Tag: Protestant

Check out “Northern Protestants: Time For a United Ireland?”!

Monday 5th December, 2022.

Is it time to ditch the misnomer ‘PUL Community’ when, since Brexit, increasing numbers of Protestants publicly reject the Union in favour of a United Ireland? Northern Protestant Claire Mitchell argues in her new book The Ghost Limb that there is a growing community of Protestants who wish to reclaim the Enlightenment spirit of 1798 and the United Irishmen? Is Claire correct or does she exaggerate the degree to which significant numbers of Protestants are open to the debate about Unity?

As the tectonic plates of the Union shift, Belfast Protestant Geoff Bell in his new book The Twilight of Unionism argues we are witnessing the decline of Ulster Unionism and good riddance to it. But at a time when opinion polls show support rising again for the DUP is there a danger that pronouncements on Unionist decline are premature and ill judged?

Protestant Ben Collins was once a unionist but disillusioned with Brexit and the state of pro-union politics he now campaigns for a United Ireland. In his new book Irish Unity he sets out the political, social and economic benefits of removing the border on the island of Ireland once and for all. He contends that Brexit is a game changer, prompting many Protestants to ask, “might I be better off in a New Ireland”? But is Ben right? Are growing numbers of Protestants really open to the conversation on Irish Unity? Join the debate and find out.

Should we view Claire, Geoff and Ben as outliers or as representative of a significant strand of Protestant thinking? Finally, to what extent does fear of being labelled a ‘Lundie’ still deter Protestants from raising their heads above the Constitutional parapet and joining the conversation?

Come join our zoom debate with Claire, Geoff and Ben, moderated by Kevin Meagher.

With many thanks to: Irish Border Poll and Claire Mitchell, Ben Collins and Geoff Bell for the original publication.

Follow this link below to to find out more on this event and take part and register for free….

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/northern-protestants-time-for-a-united-ireland-tickets-471754689977?aff=eand

Please fill out the survey – Identity in the North of Ireland – How I idetifie

Watch “The divide runs deep between Protestants and Catholics of Belfast (1993)” on YouTube

EAST BELFAST UVF SHOULD HANG YOUR HEADS IN SHAME

EXCLUSIVE 

Members of the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF)

Loyalist museum cuRATOR IN ASTONISHING ATTACK ON on east BELFAST UVF AS COPS LAUNCH DRUG RAIDS ON CRIMINAL gang

EAST Belfast UVF have been branded coke-dealing thugs i an astonishing attack by the boss of a UVF museum in the area.

Follow this link to find out more: https://twitter.com/LynneCampbell5/status/1275686919255490562?s=20

He hit out as specialist cops busted a suspected drugs ring linked to the gang. Loyalist community worker William McCaughey, curator of a museum dedicated to the UVF, laid into the current paramilitary goons for “torturing” the Protestant people. He accused them of criminality and cocaine dealing saying they should “hang their heads in shame”.  

UVF HISTORIAN SLAMS SECTARIAN TERROR GROUP FOR THE TORTURE OF PROTESTANTS AND TELLS THEM: YOU’RE COKE DEALING THUGS’ 

EAST Belfast UVF has been accused of “torturing the Protestant population” in the heart of East Belfast.

Follow this link to find out more: https://www.facebook.com/913308238745902/posts/3069554353121269/?app=fbl

Respected community worker and UVF historian William McCaughey laid into the current UVF mob who were targeted in yet another anti-drugs sting the weekend last. McCaughey is the curator of the Ballymac Museum which is smack in the heart of what has for years been the heartland of the East Belfast UVF  – making the outspoken dressing down even more unusual. And his brave outburst came as police revealed on Saturday 20th June they had busted a suspected East Belfast UVF drug gang. Officers from the Paramilitary Crime Task Force announced they had searched properties in Dundonald and believe drugs and cash found were linked to the East Belfast UVF. A 40-year-old man has been charged with drug offences and two women were reported to the PPS. The Sunday World understands the raid is highly significant and is closely linked to one of the terror group’s top bosses. A top cop said afterwards the local community “utterly supports” their efforts to disrupt East Belfast UVF. Detective Inspector Hamilton said: “Paramilitaries are not defenders of their communities, instead they are criminals who pretty on vulnerable people and exploit any circumstances they can for their own gain.”

