AOH Pennsylvania State Board

Gentlemen, This is a great piece of news. The Maze Prison or Long Kesh, “The University of Freedom”, is an Irish-Republican Icon where so many young Irish Republicans learned lessons of Irish History and Language. It became the sacred ground where 10 Young Men died to preserve their right to Political Status within the jail.

It’s preservation was essential to the preservation of the history of “The Struggle”.

AGREEMENT REACHED ON MAZE PRISON SITE

An agreement on the future of the Maze Prison site has been reached by the NI first and deputy first ministers, Peter Robinson and Martin McGuinness.

The long-awaited proposals include the construction of an EU-funded Peace Building and Conflict Resolution facility.

It is also thought the Royal Ulster Agricultural Society will move to the site.

The ministers are to table a motion to debate a draft order on the project.

If approved by the Assembly, a development corporation could be operational within six months.

The corporation will oversee the opening and redevelopment of the site including the construction of the Peace Building and Conflict Resolution facility.

Mr. McGuinness said on Thursday: “The Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister will shortly submit an EU funding application for a Peace Building and Conflict Resolution Facility on the site.”

“It is anticipated that the center will be a world-class facility of international importance designed to strengthen our peace-building expertise and to share our experiences with others throughout the world.”

Mr Robinson said: “The constitution of a development corporation for this strategically important Maze/Long Kesh site will enable us to realise the full economic potential of the site.”

“The site represents a unique opportunity to help revive our economic output in these difficult times.”

The RUAS has already made clear its desire to move the Balmoral Show from its current site at the King’s Hall in Belfast.
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The Irish American Information Service is a non-profit organization providing up-to-the-minute political news from Ireland to the world. The IAIS is funded entirely by your contributions. Please send your tax-deductible contributions to IAIS at  505 S East St, Culpeper VA 22701
You can visit us on the Web at http://www.iais.org

This article is extremely interesting in that a single Unionist Party, backed by the Orange Order, would be done for the sole purpose of preventing Sinn Fein from becoming the largest party in the North and thus taking the Prime Minister seat in the Belfast Assembly.

Who would of thought that Paisley would speak against the single unionist party and suggest that he would be able to deal with the idea of a Nationalist, Sinn Fein, Prime Minister.

Remember the Ulster Unionists Party, who joined with the the Tories (the winners of the UK election), did not win a Parliament seat even the seat where they ran one Unionist candidate against Michelle Gildernew was narrowly lost.

Remember First Minister Martin McGuinness in Cincinnati at the AOH/LAOH National Convention said that he could deal either way because the First Minister position is as powerful and he has the patence to wait for the electoral majority they need.

Very interesting indeed, we will need to stay alert. Again the United Ireland Resolutions, sponsored by the AOH/LAOH can keep the pressure on the Unionist Parties.

AOH National PEC

Paisley Against Single Unionist Party

Former DUP leader Ian Paisley has spoken out against the creation of a single unionist party.

Writing in the Belfast News Letter, the former First Minister warned that such a move would only benefit those who want to have senior positions at Stormont.

“Limiting that choice is not in the interests of the province but merely in the interests of those who want power,” Lord Bannside told the News Letter.

During a speech before the Twelfth, the Orange Order Grand Master Robert Saulters hinted that he would like to see moves towards unionist unity.

Dr Paisley – who earlier this month entered the House of Lords – also said he would have to accept the will of the people of Northern Ireland if Sinn Fein ever took the First Minister’s post.

“For many years I had to accept that the Democratic Unionist Party that I founded and led was not the majority party. Sinn Fein didn’t become the majority party on my watch.”

“Naturally, as a unionist, I will continue to play my part to prevent that happening in the future,” he said.

Lord Bannside added that unionist unity is a good thing for the UK as a whole.

“Unionist unity – in its broadest sense within Great Britain – is essential for the health of the nation.  A unified sense of loyalty to the throne and to the constitution ought to be top of the agenda with each of the devolved institutions,” he said.

“Within Northern Ireland, unionist unity in the sense of one grand political party is, in my opinion, a non-runner.”

Leader of the Traditional Unionist Voice party, Jim Allister, who has been highly critical of the DUP political strategy, has criticised Lord Bannside’s remarks.

