Prison letter

An Reabhloid - for a Workers Republic - Page 23 Garal NI Chuilin G2 Maighgcabrai Pridsu'n Na Mba‘n The build upto International Women’s Daysaw women all over the world organising the many events to celabrate the day sat aside for women. The women in Maghaberry are no different, at this time of the year we ara busy contributing articles, statements and poetry to these events we obviously can't attend and organising visits with the various women’s delegations that arrive to learn of life for Irish women inside and outside gaol.

The N.I.0. too dacided that their contribution to International Women's cay must be spectacular. After much thought the male hierarchy decided that the best way to contribute to WD was to exert their control over one of the most vulnerable groups of women withir society. Abusing the power invested in them and armed with a wealth of mysterious “acts” originating from anonymous “sources” the plan was hatched. On Monday 2nd March Women POW’s were told that a search of the gaol was to take place and that we would not be unlocked. A short time later we were informed that we would each be subjected to a strip search. The screws were informed thal POW's objected very strongly to this unprece- _ dented outrage. POW's were threatened with loss of remission, solitary confinement if they did not comply with the order to strip naked. This threat was intended to coerce women into subjecting themselves to the indignity of a humiliating strip search. However, we decided to resist and defend ourselves as best we could underthe circumstances.

What happened over the next 10 hours can only be described as sexual, physical and psychological torture. Gangs of scraws dressed in riot gear and armed with batons and shields entered the wings. A gang of screws entered a cell and set upon the defanceless women inside, inaach case up to 16 screws. The POW's were seized and dragged to the floor their facas pushed tightly into the floor so that thay couldn't see their assailants and their mouths covered to stifle the scraams. Once inside the screws began to remove the woman's clothes until she was totally naked. Every other woman in the gaol could hear each attack as it took place so in actual fact aach woman spent the entire day listening to comrades being sexually abused before and after her own turn came, The use of strip searching has been well researched and it has been concluded time and time again that this practice has ne security value. Society rejects such barbaric behaviour as sexual abuse. iis no accident that men made the decision to pursue this line on 2nd March (and only in the women's gaol are prisoners expected to strip totally naked when being searched) When one women refused to be strip searched and a doctor objected to her being forcibly strip searched she was left locked in her cell until a decision was made about her. Itwas decided that she could be searched by MO s using metal detectors and then she was unlocked with security clearance. Obviously this form of search ( which none of us would have objected ta) was enough to satisfy security requirements. Why then was the forcible strip search of women pursued?. One can only conclude that degradation, control and submission rather than security were on the agenda.

Through the actions of the N.LO and prison administration night down to the screws whe participated in the assaults the Letters letters letters Letters clock has been tured back ta November 1982 whan strip searching was introduced for the first time (but never, ever carried out en masse on the wings). The feeling of tension and anger within the gaol is impossible to describe. The Board of Visitors were in the gaol on that day.

One member of this supposedly impartial watchdog body stood and watched women being strip naked. We regard their presence as participation and their silence as consent.

They are no longer welcome in this gaol.

We have given individual statements to solicitors while the N.LO embark on a game of pass the parcel of blame.

Statements about the events of 2nd March emanating from that very much undermined department range fram the bizarre to the downright insulting. Phrases such as Women overreacting , unnecessary violent reaction , “routine search” have been employed to describe 10 hours of systematic abuse of women prisoners. All21 women who resisted the sexual assault on that day sustained injuries of same description. One woman received bruising to her face and was tamporarily transferred to an outside hospital, cihers are awaiting the result of tests to determine the extant of their physical injurias. Women acted in self defence in trying to ward of attackers in riot gear, that there isn't more hospital cases is no thanks to the screws.

What is incalculable is the psychological scars that women now have to bear. Women who must now spend years inthe very cells in which we were violated with such vigorous enthusiasm. The N.LO wanttoterrorise women prisoners, to beat us into submission because we continue to defy their attempts to impose their will on us. This they call the battle for hearts and minds!, It is only one part, a disgusting and deplorable part, of an overall policy to try and control women prisoners pursued by the latest Governor to arrive in ioe denenl £ itis no surprise that this has happened as he has done his utmost to cut women off from each other by denying association to cut women off from their families by ensuring that originally bad visiting conditions are now deplorable to cut women off from their communities through the worsening censorship of literature and letters. The latest step in this process is the attempt to dehumanise women by forcing their way into calls, stripping away our personal clothing, pepo the most intimate and private parts of our bodias and all the while inflicting physical and menial pain.

To add insult to injury the women POW's are now being charged with assault. What will happen to the male and tamale aoews who took part in the attack on 2nd March- Medals’? is Sinne Maria Wright Paula Burns Mary Ellan Campbell Ajilish Carroll Donna Mc Menamy Frances Symington Shauneen Baker Rosaleen Mc Corley Teresa Malocco Bernie Reilly Carol Cullen Maureen Delaney Patricia Deane Mary Mc Ardle Lousie Nash Theresa Browne Karen Quinn Bronwyn Mc Gahan Pat Moore Geraldine Ferrity Annmarie Mc Kee Ann Gavangh