<HTML><PRE>Subj:	RMD971029 Irish news for Wednesday 29 October
Date:	97-10-30 07:25:20 EST
From:	rmlist-reply@irlnet.com (RM_Distribution)
To:	rmlist-reply@irlnet.com (Multiple recipients of RM_Distribution - Sent by)

     IRISH NEWS ROUND-UP
     Wednesday, 29 October


1.   US anger as H-Blocks man gets bail in Dublin
2.   Unionists 'ignoring necessity for negotiation'
3.   Fine Gael linked to leaks
4.   Derry City Council discriminates
5.   Sinn Fein's US Representative to visit Columbus, Ohio
6.   Analysis: Vote No in the forgotten referendum

____________________________________________________________


>>>> Anger in US as H-Blocks man gets bail in Dublin


By Laura Friel, Bill Delaney and Paddy Newell in the US 


H-Block escaper Anthony Kelly was today granted bail by the High
Court, a move welcomed by Sinn Fein. But the party has
highlighted the denial of bail by a US court this week to three
other H-Block escapers facing extradition to Britain from
California.

Kelly, who had been living openly in Donegal in the 26 Counties
for years, was suddenly arrested at his home last week on foot of
an RUC extradition warrant.

Kelly's bail conditions include two independent sureties of
20,000 be local TD Harry Blaney and prominent Donegal
businessman, Hugh Magee.

Now pressure is increasing on the Clinton Administration to 
grant political asylum to the three remaining H Block men, as
it emerged today that the decision was made despite advice from
the Irish government.

Kevin Barry Artt, Pol Brennan and Terry Kirby, three H Block
escapees currently fighting extradition proceedings by the
British government were denied bail by a US court this week for
the second time. Presiding Judge Legg refused to grant bail
despite the petitions from the  Dublin government and Sinn Fein's
chief negotiator Martin McGuinness.   The Irish government said
the release of the men would be a "helpful thing" to create an
atmosphere in which the Irish peace process could go forward.

The frustration of activists is compounded by the knowledge that
all three men had previously been granted bail. In light of this
and the ongoing peace process, their continuing detention seems
all the more arbitary.  Anger is not only being voiced by Irish
American supporters -- the issue is being highlighted within much
wider political and legal circles. Hal Bliss, a member of the
defence team, said the decision of the US federal Ninth Circuit
Court to extradite Jimmy Smyth "eliminated any possible plea for
political asylum". "When I pleaded for Jimmy Symth it was like
going up against a political brick wall", said Bliss. An
investigator for the State of California has described the
extradition treaty with Britain as "a hand-shake deal".

Judge Legg, an appointee of Ronald Reagan during the infamous
Reagan-Thatcher relationship, has a history of unfairness when
deciding the fate of Irish prisoners seeking political asylum.
Legg has already presided over the fate of a fourth escapee,
Jimmy Smyth, who was extradited early in 1996. It was Legg who
revoked bail for the remaining three in August 1997.

The struggle against the extradition of Irish political refugees
began by exposing the British government's abuse of human rights
in the North of Ireland. British misrule in Ireland is now a
matter of public record. In the face of overwhelming evidence,
the fact that US courts continue to deny Irish men and women
political asylum, is bringing the entire American system into
question. Legal and political experts are identifying the terms
of the extradition treaty granted to Britain as undermining US
sovereignty.

The treaty is unique to American legislation and law in two ways.
First, it is a one way extradition treaty. Unlike any other
country, the British government has no legal responsibility to
reciprocate any request for extradition by the United States.
Second, by eliminating any possible plea for political asylum,
the treaty violates international legal standards in it's
application. At the time of ratification, the US Committee on
Foreign Relations warned that the treaty created "a precedent
profoundly altering the US treatment of fugitives...for the first
time in history, a person fighting against extradition would not
be able to present the political defence in a US court."

More recently, the group, Lawyers Alliance for Justice has argued
that "the extradition of Pol Brennan, Kevin Artt and Terry Kirby
would undermine the integrity of the United States judicial
system both domestically and within the international community."
For the American people, there is a much greater issue at stake
than the right to political asylum of three Irish men. In the
words of Liam Mellows, speaking during a visit to the United
States in 1919, "Let America speak now on behalf of Ireland, or
let it stop talking about freedom."

____________________________________________________________


>>>> De Klerk sees 'necessity for negotiation'



The rights and equality of the people of the six counties must be
safeguarded by any constitutional changes, Sinn Fein said
yesterday.

