Conviction: possession of a weapon
Sentence: 14 years
Joined Hunger Strike: 9th May
Suicided 8th July

Born on the Falls Road as the youngest child in a family of 10, Joe McDonnell is claimed not to have been involved with the paramilitaries in the early part of his life, but would later go on to meet Gerry Adams and Bobby Sands. In 1970 he married and moved to Lenadoon, a largely Protestant estate, where it's said his house was attacked on numerous occasions.

Despite claims he wasn't involved with terrorist groups, he was interned on the HMS Maidstone which is where he would meet Gerry Adams, a meeting that no doubt had a huge influence on the direction of his life. When he was released he joined the Belfast brigade of the IRA.

By the time he was arrested again in 1976 he had been involved in multiple bomb attacks - a popular story among republican websites being of how he joked as a car he was travelling in with other "volunteers" and several bombs started to fill up with smoke. He was arrested with Bobby Sands in 1976 when the pair were involved in a 9 man firebomb attack on the Balmoral Furnishing Company furniture store near Twinbrook.

After firing at police and army personnel at the scene, McDonnell, Sands and 2 others were caught trying to flee in a car and arrested and charged with posession of a revolver also found in the vehicle. When the men all refused to recognise the court (and also therefore, to defend themselves) they were all sentenced to 14 years in prison.

Having purchased Faith And Duty from a Belfast bookshop some time back, I broguht it to Botanic Gardens with me last time I ventured out to enjoy the sunshine here (about a month ago then) but didn't open it. Today when I returned to Botanic it was still in the bag and I decided now was as good a time as any to start into it.

I'm now through the prologue and into chapter 3. Faith and Duty recounts the experience of one Nick Curtis MM, who arrived in Northern Ireland at the beginning of the troubles as a corporal in the army.

So far it's been a very interesting read, and I've been gripped to Curtis's recounting of those early days when he arrived in Belfast sympathetic to the plight of the Catholics who, as far as he could tell, only wanted civil rights. He also explains the thoughts that go through a soldiers head when an angry mob attacks, the basic tactics of street-combat and the stupidity of some of the commanding officers (when confronted with an obviously agitated youth jumping up and down on a Union Jack flag, a bemused Curtis radios for advice to be told to speak to the guy and explain that he is showing "bad manners").

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The Conservatives today accused Peter Hain's NIO of acting "like an arrogant colonial despot" over the Education Reform Order which will see grammar schools in Northern Ireland abolished. (For background, Kenneth Bloomfield summarises quite well in the Telegraph).

Referring to the results of the household survey conducted by DENI to determine the attitudes of the public towards education reform, the Conservatives branded the move 'undemocratic' as well as "bad for education". The household survey conducted for the Department of Education while Sinn Fein's Martin McGuinness was in charge was blatantly desinged in such a way as to give DENI the answer they wanted, but the results of the survey were ignored once it was discovered the public wouldn't play along.

Despite the efforts and opinions of parents, politicians, the grammar school lobby and groups like Concerned Parents for Education and Children in Northern Ireland, and despite evidence that the abolition of grammars in Great Britain was a mistake, it seems that the government will go ahead with its plans to impose their "doctrinally based policy" and destroy Ulster's grammar education system unless the assembly is restored.

The Tories are right to point out that it's just as undemocratic on 25th November as it is on the 24th.

As I said previously, I will (unlike some journalists) try and reserve judgement on The Wind That Shakes The Barley until I get a chance to see it, however it seems that my initial initial doubts over the director's mental state (apparently he's on the 'national council' of the Respect coalition too) may have been valid after all.

I stumbled across an interview with Ken Loach tonight while looking for Northern Ireland news and I'm glad I did, because I've been enlightened. For you see not only is Ken Loach an award winning film-maker, he has actually uncovered the genesis of the "Irish problem". It's all Britain's fault. No, I'm not being overly dramatic to emphasise my point, he actually believes the whole problem here is the "entire" responsibility of the British.

"The IRA of the 60s and 70s was a product of the despicable treaty that the British imposed at the point of a gun. If the British hadn't imposed partition, there would be no Provisional IRA. The entire responsibility lies with the British state. The entire responsibility. Everything that has emerged has been a protest, sometimes a violent protest, sometimes an aberrant protest, but nevertheless a protest, from the brutality of the British and the brutality of the British Empire embodied in bastards like Churchill, who not only sent the troops into Ireland, he sent the troops against Welsh miners in his own country when they wanted a decent wage. So I mean we should have no tolerance at all for these questions that try to indicate that somehow the resistance to British brutality is not acceptable."
Ken Loach, director of The Wind That Shakes The Barley [original emphasis used]

By the way, from what I can find (just through a couple of minutes searching mind you) it seems the troops were only on standby to assist the police. I won't even comment on the hypocricy of deeming Wales "his own country" but not Northern Ireland.

The organisers of the inclusive West Belfast Festival and Sinn Fein have both criticised a government decision to award funding to the tune of £104,000 to the Orange Order over three years.

