A chara, - In connection with the imprisonment of Liam Lawlor, there were some obvious omissions from the January 17th Irish Times list of TDs who spent time in jail.
Two of the four Sinn Fein TDs elected in the 26 Counties in 1957 were in Mountjoy jail at the time of their election. They were John Joe McGirl (Sligo-Leitrim) and the undersigned (Longford-Westmeath).
John Joe was released a fortnight later on completion of his sentence, but when I had served my six months sentence I was taken unceremoniously to the Curragh, where I was held without charge or trial for a further year-and-a-quarter.
In 1959 I was arrested again at the funeral in Roscommon of the headmaster of the school where I taught. I was asked 24 questions under the Offences Against the State Act but, in keeping with my right to silence, refused to answer. I was sent back to Mountjoy for another six months.
Eighneachan O h-Anluain, Sinn Fein TD for Monaghan, served a short sentence in Mountjoy in 1960 for collecting funds for republican prisoners' dependants.
In 1981 Ciaran Doherty and Paddy Agnew, H-Block "blanket" prisoners in Long Kesh, were elected in Cavan-Monaghan and Louth respectively. Ciaran was on hunger-strike at the time of his election in June and died the following August.
Back in 1925, Sean (Jack) McGuinness, Sinn Fein TD for Laois-Offaly, was in prison (ref Dorothy Macardle's Irish Re- public, page 816). In the postCivil War general election of August 1923, 18 of the 44 Sinn Fein TDs elected were either in jail or in prison camp. - Is mise,
Ruairi O Bradaigh, President, Republican Sinn Fein, Parnell Street, Dublin 1.