Meanwhile members of the Ulster Unionist Party are continuing to
insist on the removal of Articles Two and Three of the 26
Counties Constitution before any progess is made on North/South
relationships at the talks table.  And even as the unionists
continue to refuse to speak directly to Sinn Fein, the
ex-President of South Africa, FW De Klerk has spoken of the need
for real negotiations.

The Dublin government and it's allies were, "pitching their
expectations too high", maintained UUP deputy leader John Taylor.
In response David Andrews , Dublin's Foreign Affairs minister
pointed out that, "the Articles were part of the negotiations".

That the Stormont negotiations are meant to be all inclusive is a
point constantly lost on the unionists.

Meanwhile in its submission to Strands One and Two of the talks
Sinn Fein called for new political arrangements that would,
"serve the broad objectives of removing the causes of conflict".

Sinn Fein proposed that these new arrangements should occur in
the context of a unitary state with a central government, but
should involve the maximum decentralisation of government
structures in the interest of maximisimg local democracy.

And in an interesting intervention ex-President of South Africa,
FW De Klerk, speaking on RTE radio said, "I think the most
important one is that you can only succeed with negotiations if
the main role players acknowledge that there is a necessity for
negotiation".

Welcoming the comments Sinn Fein chairperson Mitchel McLaughlin
said he felt the remarks were, "particularly appropriate for the
leaders of the unionist parties".

Added McLaughlin, "the changes identified by Mr De Klerk that
lead to negotiations are the acceptance by the main protagonists
of the necessity for negotiations, personal contact, private and
public, between negotiators and a change in mindset on all sides.

"These guidelines are of course common sense", concluded
McLaughlin.


CONSTITUTIONAL CHANGE MUST PROTECT RIGHTS


Sinn Fein will formally table a paper to the talks process within
the next fortnight on justice issues, rights and safeguards.

According to a preliminary Sinn Fein document submitted to Strand
Three yesterday, all aspects of equality -- political, social,
economic and cultural -- must be at the heart of any new
agreement but cannot be contingent on reaching an overall
settlement.

Sinn Fein said there must be comprehensive, systematic, effective
and entrenched protection of human rights.  The right to be
accepted as being British or Irish, or both, should not be
diminished by any new peace settlement.

"Human rights should be guaranteed, including, if necessary,
internationally, on a basis of equivalence throughout all of
Ireland, for example, by incorporation of the European Convention
and the enactment of a comprehensive bill of rights into domestic
law."

And Sinn Fein said that the validity of both the nationalist and
unionist identities in Ireland and the democratic rights of every
citizen on this island must be accepted and upheld.

Sinn Fein said: "The two governments, and the political agreement
itself, must ensure that, in regard to the people of the six
counties the constitutional changes should be such as not to
diminish in any way their existing citizenship rights and their
birthright to be accepted as being British or Irish - or both -
as appropriate and desired.

"Agreed arrangements must reflect as fully as possible the rights
of both major traditions, and promote cooperation between them.

"They must evenhandedly afford both traditions parity of esteem
and equality of treatment in all spheres. They must enhance and
facilitate the development of a truly pluralist ethos throughout
the island of Ireland."

Sinn Fein argued that the strand three discussions between both
governments must be based on the right of the Irish people to
national self-determination, on the right of the Irish nation to
sovereignty and independence and on mutual respect and equality
between the peoples of Ireland and Britain.


____________________________________________________________


>>>> Fine Gael linked to leaks


By Jennifer Furey


"There has never been, as far as I am aware, a case of documents being
released which would be damaging to the national interest," Former
Fine Gael leader and Irish Prime Minister Garret FitzGerald said in
a newspaper article Tuesday.

He is aware now.

Later that morning, a man linked to Fine Gael was arrested by Irish
detectives investigating the leaking of confidential documents
relating to the Irish peace process from the Department of Foreign
Affairs in Dublin. He was held at the Lucan Garda station for 12 hours
under Section four of the Criminal Justice Act before being released.
A file on the case will be sent to the Irish Attorney General. 

The leaked papers included highly damaging documents on
Anglo-Irish relations dating from 1994.  Other, less significant
but more topical papers, were leaked in an attempt to smear
Belfast professor Mary McAleese, the leading candidate for
Thursday's presidential election. The latter provided material
for absurd and rather dated condemnations of McAleese's Republican
"sympathies" by anti-nationalist elements.