“It must never be forgotten that part of the Paisley legacy is the very prospect of a Sinn Fein First Minister, because it was his and the DUP’s connivance at the legislative change in the St Andrews Bill which made it possible, ” he said.

“The other striking feature of Ian Paisley’s contribution in today’s News Letter is the obvious discord with the present DUP leadership, epitomised by his jibe about how things were different on his watch.”
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The Irish American Information Service is a non-profit organization
providing up-to-the-minute political news from Ireland to the world.
The IAIS is funded entirely by your contributions. Please send your
tax-deductible contributions to IAIS at  505 S East St, Culpeper VA 22701
You can visit us on the Web at http://www.iais.org.

The LOCC and GRRC have made submission on Public Assemblies, Parades, and Protests Bill 2010. They disagree with some portions of the agreement between the DUP and Sinn Fein. They have not always supported the Parades Commission but they are unsure of the new parades body and it’s rules will work.

These are really the people on the ground. Many members of the AOH have visited Garvaghy Road and visited with Breandan MacCionnaith. We have personally been on Garvaghy Road during the stand off after the Garvaghy Road March and on Ormeau Road as they prepared for the RUC baton charge and we never want to see the return of these times.
The article points out that there are a total of 3,801 events that seek permission to parade.
Of these 2,483 are requests from the Orange Order, Apprentice Boys, etc., that is 65% of all events (some are car shows etc.).
111 are requests from Nationalist Community to March, this would include the AOH Board of Erin Parades
Of these 2,371 are proceeded unhindered and are automatically approved.
Leaving 221 classified as contentious and the imposition of restrictions on 163 – with 51 applications for the Garvaghy Road March (each week)
That leaves a total of 112 parades with restrictions
Many have simply followed the restrictions but others cause protests from the local Nationalist Community, most protests are peaceful but a very small portion, single digits, turn violent. As usual media loves the violence and that is what is driving the news coverage at the moment.

I have attached the full report, it is 20+ pages, an argument against the changes created from the Hillsborough Agreement.

The most important thing is that we need to reduce or eliminate violence, continue to restrict OO Marches, let the residents groups know that we support them, and work for peaceful resolutions.

The United Ireland Resolutions are crucial in this regard. Please work on them until the legislatures come back in December.

Click Here to View Full Report

The Position of the Irish Government is below.  The most important statement in this is : “Right now, the biggest threat to Irish unity is not the British, or the Orange Order, but those wannabe republicans who think that they can bomb and shoot their way there.”

AN ROINN GNÓTHAÍ EACHTRACHA
DEPARTMENT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS
“Dissident Republicans are unqualified partitionists” says Minister Martin

Statement by the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr. Micheál Martin, T.D.,
on the rioting in Northern Ireland

I am deeply concerned at the rioting and criminal activity which has erupted in parts of Northern Ireland over the past few days.   I recognise that the days around the Twelfth of July are always surrounded by tension and that ways still need to be found to reduce the scope for conflict.  However, what we are seeing this year marks a considerable escalation over recent years.

The fact that significant rioting has continued in Belfast and elsewhere and that we witnessed an attack, involving robbery, arson and vandalism, on a train carrying innocent civilians through Lurgan is evidence of sinister forces at work.  I would like to pay tribute to the PSNI for their professionalism and restraint in policing the unacceptable violence that has once again disfigured the North of our country.  I would urge that everything continue to be done to avoid casualties.

Sadly, those in the front line of public disorder appear to be mostly young people from disadvantaged areas looking to break the boredom of a long and inactive summer.

Those directing the violence and who are encouraging these youths to take to the street are the real guilty parties.   By their twisted logic, they believe that by inciting violence and sectarian hatred, they can lead Ireland into the future by dragging it back through the horrors of the past.    Dreadful as it is to contemplate, they are actually hoping that one or more of the rioters will be killed or maimed in their conflict with the police so that a new generation of martyrs for the cause will inspire others to follow.   They are also hoping by their actions to provoke a violent reaction from the protestant community so that communities will once again look to paramilitaries for protection.

I appeal to anybody who has influence over the young people involved in the rioting – mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, boyfriends, girlfriends – to do what you can to keep them from being sacrificed by these cynical  godfathers.   Keep your loved ones safe from harm.  Seeing their name painted on a gable wall will be scant consolation to you in years to come should they fall into harm’s way.

