Solidarity to Student Protesters: Captive Columns – an untold account of prison life: Rights in a New Ireland
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Solidarity to Student Protesters
In the late 1960s the major national and
international issues of the day that helped shape my politics were the
anti-Vietnam War movement, the anti-apartheid struggle against the racist South
African government and the civil rights movement in the North. In all
three the activism of students was central to raising public awareness and
opposition to injustice.
Today students are again at the heart of an ant-war
movement. In the USA students at over 100 university campuses have taken a
stand against the genocidal war of the Israeli government against the
Palestinian people. In scenes reminiscent of anti-war demonstrations almost 60
years ago the images of riot-clad and armed police brutally arresting over
2,000 students, college professors and academics on US campuses has shocked
many. Film footage and photographs from 4 May 1970 of the shooting dead of four
students at Ohio Kent State University have been replayed again and again on
social media as anti-war supporters express their opposition to what is now
taking place in the USA.
In Britain and Ireland and in parts of Europe, as well as
in Canada, Australia and other states similar protests are now taking place at
Universities, including Trinity College in Dublin.
The demands of the students are simple – a permanent end to
the war, the release of all hostages – including the 6,000 held by Israel – and
for universities to disinvest from Israel. Well done and thank you to all of
those students taking part in these peaceful, non-violent protests.
Captive Columns – an untold account of prison
life
Cumann na Meirleach Poblachtach Éireannach/ The
Irish Republican Felons Association celebrated its 60th birthday
last weekend.
The first part of last Friday evening’s
celebrations was given over to Danny Morrison who hosted two conversations. The
first was with Síle Darragh and Mary Doyle and focussed on their experience in
Armagh Women’s Prison. The second was with Colm Scullion, Jackie McMullan, and
Jazz McCann. This centred on Bobby Sands, Joe McDonnell and Kieran Doherty who
they knew well in the H-Blocks. The discussions were insightful, informative
and inspiring.
Afterward I was asked to introduce my good friend
Gino aka Eoghan Mac Cormac who has just published a new book ‘Captive Columns –
an underground Prison Press 1865-2000’.
In all my dealings with Gino he has been very
positive, cheerful and funny. He is also very clever. Especially with words í
nGaeilge agus Bearla. From cross word puzzles in the H-Blocks, to regular contributions
to our Irish Unity magazine Éire Nua – to designing republican jigsaws to his
recent books of poetry and prose. He is the author of Cáibín an Phápa – a novel
written during his final years in prison and Pluid which both won Oireachtas
prizes. On the Blanket, Macallaí Cillín, the Pen behind the Wire, Gael agus
Géibheann have also been published and now he has delivered ‘Captive Columns –
an underground prison press 1865-2000’.
This new book published by Greenisland Press
tells the extraordinary story of how republican prisoners, held in the most
dire of conditions, succeeded in circumventing the prison regimes to produce
news-sheets and newspapers. Beginning in 1865 Gino has identified over 60 such
publications. Sometimes they were single pages, single editions and whimsical
productions. On other occasions these journals were thirty to forty pages in
length. Some were in English and others in Irish and occasionally they had
illustrations. They were all subject to the challenges of prison life – some found
during searches – others subject to censorship, sudden transfers and sometimes
execution. That any survived at all is remarkable and often down to the clever
ways in which copies were smuggled out of the prisons.
From the mid 19th century through
to the H-Blocks and Armagh in our own time toilet paper and prison prayer books
have been the stable source of most of these publications. In the 1970s/80’s
and 90’s cigarette papers were widely used.
But in his detailed research Gino brings us back
to a young Cork Fenian John Sarsfield Casey who was transported to Australia in
1867. He had already spent more than two years in prisons in Cork, Mountjoy and
later in Pentonville in Britain. In the latter the prison regime employed a
separation and silent system turning Pentonville into a huge silent tomb where
communication between prisoners was forbidden. Circular cages or rectangles
were constructed in the exercise yards and for 45 minutes each day the prisoner
could walk without seeing another prisoner.
Casey later wrote; “plotting was the natural consequence of the isolation we were detained
in – necessity the mother of invention…Each prisoner is furnished weekly with a
supply of brown tissue paper for WC purposes. Letters and words might be formed
by pricking the paper with a needle and holding it between you and the light;
the words then became quite intelligible.”
This was the just the beginning of a
sophisticated system involving republican prisoners recording their thoughts on
scraps of paper and sharing them with comrades.
Gino’s book records the evolution of this process
over 135 years through the Fenian prisoners held in English jails to the Tan
War and Civil War, the 1930s, 40’s and 50s and then into our own period of
prison struggle beginning in 1969. It is an amazing story of human endeavour -
of men and women overcoming adversity.
It is very fitting that Gino dedicated Captive
Columns to Brian Campbell another great writer, editor of Scairt Amach, the
Captive Voice and An Phoblacht. I also want to reference Jazz McCann who
separately from Gino wrote a book – ‘6,000 Days’ – which like Gino’s ‘On the
Blanket’ details the brutality of the prison regime and the courage of the
blanket men during that protest. It is a matter of wonderment to me that Jazz
and Gino produced two very different accounts of unique, moving and evocative
reflections and memories of a shared time in the same wing, at the same time.
Both books are compelling and accessible story telling.
For me these two books exemplify the power of the
imagination and memory and of the written word and the personal and individual
understanding of events, personalities and personal experiences which are
unique to the H Block Blanket protests. So too with Laurence McKeown’s ‘Time
Shadows.’ There are other books about the Block. Armagh women like Síle Darragh
and produced their accounts also and that is important.
‘Captive Columns’ is a work of important and
detailed research and scholarship of the highest order. It and the other books
I have mentioned are available in An Fhuiseog 55 Falls Road, BT12 4PD www.thelarkstone.ie; and online at www.sinnfeinbookshop.com
Rights in a New Ireland
Last
week the British government’s Legacy Act took effect and a group of
international human rights experts published a major report accusing the
British state of operating a “systematic” practice of impunity to protect state
forces. In the same week people interested in human rights packed into
St Comgall’s – Ionad Eileen Howell. The Conference was organised by Sinn
Féin’s Commission on the Future of Ireland.
The impressive panel was
chaired by Ailbhe Smyth, campaigner
and activist and included Dr Shannonbrooke Murphy Associate Professor in Human Rights at St Thomas University in
Canada; Colin Harvey, Professor
of Human Rights Law in the School of Law, Queen’s University and Daniel Holder,
Director of the Committee on the Administration of Justice.
The contribution of panellists and audience
members clearly identified the need to put in place strategies that
promote understanding. These must include a robust, internationally compliant
human rights system of laws and governance that incorporate rights, freedoms and
responsibilities; that guarantee civil and political rights; democratic,
social, economic and cultural rights; children’s rights; language and cultural
rights; environmental and developmental rights.
The Tories have spent 13 years eroding the
protections of the Good Friday Agreement. As a result there is No Bill of
Rights; No Civic Forum in the North; No all-Ireland Civic Forum; No North-South
Committee of the two human rights commissions and No all-Ireland Charter of
Rights. Clearly, there are many challenges ahead to undo these decisions. Be
part of this conversation. Reach out to others. The people of this island
deserve a citizen centred, rights based society. London won’t give us this.
Self-determination will if those of us who want real change plan for it. That
is what last week’s conference was about. Be part of it.
A video of the conference is available at https://youtu.be/wT4lj94yHjE
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