American Official Detained, Searched & Interrogated In North Ireland
J.McGhee
In August of this year, Massachusetts State Representative Marie
Howe traveled to northern Ireland on a fact-finding trip with Mrs. Marion
McCarthy, an adminstrative assistant. On Monday, August 12 at 10:30 am,
Representative Howe and Ms. McCarthy were traveling along the M1 highway
from Armagh city to Belfast and were passing Long Kesh concentration camp,
also known as "the Maze", which is a political prison. While passing the camp
they took about 2 minutes of film with a Super-8 camera without stopping
the car.
About two miles farther down the road they were stopped by a
mobile unit of the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC). Four men armed with
rifles surrounded their car. Another van pulled in front of their car
with two uniformed RUC and two plain-clothes men. Another van pulled up behind
their car and then another. Each van contained three or four RUC men, all
carrying rifles. By now there were 12 to 15 RUC men surrounding their car
with rifles aimed at the women.
They were asked to show identification, which they did, using
passports and drivers licenses. Representative Howe, who was driving,
was asked why she had turned her lights on. She told the RUC that there
had been some barriers along the road at construction sites where the road
narrowed from four lanes to two and that she put her lights on for safety
reasons. The RUC asked why they were taking "video tapes" of the camp. Mrs.
McCarthy explained that they were using a home movie camera, not a video camera.
The RUC accused her of lying and threatened her with arrest. Even after the
camera was shown to the RUC the women were called liars and were subjected
to a flood of verbal abuse. The two women asked if it was prohibited to
photograph the prison, since they had seen no signs prohibiting it.
The RUC stated that there were no signs and that it wasn't prohibited,
but that it didn't matter; they could be searched and detained for 4 hours
under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA). The RUC said that they didn't need
any charges or any reason to detain the women; they could do whatever they
wanted and the American women had no rights.
Representative Howe also presented here legislative identification
for the State of Massachusetts. They expressed contempt for her legislative
office saying "We don't care who you are. You're in the U.K. now and you
have no rights here at all."
The RUC confiscated their passports and threatened the women with
arrest, detention, strip searches and other punishments. Representative Howe
and Ms. McCarthy objected to confiscation of their passports and asked to
call a solicitor/attorney. The RUC were very menacing and told them:
"Whatever foolish rights you might have in the US, you don't have them here.
You're in the U.K." They also stated in a harsh and degrading manner:
"We don't give a damn about the Helsinki agreements or any agreements with
the US. They don't matter here."
At this point a senior officer came over and said, "Take them over
to the Maze, strip search them and search the car". Of course, the women
protested the detention and were met with a flood of insults and degrading
treatment. They asked again to call a solicitor and the American consulate,
and were told that they would be allowed to call when they arrived at the camp.
The two women went under armed guard with the car and the vans to Long Kesh
which also has a British Army camp on the grounds.
After arriving at the camp the women were held in a huge hangar
building and were constantly guarded by three British soldiers armed with
rifles. Three other soldiers searched the car, taking it apart, inside and out.
Representative Howe and Ms. McCarthy repeatedly reminded the RUC of the phone
call, but were refused the right to call anyone. They were even taunted for
being so naive as to believe that they would be allowed to call anyone.
Every time they asked why they were being held, they were told that
they didn't need a reason or charges and that they could do whatever they
wanted. This was all accompanied by a continuing barrage of threats,
intimidation and harrassment. They were reminded ominously that they were
isolated and no one knew where they were.
During their detention every item belonging to the women, luggage,
handbags, etc. was spread out on tables and on the floor and searched
meticulously. The women's personal items were passed around and were made
the object of jokes and sarcastic comments.
The women were separated and each was questioned by four or five
interrogators. They were continuously questioned about their travel stops,
who they knew, where they stayed throughout their travels in England,
Ireland or Scotland. They were also interrogated about their political views
on both European and American politics. When asked what political parties
they belonged to, the women said "Democratic". This was ridiculed and they
were told that U.S. Constitutional rights were "nonsense".
