Cashing in on Irish war dead Via NY Transfer News Collective * All the News that Doesn't Fit source - Bhairdina@aol.com The Irish People June 6, 1999 The Voice of Irish Republicanism in America A shameless use of dead for political gain by Christy Ward It comes as no surprise that the mainstream English and Irish press - and some in the U.S. - are using the deaths of Irish men and women in a time of war for political gain. In the space of ten days, there have been something like 50 stories in the various European media about the so-called "Disappeared," people killed by the IRA whose bodies have yet to be recovered. The stories appeared in the run-up to the European election, where Sinn Fein stands a good chance of taking a seat and further affecting the status quo in Ireland. The very use of the term, "Disappeared," is a clever propaganda ploy much like unionist claims of "ethnic cleansing" in the border areas of British occupied Ireland. In Pinochet's Chile, more than 3,100 political activists disappeared. In Argentina, the figure is more than 30,000. The so-called "Disappeared" in Ireland number nine, with one body recovered. Attempting to place them in a similar category as those who have gone missing around the world for their political beliefs bankrupts reality. It would be cliche to say war is hell, but it is, and there is a war going on in Ireland. Ask the British Army. Those are real live rounds they chamber when they patrol in South Armagh and the armor plating on their helicopter gunships is not for deflecting snowballs. While family members are understandably anxious about retrieving the remains of the dead, so too are there family members eager to discover the truth about British government actions. Bloody Sunday, the Dublin/Monaghan bombing, the assassinations at Gibraltar come to mind. No one group has a premium on suffering, and none should be elevated to such a height. Of the nine named by the IRA in April, three - Seamus Wright, Kevin McKee and Eamon Molloy - were IRA men who were courts-martialled for being British Army agents or informers for the Royal Ulster Constabulary. They played by big boy's rules and what they did was aid and abet the enemy at time of war. I suspect the IRA takes that stuff seriously. Three of those executed - John McClory, Brian McKinney and Danny McIlhone - were young men who, according to Oglaigh na hEireann, admitted stealing weapons from IRA dumps and using them in armed robberies. Two others - Columba McVeigh and Brendan Megraw - admitted being British Army agents; serious actions in dangerous times. The remaining victim was Jean McConville, a widowed mother of 10. Much has been made about this case, and it certainly had tragic consequences. Reports say her children were sent to orphanages, that the family was broken up. The media claims she was executed for **comforting an injured (British) soldier,** something I find difficult to believe. More likely, she was, as the IRA has indicated, a British Army informer. Even so, in England, giving aid and comfort to the enemy is treason and not looked upon lightly. Hiding an IRA Volunteer in the basement would get one shot, no questions asked. But even if the IRA were out to execute every person who ever expressed displeasure at its actions, or had a good thought for a dying squaddie, then there might actually be a legitimate list of "Disappeared." The very fact there are so few, points to a judicious use of force by the IRA to protect the activities of its army and its volunteers. Fr. Denis Faul, a County Tyrone priest, expressed outrage at the lack of progress in discovering the locations of the victims. First, Faul said the IRA returned Molloy's body in an effort to win support in the June 11 election. But as the search bogged down, he claimed the IRA was holding back information. Faul caused major heartache for Hunger Striker families in 1981, clawing and tearing until he got his way, ultimately breaking the strike. He's a well known anti-Republican some class with the Iron Maiden. The truth is, everyone wanted the IRA to give up the bodies and then they abused the IRA for that very action. The IRA undertook an 18-month-long investigation. It is likely during that time, IRA Volunteers were put at risk. The earliest of the IRA executions took place 27 years ago and things have changed, volunteers have died, and the picture of their actions is no longer clear. The anti-Republican media is hard at work in its efforts to vilify Sinn Fein for IRA actions that took place 30 years ago. You'd think at a time when most people seek peace in Ireland, they'd have better things to do - like urging the immediate implementation of the Good Friday agreement so people can get on with their lives and change Ireland for the better. (c) 1999 The Irish People. May be reprinted with credit. ================================================================= NY Transfer News Collective * A Service of Blythe Systems Since 1985 - Information for the Rest of Us 339 Lafayette St., New York, NY 10012 http://www.blythe.org e-mail: nyt@blythe.org ================================================================= nytire-06.10.99-03:49:50-20447