Coiste na nIarchimí
Introduction
The past 30 years of conflict in Ireland have added a new chapter to the long history of the experience of republicans in prisons. It has been estimated that throughout the whole country up to 15,000 men and women have been imprisoned, of whom around 4,000 spent their time in jail in the 26 Counties. While the problems associated with imprisonment have long been something which the republican movement itself has been aware of, and which were addressed through the Sinn Fein P.O.W Department and An Cumann Cabhrach, it is an issue which has been given particular prominence because of the major political developments which have taken place over last five or six years.
While thousands of men and women had silently left the jails for many years prior to this, it was the mass series of releases which followed the IRA ceasefires which sharply focused attention on the whole issue. This has continued right up until the present after almost all republican prisoners have been released and controversy surrounds the conditions for the freeing of those who still remain locked up. But while people may be more aware of the centrality of the prisoners to the events of the past number of years, it is debatable as to whether or not this has actually made life outside prison any easier for former prisoners themselves.
Much has been made of the role which both serving and former republican prisoners played in bringing about the new departure and yet it would appear that their concerns have not been afforded the same level of attention as some of the other aspects of what is supposed to be a process of conflict resolution. It has been recognised that the vast majority of political prisoners would not have found themselves in prison for any reason had it not been for the conflict. At the same time, some former prisoners feel that they are now expected to quietly fade into the background while ‘normal’ service resumes.
Of course many former prisoners continue to play prominent roles in the current political process, both in a highly visible public fashion as well as in communities the length and breadth of Ireland. This is a reflection of the fact that within the republican movement and its support base, former prisoners are often held in high esteem and possess the qualities which often cause them to be pushed into leadership positions. But this does not mean that former prisoners can simply slip back into the outside world with no difficulties of transition or adaptation. For many, life outside prison has produced a whole new range of problems and these are issues which need to be addressed not only for the former prisoners themselves as individuals but for their families and indeed the communities in which they live.
It was, and is, this understanding which has led to the organisation of a number of groups specifically designed to represent the former prisoner community and to address its concerns. These groups have been the creation of former prisoners themselves. They have sprung up in the past number of years due to the large numbers of republican prisoners being released after the ceasefires, but they do not confine themselves to this group. Rather they have striven to create a sense of community among all republican former prisoners, regardless of when or where they were imprisoned. Their aim has been to find out what are the major concerns within the former prisoner community, and to represent these concerns to those responsible for framing public policy.
2. Coiste na nIarchimí
Coiste na nIarchimi is the overall body representing republican former prisoner groups. It has member groups in different parts of the country and seeks co-ordinate the efforts of all these groups in the manner best conducive to achieving their aims. The aims of Coiste are to work for the full integration of republican former prisoners into the community and to facilitate the contribution of prisoners both to the creation of peace and justice in Ireland and to the overall social fabric of the country. In its day-to-day work, Coiste strives to bring about practical measures which will improve the lives of former prisoners and their families. This entails work across a variety of issues including employment difficulties, education and training, and the fight against the criminalisation, discrimination and harassment which continue to frustrate the efforts of former prisoners to build a proper life for themselves and their families outside prison.
We decided that the main focus of this study would be how republican former prisoners were faring in regard to employment. We felt that this was the most pressing issue which faces former prisoners and also because it is one which most impinges on all other areas. We were aware that one survey carried out in the 6 Counties had attempted to address what might be regarded as psychological issues but we felt that we did not have a suitable model for assessing these problems. Again, this was a theme which emerged in the course of some of the interviews which we conducted, and we are aware from our own knowledge that some former prisoners have been experiencing difficulties in these areas. We are of the opinion, therefore, that this is something which requires a separate study and is not as suitable for the kind of survey which can be conducted regarding the economic situation of former prisoners.
We were also aware that a similar study to our own was being conducted by the former prisoners group, Failte Abhaile, in Dundalk and we decided to model some of our own questions on the Dundalk survey. All of the information from both surveys has been inputted into the database although we have chosen to treat them as two separate items for the purpose of this analysis. This has allowed us to make a direct comparison between the two surveys on many of the issues regarding employment. We also include some statistics from the studies of republican former prisoners in the 6 Counties. The comparisons between the studies help to illustrate how the employment prospects of former prisoners are certainly influenced by the overall economic climate, but also how even within that context former prisoners as a group are beset by particular difficulties.
Foucault once described modern systems of punishment as consisting of “…an economy of suspended rights” (1). In other words, whilst a person is imprisoned most of his or her civil rights are placed in suspension until their sentence has been completed. Once they are released back into society the former prisoner’s rights are restored to them. That at least is how it is supposed to work in theory. In reality many republican former prisoners feel that some of their rights continue to be withheld even after they have left prison.
This perceived suspension of rights is probably most acutely felt in the area of employment. This is a factor which has surfaced in the survey conducted by Coiste and in the findings of other studies of republican former prisoners. As will seen from the surveys, a sizeable proportion of republican former prisoners feel that they have been discriminated against in the job market because of their former status. Indeed, 6.1% of those surveyed by Coiste believed that they had lost jobs, or had been denied employment because it had become known to the employer or prospective employer that they had been a republican prisoner.
