Easter Lilies protest at Maghaberry Gaol - Updates

international | rights, freedoms and repression | news report Friday April 13, 2007 21:43 by IFC POW Dept - Irish Freedom Committee Saoirse at irishfreedomcommittee dot net

Punishments, isolation underway - 3 POWs on Blocks

As a result of their refusal to remove Easter Lilies on Easter Sunday, Monday and Tuesday; fifteen Irish Republican Political Prisoners at Maghaberry Gaol met with aggression and sectarian abuse from prison staff this week. Adjudication for three of the POWs in the incident commenced on Wednesday last, with all three POWs refusing to co-operate with the adjudication process and being immediately placed on punishment blocks. Eight other POWs face adjudication in the coming week.

IRISH FREEDOM COMMITTEE POW DEPT.
HTTP://WWW.IRISHFREEDOMCOMMITTEE.NET
UPDATES from MAGHABERRY GAOL – EASTER LILIES PROTEST
Friday April 14, 2007

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PLEASE SEE:
EMERGENCY STATEMENT FROM MAGHABERRY PRISON - IFC POW Dept.
http://www.irishfreedomcommittee.net/POWs/easterlilies_...y.htm
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PUNISHMENTS, ISOLATION UNDERWAY – THREE POWS ON BLOCKS

As a result of their refusal to remove Easter Lilies on Easter Sunday, Monday and Tuesday; fifteen Irish Republican Political Prisoners at Maghaberry Gaol met with aggression and sectarian abuse from prison staff this week. Adjudication for three of the POWs in the incident commenced on Wednesday last, with all three POWs refusing to co-operate with the adjudication process and being immediately placed on punishment blocks. Eight other POWs face adjudication in the coming week.

The Irish Freedom Committee condemns the racist and sectarian singling out of Republican prisoners for prison aggression, isolation, and extreme measures of punishment as a result of their right to wear the Easter lily emblem to commemorate Ireland’s dead. The Republican prisoners have a right to wear Easter lilies to commemorate Ireland’s dead, just as the prison staff and loyalist inmates wear poppies for Remembrance Day in November in recognition of Britain’s dead.

Please CONTACT the Northern Ireland Office and Northern Ireland Prisons Service today and register your concerns regarding the harsh and unacceptable treatment of Irish Republican POWs at Maghaberry. Contact information and a suggested letter are below. Please ACT TODAY! Our voices can speak volumes if we act now.

IFC ACTION REQUEST

We ask that our supporters immediately contact the NIO and Prison governor at Maghaberry and protest the unwarranted aggression against Republican prisoners. There is a Sample Letter below, use as is or
modify in your own words.

1. Enter the following email addresses in your email "TO" bar:
info@niprisonservice.gov.uk, press.nio@nics.gov.uk
Subject: "Maghaberry prison Easter aggression"
2. Copy and paste the suggested text below into your email body
3. Add your name and location to the text.
4. SEND
---------------- SAMPLE LETTER COPY & PASTE ---------------------

MAGHABERRY PRISON
Mr. Alan Longwell - Governor
Upper Ballinderry Road
Lisburn, Co. Antrim
BT28 2PT

NORTHERN IRELAND OFFICE
Mr. Peter Hain - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
Block B
Castle Buildings
Belfast BT4 3STGTN

NORTHERN IRELAND PRISON SERVICE
Mr. Robin Masefield - Director General
Room 321
Prison Service Headquarters
Dundonald House
Upper Newtownards Road
Belfast BT4 3SU

Dear sir,

We are writing to protest the aggressive treatment of the republican
prisoners at Roe house yesterday morning, Easter Sunday. We have
learned that the republican prisoners were forced to run a gauntlet of
over twenty guards yesterday and have been denied food, visits and
exercise because they wore Easter lilies.

It is unacceptable that prison guards and loyalist inmates can openly
wear enormous poppies for Remembrance day in November, yet the
republican prisoners are annually treated to abuse and punishment for
wearing small Easter lilies to commemorate their patriot dead.

We remain concerned over the deteriorating conditions at Maghaberry
prison. We will continue to closely monitor this situation.

Sincerely,

NAME/ADDRESS

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The Irish Freedom Committee will continue to monitor events at
Maghaberry and will post more news here shortly. Please contact
Saoirse@irishfreedomcommittee for more information.

##### ENDS

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PLEASE SEE:
EMERGENCY STATEMENT FROM MAGHABERRY PRISON - IFC POW Dept.
http://www.irishfreedomcommittee.net/POWs/easterlilies_...y.htm
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