Martin Corey related statement International Anti-imperialist Coordinating Committee

May 16, 2013 

Ramsey Clark, President, International Anti-imperialist Coordinating Committee (IACC), and Founder, International Action Centre (IAC) has issued the following statement :

Martin Corey has been held in Maghaberry Prison illegally since April 2010 without any charge ever being placed against him. In fact no one knows why he is there, not even the judges who reviewed his case. Human Rights Judge Lord Justice Colman Treacy ordered in July 2012 his immediate release and placed no conditions upon him. With a blatant disregard of the judicial process the British Secretary of State overturned this order, and Martin remains detained in Maghaberry to this day. He is being victimized in prison in many ways and his basic rights are denied. I have long urged the release Martin Corey and once more reiterate that his detention is a violation of his fundamental human rights and he must be immediately released.

Ramsey Clark, President 

Released by Manik Mukherjee, GeneralSecretary, IACC

click here for official release

Latest update on internee Martin Corey

The concerted campaign of victimisation by the Northern Ireland Prison Service against Martin Corey continues. On Monday the 11th of February 2013, Martin and two other prisoners submitted completed handcraft projects as St, Valentine’s Day gifts for their wives and partners. The other two prisoners had visits on Tuesday the 12th of February; their loved ones went to the collection point and received their items that were 24 hours after they were collected from the prisoners in Roe House 3.

Today, Thursday the 14th of February 2013, Martin had a visit from his partner, after the visit she went to the collection point as requested by Martin. She was told by prison Staff that there was no items for collection, and to call back next week.

Last week, Martin completed a complaints form on the wing to be delivered to the Prison Ombudsman concerning several items that were left in for him three weeks ago, which he never received. It is Prison Ombudsman’s policy that the prisoner receives notification within 24 hours that the complaint has been received. Today, Thursday the 14th of February, Martin has still not received notice that his complaint has been delivered to the Prison Ombudsman.

Martin made an emergency request three weeks ago to see the prison dentist concerning a tooth broken at gum level; he only got to see the dentist yesterday the 13th February. He was told his initial request had been cancelled due to lack of transport.

I have contacted Martin’s legal team and request they contact the Northern Ireland Prison Service and Prison Ombudsman for an explanation.
This blatant campaign of victimisation must be highlighted.

Jim McIlmurray

(On behalf of Martin Corey)

Martin Corey exposes reality of British  occupation

The recent overturning of a court decision ordering the release of  Martin Corey highlights the reality that the Six-County state is both  abnormal and undemocratic. The actions of British

Secretary of State Owen  Paterson in subverting a British Court in order to imprison an Irish Republican sends out the message that nothing has changed when it comes to  the enforcement of British rule in Ireland.

In his judgement Séamus Treacy ruled that the use of closed or secret  evidence as the basis for interning Martin Corey was a breach of his human  rights under Article 5 (4) of the European Convention on Human Rights.  Despite this the British Secretary of State ordered that the case be heard  by a second judge effectively subverting the original judgment.

And so 41 years after the introduction of internment in the Six Counties it  appears it is once more being employed as a means of silencing Irish  Republicans. What has happened to Martin Corey constitutes not only an  attack on Martin´s human and civil rights but are an attack on the human and  civil rights of all people within the Six Counties. The continued imprisonment of Marian Price on trumped up charges coupled with the  vindictive imprisonment of Gerry McGeough tell us much about the true nature  of British involvement in

Ireland.

So much for the much heralded human rights agenda of the Stormont regime  what we have got instead is more of the same. We are calling on people to  join the campaign for the relaese of Martin Corey and help expose the true  nature of British occupation in  Ireland.

Time to free Martin Corey

By: Sandy Boyer

Martin Corey has spent more than two years in Northern Ireland's Maghaberry Prison, but he still doesn't know why he is there.

A Belfast judge ordered him released on unconditional bail on July 9 because he was being held on the basis of secret evidence neither he nor is lawyers had been allowed to see. His family rushed to the prison to bring him home.