PRISONERS 

And during a five-minute video posted on the Ballymac Friendship Centre’s Facebook page this week, William McCaughey (49) describes the current East Belfast UVF in less flattering terms. The clip entitled ‘Ballymac Museum Tour Part 3’ sees William, who’s listed in the credits as curator of the museum, complete his tour of the museum which largely includes artefacts collected from the Troubles. Having shown us various weapons and trinkets made in Long Kesh prison by UVF prisoners like David Ervine and Gusty Spence, he out-of-the-blue lets rip at the present day UVF. While a music box, made in Long Kesh, plays in the background he says: “It’s usually at this stage of the tour people ask me what has the East Belfast UVF got to do with the museum and my answer has to be, absolutely nothing. “Why? What has cocaine [word inedible], criminality, hiking of bills and general torture of the Protestant population, what’s that got to do with all this rich history?”

Snorting cocaine

But he doesn’t stop his impassioned speech there and even tells the current East Belfast UVF criminal element they should be ashamed. He continues: “Why use them three letters [UVF] and live on the backs of the people in this museum  – the Ulstermen who have defended their wee part of Ulster for hundreds of years? “Hang your heads in shame!” The video was uploaded to the museum’s Facebook page on Monday 15th June and seems to have been done to coincide with the 22nd anniversary of the murder of local UVF hero Robert ‘Squeak’ Seymour. McCaughey adds: “And from a time when East Belfast UVF were the ‘People’s Army’ – Volunteer Robert Squeak Seymour 15th June 1988.” Seymour became a UVF legend during the Troubles for murdering senior IRA man James ‘Skipper’ Burns, for which he was convicted of killing in 1981, though he was later cleared on appeal as he’d been convicted on ‘supergrass’ testimony. Until 2011, Seymour’s image featured on a mural on a gable in the nearby Ballymacarrett Road.

A late 2011 UVF mural, on Ballymacarrett Road in East Belfast. The four members named are Robert Seymour, shot dead by the PIRA; James Cordner and Joseph Long, who were both killed in a premature explosion, and Robert Bennett, killed by the British Army during a riot. These same four are commemorated in the controversial 2013 mural featured in: Follow this link to find out more: https://extramuralactivity.com/2013/12/23/years-of-sacrifice/

Until 2011, Seymour’s image featured on a mural on a gable wall in the nearby Ballymacarrett Road

McCaughey’s sideswipe is being supported by many loyalists. This paper has written extensively about paramilitary drug lords in East Belfast UVF. Many of the old UVF guard have been reported to be ashamed of the actions of the current crop of paramilitary leaders. The Sunday World asked Mr McCaughey for a comment on his statement but we were told by the centre: “Unfortunately at this time William is unavailable for comment.” Sources in East Belfast say the outburst from the community worker, who was until recently was listed as a director of the Ballymac Friendship Centre, shows how sections of East Belfast have turned on the current UVF.
FEEDBACK 
And the positive feedback left by supporters of the museum show many people are fed up with East Belfast UVF. The video clip has been viewed over 7,000 times and been shared 83 times and attracted completely positive comments. One person wrote: “Brilliant William, well said and very well concluded.” Another supporter wrote: “Well said you can’t be a true loyalist and a drug dealer.” Another fan commented: “Thank God someone has had the courage to speak out x.” Things have been going wrong for the East Belfast UVF for a few years but those problems have accelerated following the murder of popular community worker Ian Ogle last year. The Ballymac Museum was started after loyalists got fed up with ‘their’ history being told through the eyes of republicans. In 2015 it received just over £200,000 in public funding to have the centre refurbished.

Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF)

A year later Mr McCaughey was quoted in a number of newspaper articles as he gave tours round the new museum, though he was never pictured himself. He said of the UVF memorabilia: “It’s not about glorifying anything, but it’s about the fact you shouldn’t forget about it either, it’s a part of our history here, a part of the history of this area that’s being kept alive. “There’s been Americans in and once they started to realise the conflict here was more complicated that the Irish against British, they were absolutely fasinacinated. It’s also been great for young people in the area who maybe label themselves as loyalist or whatever, but don’t really know what that means. “The history in here helps them understand what their history is. Loyalism, the term, it’s often seen in a bad light, but this is helping show there’s more to it than just the Troubles. It’s a social history and it’s important it’s not forgotten.”

TRYING TO FOOL US: One of the threatening UVF murals in East Belfast. Jamie Bryson unmasked!

