19.1.05
IRA2
**Posted to the group
FROM THE PAT FINUCANE CENTER
See below further reaction to arrest from Bloody Sunday
Trust & full programme of events planned for Bloody Sunday 2005
Bloody Sunday Trust/Outrage at arrest of Derry man
The Bloody Sunday Trust has described as disgraceful
the arrest of Derry man Martin Doherty today following his
conviction for contempt for the Bloody Sunday Inquiry.
Michael McKinney, whose brother was murdered on Bloody
Sunday, speaking immediately after the arrest of Mr Doherty said:
'It is disgraceful that after everything that has
occurred at this Inquiry that the only person to be arrested and
imprisoned to date will be a Derry man who clearly did not murder
anyone on Bloody Sunday.
'It was not Martin Doherty who killed or wounded 28 people in Derry
on the 30th January 1972 but of those who were responsible, none have
been arrested and none have been imprisoned for their actions that day.
Martin Doherty has shown a lot less contempt for this inquiry than those
who took the stand and refused to answer questions or told downright lies.
'Indeed, if the judicial system had pursued those
responsible for Bloody Sunday as they have pursued Mr Doherty, we
would not have witnessed the whitewash of Widgery or needed this
second Bloody Inquiry.
ENDS
Time for Truth
From Bogside to Basra
Each year the annual Bloody Sunday commemoration programme of events
seeks to breathe life into the inscription on the monument to the
victims of that day: 'Their epitaph is in the ongoing struggle for
democracy'. So while remembering the 14 local people murdered on Bloody
Sunday and their families' continuing struggle for truth and justice we
also consider the consequences this act of state terrorism, continues to
have on events right up to this day.
Had Lord Widgery in 1972 acknowledged the truth of what happened on
Bloody Sunday, it may not of itself have fundamentally changed the nature
of the British State or its role in Ireland. It would however have
made it harder for that state to continue to sell the lie that its army
was an impartial 'peacekeeping' force. In turn this would have made
it more difficult for its soldiers to continue to literally get away
with murder here and for the same unwritten institutional policy to be
now claiming the lives of uncounted victims in Iraq.
So as this year's programme creates space for a local assessment of
'The Truth of Bloody Sunday' in the wake of Lord Saville's inquiry and
we wait to see if he has the courage to tell that truth, we will
not just reflect on our experience of British Army occupation here but
use it to better understand the plight of the peoples of the Middle
East.
'From Bogside to Basra' will discuss the illegal US/UK occupation
of Iraq through the lens of Fallujah and Bloody Sunday. 'An
Fhirinn' will remember the many victims of state collusion here, and it is
appropriate that this year's 'Memorial Lecture' will be delivered
by Geraldine Finucane, wife of the murdered solicitor Pat Finucane.
'Conflicts of Remembrance' will explore the difficulty in finding
ways to remember all the dead of a conflict when the truth of what it was
is still disputed. 'At a Crossroads' will compare and contrast
the prospects of building a just and lasting peace in Ireland and in
Palestine. For the duration of the week's events, Free Derry Wall will
be painted in the colours of the Palestinian flag as an act of solidarity.
More generally these events create a space to come and reflect with
others on the importance of democracy here and throughout the world and
to stand shoulder to shoulder, in solidarity with the families of the
victims of Bloody Sunday and victims of injustice everywhere.
Truth-seeking in the cause of justice
Programme Film Strand
There is a crucial connection between justice and journalism. How can
we build the solidarity needed to create justice if facts are distorted
and the context that generates the facts is seldom if ever reported?
And there is always the ultimate sanction of the powerful, where
journalists who seek to report the full picture, themselves become a target.
All screenings 8pm at the Gasyard Centre (except
Divine Intervention, see below), Admission Free
Monday 24 January
Free Derry Tours/ Bloody Sunday Tour.
Tours at 2.00pm Monday to Friday, departing from the Bloody Sunday
Centre in Foyle Street. Tours at 12noon and 3.00pm Saturday will depart
from Pilots Row. Family members or some of those wounded will accompany
each tour. Tours cost £4.00 per person Mon-Fri (Saturdays free). For
bookings contact Ruairi on 07793 285972.