But while Corey was sitting in the prison reception area and his family was waiting outside, Owen Paterson, the British Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, overruled the judge and ordered him re-arrested. Later, two judges confirmed that he can be held at least until a September 28 hearing

Corey received a life sentence in December 1973, when he was 19 years old, for killing two members of the Royal Ulster Constabulary, the Northern Ireland police force, in an IRA operation. He served 19 years and was released in June 1992. He returned home to Lurgan in County Aramgh, where he worked steadily, formed an ongoing relationship and became a highly respected member of the local community.

The police appeared at Corey's door and took him away to prison in the early hours of April 16, 2010, almost 18 years after his release. His younger brother Joe described what happened:

They came to the door at around 6 a.m. There was about 12 of them standing there when I answered the door. They asked for Martin and told me the Secretary of State had revoked his [parole]. They gave no reason for this. There was no struggle. He just got up and walked out with them. They brought him to Maghaberry, where he has been ever since.

Corey wasn't charged with any crime and wasn't told what, if anything, he was supposed to have done. He was simply informed that the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland had revoked his license (parole, in American terms) because he was a "security risk." Later, it was claimed that "he was involved with dissident republicans."

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

In 2011, Corey told The Lurgan Mail:

I have been in prison for nearly a year and a half, and I still haven't been given a reason. They have put forward a number of allegations against me, and I'm not able to defend myself against any of them.

They say I have been seen speaking to known republicans, and that I visited a number of houses. What does that matter? It doesn't mean I've done anything wrong. They have absolutely nothing on me, and that's why they haven't charged me.

His partner, Lynda Magee, said, "He does not know what he has done and has been told nothing about why he is being held. He has already served his time, and he was willing to do it. But now he is being held for no reason."

Corey is a member of Republican Sinn Fein, a legal political party throughout Ireland. They are opposed to the Good Friday Agreement because they believe it perpetuates British rule in Northern Ireland.

Republican Sinn Fein is almost universally believed to be affiliated with the Continuity IRA in the same way that Sinn Fein was traditionally affiliated with the IRA. This can be used to justify imprisoning Martin Corey because he is a "dissident republican" and a threat to the peace process.

But people on both sides of the Atlantic who have little or no sympathy with Martin Corey's politics are demanding that he be released.

Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams met Owen Paterson in the Dáil (Irish parliament) and urged him to free Martin Corey. Adams stated that "Martin Corey was released by the courts...[He] should be released, and I put it very strongly to Mr. Paterson that this should be done."

At their recent convention, the Ancient Order of the Hibernians passed a resolution "that the Ancient Order of Hibernians in America condemns Owen Patterson for the continued imprisonment of Martin Corey and urges that the judge's ruling be enforced and that be released immediately on unconditional bail. "

Many people were especially alarmed when Patterson overruled the judge's decision and ordered Corey back to prison. He had twice ordered Marian Price, another political prisoner, re-imprisoned after a judge released her on bail, claiming he was revoking her license.

If Paterson can get away with this, no political prisoner who may have been released on license will ever be safe. Owen Paterson has effectively placed himself above the law and is imprisoning people at will. This means that it's no longer enough to campaign for one or another of the political prisoners, as essential as this has been. It's time to broaden our campaign to include as many prisoners as possible and challenge the whole policy of locking people up on the basis of secret evidence.

As Northern Ireland civil rights leader Bernadette Devlin McAliskey put it:

The direct action of the British Government, through their Northern Ireland Office, in abusing executive authority to overrule the independent decisions of the judicial system in both the Corey and Price cases is the clearest indication to date of how little has really changed in Northern Ireland in respect of accountable democracy.

The Good Friday Agreement promised an end to this abuse of human rights and democracy. It is long past time it delivered on this promise. It is also time the international power players who created this deformity of democracy held it to account.

