EIRE: PRESS BRITISH ON GASSING OF MAZE PRISONERS - IRISH GOVT. URGED

The Celtic League is pressing the Irish government to put further pressure on the United Kingdom to clarify the incident at the Maze prison in 1974 when defenceless prisoners were gassed during disturbances at the jail.

The MOD has admitted helicopters dropped CS gas on the compounds but has always denied using the much more lethal and carcinogenic CR gas. Pointedly flight logs for the helicopters that operated on the day have been 'lost'.

«Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheál Martin TD 80 St. Stephen's Green Dublin 2

Dear Minister,

What was the result of the investigations that your Department said it would carry out in 2003 into the circumstances of the alleged us of CS and CR gas against prisoners in compounds of the Maze prison in 1974?

The Celtic League have over a number of years attempted to elicit answers from the MOD and despite their insistence that they have no record of the use of CR gas rumours persist that it was available in N. Ireland and it was deployed against the inmates during the disturbances.

United Kingdom Defence Minister Adam Ingrams told us in February 2005:

»I am unable to provide the October 1974 helicopter flight logs you request as such logs are routinely destroyed by RAF stations after five years of the date of a flight. I have however, attached Annex C to the Commander's Diary of the incident, which clearly states that soldiers were assisted in restoring order during the disturbance by «a helicopter dispensing CS».

Obviously the station Flight Logs (we presume from RAF Aldegrove) would be invaluable to resolving the allegations over the use of CR. Pilots would have to have logged all on-board munitions preflight. Quite frankly it beggars belief that logs from this period have been destroyed as in other enquiries we have made to the MOD over the years (involving unrelated incidents) logs as far back as the 1960s have been available.

We do believe the Irish government should press the United Kingdom government to shed further light on these serious allegations.

Yours faithfully,

J B Moffatt Director of Information"

J B Moffatt Director of Information Celtic League

31/05/08