7 May 1998 Edition
Bessbrook demands demilitarisation
By Deirdre Feehan
On Saturday May 2 a protest was held in the South Armagh village of Bessbrook calling for an end to Crown forces harassment of the local people. More than a 150 from the Bessbrook and High Street residents who assembled to march to the permanent checkpoint in the Green Road area were confronted by a line of RUC men and landrovers.
The RUC held a banner claiming that the protest was illegal and ordering the people to disperse immediately. However, the residents formed orderly rows and began their march, forcing the RUC cordon further back until they reached the checkpoint, while RUC loudhailers chanted that the protest was illegal and that any participants or organisers were liable for arrest and prosecution. At the checkpoint, the crowd was addressed by local Sinn Fein Councillors Brendan Lewis and Conor Murphy.
Heavily armed British soldiers disrupted a GAA camogie match at Peadar O Doirnnin's at Forkhill in South Armagh last week.
Local Sinn Fein representative Conor Murphy described how a large British army footpatrol backed up by two helicopter gunships hovering overhead deliberately disrupted the game. ``Heavily armed men acting in a purely provocative and menacing manner is not the type of behaviour conducive to the lifting of rule 21'' said Murphy.
On Saturday May 2 a protest was held in the South Armagh village of Bessbrook calling for an end to Crown forces harassment of the local people. More than a 150 from the Bessbrook and High Street residents who assembled to march to the permanent checkpoint in the Green Road area were confronted by a line of RUC men and landrovers.
The RUC held a banner claiming that the protest was illegal and ordering the people to disperse immediately. However, the residents formed orderly rows and began their march, forcing the RUC cordon further back until they reached the checkpoint, while RUC loudhailers chanted that the protest was illegal and that any participants or organisers were liable for arrest and prosecution. At the checkpoint, the crowd was addressed by local Sinn Fein Councillors Brendan Lewis and Conor Murphy.
British army disrupt South Armagh GAA
Heavily armed British soldiers disrupted a GAA camogie match at Peadar O Doirnnin's at Forkhill in South Armagh last week.
Local Sinn Fein representative Conor Murphy described how a large British army footpatrol backed up by two helicopter gunships hovering overhead deliberately disrupted the game. ``Heavily armed men acting in a purely provocative and menacing manner is not the type of behaviour conducive to the lifting of rule 21'' said Murphy.