Irish dissidents’ arrests an attack on free speech, claim republicans

Irish police criticised after arrest of London bomber Marian Price and other republicans ahead of Queen’s visit Irish republican supporters of Old Bailey bomber Marian Price said her arrest and those of others is an assault on free speech. The Republican Network for Unity (RNU) denounced the Police Service of Northern Ireland’s decision to prosecute Price on charges of encouraging terrorism as “de facto internment”. Martin Óg Meehan, the RNU’s spokesman, the prosecution showed that Britain wanted to suppress free speech. Meanwhile, there is growing anger over Irish president Mary McAleese’s decision to invite a loyalist paramilitary leader to a ceremony linked to the Queen’s visit to Ireland. Ulster Defence Association chief, Jackie McDonald, is among a number of loyalists invited to Dublin where they will attend a ceremony in honour of Irishmen killed in the first and second world wars while serving in the British armed forces. But the son of a woman killed in a loyalist bomb said that instead McDonald and other loyalists should be visiting graveyards in Northern Ireland where their victims are buried. Peggy Whyte was 52 years old when she was killed in a bomb, thought to have been left by the loyalist Ulster Volunteer Force, at the front of her home in University Street, Belfast in April 1984. Her son, Jude Whyte, said: “It would be far more important in terms of peace and reconciliation that they perhaps visited the graveyards and looked at the damage their organisation did,” he said. “Their casualties and victims were unarmed civilians who were no harm to anybody. Try to understand the damage that the civilian population suffered here. “You broke a lot of hearts and you maimed and murdered a lot of people. It is time to say sorry to them.” However, Reverend Mervyn Gibson, who sits on the Loyalist Commission, defended loyalists who had made “a significant contribution towards peace”. “There are victims on all sides and apologies wanted on both sides,” he said. Ireland Northern Ireland Human rights The Queen UK security and terrorism Monarchy Henry McDonald guardian.co.uk

Posted by on May 16, 2011. Filed under News, Politics, World News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.