Issue 171, Saoirse: Irish Freedom (July, 2001)

              20th anniversary 1981-2001 hunger strike commemoration bundoran co donegal saturday august 25 east end 3pm limh 171 iuil — july 2001 http://saoirse.rr.nu 60p usa 1 the writt ampaign in the westminster election publicised the campaign for political status crisis talks to shore up the stormont partitionist executive in the aftermath of the uup leader david trimble's july 1 resignation as first minister had to be moved to britain at the beginning of july the move was designed in age old british imperial fashion to pressurise the provisionals in particular by taking them away from their own area and influences lethal front-door key pipe bombs found see page 2 the pro-stormonl agreement parties have until august 1 2 to reach a settlement on the issue of the surrender of arms or face the british sanction of collapsing stormont for the sixth time in its existence the british are seeking to avoid suspension as it clearly showed the last time where the power in the six counties resides - in westminster not in the puppet assembly at stormont there is talk of new elections in october to stormont the assassinations of two nationalists at the end of june by pro-british death squads shows that nothing has really changed the british continue to turn a blind eye to the loyalists and to collude with them in directing terrorism against nationalists john mccormick in coleraine was reportedly killed bv the uda/uff who were also responsible for the death of ciaran cummings in antrim the fact that the antrim killing was claimed by the red hand defender and the orange volunteers cover-names for the uda/uff shows how secure they arc in being treated with kid gloves by their british masters at the same time it instils fear into the nationalist community nothing has changed except the ever-increasing surrender of the provisionals their newly-elected representative for fermanagh south iyrone pledged to the irish independent june 4 that if i'm elected 111 be tin first provisional sinn fein woman elected to westminster since countess markievicz she never took her seat but i will on rtc*s prime time on june 28 martin mcguinness said the only arms that should be in the six counties are those agreed by the elected authority that means the british army and the ruc the provisionals1 increased vote in the recent elections is not a licence to assassinate or terrorise intimidate faithful republicans neither is it a mandate to go to westminster despite michelle gildemew's comments and the demands of their spokespersons for full westminster facilities their success at the polls was the result according to seasoned political comment ators of stealing the sdlp's political clothes and the fact that they were indistinguishable from the sdlp except in age and class the case for political status lor republican prisoners received a boost by the write-in campaign for tommy crossan in the west belfast constituency during the westminster elections the reluming officer's stall in the belfast election office confirmed that there were 4 spoiled votes in west belfast this is 1.707 spoiled votes and even allowing for the usual spoils of the low hundreds about 1.500 of these were write-ins for tommy crossan and political status a vote of congratulations was made at comhairle chuige uladh on june 24 last to the belfast republican sinn fein members on the work they put in distributing 20,000 leaflets and erecting 1,000 posters morale has never been higher in belfast in recent years and the case for political status is much more widely known this was the objective of the campaign from the start