Boston College ordered to hand over IRA interview recordings.

[Pat Mc Larnon]

Boston College has come in for a lot of attention lately in connection with the oral history project it conducted with a number of republicans and loyalists. The PSNI are currently involved in legal action to access the archive. It is believed they are only interested in the testimony of the 26 former IRA members who gave interviews to Anthony Mc Intyre, who was employed by ther Project Director Ed Moloney.
To date Moloney has used the archive to bring out the Voices from the Grave book, with attention focussed on the Brendan Hughes account.
Here Danny Morrison, who feels he has been implicated in a sectarian murder by Anthony Mc Intyre, calls for the project to be discontinued on the basis that innocent people will be implicated in events about which they themselves have not been asked to give opinions on.
He further states that those who have given interviews may themselves end up in court on the basis of the accounts they have given.

[rebellin]

Here is some background to the case Pat McLarnon posted

Obama Administration join British on fishing expedition in witch hunt against Gerry Adams

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One in a series of dirty tricks to keep Gerry Adams from being elected to the Dail last February was an attempt to link him to the 1972 killing of Jean McConville. That attempt seemed to fail flat when Adams was elected and Sinn Fein tripled their number of seats in the Dail.

But the get Gerry Adams witchhunt has intensified recently with British attempts to subpoena confidential oral history records at Boston College on the subject. Now the U.S. Attorney’s office in Massachusetts has joined the British in demanding Boston College hand over the oral histories An August 23 Boston Globe article by columnist Kevin Cullen condemed this fishing expedition against Adams

http://articles.boston.com/2011-08-2...nd-gerry-adams

[SeamusNapoleon]

It's a tough one alright.
Though Morrison knows he is building up a bit of a false argument with one point he makes:

Did Hachey ever ask why scores of pro-peace process republicans, prominent in the struggle, were never asked to participate?

The fact is that the history of such people has largely become the accepted narrative of the conflict, and what was needed were the voices of those on the outside - whether they left in 1986, 1997 or whenever. With the exception of Ó Brádaigh's biography, written by a rather fawning Dr White, there is very little of a stage for these people.

However, the existence of the HET does make Boston College's project rather difficult. If Morrison is right about their system of consent and release forms, which I don't know, then it is a very dodgy practise. This is something I find it difficult to agree or disagree with.

As an oral historian, I recognise how crucial the testaments are - particularly as some of those who consented to be interviewed may be old or have health problems. On the other hand, Moloney has never pretended to be anything other than a hatchet-man for Adams which, although many people here might cheer him on for that, a history of the period is tainted by such blatant non-objectivity.

[Pat Mc Larnon]

Here is the piece where Morrison makes the allegation against Mc Intyre.

[Barabus]

Morrison was always a considered lad. He did not write that lightly.

[Cruimh]

“But if you do not do so, then take note, you have sinned against the Lord; and be sure your sin will find you out” Numbers 32:23

A federal judge has ordered Boston College to turnover oral histories of IRA interviews requested by British authorities.

Judge rejects BC on IRA recording

[SeamusNapoleon]

Terrible precedent.
One hopes BC will not conform.

[Sync]

I really don't get the issue here. Taped interviews have been recorded which relate to terrorist offences. These tapes were recorded of the participants own free will without any sort of privilege being in place whatsoever. Of course concerned authorities investigating open cases are entitled to listen to those tapes.

[Cruimh]

Here is the piece where Morrison makes the allegation against Mc Intyre.

What a wonderful Hissy fit from the ludicrous Danny!

Great Comeback from Anthony :

As the late volunteer Skeet Hamilton was fond of saying about you,
it was a case of a ballot box in one hand and an armalite in somebody else’s

[Cruimh]

It just gets better - Niall O'Dowd plays the " damage the peace process" card LOL

Why is President Obama trying to damage the Irish peace process? Feds working with British agents win access to Boston College IRA tapes | Periscope Niall O'Dowd | IrishCentral

The British security forces MI5 etc., are looking for any dirt they can find on Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams among others on those tapes

As if they need to look any further afield, with all the agents they had and still have in the Republican Movement, for the dirt on badly bilingual Gerry