams who insists he was never
in the IRA but who, we are assured by the governments, has
now resigned from the IRA's army council.

That would be the same Gerry Adams Mr Blair expects us to
trust - when it is blatantly obvious that Tony doesn't
actually trust the Sinn Fein leader himself. (Why no
handshake, Tone?)

That would be the same Gerry Adams, voicepiece for a
Republican movement that continues to runs rings around the
two governments on this side of the Atlantic and treats
with contempt even its one-time allies in Irish America.

And why shouldn't it? It gets away with it.

Has a deal been done over the Colombia Three?

Who cares. Whoever brought home the Colombia Three, has
finally brought home the complete contempt the IRA has for
the legal process in any juridiction.

We've now reached the point in this circus of concession
upon concession to terrorists where faith in the so-called
peace process has been more comprehensively dismantled than
a border watchtower.

After the release of killer Kelly, the shameful treatment
of the Royal Irish, the "demilitarisation" without so much
as an IRA gun in return, the proposed amnesty for the On
The Runs, the downgrading of the Northern Bank
investigation and now the sudden reappearance of the
Colombia Three . . the question is where does the Blair
government's kowtowing to terrorism end?

So what next, Tony?

How low can you go?

******************************************

http://www.irishabroad.com/news/irishinamerica/news/clintoncall-050810.asp

Clinton Calls For Greater Unity In North

By Sean O'Driscoll

Senator Hillary Clinton has said that younger members of
the hard line Democratic Unionist Party are tired of same
old message and want to move into government with Sinn
Fein.

Senator Clinton has meeting with Irish community leaders in
New York, along with Congressman Joe Crowley.

She said that the IRA's recent cessation announcement had
unblocked any possible objection by DUP leader, Ian
Paisley.

"In effect, I think that the IRA has called his bluff. The
constant demands about what the IRA needed to do have been
met and now it really is up to the DUP, of which he
continues to be the principle spokesperson but is not the
only leader."

Both Crowley and Clinton praised the Sinn Fein leadership
for helping bringing a declaration of non-violence by the
IRA and said that President Bush needed to appoint a
Northern Ireland envoy who was fully committed to the job.

Senator Clinton also called for greater unity in Northern
Ireland, as all Christians now faced a united threat from
fundamentalist Islamic terrorism.

Flanked on either side by Congressman Crowley and Irish
American human right lawyer, Paul O'Dwyer, she recalled
making a speech at the University of Ulster in Derry last
August, after which someone told her that it was time for
Christians to unite as they faced a common enemy in Islamic
terrorist groups.

"As someone said to me after my speech last summer, it
really is time for Christians to figure out how to get
along since we face a very dangerous enemy on the outside,"
she said.

The senator spoke to the Irish Voice after addressing about
two-dozen representatives from New York's Irish community
to discuss the IRA announcement and said that the younger
members of the Democratic Unionist Party were tired of the
old ways and wanted to reestablish a devolved government in
Northern Ireland.

Asked about statements in her memoir, Living History, that
the DUP leader, Rev Ian Paisley was a fundamentalist who
"seemed stuck in a time warp", she said that she believed
that all the obstacles he could place in the way have now
been cleared.

"In effect, I think that the IRA has called his bluff," she
said. "The constant demands about what the IRA needed to do
have been met and now it really is up to the DUP, of which
he continues to be the principle spokesperson but is not
the only leader."

Clinton said that she realized it would still be difficult
to persuade Paisley to enter a government with Sinn Finn
but she said that younger members of his party did not
share Paisley's intransigent views.

"There is a younger generation of leadership in the DUP,
whom I have met along with my husband, and they are
evaluating now what is in their long term best interests. I
believe that, as they conduct this examination, they will
determine that it is in their best interest to be in
government and that's what we have to hope for," she said.

Clinton would not be drawn on whether she will run for
president in 2008. Asked what steps a future Democratic
president should take to help stabilize the political
process in Northern Ireland, she smiled and said that there
was no need to look that far into the future, as President
Bush now had a very big opportunity.

"I think this president has the opportunity right now. He
can signal the personal interest he has in ensuring that
this process comes to fruition. We believe that sending
someone who has the confidence of the president as well as
the confidence of the parties, to be special envoy would
send that signal," she said.

Paul O'Dwyer said that the Irish community would very much
welcome a Democratic president back in the White House.
Congressman Crowley put his hands up in the air and said "I
am not running for President - at least not in 2008".

Dressed in a black outfit and looking a lot more rested
than she when she was first elected senator, the former
first lady joked with lawyer and Irish activist, John
Dearie about his colorful sun tan. She recalled that Dearie
had organized the Irish issues forum in New York during the
1992 Democratic primary at which her husband first outlined
his vision for Northern Ireland. Clinton has been
increasing her profile in New York's Irish community in
recent months as she prepares for her senate reelection
battle next year.

