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The
idea of seeking redress for the Kelly family which
led to the developing of the campaign via the internet
and the press conference in Derry germinated in the
mind of Fionnbar O'Dochartaigh, a veteran Derry republican.
This being aside from Captain Kelly's own family's
campaign for what they see as the need for justice
in relation to the negative treatment bestowed upon
their father and husband by the Government in Dublin.
However it would appear that both ventures has coalesced
into one as witnessed at the press conference in Derry.
One
knows the reasoning behind the Families campaign but
one wonders about the reasoning for Fionnbar's campaign
on behalf of Captain Kelly. For Captain Kelly was
the leading agent on behalf of the Dublin Government
working to split and use the Republican Movement via
the recruitment of dissenting elements who were against
its socialist policies. Dissenters with no interest
in the civil rights struggle in the north or the struggle
against the ground rents in the south coupled with
the neglect of the ordinary working class both north
and south by the powers that be. In truth a strategy
formulated by the republican leadership to help generate
a revolutionary consciousness in the Irish people.
Fionnbar supported the latter policies as a member
of the movement at the time. In fact our relationship
goes away back even to the birth of the James Connolly
Republican Club- which was a catalyst in the birth
of the present struggle.
Now
I am aware that Fionnbar has the ability to promote
causes with others but also by himself alone for I
recall a public meeting in Derry at the beginning
of the civil rights struggle organised by a body called
the James Connolly Society in which the main speaker
was Gerry Fitt. Well in truth there was no such society
but the meeting did take place and a friend of Fionnbar
and myself at the time informed me humorously that
at an imaginary meeting of the Connolly Society after
the Derry rally saw Fionnbar fulfilling many roles
as he discussed the successful outcome of the event.
I
mention this because he has a Machiavellian capability
of generating myths such as the Connolly Society and
I have no doubt that through this behaviour via the
internet he has recruited people for the Kelly campaign.
For in truth he has a number of ventures on the internet
which I have communicated with such as the Anti- Partition
League, the Stormont Watch, and perhaps he is the
main individual behind the new Captain Kelly site.
The Stormont Forum is where I would have made some
contributions but not for sometime since I became
a victim of censorship by its administrator. Incidentally
the censorship related to the Kelly campaign for I
have been critical of Fionnbar's involvement in it
due to the past damage done to the republican cause
by the late Captain. For let's face the truth, the
objective of the Republican Movement was and is to
break the connection with Britain and this involved
British administrative and military withdrawal which
implied the immediate disestablishment of both the
26 and the 6 county statelets and their replacement
with The Republic proclaimed and declared prior to
the creation of the illegal statelets. Therefore as
an agent of the 26 county statelet Captain Kelly was
an enemy of the republican objective for he served
the status quo, a status quo in the south who would
use and did use all means in defence of their jurisdiction
not only in latter years but since its origins. And
that included internment and executions of members
of the Republican Movement by military tribunals.
That is truth, not a created myth like that put out
by Fionnbar when he equates the Kelly issue with that
of the Dreyfuss affair. !
Here
I must also take issue with Fionnbar when he implied
to the press that as he was near to the leadership
in Derry at the time of Captain Kelly's intrigue and
therefore he would have known if what Johnny White
claimed to have happened did happen. Yes Fionnbar
would have been a member of the movement at the time
but in NO way was he privy to anything relating to
the IRA Brigade Staff business especially to something
so sensitive as a request for the removal by execution
of certain of the leading socialist republicans in
the City, of which I was one. I base this contention
upon the fact that I was a full time organizer for
the Republican Movement in the west of the province
at the time which included Derry City. As such I represented
the IRA Headquarters Staff as did the late Malachy
McGurran as an organizer in the east of the province.