British Secretary of State overrules court in Martin Corey case

Republican Sinn Féin in a statement on July 9 claimed that the judiciary in the Occupied Six Counties is run by the [British controlled] NI Office after it over-ruled a decision of the courts in relation to Martin Corey.  

“The decision of Owen Patterson, British Secretary of State for the Six Counties, to over-rule the Six-County appeals court’s release of Republican veteran Martin Corey (Lurgan) exposes the lengths the British state is prepared to go in order imprison Irish Republicans.  

“The rulings of their own courts are to be ignored thereby denying even a semblance of due process to a veteran Republican who has been interned without trial since April 2010.  

“Martin’s release was ordered by Justice Treacy on July 9 but by late afternoon, it was obvious to Martin, and everyone else, that he was not being released. At the court the NI Office made no request for an appeal.   

“When it comes to dealing with Ireland and the Irish people the British state always reverts to the methods of the coloniser dealing with the colonised. The norms of judicial process and the rule of law are set aside in order to suppress anyone who is prepared to speak out in opposition to British occupation in Ireland.  

“The actions of Owen Patterson in denying Martin Corey his freedom gives the lie to any pretence that the Six-County state is a normal democratic state.  

“His action represents an attack on the human rights not just of Martin Corey but every person within the Six Counties who would dare to speak out against the status quo”.

Martin Corey exposes reality of British  occupation

The recent overturning of a court decision ordering the release of  Martin Corey highlights the reality that the Six-County state is both  abnormal and undemocratic. The actions of British

Secretary of State Owen  Paterson in subverting a British Court in order to imprison an Irish Republican sends out the message that nothing has changed when it comes to  the enforcement of British rule in Ireland.

In his judgement Séamus Treacy ruled that the use of closed or secret  evidence as the basis for interning Martin Corey was a breach of his human  rights under Article 5 (4) of the European Convention on Human Rights.  Despite this the British Secretary of State ordered that the case be heard  by a second judge effectively subverting the original judgment.

And so 41 years after the introduction of internment in the Six Counties it  appears it is once more being employed as a means of silencing Irish  Republicans. What has happened to Martin Corey constitutes not only an  attack on Martin´s human and civil rights but are an attack on the human and  civil rights of all people within the Six Counties. The continued imprisonment of Marian Price on trumped up charges coupled with the  vindictive imprisonment of Gerry McGeough tell us much about the true nature  of British involvement in

Ireland.

So much for the much heralded human rights agenda of the Stormont regime  what we have got instead is more of the same. We are calling on people to  join the campaign for the relaese of Martin Corey and help expose the true  nature of British occupation in  Ireland.

 

ANCIENT ORDER OF HIBERNIANS IN AMERICA 

RESOLUTION FOR MARTIN COREY

WHEREAS – Martin Corey was imprisoned for IRA activity in December 1973 when he was 19 years old.

WHEREAS – When he was released in June 1992 Martin Corey returned home and became a highly respected member of his local community in Lurgan, County Aramgh.

WHEREAS – Martin Corey was re-arrested on April 16, 2010, almost 18 years after his original release, on the basis of secret evidence neither he nor his lawyers have been permitted to see.

WHEREAS – A judge in Northern Ireland ordered Martin Corey released on unconditional bail on June 9th.

WHEREAS – Martin Corey remains in prison because the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Owen Paterson, has refused to implement the judge’s order.

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED – that the Ancient Order of Hibernians in America condemns Owen Patterson for the continued imprisonment of Martin Corey and urges that the judge’s ruling be enforced and that be released immediately on unconditional bail.