This discrimination is clearly a factor, as indeed it is for all other categories of ex-prisoners. Republicans are unique, however, in that they were until recently specifically excluded by law from taking up employment in the public and local authority sectors. It could also be argued that this culture of discrimination permeated the private sector, apart altogether from instances where the Garda Special Branch intervened with private employers to deny someone a job or to have them dismissed. This is something which has affected republican former prisoners throughout the history of the state. In the 1920s it was a deliberate policy to force republicans to leave the country after the Civil War. In the present circumstances, it is surely important that an imaginative political settlement is matched by an imaginative approach to those who have been imprisoned for their part in the conflict, rather than to facilitate the creation of an excluded group.
It was not until 1992 that Section 34 of the Offences against the State Act which prevented state and local authority employers from employing republican former prisoners was found to be repugnant to the Constitution. It was under the aegis of this legislation, therefore, that the vast majority of republican former prisoners, who were in jail prior to that date, had to compete within the labour market. It was a case taken by a former republican prisoner, Joe Cox, which forced the courts to act. Cox had been employed as a community school teacher prior to serving a two-year sentence but was denied the opportunity to resume his work after his release.
Section 34 debarred any person convicted in the Special Criminal Court from taking up, or resuming employment in a position financed from the Central Fund, or by the Oireachtas or local authority taxation. It also prevented the drawing of pensions for any such employment prior to conviction. In its 1992 judgement, the High Court found that Section 34 constituted an interference with personal rights as guaranteed under Article 40 s. 2 of the Constitution. It adjudged that the measure had been applied in an “…unreasonable and erratic manner” and that the penalties imposed were “…patently unfair and capricious”. By interfering with a persons right to employment it constituted an interference with the “…unenmunerated personal right to earn a livelihood” (2).
While this legislation is no longer in force many republican former prisoners were subject to its provisions and have been unable to resume jobs which they held prior to going to jail. There is also a feeling that many employers still refuse to employ republican former prisoners and that this discrimination has prevented a number of individuals securing employment in publicly funded positions. We will detail a number of these case studies below.
A conference which addressed some of these issues was held in November 1999. The conference titled “Accessing Employment 2000 and Beyond” was hosted jointly by NIACRO and both Probation and Welfare Service Boards. In a subsequent published report the conference organisers noted in respect to Minister Frank Fahey’s and Adam Ingram’s comments that employability and job placement are realistic goals for former prisoners (3). It was also recognised that republican former prisoners constitute “…a separate and distinct group with particular issues and concerns”, and that the vast majority would never have been imprisoned had it not been for the political conflict. Of particular concern, was the experience common to republican former prisoners of “…disadvantage and discrimination in the labour market” (4).
A measure of the obstacles facing any plans to do away with such discrimination was indicated by the contribution of Brendan Butler of IBEC to the same conference. Butler admitted that a significant number of employers would not employ former prisoners and that they actively sought to obtain such information, as recommended that they should do by the standard IBEC application form. Pointing out that former prisoners are not covered by equality legislation, Butler admitted that if a former prisoner were honest in regard to his or her past, then they would not be given a job. But if they lied and this was discovered, then they would be dismissed (5). Butler concluded by stating that he did not believe that the employment of former prisoners was an urgent issue and that in any event “…employers do not see themselves having a social role” (6).
We quote at length from Butler’s contribution if only to contrast the harsh reality of employer’s attitudes with the benign sentiments expressed by the Minister. There can be no doubt, unfortunately, as to which of the two prevails in the vast majority of cases where republican former prisoners seek work and are open about their past. Coiste has received a number of depositions detailing cases of employment discrimination, all of which must remain confidential at this stage. We can, however, provide some details from a selection of these, all of which relate to republican former prisoners who took part in our survey.
3. Adjusting To Release
One area which the employment survey did not specifically focus on but which is undoubtedly one which has caused problems for republican former prisoners is the manner in which they have been able to re-establish themselves within their families and the wider community. Questions which focus on these issues have been part of a number of surveys carried out among republican former prisoners in the 6 Counties. We felt that they were not particularly revealing in regard to what we ourselves know of the experience of former prisoners. Empirical evidence on levels of unemployment is obviously of value and provides an accurate picture of how former prisoners are faring in the jobs market in a way that we feel questions on subjective problems do not.
Having said that we have touched upon these issues in interviews with former prisoners and we do feel that there is a need for problems associated with this area to be addressed by the former prisoner community. Some of the information that we have compiled in creating the database touches on these issues and will hopefully be amenable to detailed analysis at a future date. Problems of readjustment affect not only the prisoners themselves but also their families. Former prisoners have experienced enormous problems readjusting to life outside but so too have their partners and children. Some work has already been done in co-operation with the children of former prisoners in the 6 Counties. This led to a visit to Long Kesh by members of Óganaigh le Cheile shortly before the last republican prisoners there were released. One result of this visit was the publication of a pamphlet that explores some of the issues which arose (18).
