Cindy Sheehan and Radio Free Eireann

international | anti-war / imperialism | opinion/analysis

Sunday August 28, 2005 16:33

by Saoirse Daltun

Republican Sinn Fein's Fascist Connections

John McDonagh supports violence in Ireland and has deep and longtime connections with the extreme right. He has opportunistically latched on to the Cindy Sheehan movement

As leader of the National Irish Freedom Committee McDonagh has objected to the recent formal statement by the IRA ending their campagn against the British. IRA volunteer, Seana Walsh, who read the IRA statement on video, was condescendingly sneered at by Radio Free Eireann. Walsh, who is 48 yrs old has spent 22 yrs in prison for his beliefs. But he is not 'republican' enough for McDonagh.

Likewise, Joe Doherty, who spent 9 hard years in prison in NYC fighting extradion and deportation, was not pure enough in his patriotism for McDonagh. Doherty, used to write a column for the Irish People newspaper until it was censored by McDonagh who was then the editor.

McDonagh silenced Joe Doherty but had the bigot, Billyclub Hughes, write a weekly column. Hughes regularly cited the fascist weekly, the Spotlight. He praised Yockey's Imperium, a book dedicated to Adolph Hitler. Another favorite of Hughes was Nesta Webster, an English fascist and anti-Irish bigot. Hughes loves her stupid conspiracy theories.

More recently Hughes has been Radio Free Eireann's Washington's correspondent where he claimed Golan Cipel was a Mossad agent who brought down Gov. McGreevey.

Hughes has also praised the 'work' of Kevin McDonald. McDonald was a character witness for David Irving, the English nazi, in his failed libel suit against Deborah Lipstadt, author of 'Denying the Holocaust'.

McDonagh's colleague, Brian Mor, also wrote a column where he warned of the 'yellow danger', meaning the Japanese.

With another longtime friend, Gerry McGeough, McDonagh organized an 'Irish Race' conference in NYC, the theme being that the Irish are a separate and distinct race of people and that this racial purity should determine their politics. McGeough has since campaigned for the Irish fascist, Justin Barrett, who has close links with the European neo-nazi movement.

The National Irish Freedom Committee, headed by McDonagh, is the U.S wing of Republican Sinn Fein/Continuity IRA, a tiny group in Ireland still conducting a campaign of violence. Recently they hijacked a taxi, placed a bomb in it and ordered the taxidriver to drive to a police station. He abandoned his vehicle and the police defused the bomb. This is one taxidriver that McDonagh will not interview.

McDonagh is supporting violence in Ireland and, presumably, peace in Iraq.

John McDonagh has enduring, and longtime, relationships with extreme rightwing and violent forces. He has now latched on to the Cindy Sheehan phenomenon. With friends like these...