Dissident group urges Sinn Fein to back campaign against NI Prison Service recruitment posters

By Mark Rainey
Published 26th Jun 2023, 18:42 BST
Updated 26th Jun 2023, 19:36 BST
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​Sinn Fein should join other republicans in calling for the removal of prison service and PSNI recruitment posters from nationalist areas, according to the Lasair Dhearg dissident grouping.

Following Sinn Fein’s reluctance to sign a letter supported by the other four main party leaders – which condemned the removal of posters in Londonderry and called on everyone to consider a career in both services – a spokesman for Lasair Dhearg said Sinn Fein is aware this is a “serious issue” for republicans.

Pádraic MacCoitir also said that any nationalist who heeds the advice to join the prison service will become a “pariah” and an “outcast” in their own community.

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Last week, a video posted online showed two men opening a display board at a bus shelter in Londonderry’s Top of the Hill area, tearing down a poster and then placing it in a litter bin.

Padraic Maccoitir - Lasair Dhearg FacebookPadraic Maccoitir - Lasair Dhearg Facebook
Padraic Maccoitir - Lasair Dhearg Facebook

A narrative accompanying the poster’s removal claims the local community "has been suffocated by British occupation,” and that the prison service has "played an integral role in the suppression of republicanism and its volunteers".

​The video also shows the two men posting anti-PSNI material in the area.

On Monday, Sinn Fein issued statement saying its "support for the Prison Service and the PSNI is unequivocal,” but stopped short of encouraging people to seek employment in either.

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In the Lasair Dhearg statement, Mr MacCoitir said: "Sinn Féin should now join the chorus of condemnation of the so-called ‘Prison Service’.

“Throughout the history of Britain’s dirty war in Ireland, the British prison system has played an integral role in the suppression of republicanism. The communities within which these posters now appear have suffered dearly over many decades.”

The group’s statement adds: “For those considering joining the ‘Prison Service’ we say this: in doing so you will set yourself apart from your community. You will become a pariah, an outcast, and part of the very system that has sought to keep your community on its knees now for generations.

“Lasair Dhearg will continue to remove British state recruitment posters as they appear on our streets, whatever the consequences."