Special Branch Raid ‘an Phoblacht

As Cosgrave was returning from his abortive trip to London, his security forces showed evidence of his government's good faith by conducting a mass-raid on the offices of “An Phoblacht’” newspaper of the Provisional Republican Movement in Dublin. Over 30 uniformed male and female gardai and special branchmen ransacked the newspaper offices and arrested four people, including Eamon MacThomais, recently released from Portlaoise jail and editor of the newspaper and Sean Keenan the paper's office manager. The Gardai also lifted a load of equipment and office paper-work. Mac Thomais and another of those arrested were later charged and held on remand.

This is not the first time that the offices of newspapers opposed to the government have been raided and their staff and equipment taken. Indeed the predecessors of the present Gardai the old Dublin Metropolitan Police made regular raids on the offices of socialist.and republican newspapers, including the office of James Connolly.

This latest raid, as with all assaults on free speech and journalism, must be resisted and condemned every time. In a state where the government has complete control of censorship of T.V. and Radio, and has blackmailed the “popular” press into voluntary censorship, it is vital that the people have at their disposal papers and journals which are independent and prepared to tell the truth about the collaborationist policies of the Dublin government with the British.

We in ‘Unfree Citizen’ are not in the least intimidated by this latest turn of the screw — we will continue to expose the pro-imperialist policies of the Leinster House politicians and will continue to fight for a workers republic.

Over the last 5 years, since the arrival of British troops on the streets of Belfast and Derry, we have heard the British government give various different ‘reasons’ as to why they are here. Depending on political expediency, the role of the British Army has been officially described as ‘Peace Keeping’, ‘At war with the |.R.A.’, ‘Defending the democratic wishes of the majority’, or ‘Keeping the ‘‘two sides” apart’.

Whatever pious excuses the British may put forward in an attempt to explain away the role of their troops *o the foreign press, they don’t " onvince the ordinary working people of t!-e Catholic minority areas of the North of Ireland. The role of the Briti:.: Army is the same in Ireland as it has been in every part of her former ernpire — TO PROTECT BRITISH C.\PITAL. At the moment Britain sees the anti-imperialist war as the greatest risk to her economic interests in Ireland. Consequently her reaction is to lash out savagely at those whom she sees as carrying that war forward. And although her propoganda might say that she is fighting a ‘small tightly-knit group of terrorists’, Britain is waging a war of attrition and terror against the whole ariti-Unionist population. By their never-ending resistance, by their marches and demonstrations, even by banging bins and blowing whistles, by using every form of resistance of which they are capable the anti-Unionist working class have proven themselves to be the formidible enemies of British interests in Ireland. And the British Government, never one to suffer from qualms about beating up women and children, is using a policy of terror against the entire Sstholic minority.

brief look at the activities of ‘ish Army and their local last Xe ane UDR and RUC over the ths, bears this out.

‘ea of Belfast for example, is at the moment ‘patrolled’ by the Black Watch regiment, a Scottish regiment famous ic. liad aa for its anti-Catholic bias. These ise i thugs hit the head-lines a few weeks ago by their unprovoked attack on a PHRC anti-internment march to Long Kesh. The action came as no surprise to the people of Andersonstown who have been subjected to their unfettered brutality for more than 2 months now.

The young people of the area often cannot walk more than a 100 yards in the district without being stopped, spreadeagled against a wall for up to half an hour and subjected to sectarian abuse. More often than not they are arrested and taken to one of the many arm forts in the area and held for several hours and interrogated.

One young lad, 17 years old, from the Lenadoon area, received 2 broekn ribs as a result of a blow from a rifle butt during such a ‘search’ He was told by one of his assaulters that if he reported his injuries to a solicitor or to a newspaper, he would be shot.. (a very real threat in Belfast where the British army have got away with cold-blooded murder on many occasions — by claiming that their victim had a gun or petrol bomb etc. The fact that the weapons are rarely found is of no consequence as far as the army are concerned.)

On July 9th last a young mother had to be given three stitches in her head when she was struck with a rifle butt by another member of the Black Watch.

On 22nd July as reported in ‘Unfree Citizen’ the home of P.D. member Terry Austen was completely wrecked by them.

These examples are by no means isolated. The litany of terror goes on:

July 1st — 16 homes in Andersonstown raided in the early hours of the morning. All men were arrested and held in custody in

iin : fh

----- pull-quotes -----

rT own he Andersonstowh