Successful POW Picket

Roughly 100 people attended Saturdays POW picket in Monghan St, Newry, organised by the Newry/South Armagh Republican Prisoners Support Group. Despite the harsh weather people from all walks of life took to the streets including many ex-prisoners.

This picket was organised to highlight the continued suffering and injustices inflicted upon republican prisoners in Maghaberry at the hands of the prison administration.

Assaults are a regular occurrence, degrading strip searches are rife, harassment of the families of the POWs is never ending and republican prisoners are being subjected to physical and psychological torture on a daily basis.

We call on all republicans to rally behind republican prisoners in Maghaberry. Remember the 10 men who gave their lives 30 years ago to remove the label of criminalisation.

Republican prisoners are not criminals. they are political prisoners. These men would not even be in jail if it wasn't for the ongoing British presence in Ireland. They are clearly political prisoners and they should be treated as such.

The British government needs to realise that the 12th August agreement of last year presents the basis for resolving the conflict in the prison and face down the Prison Officers Association.

The only way the conflict in Maghaberry will be resolved is for the 12th August agreement to be fully implemented, for political status to be restored for republican prisoners and for the harassment and degrading treatment of prisoners and their families to be ended immediately.

Victory to the POWs