A police spokesman said on Saturday June 2oth 2020 of the latest raids targeting the East Belfast UVF: “Following this proactive policing operation a quantity of suspected class A, B and C controlled drugs, cutting agent, bags and scales and a significant amount of cash were seized. “Two women are to be reported to the PPS on suspicion of drugs offences.” Detective Inspector Hamilton said: “We know that the communities most affected utterly support our ongoing efforts and want to work with us to end the harm caused by the criminal activity of paramilitaries.

If Jamie Bryson was not a member of the UVF then why is he pictured here? Reading a statement out on behalf of the East Belfast UVF

” And late on Saturday June 20th 2020, the police confirmed the 40-year-old had been charged “with possession of a class A controlled drug, with intent to supply, possession of a Class B controlled drug, possession of a class C controlled drug and firearms licensing offences,” said a spokesperson. “He is due to appear at Newtownardes Magistrates Court via vidolink on Thursday July 16th 2020. As is normal procedure, all charges are reviewed by the Public Prosecution Service (PPS).”

.With many thanks to the: Sunday World and Steven Moore for the EXCLUSIVE original story  – steven.moore@sundayworld.com 

Follow these links to find out more: https://www.newsletter.co.uk/news/crime/anti-uvf-operation-nets-suspected-drugs-and-cutting-agent-man-charged-narcotics-and-firearms-offences-2890660

(2)-: https://www.belfastlive.co.uk/news/belfast-news/watch-paramilitary-crime-taskforce-raid-18456679

(3)-: http://www.belfastdaily.co.uk/2020/06/20/man-held-over-east-belfast-uvf-drug-dealing-probe/

(4)-: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/amp/uk-northern-ireland-53119053

 

DUP( arse licking friend of Jamie Bryson) councillor Dale Pankhurst reported ‘concern’ after Catholic woman given house!!!!

‘KAT’ (Kill all Taigs) scrawled on walls and windows smashed just before Catholic mother and children due to move in

A DUP Councillor is facing police questions about his contact with the housing association after sectarian intimidation prevented a young Catholic mother from moving into a new home in North Belfast has defended his actions.

Dale Pankhurst approached Choice Housing in North Belfast saying a “concern” had been raised about the mother-of-four moving into one of its new-build properties in North Belfast. The social housing body sought an assessment from the so-called police (who apparently represent both sides of our divided community) who confirmed they were unaware of any threats against the 24-four-year old single mother. God help our so-called police service depending on your religion one being a Catholic and the other being a Protestant. What is the difference of the Police Service in the North of Ireland? Well sorry but that’s another question put it this way 98% of the Police Service in the North of Ireland are Protestants!!!!

Taigs Out’ (Protestant slag meaning Catholic)

But last week, shortly before she was due to move in, windows were smashed and the anti-Catholic slur ‘KAT’ (Kill all taigs) was scrawled on a wall). A union flag was also draped from a drainpipe on the property at (A so-called mixed area) at Tyndale Gardens in the mainly Unionist area of the Ballysillan area of North Belfast. There is no suggestion Mr Pankhurst had advance knowledge of the intimidation directed against the young mother.

PUBLIC REPRESENTATIVE: Oldpark DUP Councillor Dale Pankhurst pictured at a Belfast City Council meeting in his band uniformIn a statement last night he said he wanted to raise “the matter in confidence” and, as a public representative, had a “duty of care to all residencets when I receive any form of information that may indicate danger to life or property”.  

The West Belfast woman, who is from a Catholic background and has four boys aged between five and three months, has now abandoned her plans to move into the area. She told The Irish News she ‘started crying’ when she learned of the attack on the property. “I thought fresh start, new house, me and the four babies could move in, have a garden to play in – and then all this stuff happens,” she said. I am not trying to be racist or sectarian here but our Police force is 98% of the Protestant religion. How can a Catholic minority support that? The pictures and words speak for themselves I don’t need to say a word

These pictures speak volumes for themselves you would never see a Catholic celebrating the Protestant culture at any of these events both pictures represent hatred of the Catholic faith and culture

Follow this link to find out more about Dale Pankhurst: https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/northern-ireland/dup-councillor-wears-band-uniform-at-belfast-city-hall-meeting-sinn-fein-want-answers-37079971.html

(2)-: https://republican-news.org/current/news/2019/12/sectarian_attacks_in_north_bel_1.html

Catholics will outnumber North’s Protestants by the centenary of the state of the North of Ireland.

