32 CSM Respond to Irish News

national | crime and justice | press release Thursday December 20, 2007 22:23 by Kevin Murphy - 32 County Sovereignty Movement sarmagh32csm at hotmail dot com

The 32 County Sovereignty Movement feel it necessary to challenge a number of points raised in the 20th December edition of The Irish News.

The 32 County Sovereignty Movement feel it necessary to challenge a number of points raised in the 20th December edition of The Irish News.
As the leading nationalist daily in the six counties The Irish News is in a unique position to influence much of the nationalist community and its editorial of the 20th December creates an impression that has little relation to the situation on the ground, most notably that 'dissidents' in Derry are leading a "Charmed Life". It is well known by republicans in Derry the extent of the harassment aimed at members of our movement in the City. The life our members live is far from charmed. A campaign of physical and verbal abuse has been waged for years by the RUC/PSNI, republican homes are frequently attacked by search squads, traumatising children and destroying property, many republicans live in constant financial hardship due to the fact that their work is constantly disrupted as a result of state harassment as evidenced recently by the brutal attack on Derry republican Gary Donnelly.

The Irish News, in conjunction with the nationalist parties are creating the impression that anti agreement republicans are working for British Intelligence and creating the conditions for a witch hunt by calling for republicans to be arrested and charged. What will it take to satisfy these demands in the absence of evidence, another Seamus Doherty? another sean Hoey?

It is also ironic that crown minister Martin McGuinness, himself named by many including Denis Faul as an alleged British agent, should claim that those shooting RUC/PSNI personnel are working for British intelligence and asking for information to be passed on...to British intelligence! Surely this is a nonsensical position to take.

We in the 32CSM are convinced that McGuinness and Durkan singing from the same hymn sheet is a co-ordinated effort to misrepresent the situation in the north west and that this effort is a desperate attempt to stem the support that republican separatism enjoys in that area. The British state, through its local representatives or media will not succeed in misrepresenting the republican position.