(EXHIBITION) 'Murder on a Sunday', AOH Hall, FoyleStreet.
An exhibition of Charlie McLaughlin's paintings about Bloody Sunday
will be on display in the AOH in Foyle Street from 24 January.
(EXHIBITION) An Fhirinne Exhibition Launch, Pilots Row, 7.30pm.
The Mayor Councillor Gearoid O hEara, will launch this powerful
photographic exhibition of over 200 victims of state collusion with loyalist
paramilitaries, followed by speakers from An Fhirinne Campaign and the
Pat Finucane Centre. Exhibition runs each day until Saturday 30th
January. All Welcome.
(FILM) News from the Holy Land (UK, 2004, 50 mins, Documentary) Gasyard
Centre, 8.00pm.
Written/Directed by Jake Lynch and Annabel McGoldrick this is an
illustrated call for a change in the way the Palestine-Israeli conflict is
reported.
Tuesday 25 January
Museum of Free Derry Exhibition launch, Bloody Sunday Centre, Foyle
Street, 7.30pm.
An exhibition detailing the Bloody Sunday Trust's plans for the Museum
of Free Derry in Glenfada Park. Exhibition open Tuesday 25 January to
Tuesday 1 February.
(FILM) Death in Gaza (UK, 2004, 80 mins, Documentary), Gasyard Centre,
8.00pm.
Written/Reported by Saira Shah, Filmed/Directed by James Millar, this
is his poignant and unflinching look at the lives of three Palestinian
children caught up in the cycle of violence, dramatically culminating in
the director's own death at the hands of the Israeli Security Forces.
Wednesday 26 January
(FILM) Bi Dam (With Blood) (US, Work in Progress, 50 mins, Documentary),
Gasyard Centre, 8.00 pm.
By Dan O'Reilly Rowe and Juliana Friedman. Using personal situations to
demonstrate the spirit crushing impact of the occupation on health
care, Bi Dam gives insight into a crucial aspect of life in the cities,
rural villages, and refugee camps of the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
Introduced on the night by Juliana Friedman (producer/director)
Bloody Sunday Memorial Quiz, Sean Dolan's GAA Club, Creggan, 9.00pm.
All welcome, £10.00 per team.
Thursday 27 January
(PANEL DISCUSSION) From Bogside to Basra, Gasyard Centre, 7.00pm
Ironically the 30th January is the date the US Government chose for
'their' elections in Iraq. From three very different perspectives
the panel will discuss the US/British illegal occupation of Iraq through
the lens of Fallujah (where 13 civilians where shot dead by US Marines
at a peaceful protest on 30th April 2003) and Derry's Bloody Sunday.
Speakers: Eddy Cherry, a former British Soldier, stationed in Derry,
now a leading member of 'Ex Soldiers Against The War', Dr Abdul
Al-Jibouri an Iraqi scientist, living in Derry and Paul O'Connor,
Coordinator of The Pat Finucane Centre, Derry. Chair: Jim Keys
(FILM) Divine Intervention (Yadon Ilaheyya) Gasyard Centre, 8.30pm
(2002, Fr/Ger/Morocco/Neth/US, 93 mins, Feature)
Divine Intervention (Yadon Ilaheyya) reeled in the Jury Prize at the
Cannes Film Festive and went on to win the Screen International Award at
the European Film Awards. However the US Academy Of Motion Pictures
told the producers of the film that it was not eligible to compete in the
Academy Awards (The Oscars) 'as Palestine is not a state we recognise
in our rules'. So it's with great pleasure that we have this
opportunity to screen this feature as part of this year's programme.
It's an engagingly offbeat Palestinian response to how Israeli
checkpoints disrupt and frustrate the lives ofordinary individuals.
The film begins with a deadpan comic sequence involving
neighbourly neuroses, rivalries and rage in Nazareth. There is intelligence
and freshness in the film's mostly wordless comic style.
Friday 28 January
Bloody Sunday Memorial Mass, St Mary's, Creggan, 7.30pm.
All Welcome.
