THIS month’s Hunger Strike Commemoration will take place in Cork City and will mark the 42nd anniversary of the 1981 hunger strikes with First Minister Designate Michelle O’Neill as the keynote speaker.

The event on 27 August will also remember the centenary anniversary of the deaths on hunger strike of three Cork republicans, Lord Mayor of Cork Terence MacSwiney, Michael Fitzgerald and Joseph Murphy who died in 1920. Due to the coronavirus their commemorations could not be held in 2020. 

Also being commemorated along with the ten men who died in 1981 will be Cork IRA men who died in the 1923 hunger strikes, Denis Barry and Andy O’Sullivan, as well as Michael Gaughan who died on hunger strike in Parkhurst prison on the Isle of Wight in 1974 and Frank Stagg who died on strike in Wakefield prison, Yorkshire in 1976.

COMMEMORATION: Former Blanketmen at last year's commemoration in Milltown cemetery
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COMMEMORATION: Former Blanketmen at last year's commemoration in Milltown cemetery

Speaking about the event, former Blanketman Bik McFarlane said: “We would like to emphasise for people to be there on time because of the road closures. Michelle O’Neill will be the keynote speaker. It’s very hard to believe it’s 42 years down the line and I would like to draw attention to the families of the hunger strikers who would have felt the enormous impact of the strikes. 

“For families this is a living history and they will tell you this is like last week and not 42 years ago. For family members it is such a biting, severe memory and was such a traumatic time for all involved. The families bore the brunt more so than the rest of us and we also want to commemorate the women of Armagh prison, who were part of the first hunger trike and throughout all the prison protests. It wasn’t just us in the H-Blocks, we had a lot of support from women in Armagh too and they played a significant role during the whole period."

Speaking on his own experiences of the hunger strike Bik said: “1981 was probably the worst year of my life. You were in a prison protest which was horrendous, the blanket protest, no-wash and dirty protest. The British chose a battleground to defeat the republican struggle and they felt that by criminalising the prisoners they would criminalise the struggle.

"Thatcher said it would deal the final blow to republican struggle. The British have never, and still to this day have never understood the psyche of struggle in Ireland, particularly around hunger strike.

Bik continued: “42 years ago we were left in a situation through sheer brutality and torture in their system with all of its conveyor belt of special arrest powers, the special interrogation and torture centres, the Diplock courts and the H-Blocks. They sought to isolate and break up the structures and they failed. The first men in there (H-Blocks) were very young such as Kieran Nugent who was a teenager and he refused to let them use him to criminalise our struggle.

“It’s important to point out that we had to argue with the IRA Army Council because they were opposed to hunger strike action as there would be fatalities and it would shift the onus onto the prisons. The ramifications of that battle were massive, it was either we succeed or surrender, which wasn’t going to happen."

HUNGER STRIKERS: Former blanketman Bik McFarlane at the grave of Bobby Sands
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HUNGER STRIKERS: Former blanketman Bik McFarlane at the grave of Bobby Sands

On the progress made politically since 1981 Bik said he could never have imagined the progress made from then to now with Sinn Féin now being the largest party in Ireland, set for government in the 26 counties and the biggest party in Stormont. He also reflected on memories of the 12 men who died on hunger strike during the recent conflict.

“For me, the hunger strikes were the catalyst to help that political development and that’s why we need to commemorate those men and their families. I visited the graveyard today for Kieran Doherty’s anniversary, it was Kevin Lynch’s yesterday and on the anniversary of a hunger striker I visit their memorial plaque."

“Our commemoration too will also include tributes to Michael Gaughan and Frank Stagg who died on hunger strike alone in English prisons and we will remember them and the trauma their families went through and we always commemorate them along with the 10 other men who died.”

This year's commemoration will take place in Cork City on August 27th, assembling at 2pm at Kennedy Quay.