This article is from page 4 of the 2006-05-23 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 4 JPG
ALEGATIONS of blackmail and threats against the safety of their families have been leveled against the Government by a spokesperson for the 41 Afghani men who ended their week-long hunger strike in Dublin on Saturday.
Rosanna Flynn, of the Residents Against Racism group, told The Clare People yesterday that the Government threatened to release the names of the hunger-strikers to the Afghani embassy in London, thus putting their families in Afghanistan in danger.
Ms Flynn, who has been acting as a spokesperson for the group, which includes former Corofin resident Hashmat Habbib, claims it was this threat that forced the men to give up their hunger strike on Saturday night.
“The men were threatened that the Irish Government was going to release their names to the Afghan Embassy in London if they didn’t leave. Whether it was done through the Gardaí or not, I don’t know, but it was that that made them go,” said Ms Flynn.
“They reacted very badly to this. It worried them greatly. They were more frightened of that than of dying on hunger strike”.
The week-long standoff came to an end on Saturday evening when the last of the 41 hunger-strikers left St Patrick’s Cathedral in Dublin. Eight minors had been removed by HSE officials earlier in the day after their situation began to deteriorate.
“The men were relieved when the younger men left. They had been trying to persuade them to leave as the younger people were starting to do damage to themselves and one was bleeding very badly,” continued Ms Flynn.
“One of the younger strikers had slashed himself down his arm. He had been threatening suicide if he was removed.”
A spokesperson from the Department of Justice declined to make any comment on the matter but a Garda spokesperson said, “there are 33 people in front of court at present and we will not be saying anything on that until that is dealt with, if at all.”
The hunger-strikers were charged with the forcible occupation of a premises at a special sitting of Dublin District Court on Sunday morning and will appear before Kilmainham District Court this Thursday.
Residents Against Racism will stage a demonstration outside Kilmainham court on Thursday morning.