(MEMORIAL LECTURE) Annual Bloody Sunday Lecture,
Guildhall, 8.15pm
The Annual Bloody Sunday Lecture, delivered this year
by Geraldine Finucane, widow of the murdered Belfast solicitor Pat
Finucane. Event sponsored by the Bloody Sunday trust and the Pat
Finucane Centre. Admission by donation.
Saturday 29 January
(PANEL DISCUSSION) Conflicts of Remembrance, Pilots Row, 12noon &
2.00pm.
Panel discussion and question and answer session where guest
speakers will explore how and why we remember victims of conflict.
(PANEL DISCUSSION) The Truth of Bloody Sunday: Perspectives
Pilots Row, 2.00pm & 3.30pm.
Speakers John Kelly, brother of Michael, shot dead on
Bloody Sunday, legal academic Angela Hegarty, Writer/academic Niall O
Dochartaigh. The panel will present their perspectives on Bloody Sunday
as people who have followed the Saville Inquiry, before the event is
opened up for a Q & A with the audience. The event will close with the
launch of an updated edition of Niall O'Dochartaigh's book
'From Civil Rights to Armalites' which includes a new chapter on Bloody
Sunday.
(PANEL DISCUSSION) Holy Cross in Context: Communities in Conflict over
Shared Space in North Belfast, Pilots Row 3.30 & 5.00pm.
Was the horror at Holy Cross School in 2001, as loyalists
attacked the school, the result of a breakdown of relations
between two communities? Or just naked sectarianism?
What was the damage and were any lessons learned?
Anne Cadwallader, author of, "Holy Cross - The Untold Story",
Tom Holland, republican community activist and Louanne
Martin, who interviewed the children, try to answer these
questions.
(FILM) Film Screenings, Pilots Row, 12noon & 5.00pm
'Dangerous Liaisons' (BBC Spotlight documentary on collusion);
'Lifting a Dark Cloud' (PFC produced documentary on Kathleen Thompson)
'Bloody Sunday: Massacre of the Innocents' (Canada, documentary)
(PANEL DISCUSSION) At A Crossroads: Palestine & Ireland, Road Maps &
Road Blocks to Peace Calgach Centre, 7.30pm
Speakers Dr Jamal Zahalka and Mitchel McLaughlin.
Dr Jamal Zahalka, a Palestinian MP who sits in the Israeli Knesset and
Mitchel McLaughlin MLA, Sinn Fein Chairperson and senior negotiator,
will discuss the Irish and Palestinian peace processes, state repression
and violence. Dr Zahalka has been centrally involved in the struggle
for truth and justice around Israel's own 'Bloody Sunday' against
the Palestinian people. As Palestinians living inside Israel came out
onto the streets in support of their comrades staging of a second
intifada in the occupied territories, the Israeli police force opened fire,
shooting 13 people dead. Since that day in October 2000 Jamal Zahalka
has been working closely with the families of the dead in their efforts
to take a legal case against the Israeli police force and itsgovernment.
Dr Zahalka will speak on life as a Palestinian living inside Israel, on
Israel's murderous occupation of Palestinian land and its ruthless
response to Palestinian resistance through its intifada. He will
also speak on the current situation and the future direction for the
peace process following the tragic death of President Arafat
and the election of Mahmoud Abbas as the new leader of
the Palestinian people.
Traditional Music Night, Solas Arts Centre, Great James Street.
Traditional music, Adm £3.00, BYO.
Bloody Sunday Fundraiser, Gasyard Centre, 9.00pm & 1.00am
Live music and DJs Cruncher, Gary Og, Declan McLaughlin, Eileen
Webster, DJ One-Shot, Eamonn McCann, Joe Mulheron, Paul McCartney and
Robbie McVeigh. Adm £5.00, BYO.
Sunday 30 January
Memorial Service at the Bloody Sunday Monument, Rossville Street,
11.30am sharp. All welcome.
(MARCH & RALLY) Bloody Sunday March and Rally, Creggan shops, 2.30pm.
Speakers from the Bloody Sunday Families, an Fhirinne, Guest
International Speaker, Palestinian MP, Dr Jamal Zahalka, Sinn Fein and the SDLP.