Representative Howe showed her interrogators her identification
as a representative of the State of Massachusetts, but they ignored it.
The RUC also kept their passports and confiscated all photographs and
undeveloped film in their possession. They were told that it was an
offense against the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) to refuse the films
and photographs to the RUC and that the RUC would keep any "subversive"
films that they found. When asked what they meant by "subversive", they said
it might have a different meaning than what the women knew or what their
superiors would say.
The women were threatened with arrest and were told they could be
charged with offenses under the Prevention of Terrorism Act, but the RUC
would not be specific about charges. In full view of all the RUC and British
Army soldiers, Representative Howe and Mrs. McCarthy were body-searched by
an RUC woman. Finally, one RUC man told them that this was really a British
Army search.
After repeated reminders the RUC finally said at about 12:30
that the American Consulate had been called. Representative Howe later
determined that the Consulate had not been called until 2:15 pm. At 2 pm
Mrs. McCarthy asked to call her children who had been expecting her call
at home in Massachusetts. She was refused this call also which caused
a great deal of distress to her family at home.
Representative Howe and Mrs. McCarthy were finally released at
4:10 pm which was 5 hours and 30 minutes after being stopped. When
Repesentative Howe told the RUC that this was was well over the detention
period they said was allowed by law; they were told that they could be held
for any period of time desired. One RUC man stated that in any case his
partner would collaborate on whatever time he said they were picked up.
In an official account of their detention Representative Howe
stated:
"We were very disturbed about their continuous mockery and
contempt for us as U.S. citizens....and the democratic system in the
U.S. They mocked our laws and rights and freedoms. They told us
about the Prevention of Terrorism Act and other forms of legislation
used to oppress the Irish people and told us that there were no
rights 'in the U.K.', that they had the laws on their side and
'can do whatever we care to do'."
"While our detention was a horrible and frightening
experience, it was brief as compared to what is imposed on the Irish
people every day of their lives, living in the military police state
that is northern Ireland. The Army and the RUC work hand in hand to
operate this police state with repressive legislation enacted in the
British Parliament."
"The detention period under the PTA is only the first step
in an unjust, discriminatory judicial system that has been condemned
and criticized throughout the world by reputable legal, human and
civil rights groups and organizations. This undemocratic, oppressive
judicial system is marked with detention and interrogation without
legal counsel under harsh and brutal conditions...wherein a person
can be imprisoned with no charges brought against them for long
periods of time - 2 and 3 years, before an appearance in court before
Diplock (juryless) courts using massive show trials. Interrogation
methods of the RUC, Ulster Defense Regiment, and British Army have
been condemned by international human and civil rights groups."
"Long term sentences are imposed on people with no evidence
and based on tortured 'confessions'. Due process of the law with
a concomitant system of justice does not exist in northern Ireland
and this police state is governed by repressive laws enacted in the
British Parliament to destroy the fabric of Irish culture, tradition
and custom and to dehumanize the Irish nationalist people."
These facts can be verified by writing to:
Representative Marie E. Howe
Commonwealth of Massachusetts State House
Room 279
Boston, MA 02133
"These people know nothing of democracy."
-- Margaret Thatcher
John Purbrick
> In August of this year, Massachusetts State Representative Marie
> terrorists, among others, was caught and treated in various humiliating
> ways].
Ah, Marie Howe. If I tried to make films of a prison housing terrorists in a
nation which has experienced a couple of thousand-plus deaths related to
insurgency I'd expect difficulties. Yes, they mistreated her. Yes, she was
begging for trouble. Maybe when the police and soldiers treated her with
skepticism they had heard about the last time she was arrested, back home;
on that occasion she tried to give the cops a false name.
Ulster Protestants have made a lot of protests about "Loyalist prisoners"
lately. Could Mr McGhee explain who these prisoners are? How do he and
Marie Howe feel about them?