Sinn Féin Upper Bann Assembly member John O'Dowd has disclosed that unionist paramilitaries in Portadown are forcing members of the Portuguese community to pay protection money "if they don't live in the right landlord's house". Free article

Nationalist residents of North Belfast have hit out at the PSNI after an incident in which a PSNI member indiscriminately sprayed seven people with CS Spray at 2am on Sunday morning 7 November. Free article

The family of West Belfast man Kieran Milnes, convicted for assaulting a youth who tried to steal his car, have handed a letter of protest into the Police Ombudsman's office. Colleen and Jackie Milnes, accompanied by Sinn Féin MLA Michael Ferguson, went to Nuala O'Loan's office on Thursday 4 November. Free article

Sinn Féin Councillor Paul Butler has welcomed the move by the Police Ombudsman's Office to investigate a gun and ammunition find close to a Sinn Féin office on the Stewartstown Road on Wednesday 13 October. Free article

Sinn Féin in Derry has criticised the PSNI after an incident in the city when loyalists pointed a gun at two Catholic youths. Free article

The PSNI Special Branch offered to pay a 37-year-old Sion Mills man £500 a month to spy on so-called dissident republicans in the Strabane area. Free article

Sinn Féin has asked for a meeting with Dublin's Minister for Foreign Affairs, Dermot Ahern, to discuss anti-nationalist discrimination in Lisburn Council and question him about the commitments made by his predecessor Brian Cowen to monitor the situation. Free article

Speaking at a weekend conference in the Hilton Hotel, Belfast titled "Fair Employment in Northern Ireland: a generation on" Sinn Féin National Chairperson Mitchel McLaughlin MLA pointed to the long and difficult struggle for equality in the Six Counties and called for radical action to complete the journey. Free article

Belfast republican author and newspaper columnist, Danny Morrison, recently held the West Cork launch of his latest book, Rebel Columns, at O'Donovan's Hotel, Clonakilty, County Cork. Despite it being the night of "the big flood", over 20 people turned out and a very enjoyable evening was had. Free article

The Independent Workers' Union is campaigning for an amendment to the Unfair Dismissals legislation, which will see the period from which a sacked employee can take a dismissals case reduced to three months. Currently, a worker can only claim unfair dismissal after 12 months and the Union says that many employers are taking advantage of this timeframe by firing people who seek better conditions during their first year of employment. Free article