Repatriate Irish prisoners back home to Ireland

national | crime and justice | press release

Thursday November 10, 2005 22:22

by Concerned Person

Bring the prisoners Home

We need your help to Repatriate Irish prisoners back home to Ireland. Please take afew moments to write to this minister and tell him to bring our lads home.

a cairde

We need your help to Repatriate Irish prisoners back home to Ireland. Please take afew moments to write to this minister and tell him to bring our lads home.

Here is the information on the men, the addresses to which to write and a sample letter. I have found over the years that anonymous letters get very short shrift. It makes a much greater impact if you include your name and address. I usually send the same letter by email and by post.

I also usually get a letter out about once a week. I can update you as I get new information.

Declan Rafferty
Michael McDonald
Fintan Paul O'Farrell
Noel Maguire
Aidan Hulme
Robert Hulme
James Patrick McCormack

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Michael McDowell, TD
Address:
5 Triangle,
Ranelagh
Dublin 6.
Ireland

Phone Work:
Phone Constituency: (01) 498 8084
Phone Home:

Email:
info@michaelmcdowell.ie

Website:
http://michaelmcdowell.ie/

Fax Work:
Fax Constituency: (01) 498 8087
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SAMPLE LETTER
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Dear Mr McDowell:
I am writing to you on behalf of seven Irish citizens currently being held in prisons in England.

Mr. Dermot Ahern and Mr. Seamus Kirk, as well as many others have addressed the issue of their repatriation with you on several occasions.

All the paperwork is in your department, sir. All hoops have been jumped through, all deferences made, all "i's" dotted and "t's" crossed- to political beurocrat perfection, and yet these men still sit in prison in a foreign country and their families are continuing to be forced to travel great distances at great expense to visit them.

As you are well aware, one of these men has had his mother die during this process and he was denied permission to attend her funeral. How many more family members must die?

I am well aware that your political stance is far different from that of these men, but that is the beauty of a democracy. Different ideals but EQUALITY of treatment.

The men are not being treated equally. Their repatriation process has been far slower than that of others, and the legal path made deliberately more circuitous than is required.

They are Irish citizens, sir and you are an agent of the Irish government and Irish law.

Please do your job!

I am honoured to write on behalf of the families of Declan Rafferty, Michael McDonald, Fintan O'Farrell, James McCormack, Noel Maguire, Aidan Hulme and Robert Hulme.

Is mise le meas:

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Comments (9 of 9)

why?

by paying...

Fri Nov 11, 2005 11:08

If people commit crimes and are convicted in a different juristiction then they should serve their time there.

It is a punishment after all.

Secondly, it costs a rather significant amount of money to house prisoners. I have yet to see a non-political reason why the State (and therefore those of us who pay tax) should take on such a burden.

Maybe if you don't want to do time in a foreign prison you shouldn't do the crime.

POWs

by pat c

Fri Nov 11, 2005 11:40

I campaigned for Political status for IRA and INLA prisoners. While I think the campaigns carried out by the CIRA and RIRA are futile and divisive I would be a hypocrite if I didnt support Political Status for those who are carrying out the same actions that the IRA did not so long ago.

These men are POWS and should be returned to Ireland.

to "paying"

by Seamus

Fri Nov 11, 2005 13:05

In reply to the small minded "paying" its one thing to say that prisoners should not be transferred and should serve their punishment, but should their familes be punished too??? They are the ones who have to travel a long way to visit their loved one. The British are very found of doing as much as possible to punish the families by constantly moving the prisoners around from different prisons that are very far apart. Do you think collective punishment is acceptable?

Seamus

by Lackie

Fri Nov 11, 2005 13:44

Sorry mate,

The criminals punished their own families.

Try not point the finger of blame at the blameless.

fully agree

by Lackie supporter

Fri Nov 11, 2005 14:12

Maybe the criminals should have thought of that before they commited their crimes.

This isn't about political prisoners or a debate about their crimes, or if the decisions were just and fair etc.

Its about a simple fact that if you are convicted in a country you should do your time in that juristiction. If an Italian murdered someone on the streets of Dublin then s/he similarly should stay in an irish prison.

lackies

Fri Nov 11, 2005 14:17

its a well established procedure for prisoners to be returned to their home country to serve their sentences. such a treaty exists between britain and ireland.

in any case they are not criminals: they are Political Prisoners.

International treaty

by Barry

Fri Nov 11, 2005 15:37

An international treaty exists between many countries that any prisoner convicted of an offence has the right to serve it in their own countries . Such an arrangement has existed for years between Ireland and Britain . Those men are fully entitled to serve out their sentences in Ireland , its the governemnts who are deliberately messing them and their families about .

And a couple of those guys had fuck all to do with anything and shouldnt be in jail in the first place . They were jailed because of who they associated with , not what they did . Irish in the wrong place at the wrong time . The ones who were involved took full responsibility but the Brits jailed them anyway .

No, no and no

by Joe Public

Fri Nov 11, 2005 20:05

A prisoner does not have the right to serve their sentence in an Irish prison anymore than they have the right to decide Cloverhill over Mountjoy.

If you commit a crime in a country then you must accept the punishment under that nations laws.

The family travelling is the prisoners fault not the nation. Im sure Britain would rather they hadn't commited the crime in the first place.

Should we take all Irish prisoners out of every jail across the globe?

Irish in the wrong place

by rosie

Fri Nov 11, 2005 21:08

Tá, cinnte. Seachain "tiocfaidh ár lá" sin ar do fhón soghlaiste. Is marfóir é!

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Repatriate Irish prisoners back home to Ireland

Comments (9 of 9)