Dungannon Council passes vote calling for release of Gerry McGeough, Marian Price and Martin Corey

'The wrongful detention of these prisoners is completely unjustifiable. All three should be released immediately'

A MOTION by Sinn Féin calling for the release of Gerry McGeough, Marian Price and Martin Corey has been passed by Dungannon & South Tyrone Borough Council on the casting vote of the Sinn Féin Mayor after the council split 9-9.

The motion was supported by the SDLP but opposed by the unionist parties.

Gerry McGeough was convicted in February of last year of trying to kill an Ulster Defence Regiment soldier, Sammy Brush, in 1981. Coincidentally, Brush is now a DUP member of the council. Claims by the former UDR soldier that the motion was designed solely to hurt him were rejected by Sinn Féin, who said that it was based purely on the issues of justice and due process.

Councillor Pádraig Quinn, leader of the Sinn Féin group on the council, said:

“The wrongful detention of these prisoners is completely unjustifiable. The continued internment of Marian Price and Martin Corey is an infringement of their human rights and clearly undermines the justice system. Their imprisonment is unjust and is in defiance of rulings by the courts in both cases. Both have been granted bail yet remain in prison.

“In relation to Gerry McGeough, we are calling for his release based on the fact that we are now in a shared and peaceful society. His wrongful arrest and detention is a blatant breach by the British Government of their commitments in the Weston Park Agreement and only fuels the misconception that the North has not progressed.

“All three are being detained due to their political believes and I don’t believe the North can ever truly move on until these acts of blatant abuse are made a thing of the past. All three should be released immediately.”