**Posted to the group
FROM THE PAT FINUCANE CENTER
See below further reaction to arrest from Bloody Sunday
Trust & full programme of events planned for Bloody Sunday 2005
Bloody Sunday Trust/Outrage at arrest of Derry man
The Bloody Sunday Trust has described as disgraceful
the arrest of Derry man Martin Doherty today following his
conviction for contempt for the Bloody Sunday Inquiry.
Michael McKinney, whose brother was murdered on Bloody
Sunday, speaking immediately after the arrest of Mr Doherty said:
'It is disgraceful that after everything that has
occurred at this Inquiry that the only person to be arrested and
imprisoned to date will be a Derry man who clearly did not murder
anyone on Bloody Sunday.
'It was not Martin Doherty who killed or wounded 28 people in Derry
on the 30th January 1972 but of those who were responsible, none have
been arrested and none have been imprisoned for their actions that day.
Martin Doherty has shown a lot less contempt for this inquiry than those
who took the stand and refused to answer questions or told downright lies.
'Indeed, if the judicial system had pursued those
responsible for Bloody Sunday as they have pursued Mr Doherty, we
would not have witnessed the whitewash of Widgery or needed this
second Bloody Inquiry.
ENDS
Time for Truth
From Bogside to Basra
Each year the annual Bloody Sunday commemoration programme of events
seeks to breathe life into the inscription on the monument to the
victims of that day: 'Their epitaph is in the ongoing struggle for
democracy'. So while remembering the 14 local people murdered on Bloody
Sunday and their families' continuing struggle for truth and justice we
also consider the consequences this act of state terrorism, continues to
have on events right up to this day.
Had Lord Widgery in 1972 acknowledged the truth of what happened on
Bloody Sunday, it may not of itself have fundamentally changed the nature
of the British State or its role in Ireland. It would however have
made it harder for that state to continue to sell the lie that its army
was an impartial 'peacekeeping' force. In turn this would have made
it more difficult for its soldiers to continue to literally get away
with murder here and for the same unwritten institutional policy to be
now claiming the lives of uncounted victims in Iraq.
So as this year's programme creates space for a local assessment of
'The Truth of Bloody Sunday' in the wake of Lord Saville's inquiry and
we wait to see if he has the courage to tell that truth, we will
not just reflect on our experience of British Army occupation here but
use it to better understand the plight of the peoples of the Middle
East.
'From Bogside to Basra' will discuss the illegal US/UK occupation
of Iraq through the lens of Fallujah and Bloody Sunday. 'An
Fhirinn' will remember the many victims of state collusion here, and it is
appropriate that this year's 'Memorial Lecture' will be delivered
by Geraldine Finucane, wife of the murdered solicitor Pat Finucane.
'Conflicts of Remembrance' will explore the difficulty in finding
ways to remember all the dead of a conflict when the truth of what it was
is still disputed. 'At a Crossroads' will compare and contrast
the prospects of building a just and lasting peace in Ireland and in
Palestine. For the duration of the week's events, Free Derry Wall will
be painted in the colours of the Palestinian flag as an act of solidarity.
More generally these events create a space to come and reflect with
others on the importance of democracy here and throughout the world and
to stand shoulder to shoulder, in solidarity with the families of the
victims of Bloody Sunday and victims of injustice everywhere.
Truth-seeking in the cause of justice
Programme Film Strand
There is a crucial connection between justice and journalism. How can
we build the solidarity needed to create justice if facts are distorted
and the context that generates the facts is seldom if ever reported?
And there is always the ultimate sanction of the powerful, where
journalists who seek to report the full picture, themselves become a target.
All screenings 8pm at the Gasyard Centre (except
Divine Intervention, see below), Admission Free
Monday 24 January
Free Derry Tours/ Bloody Sunday Tour.
Tours at 2.00pm Monday to Friday, departing from the Bloody Sunday
Centre in Foyle Street. Tours at 12noon and 3.00pm Saturday will depart
from Pilots Row. Family members or some of those wounded will accompany
each tour. Tours cost £4.00 per person Mon-Fri (Saturdays free). For
bookings contact Ruairi on 07793 285972.