To those misguided, would be republicans who delude themselves into believing that an independent united Irish Republic can still be achieved by violence, I say it’s time to face up to reality.    The war is over.  The only way that Irish unity, a goal, shared by the majority of people on this island, can be achieved is through peace, reconciliation and consent.  The people of Ireland endorsed this reality when they voted overwhelmingly to endorse the Good Friday Agreement.   If you do not have the stomach or the patience for the long haul, leave it to those of us who do.

Right now, the biggest threat to Irish unity is not the British, or the Orange Order, but those wannabe republicans who think that they can bomb and shoot their way there.

What chance of peaceful coexistence and eventual reconciliation when unionists fear that they will be marched into a united Ireland with a gun in their back?

What chance of promoting the noble ideals of republicanism when the flag of the Republic is used as an ugly mask for criminal activity?

What chance of removing the British security presence from Ireland when every effort is made to heighten insecurity on the island?

Let nobody be fooled, these so-called “dissident” republicans are unqualified partitionists.   Nobody who believes in the Republic should have anything to do with them.

ENDS 14 July 2010
Press Office | Department of Foreign Affairs | Dublin | (+ 353 1) 408 2275/2550 | fax: (+353 1) 478 5942 | press.office@dfa.ie

To All:

The North South Ministerial Conference has met with all parties participating including the once obstructionist Democratic Unionist. Certainly we can begin to discuss a movement towards a United Ireland.

A peaceful political solution is most certainly beginning to appear on the horizon. All sides are beginning to act as Irish Men and Women.

Economy Tops NSMC Meeting In Dublin 07/05/10 16:02 EST

Economic challenges facing the administrations in both parts of the island topped the agenda at a meeting of the North-South Ministerial Council in Dublin today.

Taoiseach Brian Cowen hosted Northern Ireland First Minister Peter Robinson and deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness at the meeting, which was attended by 26 Ministers from North and South.

The meeting at the State guesthouse, Farmleigh, will also consider how both  governments can work together to save money and to improve services. There will be a focus on co-operation in innovation and economic development.

Ministers also reviewed progress across a range of North-South co-operation, from cancer services in the northwest to cross-border infrastructure development.

Mr Robinson and Mr McGuinness were expected to raise concerns about possible job cuts arising from the sale of First Trust Bank, Northern Ireland subsidiary of the AIB group.

Speaking ahead of the meeting the Taoiseach said: “As we face the continuing challenge of generating economic growth and jobs and achieving fiscal consolidation, North and South, we must work together energetically in whatever ways we can, for mutual benefit.”

“The ongoing work of the North-South Ministerial Council can play an increasingly important part in our strategy for economic recovery and can realise benefits for all of the people, North and South.”

In a joint communiqué issued following the meeting, the Ministers said they had a “comprehensive discussion of the fiscal challenges facing each jurisdiction and the measures they are taking to consolidate their budgets and to prepare for economic recovery”.

“In the current difficult economic environment, Ministers emphasised the need to secure value for money across the full range of public sector expenditure. In this context they welcomed the ongoing discussions between the two Finance Ministers to identify potential cost savings through co-operation and sharing.”

They also discussed the “significant level” of co-operation underway to promote innovation to underpin economic growth and create employment.

These included the introduction of “innovation vouchers” on an all island basis, funding provided through the Programme for Research in Third level Institutions, cancer research, increased cooperation in securing research funding under the EU Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) and the success of the US/Ireland/Northern Ireland Research and Development Partnership.

The Executive raised concerns about restructuring of the banking sector and issues related to the insurance sector, the communiqué stated.

Progress on a range of child protection issues, including the establishment of the North-South Child Protection website, was also discussed.

The ministers also discussed a coordinated approach to reducing permitted blood alcohol levels for driving in both jurisdictions, the introduction of the mutual recognition of driver disqualifications between the UK and Ireland in January, and continuing work on the mutual recognition of penalty points.
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The Irish American Information Service is a non-profit organization
providing up-to-the-minute political news from Ireland to the world.
The IAIS is funded entirely by your contributions. Please send your
tax-deductible contributions to IAIS at  505 S East St, Culpeper VA 22701
You can visit us on the Web at http://www.iais.org

To All: This is the type of news from Ireland that proves we are making steady consistent progress on the road to a peaceful political reunification of Ireland.