Even before the arrest was made, Taoiseach Bertie Ahern of the
Fianna Fail party accused Fine Gael of being behind the smear
campaign, which he described as "criminal, irresponsible, and an
example of dirty tricks."  Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams also
indicated that he felt Fine Gael was behind the campaign to smear
McAleese and by extension the entire Northern Nationalist
population. Former Taoiseach John Bruton of the Fine Gael party,
an outspoken critic of McAleese, denied the claims and demanded
an apology from Ahern.

The man arrested Tuesday was an advisor to former Fine Gael Junior
Minister Guy Mitchell during the last government and did have access
to the files. Over the weekend, Mitchell confirmed that a considerable
number of the documents central to the Garda investigation of the
leaks were among private papers he had taken in 40 small boxes when he
left office. He claimed that items relating to the North of Ireland
had been untouched since, were kept under lock and key, and could not
have been leaked to the media.

In an article in Tuesday's Irish Times, Garret FitzGerald said that he
himself had taken 400 boxes of papers relating to his periods in
office, including copies of the weekly "green books" compiled by the
Anglo-Irish division of the Department of Foreign Affairs, and that
this was a fairly common occurrence.

He stated that "there is an assumption that [ministers] will keep
[documents] safe and will not use them against the incoming government
and in a manner damaging to the State."

However, the leaked documents were so inflammatory that even the
conservative Irish Independent newspaper refused to print the contents
of the documents for fear of crippling the peace process and
endangering the lives of those involved in negotiations.


POLL SHOWS VOTER DISAPPROVAL OF FINE GAEL TACTICS

A poll carried out by the Irish Independent has revealed that 64
percent of voters think Fine Gael leader John Bruton was unfair in his
criticism of McAleese after Gerry Adams said if he had a vote, he
would give his first preference to her. Furthermore, 52 percent say
her campaign was not damaged by Bruton's allegations or by the leaking
of confidential government documents.

Even Fine Gael voters voiced little support for Bruton's attacks. Half
of them told pollsters that Bruton acted unfairly in criticising
McAleese. Other parties were more critical of the Fine Gael leader's
actions. Fifty-one percent of Labour supporters disapproved. Finally,
77 percent of Fianna Fail see Mr. Bruton as unfair in the way he
criticised McAleese. 


McALEESE VICTORY BEYOND QUESTION

Also on Tuesday, Sinn Fein chief negotiator Martin McGuinness said
"that Mary McAleese is going to win is, I think, beyond question." He
added that, paradoxically, the Fine Gael smear campaign and leaking of
documents "will have a big impact on the election, probably in terms
of the size of the victory achieved by Mary McAleese." 

McGuinness then questioned whether the leaks were cleared at the
highest level of Fine Gael, saying "If this is so, in reality what we
have seen is a constitutional party in the south of our country having
in a very selfish way put at risk the lives of very many people who
have been attempting to make important contributions towards the
building of a peace process and settlement in the north of Ireland. I
think that is a very serious matter indeed." 


From Sinn Fein's parliamentary office in Dublin, Michael MacDonncha adds:

The name of the Fine Gael adviser was being freely spoken here
as soon as the news broke of his arrest. No-one was surprised.
The leaked documents on which the Fine Gaeler was questioned are
the ones given to the Sunday Independent and which it did  not
publish. The newspaper said it received them from anonymous
sources claiming to be "Fianna Fail dissidents". There is general
acknowledgement that this was a very crude attempt to divert
attention from the real leakers.

While no charges have yet been brought, the early morning arrest
in Leixlip, County Kildare could be the beginning of one hell of
a political crisis for Fine Gael which will send shockwaves
through the corridors of Leinster House and beyond.


____________________________________________________________


>>>> Derry City Council discriminates

In a landmark judgment by the fair employment tribunal yesterday,
Derry City Council is being forced to defend an unprecedented
case of anti-Catholic discrimination, currently being heard in
Belfast.

After two days of evidence, the tribunal ruled that a complaint
of discrimination by a council employee, Brian McKenna, must be
allowed to proceed. The tribunal's decision means that the
manager of personnel services Peter Sidebottom, and Derry City
Council must answer a charge of discrimination on religious
and/or political grounds against Mr. McKenna.

The claim of discrimination results from a chargehand promotion
in the motor-transport section of the Council's technical
department in July 1995.

The ruling to proceed was made in spite of arguments by Michael
Lavery Q.C., that McKenna's application did not fall within
statutory time-limits and should be dismissed without a hearing.