Despite the fact that they were awarded by different bodies, organisers of the republican festival said "questions had to be asked" that the Northern Ireland Events Company cut their funding for this year by £100,000 less than 2 weeks before the Orange Order funding was announced. What wasn't mentioned on the Newsline coverage at lunch time today was that the festival or 'Feile' was still receiving £45,000 this year - more than the annual equivalent of the Orange Order funding which works out at £34,000 per year. The Orange Order funding is also coming from the Deparment of Social Development.

The only question that has to be asked is why the Feile was attracting £150k of public money in a year in the first place!

Senior figures in Sinn Fein are contemplating withdrawing the party from the assembly in September, some time before the 24th November deadline set by the governments. It's unclear at the moment whether this is a serious threat or just a publicity stunt to pressure the governments into more public blaming of the DUP for the current impasse.

It's said that with the Prime Minister meeting his counterpart from the Republic today, that Sinn Fein "don't want a pep talk" and "don't want all parties to be tarred with the same brush." Unfortunately that's exactly the situation. The problem is that Sinn Fein arrogantly refuse to countenance that their continuing refusal to support the police, despite the total overhaul that has taken place over the last decade, is a significant obstruction to progress and are now they appear to be threatening to withdraw from the institutions in an effort to blackmail the governments into lending credence to this ludicrous position! Of course that would then give them cause to call on the government to strengthen their threat of that joint-stewardship republicans have been having wet-dreams about for months.

Of course they do this in the knowledge that with Hain and Blair in charge, they could well get what they want (oh for the days when politicians relied more on their backbones and less on their makeup ladies). Despite that, I confidently predict that Sinn Fein will not walk out on the assembly. They're much to media-savvy to take the blame for the process derailing. If they do bring the whole process down, they can kiss their "joint-stewardship" goodbye!

MPs from the DUP and UUP have joined with the SDLP and Sinn Fein in urging the Minister for Social Development, David Hanson, not to repeal Northern Ireland's antiquated licensing laws by bringing the licensing procedures inline with those in England and Wales.

According to the UTV report the politicians warned "pressing ahead with liberalisation proposals could result in every corner shop being able to sell drink." and we could never have that (among other things, on the mainland, you can buy alcohol at your local corner shops with your groceries).

Among the outrageous proposals being put forward by the DSD were such destructive ideas as:

• New powers for police to enforce licensing laws (including temporary closure or restricted hours for offending premises)
• A penalty points system for licensees
• Dedicated liquor licensing officers
• Test purchasing powers to allow the police to catch out vendors selling to underage drinkers
• Extension of opening hours by an entire hour to 2AM (except on Sundays) by mid 2007

"There is no need to tamper with a system that has worked well for the people of Northern Ireland for decades just so he can say he has brought our legislation into line with that of the rest of the UK."
Jeffrey Donaldson, DUP MP & MLA, Lagan Valley

Wee Jeff knows best. I hope the irony of a Unionist arguing so hard against legalising something that is perfectly normal in the rest of the UK wasn't lost on him. Thank goodness that we have enlightened fresh-thinking politicians like these to save Ulster from the horrifying prospect of picking up a well-earned six-pack from the Co-Op at the end of a hard day's work.

It's stories like this one that make me wonder who would object to having CCTV cameras in their local area. Anything that drives the message home to thugs like the three lads in this story who will be taking an extended holiday at Her Majesty's pleasure.

If appearing on camera when I go to pick up a carton of milk is the price to pay for safe streets, I think it's a bargain.

When Monsignor Denis Faul died last week I have to confess as to now knowing who he was or why he was important. In fact it wasn't until Mick Fealty pointed out this piece in the Times and I then googled a bit until I came across his obituary in the Guardian.

Provo Priest?
If I'm honest, seeing Gerry Adams and (as if that wasn't bad enough) Rory O'Brady at the man's funeral made me seriously doubt the Monsignor Faul's integrity, wondering if maybe he was an anti-British republican sympathiser. Well as it turns out he was the latter, as he said himself he wanted to see Ireland united, but he was quick to add "but I am not going to kill anybody for it."

He earned the 'Provo Priest' nickname after causing some unease for the state earlier in his life, including when he was the chaplain of Long Kesh internment camp and later the Maze prison. In the 1970s, he and Fra Raymond Murray, compiled a dossier of ill-treatment of prisoners by the army. He felt that the treatment alleged constituted a stupid mistake by the British, which would only serve to prolong the violence. He was also outspoken against what he saw as prejudice against Catholics in the police, the army and the judiciary.

He was one of the first campaigners for justice for the Birmingham Six and Guildford Four, long before their causes became well-publicised and he was later vindicated by their release.

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I just received an email from the IFA regarding a break in last week in which a large number of Northern Ireland kits (including training kits) were stolen from the IFA shop at Windsor Avenue.

If you're tempted into buying a kit off the back of a lorry (or a market stall) just remember that the guy you're handing your money over to is responsible for ripping off the IFA and therefore for ripping off all the youth football projects that they fund. Northern Ireland kits should be bought from the IFA shop, from JJB or from one of the licenced independent retailers.

If you've been offered a Northern Ireland kit in suspicious circumstances or at a knock-down price, information can be passed on to the police on 0845 600 8000 (ask for detectives at Musgrave) or anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.