SEAMUS McCUSKER, a leading member of Provisional Sinn Fein and manager of the Republican truce incident centre in the New Lodge Road, Belfast, was assassinated on 31 October - apparently as part of the current Provisional-Official feud. Shortly before his death he gave the following interview to a Red Weekly correspondent.
•What was the original reason for setting up the incident centres?
It was the British Government which menter the centes HE was cencee eur ing negotiations between the Provisional leadership and the British Government that since the original ceasefire had brokca down it was necessary to set up te incident centres in oraer to monitor events.
The British Government saw them as having a policing role, but we saw their main function as registering complaints or violatons ore ceasenre aercements. and negotiating paroles of prisoners and the release of internees. We keep in direct contact with the British Army, and me contres are run by sinn rem mem • How has the role of the incident centres changed since they were initiated?
nanauy we remstered comprints h as of arry harassment and sectarian JOHN MAGEE reports from Belfast "The departure of the Black Watch regiment from Andersonstown was regretted by no one. They have proved themselves to be a cowardly and murderous group of sectarian thugs.' This was how the Andersonstown News commented on the departure of the Black Watch from West Belfast on Monday 27 October. There is no doubt that this comment accurately reflects the views not only of the inhabitants of Andersonstown, but of the people in every nationalist ghetto who have been subject to the occupation of the Black Watch.
This particular regiment has a notorious history in Ireland, dating back to the "Troubles' of the 1920s. During their latest tour of occupation they excelled themselves in their harassment of the ghetto's population. It was this regiment that murdered 17 year-old Leo Norney in Turf Lodge, then raided his home and didn't even bother to inform his family that he was dead; instead they told Leo's mother that her son was missing. The soldier who pulled the trigger on Leo was shipped out of Belfast the very next day, in case he suffered the justice of the nationalist people instead of the commendation of some Tory bewigged judge.
FINE WORDS - NO ACTION However, the Black Watch's doings in Belfast have been so well publicised that before they left it was felt necessary that there should be some genuflection before the altar of 'law and order. Seven soldiers were arrested and questioned about "falsification of incriminating evidence'. arrest front page headlines, and SLP politicians rushed into print to acclaim the impartiality of the Royal Ulster Constablary. Most of the same papers didn't even bother to mention next day that all seven had left with their regiment and that no action was to be taken against them.
That the murderers of Leo Norney have got off scot-free has not prevented the SLP from attempting to make all the capital they can out of the simple fact that soldiers have been asked a few questions. Indeed, according to the Andersonstown News there is evidence of SDLP/RUC connivance in the campaign to get the latter (or is it both?) back into nationalist The paper reported that just before the RUC annviolence, and g-ve legal advice and repwidened to deel with other problems.
• What sort of problems - do you deal with social prodiems, for example:
Yes, we have for a long time now taken on all types of community problems -disputes, robberies. vandalism, even al coholism, and we also intervene in family rows. i lact we are now cealine wit 80 per cent of complaints that would normally go to the RUC; in fact unofficially the RUC send people to us now. We liaise with the street committees and act on their behalf in the field of housing problems, street lighting, gas and electricity supplies etc, and we have been receiving reasonable cooperation from the local government on this.
• How successfully are you able to deal win socissues We are able to deal with most of the complaints successfully - for example, 36aHO mano The press gave the in the case of house robberies of general break-ins and vandalism we receive the complaint, put the word out to our people and have often been able to find the culprit and the goods within 24 hours. We often intervene in cases of wife or child battering, and here we can play a mediatory policing role. We even have a psychiatrist who deals with cases of persistent alcoholism and general mental health. youns loune outerne or vandansing are sometimes fined or forced to do social work (odd jobs for the elderly) etc. I think our success can be measured in the drastic reduction of petty crime in our areas in the last few months - for example, the UDA have informed us that they have 10 times more crime and vandalism in the Lovalist areas than we do. @Where does the financial backing and support come from for the centres?
Most of the financial aid comes from Sinn Fein, collections as well as aid from the Transport & General Workers Union.
We also receive support from the medical profession, clergy and the Association for Legal Justice. •What problems do you face in actually running the centres?
We obviously lack financial resources and nave probiems in manning me cen member Paddy Devlin rang newspapers giving them the identOver the last few weeks Devlin has been attempting to cast the RUC in the role of impartial upholders of the law, staunch defenders of citizen's rights, a reformed body of men and women. In this he has not been alone. A fellow SDLP member, Councillor Tom Donnelly, actually launched a recruitment campaign to get more Catholies to join the RUC *I have studied the RUC for several years, and have come to believe the overwhelming majority to be sincere and unbiased in the performance of their duty', he said. Where Tom got this belief from is hard to say, but it certainly wasn't on the Falls or in Ardoyne. Not that anyone has ever believed the RUC to discriminate on age, sex or infirmity grounds when it came to using their batons and guns.