AOH National PEC

A SOLID STATEMENT THAT NORTH-SOUTH COOPERATION IS HERE TO STAY

Armagh is now on the Irish diplomatic circuit.  Next month the highly regarded Southern Joint Secretary of the North South Ministerial Council (NSMC), Tom Hanney, leaves to become Irish ambassador to Belgium. His successor, Anne Barrington, is finishing her days as ambassador to Tanzania. The man who will fill in over the summer, the current Southern Deputy Joint Secretary, Bill Nolan, used to be ambassador in Zambia and Lesotho. His predecessor, Niall Honohan, is now ambassador to Saudi Arabia. A magazine article some years ago claimed that Armagh was among the dozen most popular postings in the Irish diplomatic service.
We in our small South Ulster metropolis should be honoured. Irish diplomats are highly esteemed all over the world, from the United Nations to the British Foreign Office. Their diplomatic and drafting skills were honed to the limit in the negotiation and formulation of international treaties like the 1985 Anglo-Irish Agreement, the 1998 Good Friday Agreement and the 2006 St Andrews Agreement, which are now widely studied as examples of ‘best practice’ in how governments can work together to overcome the ancient and seemingly insoluble problems of inter-communal conflict and clashing sovereignties.
The North South Ministerial Council Joint Secretariat which Anne Barrington is coming in to head, alongside another impressive woman, Northern Joint Secretary Mary Bunting, a senior official from the Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister in Belfast, is itself a success story.
Since May 2007, when the Northern Ireland institutions were restored, five full Northern Ireland Executive-Irish Government meetings have been organised by the NSMC secretariat, along with 65 meetings of Ministers in the agriculture, education, environment, health, tourism and transport areas, and those overseeing the specific areas of cooperation carried  out by the six North South Implementation Bodies.
These meetings are now part of routine government business in both jurisdictions. The fact that the DUP is properly engaged with them makes unionist backbench sniping more difficult. And many unionists, albeit reluctantly, have come to admit that they have their uses. They have brought a €400 million capital investment to the North in the form of Irish government funding for the upgrade of the A5 Aughnacloy-Derry road (also serving Donegal), and the A8 Larne-Belfast road (also serving the whole eastern seaboard).
There have been agreements on mutual action to be taken against disqualified drivers in both jurisdictions; on Irish government funding to clean up Northern region waste dumps containing large amounts of illegal Southern waste; on an all-island suicide prevention plan; on radiotherapy in Belfast for Donegal cancer patients and the all-island provision of heart surgery for children. The work of InterTradeIreland in helping to raise the level of trade and business development across the border, and of Tourism Ireland in bringing in overseas visitors, is widely recognised. These are examples of practical steps that will actually affect people’s lives for the better – North-South cooperation ‘for mutual benefit’ is the mantra of the civil servants in Armagh.
There is more that could be done. The highly innovative collaborative cross-border spatial planning framework devised by the International Centre for Local and Regional Development (also Armagh-based) is still stuck on a deadlocked cabinet table at Stormont, as is the North-West Gateway initiative for Derry and Donegal. The Irish Government would love to see Belfast and Dublin working together on joint adaptation for climate change (hardly a respecter of national borders) and cooperation at a time of deep financial cutbacks in costly areas like higher education, research and development, and health and environmental services.  Now that the hugely irksome issue of devolution of policing and justice has been resolved, maybe the review of the North South bodies completed several years ago can be dusted down, published and acted upon.
In the meantime the NSMC secretariat has moved into smart new offices ‘at the nationalist end of English Street’, as one Armagh wag puts it.  Its concrete exterior may make it look like a not particularly distinguished example of  mid-twentieth century brutalist design,  but actually this building is an appropriate symbol of the ‘architecture of reconcilation’ the 30 odd Northern and Southern civil servants working amicably in partnership inside it are striving to achieve. Indeed it has already won an accolade as the top ‘green’ (in terms of its environmental rating) office building in Ireland, itself symbolic of an era of new challenges on this island.
It may not be beautiful, but the solid new headquarters of the NSMC Joint Secretariat is making a powerful statement: that close and significant – and certainly growing – cooperation between the Northern Ireland Executive and the Irish Government is here to stay. It is part of what we are and what we will be in Northern Ireland and Ireland for many years to come. And all of us, Irish people in both jurisdictions, are the better for it.
Andy Pollak
P.S. Sadly, I also have to pay tribute to my much admired friend, Billy Tate, one of the great unsung heroes of cross-community and cross-border cooperation and mutual understanding, who died after a long illness earlier this month. Whether he was forging links with Monaghan schools during his time as principal of Aughnacloy Primary School in south Tyrone, or introducing his pupils at Belvoir Park Primary School in south Belfast to gaelic football and hurling (see ‘Cross-Community Gaelic Games take to the road’: July 2008), Billy’s brand of unionism was courageous, far-sighted, open-minded and welcoming to all. He will be hugely missed.
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Irish bishops welcome finding that Bloody Sunday was unjustified

