Mistreatment of two republican prisoners 

Posted by Jim on July 28, 2018

The Irish Republican Prisoners Welfare Association has relayed
serious cases of abuse of republican prisoners at Maghaberry and
Hydebank jails.

One prisoner who suffered an untreated heart attack in 2014 has been
subjected to a strip search by prison warders just after he had received
urgent hospital treatment.

Thomas ‘Ta’ McWilliams from Ardoyne was diagnosed with renewed heart
palpitations and forced to attend an outside hospital while handcuffed
to a warder.

“At hospital he was fitted with numerous heart monitoring devices which
have been kept on him to monitor his heart rate etc over the next 48
hrs,” the IRPWA said.

“On return to the jail this evening he was stripped standing up as he
was unfit to be laid on the floor. This was while continuing to wear
heart monitoring equipment.

“Although all objective bodies have called for an end to forced strip
searching, the issue of forced stripping of those in ill health was
raised by the Prisoner Ombudsman only weeks ago.

“This behavior, including the presence of screws in medical
consultations, is a flagrant violation of Human Rights. It cannot be
ignored that this is occurring as we approach eight years since the
signing of the August 2010 Agreement- 8 years after NIPS [the Northern
Ireland Prison Service] agreed to end strip searching. Such actions
speak to the depravity of the Maghaberry administration and the Six
County prison service as a whole.”

The IRPWA also highlighted recent threats and attempted assaults on
republican prisoner Christine Connor at Hydebank women’s prison in south
Belfast. As the only republican prisoner at the jail, Ms Connor is
already living in isolation and has previously been subjected to
sustained verbal abuse and other oppressive measures.

This recently escalated into two attempted physical attacks, the IRPWA
said.

“On the first occasion Christine was left trapped in an enclosed space
by a screw who had abandoned his post when a male attacker attempted to
reach her whilst shouting sectarian abuse.

“He managed to get past the useless security measures before being
restrained by his own escort.

“On the second occasion three would-be attackers overcame the measly
security measures, with one of these attackers armed with a sharp
implement. When Christine made her way to safety she was greeted with
hostility and ambivalence by the screw who was on duty.

“When Christine complained she was subsequently charged by Hydebank
jail. The jail has offered only a worthless apology, and it is clear
that Hydebank is determined to see harm come to Christine.

“The treatment of Christine Connor is ample evidence of the depths of
reactionary control and sectarian bigotry in the Six-County prison
service.”