CATHOLICS will outnumber Protestants in the North of Ireland by 2021, a leading academic has suggested.

Dr Paul Nolan speaking at a meeting of interface community workers in Belfast hosted by The Community Relations Council.

The 2011 official census figures put the Protestant population at 48 per cent, and Catholics at 45 per cent, while more recent figures from 2016 show 44 per cent of working age adults are Catholic and 40 per cent Protestant.

Paul Nolan, an Independant researcher, best known for the three North of Ireland Peace Monitoring Reports, told BBCNI news it is likely by the centenary of the fundation of the state Catholics will out-number Protestants.

“Three years from now we will end up, I think, in the ironic situation on the centenary of the state where we actually have a state that has a Catholic majority,” he said.

He said there is no need for this predicition to cause undue alarm amoung unionists as being a Catholic does not necessarily mean supporting a United Ireland.

Mr Nolan pointed out that although 45 per cent identified in the 2011 census as being from a Catholic background, only 25 per cent claimed an exclusively Irish identity.

“The future of unionism depends entirely upon one thing – and I mean unionism with a small ‘u’ – it depends on winning the support of people who do not regard themselves to be unionists with a capital ‘U’,” he said.

“In other words people who do not identify with the traditional trappings of unionism; people who would give their support for a UK government framework and that’s a sizeable proportion of Catholics provided they are not alienated by any form of triumphalism or anything that seems to be a rejection of their cultural identity as nationalists.”

He suggested it is likely debate on a future United Ireland would move to whether it might mean “two paraliaments – one in Belfast and one in Dublin”.

” I think the more that gets unpacted, the more opinion will move back and forward. It’s not going to go just in one direction,” the academic said. His analysis comes after DUP leader Arlene Foster said she would “probably” leave in the event of a United Ireland.

Party colleague Christopher Salford said while Ms Foster’s veiws were “reflective of a lot of unionists [who] feel they would effectively be pushed into the Irish sea”, he would be amoung any exodus. ” For my part though, I would never leave this island,” he said. “We need to show that you can be British and Irish at the same time.” Sinn Féin president Mary Lou McDonald said unionists “have to be at home in a new Ireland” and nothing, from the flag to the anthem would be “taboo”.

With many thanks to: The Irish News and Bimpe Archer for the origional story.

 

IRSP accuse Thatcher of ordering INLA men’s murder

INLA member Noel Little

THE IRSP has claimed that two members were killed as part of a wider campaign against the party which was backed by the British government.

The party spoke out after it emerged that Tory MP and Advocate General for Northern Ireland, Jeremy Wright QC is due to rule on whether there should be a new inquest into the death of INLA member Noel Little (45).

Ronnie Bunting was a Protestant Irish Republican and Socialist

He was shot dead with fellow INLA man Ronnie Bunting (32) at a house in Downfine Gardens in the Andersonstown area of west Belfast in October 1980.

The double murder has been veiled in mystery amid claims that members of the SAS may have been involved, although the UDA later claimed responsibility.

The two men, who were also key members of the IRSP, were shot dead less than a year after Tory MP Airy Neave was killed when an INLA booby-trap bomb exploded under his car at the House of Commons in London.

After Mr Neave’s death several high profile figures linked to the IRSP and National H-Block Committee were shot dead or injured.

A senior figure in the Conservative Party, Mr Neave was a close ally of then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.

Mr Wright will now make the inquest decision after a certificate transferring the case from the north’s attorney general John Larkin QC was issued by secretary of state Karen Bradley.

Earlier this week a Northern Ireland Office spokeswoman said: “The secretary of state is satisfied there is material held by the UK government relevant to the decision whether to open a fresh inquest, which is national security sensitive.”

The spokesman added that: “The advocate general is an independent law officer in the same way as the attorney general for Northern Ireland: he will make a decision independent of government.”

IRSP spokesman member Willie Gallagher said he believes the decision to target the party could have come directly from Margaret Thatcher.

“The overall combination of events and circumstances in that period led the IRSP to the conclusion that British soldiers acting under direct political orders, and assisted by willing stooges within the UDA and the RUC, conducted what was a campaign of murder against our party,” he said.

With many thanks to: The Irish News for the origional story.

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