By Cian Molloy
Catholic News Service

DUBLIN (CNS) — Ireland’s bishops welcomed the finding of a report that said British troops’ killing of 14 Catholics in 1972 was not justified.

Two of the bishops were from Londonderry, Northern Ireland, where the incident — widely known as Bloody Sunday — occurred.

“We share the joy and relief of the families of those killed and injured on Bloody Sunday,” the bishops said in a statement June 16, the day after the release of the long-awaited Saville Report. “We acknowledge the hurt and pain of the many people who lost loved ones on these islands during the course of the Troubles. We continue to carry them all in our thoughts and prayers.”

The bishops acknowledged the witness provided by many clergy, including retired Bishop Edward Daly of Derry, “whose part in Bloody Sunday and its aftermath is deservedly recognized.”

One of the most enduring images of Bloody Sunday is a photo of then-Father Daly waving a white flag, while he and others carry a teenager’s body to safety.

Bishop Daly said the people of the city had been vindicated.

“At the time I said mass murder had taken place, and I still believe that today. Perhaps more people now believe that happened,” he said, adding that the report would help him close a chapter in his life.

On Jan. 30, 1972, troops from Britain’s Parachute Regiment opened fire on civil rights demonstrators seeking universal suffrage in Northern Ireland and an end to discrimination against Catholics in employment and access to housing. Despite evidence that one victim was shot in the back while lying on the ground and others were shot while fleeing, the British government’s first inquiry into the massacre, the Widgery Tribunal, exonerated the soldiers after concluding that they had fired in self-defense.

The Widgery findings were rejected by the city’s Catholics, most of whom were nationalists and wanted Northern Ireland reunited with the Irish Republic. Many in the city’s Protestant community, most of whom were unionists and wanted to remain part of the United Kingdom, accepted the report.

In a June 15 statement, Bishop Seamus Hegarty of Derry said: “The ways in which people on different sides of the community have viewed the events of Bloody Sunday and have interpreted their significance has been a source of pain and tension over the past three decades. The publication of this report now presents us with the possibility of some healing of those differences.”

Lord John Saville’s commission to investigate the incident was established in 1998 as part of the Northern Ireland peace process. The inquiry was expected to last a year and a half.

Apologizing to victims’ relatives in a statement to the British Parliament, Prime Minister David Cameron said: “What happened should never, ever have happened. … The government is ultimately responsible for the conduct of the armed forces and for that, on behalf of the government, indeed, on behalf of our country, I am deeply sorry.”

Summarizing the findings, Cameron said: “Lord Saville concludes that the soldiers of the support company who went into the Bogside did so as a result of an order which should not have been given by their commander. He finds that, on balance, the first shot in the vicinity of the march was fired by the British army. He finds that none of the casualties shot by the soldiers was armed with a firearm. He finds that there was some firing by Republican paramilitaries but none of this firing provided any justification for the shooting of civilian casualties. And he finds that in no case was any warning given by soldiers before opening fire.

“He also finds that the support company reacted by losing their self-control, forgetting or ignoring their instructions and training and with a serious and widespread loss of fire discipline. And he finds that many of the soldiers — and I quote knowingly — put forward false accounts to seek to justify their firing,” Cameron said.

A day after the publication, leaders of the Church of Ireland, the Methodist Church and the Presbyterian Church in Northern Ireland met with victims’ families and promised to work with them to forge new intercommunity relationships. The Irish bishops mentioned the visit in their statement.