******************************************

http://www.irishecho.com/newspaper/story.cfm?id=16927

NYPD Member Slain In Iraq Praised

Tributes have been pouring in for Irish American police
sergeant James D. McNaughton, the first NYPD member to die
on duty in Iraq.

27-year-old McNaughton, who served as a U.S. army Staff
Sergeant in the Army reserves, was killed last Tuesday
after a sniper shot him as he guarded prisoners. The attack
took place at Camp Victory, outside Baghdad.

"I'm proud of my son, and proud of what he did," said his
father, William McNaughton, who recently retired as a
police officer with the NYPD. Speaking at a press
conference outside their home in Centereach, Long Island,
his father said McNaughton "did his job without question."

"James McNaughton made our city safe as a police officer
and gave his life defending our country," said Mayor
Bloomberg, announcing his death.

"He comes from a family dedicated to protecting our city
and protecting the freedoms we enjoy every day. I would
like to convey my condolences to his friends and family as
we mourn the death of this young hero."

"He embodied the motto of the NYPD: Fidelis ad Mortem,
faithful until death," said Police Commissioner Ray Kelly
in a statement.

"Officer McNaughton's service to the Police Department was
in his blood, with both parents and his fiancée serving in
the NYPD. We will miss and honor his memory always."

McNaughton was known for his warm sense of humor, as well
as his dedication to the job.

"He'd walk into a room, he'd smile, and there would be some
little prank," said his uncle, Ed McNaughton.

"He loved being a cop."

Born to an Irish Catholic parents, McNaughton attended
Centereach High School, where he was a member of the
wrestling team. Upon graduating from high school, he went
straight into military service, before joining the NYPD on
July 2 2001, as part of the first class to graduate
following the Sept 11. terrorist attacks.

McNaughton's father and grandfather were both police
officers and his stepmother, Michelle, is currently a
police officer with the transit Bureau. His fiancée,
Liliana Paredes, is also a police officer with the NYPD.
The couple lived in Middle Village, Queens. Paredes was too
upset to comment on his death.

Upon joining the force, McNaughton served on the Transit
Bureau during a period where subway crime records fell to
an all-time low, and helped protect commuters from threat
of terrorism. Prior to his death, McNaughton had been based
at Fort Totten, Queens.

"When asked how he wanted his son to be remembered,
Naughton's family said: 'As a hero, he wants to be
remembered as a hero,'" said a spokesperson for the NYPD.

There are 273 NYPD members currently on active military
duty.

This story appeared in the issue of August 10 - 16

******************************************

http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,3373858a1860,00.html

Former IRA Prisoner Probes Informer Psyche

11 August 2005

EDINBURGH: Former Irish Republican prisoner Danny Morrison
was determined to leave all ideology at the stage door when
penning a play about an IRA informer that offers a chilling
take on a traitor's psyche.

The Wrong Man is being performed at the Edinburgh Fringe
just two weeks after the IRA issued a statement pledging to
lay down its arms for good in British-ruled Northern
Ireland.

Morrison, once chief spokesman for the Republicans,
believes Protestants loyal to Britain and Catholics seeking
Irish unity can still settle their differences after a
conflict that took 3600 lives.

"I am an optimist on that front," said Morrison, who once
famously coined the phrase "A ballot box in one hand, an
armalite rifle in the other" to sum up the twin strategies
of the IRA and its political ally Sinn Fein.

He was speaking to Reuters at the world's largest arts
festival, which this year is offering a string of political
plays.

But Morrison wanted to steer away from polemic in his play,
a dark tale with no heroes.

"I didn't feel the need to write an apologia for the IRA
and I don't think that would work as a piece of theatre
because it would undermine its universality. This is an
attempt to be even-handed," he said.

"It is indeed a very dark story but all ideology is left at
the front door of the theatre."

INFORMERS

Interned without trial for 14 months in the 1970s by the
British, he rose to prominence promoting the guerrilla
cause during hunger strikes by IRA prisoners in 1981.

When he was held in 1990 on charges of conspiracy to
murder, kidnapping and IRA membership, he began reflecting
on the conflict and started writing his novel The Wrong Man
which has now been converted into the play.

He finished the book when he was released from jail after
serving five years. Now he devotes himself full time to
novel writing and working as a TV and radio pundit.

The play revolves around the grilling of an alleged IRA
informer, but Morrison is careful to portray interrogations
on both sides of the conflict.

"There is no way that you would leave the theatre wanting
to join the IRA or the RUC (Royal Ulster Constabulary) or
the Loyalist paramilitaries," he said.

"I have met informers, I was put in jail by an informer. I
have spoken to informers in prison who took advantage of
IRA amnesties.

"The sense of betrayal is so deep. It is difficult to
parley with someone from your own side who has devastated
the organisation and got comrades killed."

Both the IRA and police interrogations in the play are
equally graphic.

"It presents a unique insight into not just an IRA
interrogation but also I have clearly borrowed from my own
experience of interrogation inside RUC barracks," he said.

----
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