Ireland's OWN: Hungerstrikes

Ireland's OWN: Hungerstrikes

Raymond McCartney, who served a 17-year sentence, refused food for 53 days during the first hunger strike in 1980. *

McCartney recalls:

"At the time, I think most of us felt it was the right thing to do and after a lot of debate that was reflected back to the prison leadership.
"The next thing we knew, the hunger strike was a reality and they were looking for people to put their names forward. I was one of those people who thought it was right and after a lot of discussion with people on my wing I put my name forward."

Raymond McCartney Mural Drinking a mixture of salt and water, McCartney remembers developing a "really acute sense of smell" after 30 days.

"I was moved to the hospital which had a long corridor and a small kitchen at the end. Every time they put on the toaster, I could have told you they were eating marmalade as soon as they opened that jar."

The hunger strike was called off after 53 days, with two prisoners in a critical condition, on the understanding that a document was on its way from London which would address the prisoner's demands. When the proposals fell short of their expectations, republicans planned a second hunger strike which began in March 1981.

McCartney, disappointed at the failure of the first hunger strike, feared:

"There was a real possibility that someone would have to die to prove that this wasn't a brinkmanship tactic.
"But when Bobby Sands was elected, we thought, very naively, well that's it. He's an MP. He won. They aren't going to let him die. But it happened.
"There was a terrible silence when Bobby died. I have heard this from prisoners on other blocks. There was a numbness and a feeling of helplessness. Here we were in one sense at the heart of all this and yet we were also a million miles away because we were locked up and could do nothing. We had no concept of burying a friend, of helping his family � the things you would normally do when a friend dies. We were totally isolated and helpless."

Sands' death was followed by nine more IRA and INLA prisoners before the hunger strike ended following pressure from relatives.

McCartney believes the episode had a major impact on republican thinking. The prisoners adopted a new strategy of subverting the prison system from within and gradually achieved their demands.

"We learnt from all this that struggle is a daily thing. It is every day, every minute of the day. It is not about absolutism. It's not about if we don't get our way, that's it. We found that out in jail. It was a painful and difficult process but we learnt all about tactics."

* Excerpted from 'Former IRA Hunger Striker Reflects On Jail Protests', by Dan McGinn, Ireland Political Editor, PA News