4. Discrimination
The case studies which we have referred to above clearly demonstrate that republican former prisoners are subject to discrimination in the employment field. To those examples already cited, we could add instances in which prisoners have been refused Public Service Vehicle licences, auctioneers licences and publicans licences as well as cases where former prisoners who have attempted to establish their own businesses have been subject to systematic harassment by members of the Special Branch. We have also found, however, from interviews with former prisoners in the course of compiling the information for our database that discrimination also extends into other areas of everyday life.
We are aware of one situation in which a republican former prisoner has evidence to suggest that he was refused permission to adopt a child because of his former status. Other former prisoners have experienced difficulties in securing accommodation, while some have been turned down on mortgage and loan applications because it became known that they had been in prison, and on no other substantive grounds. Other recent cases have been brought to the attention of the Coiste involving former prisoners who were refused insurance cover for business enterprises. We believe that such discrimination is unacceptable and makes a mockery of the notion that the integration of republican former prisoners will not be impeded as part of the peace process. If, as government ministers assure us, former political prisoners are a product of the conflict now in the process of being resolved, then it is incumbent on the state to ensure that attempts to prevent republican former prisoners from playing a full role in society are not tolerated.
5. Criminalisation
We have already briefly touched upon the issue of criminalisation in relation to former prisoners seeking employment. As was pointed out, the 26 Counties remains the only EU state in which it is not possible to have any criminal record erased. Republicans of course reject the notion that those imprisoned as republicans during the course of the conflict were or are criminals. And yet republican former prisoners are shadowed by their prison record which in many instances has prevented them securing employment and denied them other avenues open to citizens.
Criminalisation is intimately connected to discrimination in general, and indeed discrimination is often based upon the fact that an employer or another agency has information regarding a former prisoner’s past at their disposal. There are other instances where former prisoners have been denied travel visas to other countries like the United States and states that are members of the British Commonwealth. We believe that if the Dublin government is in earnest regarding its stated position on former prisoners then it should act to expunge all records of actions carried out in connection with the political conflict over the past 30 years.
6 . Conclusion
The picture of the republican former prisoner community which we are building up from the information in our database will help us to address not only employment related issues but many other problems which affect former prisoners and their families. From the sample of those currently on the database that we have used for the employment survey, we can already see where former prisoners are performing less well than the rest of the population. A major study is currently being carried out on educational attainment within the prisons. The information for this survey will become part of the database and it is hoped that in this manner the database can be continually updated.
When we undertook this survey we had only a very sketchy picture of how republican former prisoners were faring in relation to employment. While this cannot claim to be a definitive study of the situation of republican former prisoners in the 26 Counties given that only a small number of people in that category have been surveyed, we do feel that it presents a fairly accurate picture of at least this aspect of their lives. It also highlights the necessity for Coiste to establish contact with as many former prisoners as possible. Many or even most may feel that they are getting on alright without any need for support mechanisms. From what we have discovered, however, it would appear that a significant minority does need some assistance.
Apart from this, however, we are also strongly of the opinion that the experience of the republican former prisoner community is one that needs to be articulated. One reason why is that republican former prisoners do not constitute the type of marginal social grouping that characterises the majority of non-political prisoners. Another reason historically has been that the articulation of republicanism has been actively discouraged within this state. While many republican former prisoners have remained politically active, e.g. three of the four Sinn Fein Dublin City Councillors are former prisoners, many others have kept that part of their lives a secret from most of the people with whom they are in contact. In the present historical circumstances we believe that it is time that this changed.
There has been much lip service paid to the role of prisoners and former prisoners in the creation of the new departure in the politics of this island but we feel that much more needs to be done in order to ensure that due recognition is given to the need to allow former prisoners to properly reintegrate within the wider community. Republican former prisoners feel that they are the best placed to oversee this process and that the bulk of funding targeted for this purpose ought to be channelled through groups which have been organised by former prisoners.
Republican former prisoners make this assertion not as a reflection of their feeling themselves hard done by, nor on the basis of a claim to be a socially inadequate group requiring intensive care and attention. They make it on the basis of having been participants in the political conflict now in the process of resolution. Thousands of republicans have gone through prison and many thousands more have suffered from having had republican prisoners as family members. In a situation where are all other aspects of the situation are in the process of being addressed, it is only right that the concerns of this large group are also adequately taken on board. For its part Coiste na nIarchimí remains committed to reaching out to the republican former prisoner community and to articulating its needs and concerns.
1. Foucault, Michel “Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison”, London 1977, p11.
2. The Irish Reports, 1992 (Vol. 2), p503 – 505.
3. “Accessing Employment, 2000 and Beyond”, Conference Report, Dublin 2000, p6.
4. Ibid
5. Ibid, p16
6. Ibid, p17
7. Island Pamphlets/Tar Anall, “Left in Limbo: The Experience of Prisoners’ Children”, Newtownabbey, 2000.