July 2012

Free Martin Corey now

Republican Martin Corey From Lurgan, Co. Armagh was sentenced to life imprisonment in December 1973.
He was 19 years old. He spend the next 19 years in jail and was finally released without signing anything, in June 1992.
 Without warning on April 16th 2010 he was taken back into custody. No reason was given to Martin at the time or since his return to jail.
This website http://www.releasemartincorey.com/index.html has been established to help secure his release and update on the situation - please go to the Petition page in  regards to the petition and Sign.
Martin Corey is being held hostage by the British Government because of his political beliefs, all those who believe in justice and equality must support this campaign.
RELEASE MARTIN COREY NOW !
If you would like any further information please contact: releasemartincorey@gmail.com
 

Martin Corey denied compassionate leave to attend brother's funeral

In a statement on May 25 the POW Department of Republican Sinn Féin said that the use of compassionate leave as a punishment against POLITICAL
HOSTAGE Martin Corey, who is currently languishing in Maghaberry Jail with no charges against him, was a new low even for the British and their lackeys in Stormont.
"Peter Corey, Martin's brother, died on Monday, May 21, 2012 after a battle with cancer. The prison regime refused Martin compassionate leave. One of the reasons given was their fear that Martin would abscond. Republicans have always honoured their word in regards to compassionate leave and to suggest otherwise is insulting. Had Martin Corey been given dignified parole he would have returned to the jail at his appointed time, a man of his word does not need an excort. What is equally insulting was the suggestion by the prison service was that the lives of those attending the funeral would be endangered should he get out for the day.
"An appeal was scheduled for the morning of the funeral Thursday, May 24 at 9am. The High Court in Belfast refused to make a judgement; referred it back to prison service and suggested they reconsider their refusal.
"At 11.45am, 15 minutes before the funeral Mass was scheduled to begin, Martin's solicitor was informed that leave had been granted on the condition that two MLAs and his life-long friend Jim McIlmurray accompany him. Martin was not allowed out of the Chapel grounds, even for the burial and had to be back in Maghaberry for 3pm.
"The practices of the past are no longer afforded to Republican POWs, most recently POW Damien McKenna was point blank refused leave to attend his
fathers funeral.
"The cat-and-mouse games of the NIO and courts in relation to compassionate leave for Republican prisoners is mental torture against people who are already going through deep grief and anguish, this practice must stop immediately."

 

Hundreds march for Martin Corey

January 23, 2011

 

