Letter to the Taoiseach

BY BARRY McELDUFF

Christmas will soon be upon us, traditionally a time for thinking about political prisoners.  There are less political prisoners in Ireland now than for quite a while.
I had the privilege myself of spending one Christmas in prison and I remember sharing Christmas dinner in Crumlin Road Prison with a comrade from Newry who previously spent 13 Christmases in prison for his actions in support of the Irish Republic.
Your own parents would have been familiar with the plight of political prisoners from Cork and Dublin and other parts of the country in previous phases of struggle.  
The political prisoner most familiar to me is Pearse McCauley from Strabane.  Pearse is a great supporter of Shamrocks Hurling Club in Strabane and his ongoing imprisonment in Castlerea is a cause of major concern to many people throughout the country. I have come to know Pearse’s comrades who are similarly held in Castlerea.  The media and political establishments like to vilify these men but these men are political prisoners in the same tradition as the Fenian Tom Clarke and Mairéad Farrell.  
For reasons of political expediency, it might not suit you or any other member of your government to formally categorise these men as political prisoners.  That is not to say, however, that these men are anything other than such.
There are other republican prisoners in Portlaoise and in other jails. As an Irish republican, I find it impossible to envisage real peace in Ireland as long as there are political prisoners.  You will not hear this rationale very often around the cabinet table but you might find some understanding if you were to look into the hearts of Irish republicans in every one of the 32 counties.
A Fianna Fáil-led government continues to hold republican prisoners.  My appeal might not have the desired outcome in the short term, but I am calling for the release of all our political prisoners.
While I am on the subject, did I ever tell you that I formally met with Ian Paisley in ‘the Crum’.  In 1991, I think it was.  The meeting took place in Cell 29 of ‘the ones’ on A wing.  Again, my friend from Newry was with me when the leader of the DUP shook my hand.  Believe it or not, Ian understood that I was a member of Sinn Féin and observed that my friend ‘must be PIRA’.  The two men shook hands and we conducted a dialogue which lasted about 20 minutes and which looked at the prison conditions of the day.  Ian knows a political prisoner or two when he meets them.  Sure, wasn’t he inside for a while himself.
I’ll tell you more about this when I see you in the New Year.  In the meantime, Nollaig Shona to you and all our political prisoners.
Freedom in 2007!
Is mise le meas
Barry McElduff


NB - Bertie Ahern can be contacted on (00353) 1 6194020 or email [email protected].  Address: Office of the Taoiseach, Government Buildings, Dublin 2