“We acknowledge the pastoral leadership shown by the representatives of the other Christian Churches as demonstrated by their visit,” the bishops said. “Finally, we call on all those who are still committed to violence to recognize the futility of this approach, and we plead with them to turn to a constructive political path to achieve their goals.”

Statement of U.S. Congressman Tim Murphy, Vice-Chairman of Friends of Ireland Caucus, on Bloody Sunday Report

(Washington, D.C.) – U.S. Representative Tim Murphy (PA-18), Co-Chair of the Congressional Friends of Ireland Caucus released the following statement in response to the Saville Report, released today by the British government that found that the killings of 14 Catholics by British soldiers, in what is now known as Bloody Sunday, was “unjustified and unjustifiable:”

“The families of those killed and wounded can find some closure and solace now that the British government has acknowledge the innocence of their loved ones.  The Saville Report clearly concludes that the British Parachute Regiment was without cause in the slayings of innocent Londonberry marchers and the British government has honorably admitted to its mistakes of nearly four decades ago. Such atonement is a remarkable step forward, and comes during a year of groundbreaking advancement in the peace process – just months after the Hillsborough Agreement, a showing of compromise to unite Northern Ireland as one.  The findings will not bring back those lost that day, but close a sad chapter in the conflict’s long history, and offer the healing so important to Northern Ireland’s future.”

http://murphy.house.gov/

To all, thank God we have someone like Ned McGinley, to let us all know what is happening in Ireland. Ned is, and has been a person who has contacts with people in Ireland that no other Hibernian has ever had. He is in constant contact with people who are involved in everything that goes on in Ireland, especially the northeast part of the country and reports that information to us. I am very proud to have selected Ned and Joe Roche as our PEC co-chairmen because I, and the majority of our national board, knew that they would be on the ball as far as getting information to our membership. Both of these brothers have the interest of the AOH at heart and report on breaking news as it happens. They report on the news on hand as it happened not on what we would like it to be. If more people were like them  then we would have a much better organization. Most of the AOH membership appreciate the work of Ned and Joe especially the majority of the national board. I for one am so glad that Ned was there at the guildhall for this historic event and I know for a fact that he did talk to many of the families of the murdered people of bloody sunday and am sure he will be reporting on this at the national convention. Thank you Jim for your appreciation of these officers of the national board of the AOH especially Ned.

Seamus Boyle National President
Ancient Order of Hibernians in America, Inc

Many of our political friends have offered well deserved comments on the Saville Enquiry. So many of them are available when we call in behalf of the Deportees and so many other Human Rights positions. We know we will need in our quest for a United Ireland and in many more pieces of human rights legislation.

Congressman Pallone, Jr. Statement on the
Bloody Sunday Report

Washington, D.C. – Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06), a member of the Friends of Ireland Caucus in the House of Representatives, Wednesday issued the following statement on the Saville Report and the Bloody Sunday shootings. On January 30th, 1972, about 10,000 protestors gathered in opposition to the practice of detention without trial. Without direct threat members of the British Parachute Regiment opened fire on protestors causing the death of 14 people, 7 of which were teenagers. The Bloody Sunday shootings led to 38 years of contention in Northern Ireland, bringing direct British rule of the Parliament in Belfast until the Good Friday power-sharing agreement in 1998. The report issued by the British Parliament found that the attack against the unarmed civilians was unwarranted and caused the needless loss of life for 14 innocent individuals.

“I would like to commend Prime Minister Cameron on releasing the Saville Report so early in his term and setting a precedent of honesty and integrity within his administration. Today the families of those killed and wounded 38 years ago in Derry, Northern Ireland, on the infamous day known as “Bloody Sunday”, will gain closure. Today, the world finally knows the truth- and the 14 protestors killed in Derry on January 30th, 1972 were innocent. The brutal military action taken against them was unjustified and unprovoked by these blameless civilian citizens.

“The Saville Report has exonerated those killed and wounded on Bloody Sunday and has brought vindication to their families.  With the British government’s recognition of the facts within the report, the world can now be certain of the actions that occurred that day. I hope the families affected by this tragedy 38 years ago may now be able to move on and find solace in the light this report has shed on the actual events of Bloody Sunday.”