Issue 027, Saoirse : Irish Freedom (July, 1989)

              issn 0791 - 0002 bulk rate us postage paid hummel dist corp return address saoirse box 1053 south orange n.j 07079 • irish freedo uimh 27 iuil - july 1989 25p usa 18 per year sdlp claims b jmbb left a man lies seriously injured after being hit on the neck by a plastic bullet at an internment march in belfast plastic bullets for udr following the announcement in mid-june that the udr the ulster defence regiment of the british army has been trained to use plastic bullets two clear conclusions have been drawn by the oppressed nation alist community in the six counties 1 — the udr's terrorist role is to be stepped up by allowing them patrol the streets of belfast and derry for the first time 2 — the sdlp's promises that the udr were to be disbanded after the signing of the hillsborough deal in 1985 have been shown to be false and directly contrary to british policy the udr replaced the hated b-specials in april 1970 and many of the latter's members simply switched to the new force in fermanagh for in pat unveiling of memorial sunday july 9 assemble 3pm at cruit cemetery for ceremony john o'donnell kincasslagh presiding oration by ruairf o bradaigh uachtaran sinn fein poblachtach • pat ward stance former b-specials made up 80 of the udr one of the sorest points of the stormont regime had always been the use of the b-specials for crowd control in nationalist areas after 1970 the british began using the udr to patrol loyalist areas while other regiments of the british army were sent into nationalist/repub lican districts the udr were never issued with plastic bullet guns since they replaced the rubber bullet in the six counties in 1973 the ruc were not supplied with plastic bullets until 1978 lethal weapons since 1973 15 civilians have been killed by plas tic bullets in the six count ies seven of them child ren made from solid pvc and weighing 4.75 ounces they are four inches long and 1 5 inches in diameter firing velocity can reach 170mph making them a devastatingly lethal wea pon that the british have refused to use in riot control in their own country in 1981 , the year of the second long kesh hunger strike 30,000 plastic bullets were fired in the six counties since then over 400 people have been seriously injured by plastic bullets there has been an up surge in plastic bullet in juries in recent weeks in flicted by the royal ang lian and paratroop reg iments in particular in west belfast none of which arose from riot sit uations patrick doherty was one such victim under going a four-hour operat ion and needing 60 stitch es after being struck in the face by a plastic bullet in an unprovoked attack at the junction of spring field and whiterock roads on friday may 26 last arming the udr a sect arian terrorist force within the british army with plastic bullets means that the decision has been made to revert to pre-1970 b special tactics in nation alist/republican areas sdlp role the astonished and shocked reaction of sdlp figures to this move disguises the role they play in attempting to make british occupation more acceptable to nation alists in a statement issued on june 14 last ruairf o bradaigh president of sinn fein poblachtach recalled se'amus mallon of the sdlp's contrib ution on the rte radio programme looking north in december 1985 he claimed that foll owing the signing of the hillsborough deal that the udr would be sent to guard the most remote installations on mountain tops pending their dis-i bandment he also claim ed the udr would not be allowed patrol unaccom ft panied contrary to these out landish promises the iss-[j uing to them of plastic u bullets means they are i to be involved in escal ating conflict in nation £ alist areas — a complete reversal of the sdlp's post-hillsborough seen fc-i ario former udr major and p rte's latest acceptable | face of unionism fer-h managh mp ken maginnis i has farcically tried to m justify the further arming of his former comrades § by claiming they need plastic bullets to defend themselves in isolated rural areas it is clear from recent events that the british are intent on increasing polit ical repression by plastic bullet death not one ruc or british army member has been tried and con victed for plastic or rubber bullet deaths in the six counties