More than 300 people attended a march in Lurgan, Co Armagh on Sunday, January 23 calling for the release from Maghaberry jail, Co Antrim of political hostage Martin Corey.
The crowd assembled at Kilwilkie Estate and led by the Release Martin Corey banner, marched through various nationalist estates gathering more supporters as it went. Despite that this was the original route the RUC saw fit to block some roads into the town and with a loudhailer and a very large poster informed everyone that “this is an illegal march”.
A helicopter ‘accompanied’ the march all the way to the rally at Taghnevan where Cáit Trainor, (Armagh) chair of the Committee and Ard Chomhairle member, welcomed everyone.
The first speaker she introduced was Fergal Moore, Vice-President, Republican Sinn Féin, who said that people had “…heard of Martin being referred to as a ‘political hostage’; that is exactly what he is. For 18 years he went about his normal life until last April when the police arrived at his door in the early hours and hauled him off to Maghaberry on the word of then British Secretary of State Shaun Woodward.”
Fergal continued: “This is the police that the British authorities, their supporters and their compliant media would have you believe has changed so much from the RUC. The Brits would have you believe that these new RUC are some sort of cuddly community group that help old ladies across the road and give out sweeties to children. The events of last April 16 when they took Martin from his home put the lie to that.
“Their ‘law’ says that they can imprison Martin at any time. I don’t give a damn for their “law”. British law has no place in Ireland and its only role here is to keep the Irish people subjugated, it certainly has nothing to do with justice.
“Their attempts to intimidate us from attending this protest today prove that they remain a tool of the British authorities and are eager to continue their role as a political police crushing any dissenting voices. Despite their cosmetic changes and their new name they remain the same force with the same role as the RUC, indeed they are the same force with the same role as the RIC who were run from Dublin Castle. To paraphrase the Bard ‘a pig by any other name would smell of …muck’.
“Martin Corey is a man who opposes such political policing. He opposes the British presence in Ireland. He is a true Irish Republican and a man of great principle. He served 19 years in Long Kesh through the darkest days of the Blanket protest and the Hunger Strikes.
“Our voices must become a mighty roar that will shake the foundations of the Establishment. I’m sure there are many people sitting at home today who heard of this march and protest and thought to themselves “sure he’s one of those Republicans, it’s nothing to do with me.” We must explain to these people that the unjust imprisonment of Martin Corey has everything to do with all of us Republican or otherwise. Martin’s imprisonment is further proof, if any were needed, that we live under a corrupt regime that will not tolerate any dissenting voice”.
Fergal quoted James Connolly: “If you strike us, imprison, or kill us, out of our prisons or graves, we will evoke a spirit that will thwart you, and perhaps, raise a force that will destroy you! We defy you! Do your worst!”
Ashleen McKenna, Lurgan read a statement from the Committee who pointed out that Martin had taken part in the POW protest for several months in Maghaberry jail:
“During that time he requested that we not highlight his case specifically as the prisoner protest was ongoing and this was, he felt, where we should focus our attention, I think this fact alone should go some way in explaining the kind of man Martin is.
“When the prisoner protest ended that is when the real work of the Martin Corey Committee began.
“This mantra the British Government keep boring us with, that Martin is some kind of a ‘Security Risk’ does not wash with us and goes no way in explaining the situation.
“The political oppression we as Republicans face every day is increasing - the voice of Republicanism must be censored by the British Government at all costs, least we expose the false peace that has been sold to the world. Martin Corey is in jail for NO reason other than being a Republican. We are all aware of the lengths the British Government will go to censor Republicans. There are many EX-POWs in Ireland today all of whom could be subjected to the same internment as Martin. It is Martin Corey today and it could be you tomorrow.
“Martin has asked to take this opportunity to thank each and every one of you for the kind support you have given him so far. There are many people who could not be here today who have supported Martin from the start and he would like to thank them also.”
The statement concluded: “We don’t have the luxury of large budgets and money flowing in to highlight this case, so we rely on people spreading the word using social media sites, posters or whatever way they possible can.
“There is a petition for the Release of Martin Corey ongoing, if you have not already signed it please do so here today”.
Des Dalton, President of Republican Sinn Féin spoke next and began by thanking all the people from Lurgan, Craigavon and further afield who by turning out in such large numbers have shown their support for the immediate release of Martin Corey.
He continued: “The internment of Martin Corey gives the lie to those in Stormont, Leinster House and Westminster who spin the big lie that the occupied Six Counties is a normal society where British rule is now accepted. Martin Corey is in Maghaberry today for one reason only.
“He has refused to compromise or abandon the beliefs and principles which have guided him throughout his life. That is the right of the people of Ireland to full national freedom. An end to British rule and partition and the restoration of the All-Ireland Republic of 1916. Martin Corey gave up the prime years of his life in the cages and H Blocks of Long Kesh because of his dedication to these principles.
“Standing here in the occupied part of Ireland we salute the new risen generation throughout the Six Counties and particularly here in Lurgan and Craigavon who have displayed their fearlessness in taking on the forces of British occupation. They are testament to the lesson of Irish history that as long as British rule remains in Ireland there will always be a section of the Irish people prepared to resist it. We salute the Republican prisoners in Maghaberry and Portlaoise for their commitment to a free Ireland.
“We marched today in Lurgan, just as we marched in Belfast without seeking the permission of the British state to do so. Irish Republicans have never sought the permission of the British state or the 26-County state to march in any part of Ireland and never will.
“Martin Corey is a political hostage but also a figure of inspiration to a new generation and we must redouble our efforts for his unconditional release.”
The organisers of the march, Republican Sinn Féin/Release Martin Corey Campaign, were very pleased with the turn-out and Cáit Trainor thanked everyone for coming, especially those who travelled from around the country. 

 

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