(EXHIBITION) 'Murder on a Sunday', AOH Hall, FoyleStreet.
An exhibition of Charlie McLaughlin's paintings about Bloody Sunday
will be on display in the AOH in Foyle Street from 24 January.
(EXHIBITION) An Fhirinne Exhibition Launch, Pilots Row, 7.30pm.
The Mayor Councillor Gearoid O hEara, will launch this powerful
photographic exhibition of over 200 victims of state collusion with loyalist
paramilitaries, followed by speakers from An Fhirinne Campaign and the
Pat Finucane Centre. Exhibition runs each day until Saturday 30th
January. All Welcome.
(FILM) News from the Holy Land (UK, 2004, 50 mins, Documentary) Gasyard
Centre, 8.00pm.
Written/Directed by Jake Lynch and Annabel McGoldrick this is an
illustrated call for a change in the way the Palestine-Israeli conflict is
reported.
Tuesday 25 January
Museum of Free Derry Exhibition launch, Bloody Sunday Centre, Foyle
Street, 7.30pm.
An exhibition detailing the Bloody Sunday Trust's plans for the Museum
of Free Derry in Glenfada Park. Exhibition open Tuesday 25 January to
Tuesday 1 February.
(FILM) Death in Gaza (UK, 2004, 80 mins, Documentary), Gasyard Centre,
8.00pm.
Written/Reported by Saira Shah, Filmed/Directed by James Millar, this
is his poignant and unflinching look at the lives of three Palestinian
children caught up in the cycle of violence, dramatically culminating in
the director's own death at the hands of the Israeli Security Forces.
Wednesday 26 January
(FILM) Bi Dam (With Blood) (US, Work in Progress, 50 mins, Documentary),
Gasyard Centre, 8.00 pm.
By Dan O'Reilly Rowe and Juliana Friedman. Using personal situations to
demonstrate the spirit crushing impact of the occupation on health
care, Bi Dam gives insight into a crucial aspect of life in the cities,
rural villages, and refugee camps of the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
Introduced on the night by Juliana Friedman (producer/director)
Bloody Sunday Memorial Quiz, Sean Dolan's GAA Club, Creggan, 9.00pm.
All welcome, £10.00 per team.
Thursday 27 January
(PANEL DISCUSSION) From Bogside to Basra, Gasyard Centre, 7.00pm
Ironically the 30th January is the date the US Government chose for
'their' elections in Iraq. From three very different perspectives
the panel will discuss the US/British illegal occupation of Iraq through
the lens of Fallujah (where 13 civilians where shot dead by US Marines
at a peaceful protest on 30th April 2003) and Derry's Bloody Sunday.
Speakers: Eddy Cherry, a former British Soldier, stationed in Derry,
now a leading member of 'Ex Soldiers Against The War', Dr Abdul
Al-Jibouri an Iraqi scientist, living in Derry and Paul O'Connor,
Coordinator of The Pat Finucane Centre, Derry. Chair: Jim Keys
(FILM) Divine Intervention (Yadon Ilaheyya) Gasyard Centre, 8.30pm
(2002, Fr/Ger/Morocco/Neth/US, 93 mins, Feature)
Divine Intervention (Yadon Ilaheyya) reeled in the Jury Prize at the
Cannes Film Festive and went on to win the Screen International Award at
the European Film Awards. However the US Academy Of Motion Pictures
told the producers of the film that it was not eligible to compete in the
Academy Awards (The Oscars) 'as Palestine is not a state we recognise
in our rules'. So it's with great pleasure that we have this
opportunity to screen this feature as part of this year's programme.
It's an engagingly offbeat Palestinian response to how Israeli
checkpoints disrupt and frustrate the lives ofordinary individuals.
The film begins with a deadpan comic sequence involving
neighbourly neuroses, rivalries and rage in Nazareth. There is intelligence
and freshness in the film's mostly wordless comic style.
Friday 28 January
Bloody Sunday Memorial Mass, St Mary's, Creggan, 7.30pm.
All Welcome.