Seamus Treacey, BL, instructed by Madden & Finucane argued that a
litany of damning evidence existed that McKenna had been denied
promotion in favour of a Protestant applicant, despite his
equivalent experience and higher qualifications.

The case is reported to have caused consternation amongst members
of Derry Council who had not been informed until this week about
the charge of anti-catholic discrimination against them.

It is reliably understood that some members of council are
demanding that the chief executive institute an independent
investigation by the local gouvernment auditor into possible
breaches of the city Council's internal procedures and the
expenditure of large sums of public money in defense of this
case.

McKenna's tribunal case and legal representatives are being
supported by the voluntary anti-discrimination group, Equality,
and by his own family circle. The case is ongoing.


____________________________________________________________


>>>> Sinn Fein's US Representative to visit Columbus, Ohio


Mairead Keane, the Sinn Fein representative to the U.S., will
present an update on the Irish peace negotiations at The Ohio
State University School of Law on Friday,  October 31.

Keane, who has been the Sinn Fein spokesperson in Washington,
D.C., for more than two years, is currently in Ireland taking
part in the negotiations, along with eight other political
parties and the British and Irish governments, at Stormont Castle
in Belfast. She will fly directly to Ohio when she leaves the
negotiations, stopping first at Oberlin College and then at OSU.

As the party's U.S. representative, Keane meets regularly with
members of the U.S Congress, and keeps in constant contact with
the White House on issues concerning the party and the 43 percent
of the nationalist people in the north of Ireland which it
represents. Sinn Fein polled 17 percent in the May general
election, making it the third largest party in the north of
Ireland. It is also the largest party on the Belfast City
Council, sharing an equal number of seats, 13, with the Ulster
Unionist Party.

Keane, educated in Dublin and San Francisco, was co-founder of
the Sinn Fein Women's Department and was Director of Sinn Fein's
Community Advice Centers in the 1980s. She is also former
Director of the Sinn Fein Education Department and the party's
Peace Commission.

Upon her appointment to the diplomatic post in Washington, Sinn
Fein President Gerry Adams was quoted in Newsweek Magazine,
saying, "The British have 600 employees in America working for
their embassy.  We'll have one Irish woman. I think maybe the
British are at a disadvantage."

Keane's appearance in Columbus is being sponsored by the local
unit of the Irish Northern Aid Committee, a New York-based
non-profit humanitarian organization which raises funds for the
families of Irish political prisoners.

David Fanning, chairperson of the Columbus Diarmuid O'Neill Unit
of INA said he was pleased Keane would be speaking at OSU.

"We're pleased Ms. Keane will make Ohio her first stop upon
returning from the negotiations. There is tremendous support for
peace in Ireland throughout the Mid-West, particularly in Ohio,
where supporters are making every effort to support a resolution
of the conflict."

Keane will speak at the Law School Auditorium on Oct. 31 at 7:30
p.m. The event is open to everyone and admission is free.


____________________________________________________________



>>>> Analysis: Vote No in the forgotten referendum



There is a referendum to amend the constitution in the 26
Counties on the same day as the presidential election next week.
Not many people know that. This referendum is the best kept
secret in years. Only in the past few days has the government
taken any measures to inform the public of  what they are being
asked to do with the constitution.

The issue is Cabinet confidentially. It dates back to 1988 when
the Fianna Fil Attorney-General went to the High Court to stop
the Beef Tribunal from inquiring into Fianna Fil Cabinet
decisions on export credit insurance to Iraq. The High Court
rejected the Attorney-General's request but the Supreme Court
allowed it and copperfastened Cabinet confidentiality.

The present referendum is designed supposedly to relax that
outright ban on revelations of Cabinet proceedings. But its main
purpose seems to be to facilitate the upcoming Moriarty Tribunal
on payments to Charles Haughey and Michael Lowry. Not for the
first time the electorate is being asked to insert into the
constitution a wording based on short-term expediency rather than
long-standing principles. The proposed amendment seems
unnecessarily sweeping and could, for example, make
unconsitutional  the publication by former Cabinet members of
memoirs, historical accounts and diaries, even if the publication
was long after the event.

There has been no real debate and less real information supplied
by the proposers of this consititional change. They have rejected
the option of postponing the referendum until the Amsterdam
Treaty referendum next year. As an opion poll showed last week
the public wants openness not more secrecy, with 72 per cent
favouring access to all relevant Cabinet information.

For these reasons alone you should vote NO tomorrow.



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