SDLP SUPPORT FOR RUC Paddy Devlin, however, has a story that is much more entertaining than Donnelly's. The bold Paddy has now revealed that for years the RUC has been battling against British Army violations of the law, attempting to stop the Army from carrying out politically-inspired detention operations. This is bound to have evoked loud guffaws from the inmates of Long Kesh, who were dragged from their beds by British soldiers only to be handed over to the RUC for 'interrogation'. But then wasn't it Paddy's old mate Sir Edmund Compton who said that brutality was only ill-treatment as long as the torturer didn't get too much pleasure out of it All this praise for the RUC is a build-up to the SDLP conference at the end of this month, which is expected to come out in support of the RUC. Previously SDLP policy has been to barter support for the RUC against jobs in a power-sharing tres 24 hours a day, mostly because we lack suitably trained personnel. The only reason I am able to spend large amounts of time at the centres is because like most of us I exist on Social Security, • What about the Army, and the RUC - how have they reacted to the centres!
The centres were part of the deal made with the Provisional leadership, but we knew that this concession was only a political ploy to get us to take part in the Convention elections. Until the boycott campaign there was a general lull in Army activity, but when the results of the elections were announced this flew in the lace The bloody sunday commemoration Committee, set up to organise a national demonstration on 1 February, is now well ons way. iraredov nas workine sub-committees covering minances, spon sorship, students and publicity. Several hundred sponsorship appeals have been distributed, and readers should go all out to use these in attracting new sponsorship and support.
Maureen Colquhoun has now added her name to those of fellow MPs Joan Mavnard and william wilson as sponsors along with Hackney Trades Council and alist people. on the nationalist people. are the nationalist working class. of the feud.
Vol Kees and tney were made aware tha we had gained support during that cam paign.
So gradually, after the boycott, we have seen a steady return to brutal Army harassment of the community. weare dealing with many more complaints of violations every day. • Earlier you mentioned liaising with the street committees. How do they relate to the centres - have they developed since you began?
The street committees have developed trough using me centres for centralisator of information, planning and pressurising local authorities. Now almost every street has a committee, and they come to us for advice on almost every issue. We give as much help and advice as we can to the people, they trust us and we have a very good relationship with the community in general.
•Throughout the past months of the existence of the centres, would you say that support for the Provisionals has grown!
Certainly support has grown tremendously, wit large numoers or peopic De coming actively involved. We have seen the practical successes of the workers' co-operatives in the building trade, grocer ies, butchers, clothiers, and garages, we have now just bought a £150,000 site for a supermarket (with planning permission), and we still have a large balance in the bank. This has been largely due to the success of the building co-operative, tence me tor contracts wron me nousins Executive.
There is no doubt that support for us has grown and that the people are more than willing to carry on the struggle. Our people are not tired and their spirits wil never be broken. I have every confidence that the end of our struggle against Brit ish imperialism is very nearly in sight.
BLOODY SUNDAY COMMEMORATION COMMITTEE Many activities are in preparation to build as large a demonstration as possible The first of these is the Irish Spectacular this Saturday 15 November at Central London Poly SU, Bolsover Street, Lon don W.1. starting at 6.30pm.
If your organisation has not yet sponsored the BSCC, get it to do so and send delegates to build the mobilisation. The next meeting is on Tuesdav at 7.30pm in Room 2E, University of London Union, valet street w.C.1. Phone 01-2789526 Tor Turter details administration. But with the decline in SDLP support amongst the anti-Unionist people, the SDLP are increasingly recognising the need to get the RUC back into Catholic areas so that they can operate against Republicans and prevent the SDLP from entirely losing their influence amongst the nationThere would not be much fear of the SDLP succeeding in their campaign if it wasn't for the internecine feud that continues to rage between the Provisional and Official Republican movements. This violent conflict - which at the time of writing has already claimed five lives and resulted in the maiming of many, many more — creates precisely the context in which the SDLP are able to make headway with their coll aborationist policy. When Republican shoots Republican, when the families of Republicans are intimidated from their homes by other Republicans, then both British imperialism and Loyalism become strengthened in their resolve to inflict defeat The only losers in this present feud The Revolutionary Marxist Group (Irish section of the Fourth International) stands totally opposed to violence as a method of resolving disputes between anti-imperialist organisa tions, It supports the demonstration by women supporters of the Official and Provisional movements in Short Strand last week, and echoes the call for unity against imperialism and its Loyalist allies made by a speaker at the demonstration. The RMG will be working hard in the coming weeks to advance that unity, and once again calls for the immediate cessation fine
. red weekly 13 november 1975 portugal/spain
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RESIST BRITISH BULLY BOYS!