(MEMORIAL LECTURE) Annual Bloody Sunday Lecture,
Guildhall, 8.15pm
The Annual Bloody Sunday Lecture, delivered this year
by Geraldine Finucane, widow of the murdered Belfast solicitor Pat
Finucane. Event sponsored by the Bloody Sunday trust and the Pat
Finucane Centre. Admission by donation.
Saturday 29 January
(PANEL DISCUSSION) Conflicts of Remembrance, Pilots Row, 12noon &
2.00pm.
Panel discussion and question and answer session where guest
speakers will explore how and why we remember victims of conflict.
(PANEL DISCUSSION) The Truth of Bloody Sunday: Perspectives
Pilots Row, 2.00pm & 3.30pm.
Speakers John Kelly, brother of Michael, shot dead on
Bloody Sunday, legal academic Angela Hegarty, Writer/academic Niall O
Dochartaigh. The panel will present their perspectives on Bloody Sunday
as people who have followed the Saville Inquiry, before the event is
opened up for a Q & A with the audience. The event will close with the
launch of an updated edition of Niall O'Dochartaigh's book
'From Civil Rights to Armalites' which includes a new chapter on Bloody
Sunday.
(PANEL DISCUSSION) Holy Cross in Context: Communities in Conflict over
Shared Space in North Belfast, Pilots Row 3.30 & 5.00pm.
Was the horror at Holy Cross School in 2001, as loyalists
attacked the school, the result of a breakdown of relations
between two communities? Or just naked sectarianism?
What was the damage and were any lessons learned?
Anne Cadwallader, author of, "Holy Cross - The Untold Story",
Tom Holland, republican community activist and Louanne
Martin, who interviewed the children, try to answer these
questions.
(FILM) Film Screenings, Pilots Row, 12noon & 5.00pm
'Dangerous Liaisons' (BBC Spotlight documentary on collusion);
'Lifting a Dark Cloud' (PFC produced documentary on Kathleen Thompson)
'Bloody Sunday: Massacre of the Innocents' (Canada, documentary)
(PANEL DISCUSSION) At A Crossroads: Palestine & Ireland, Road Maps &
Road Blocks to Peace Calgach Centre, 7.30pm
Speakers Dr Jamal Zahalka and Mitchel McLaughlin.
Dr Jamal Zahalka, a Palestinian MP who sits in the Israeli Knesset and
Mitchel McLaughlin MLA, Sinn Fein Chairperson and senior negotiator,
will discuss the Irish and Palestinian peace processes, state repression
and violence. Dr Zahalka has been centrally involved in the struggle
for truth and justice around Israel's own 'Bloody Sunday' against
the Palestinian people. As Palestinians living inside Israel came out
onto the streets in support of their comrades staging of a second
intifada in the occupied territories, the Israeli police force opened fire,
shooting 13 people dead. Since that day in October 2000 Jamal Zahalka
has been working closely with the families of the dead in their efforts
to take a legal case against the Israeli police force and itsgovernment.
Dr Zahalka will speak on life as a Palestinian living inside Israel, on
Israel's murderous occupation of Palestinian land and its ruthless
response to Palestinian resistance through its intifada. He will
also speak on the current situation and the future direction for the
peace process following the tragic death of President Arafat
and the election of Mahmoud Abbas as the new leader of
the Palestinian people.
Traditional Music Night, Solas Arts Centre, Great James Street.
Traditional music, Adm £3.00, BYO.
Bloody Sunday Fundraiser, Gasyard Centre, 9.00pm & 1.00am
Live music and DJs Cruncher, Gary Og, Declan McLaughlin, Eileen
Webster, DJ One-Shot, Eamonn McCann, Joe Mulheron, Paul McCartney and
Robbie McVeigh. Adm £5.00, BYO.
Sunday 30 January
Memorial Service at the Bloody Sunday Monument, Rossville Street,
11.30am sharp. All welcome.
(MARCH & RALLY) Bloody Sunday March and Rally, Creggan shops, 2.30pm.
Speakers from the Bloody Sunday Families, an Fhirinne, Guest
International Speaker, Palestinian MP, Dr Jamal Zahalka, Sinn Fein and the SDLP.