The
sad part of all of this is that Fionnbar has implied
that Johnny White is a liar and in reality he is calling
one of his best friends and comrades a liar but Fionnbar
knows that the ex OC of the Derry Brigade is a person
of integrity. This implication shows how desperate
Fionnbar is when he stooped to such a level. If Fionnbar
had been privy to what was going on at the time of
the Kelly contact with Johnny White he would have
known that the dissenters within the movement in Derry
and Belfast plus Fianna Fail members in Donegal saw
Derry as an important place to control if their overall
plans were to be realized therefore they made contact
with Fianna Fail sympathizers in the city as well
as the late Sean Keenan who incidentally had been
part of the intrigue from the beginning through contact
with the late Jimmy Steele of Belfast. Did Fionnbar
ever ask himself why so called No. 10 became the centre
of defence committee activity in the city? There lies
the Fianna Fail connection inspite of what anyone
might say to the contrary. Of course I have no doubt
that many non movement people were acting in good
faith when they co-operated with Captain Kelly because
of the threat of invasion by the Brits and equally
I have no doubt that there were those who were manipulated
as part of the plan to control the Republican Movement.
In fact the threat of the Brit invasion of so called
' free nationalist areas' was used by Captain Kelly
on behalf of the southern Governments plan arising
from their increasing concern about the growth in
and activity of the Republican Movement at the time.
I believe much to support this matter will in due
time be released in what can only be termed 'sensitive
Government Papers' by the Dublin Government or perhaps
the public inquiry called for by the Derry journalist,
Frank Curran.
Finally
I must object to the slanderous statements appearing
on the Stormont Watch Forum about the character of
Johnny White. If they have not been removed by now
they are there to be seen and I wonder why Fionnbar
permitted such statements to appear. For anyone to
attack the integrity of a person via anonymous statements
especially implying that a person's behaviour, in
this case Johnny White, arises because of alcoholism
is as evil minded that one can get. He may deny being
the sites administrator and if so he is equally at
home with Martin McGuinness who said that he left
the Provisionals military wing in the early seventies
or with Gerry Adams who claimed that he was never
a member of that wing. But then perhaps Fionnbar would
also deny that he is not the 'Bogsider' who contributes
to the forum nor the user of a few other Machiavellian
pseudonyms on Stormont Watch. Equally he would claim
that there must be freedom of speech but there is
a difference between freedom of speech and suir mentality
released for the sole purpose of personal assassination
and integrity mauling. In fact I remember contacting
the Stormont Watch in the past when Fionnbar was appealing
for funds for the Kelly campaign. It related to the
following statement from the RSM:
"Stormont
Watch is a discussion site based in Derry and run
by one man called Finbar O'Doherty. Finbar is using
this site to attack among others the Republican
Socialist Movement. We do not mind political criticisms
but we do object to down right lies and slanders. . . .
Finbar is a former member of the IRSP. Indeed he
is a former member of a lot of organisations. He
is currently a member of a number of front organisations
which we believe only contain one member - Finbar
himself. We do know that no member of the IRSP who
knows Finbar well would make any financial contribution
to any of these front groups. "
Of
course we all know that those who resort to such tactics
have already lost the argument. Nevertheless there
has to be responsibility when one administers a public
forum for the latter in this context is to serve the
truth not the sputterings of political malcontents.
As
stated one finds it difficult to understand Fionnbar's
participation in the Kelly campaign. Was it a case
of just having something to do as like myself we enter
the twilight years? Or as some of his dislikers would
claim an ego trip in that when the Kelly family receives
justice and no doubt this will happen Fionnbar will
receive glory as being on the back of a cert. Or will
the old cliché of 'civil rights' continue to
be used? Any way I acknowledge the contribution that
the Finn has made in the past but on this occasion
his undoubted energy would have been better used on
behalf of the republican prisoners languishing in
British controlled prisons.
I
must state that I have not been in contact with Fionnbar
O'Dochartaigh nor Johnny White for months prior to
this piece. May I also state that a piece released
by myself recently, a copy of which appeared in The
Blanket, entitled 'The Kelly Affair' has yet to see
the light of day on Stormont Watch, although they
received it at approximately the same time. I think
its administrator should follow the example of The
Blanket for there is no censorship in that area.
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