August 1976: The Peace People
In August 1976, 2 US soldiers tasked with cutting down a poplar tree blocking the view of UN observers were killed by North Koreans claiming it was planted by Kim Il-Sung in the Korean Demilitarized Zone. In Northern Ireland, axe murder was also in the news when the Shankill Butchers struck again.
Political Developments in August 1976
August began, on the 8th, with several rallies held to mark the fifth anniversary of the introduction of internment. Vice-President of Sinn Féin Máire Drumm addressed one of the rallies and said that the campaign for the reintroduction of special category status would continue. Drumm is reported as saying that Belfast would "come down stone by stone, and if necessary other towns will come down, and some in England too" as part of the campaign.
On the same day, a group of Republican demonstrators broke into the home of SDLP leader Gerry Fitt who had to use his gun, issued for personal protection, to protect himself and members of his family and to force the crowd to leave the house.
On the 12th of August, a group of 1,000 women held a demonstration on the Finaghy Road in Andersontown at the place where the three Maguire children were killed on the 10th of August. 6,000 people signed a petition in Andersonstown calling for peace.
A rally held in Andersontown on the 14th of August to call for peace attracted a crowd of approximately 10,000 people. This rally was organised by the Women's Peace Movement, which later became the Peace People.
Brian Faulkner announced on the 18th of August that he would be retiring from active political life.
On the 21st of August, approximately 20,000 people, mainly women from Protestant and Catholic areas of Belfast, attended a Peace People's rally at Ormeau Park, Belfast.
August ended with the Peace People organising a rally on the 28th of August which approximately 25,000 people attended. Those participating in the rally walked from the Shankill Road to Woodvale Park.
Shootings & Other Murders in August 1976
01/08/76 - Protestant civilian John Bovaird (33), who had been living with a Catholic family on Annalee Street, Belfast, was shot dead by the UDA.
02/08/76 - Cornelius Neeson (49), a Catholic civilian, was killed with an axe as he walked home along the Cliftonville Road, Belfast. Members of the UVF gang known as the 'Shankill Butchers' were responsible for the killing.
03/08/76 - An INLA unit armed with a shotgun shot dead British soldier Alan Watkins (20) whilst on foot patrol in Main Street, Dungiven, County Londonderry. A follow-up operation discovered a large booby-trap bomb rigged to a cartridge in the derelict building from where the attack was carried out.
03/08/76 - A UDR officer was shot and injured as he drove to work on the Dublin Road, Newry. In court, an RUC detective stated the OIRA carried out the attack.
09/08/76 - Six gunmen engaged the British Army and RUC in a two-hour gun battle in the Bawnmore estate in North Belfast, amidst widespread unrest in the city. An RUC spokesman described the incident as "hot and heavy" and it was believed the Provisional IRA were involved. However, they were OIRA members, reportedly using "brand new" AK-47 rifles. The OIRA were also responsible for gun attacks on British soldiers on the Falls Road that same week.
10/08/76 - IRA member Daniel Lennon (23) was shot dead, by a British Army mobile patrol, as he drove a car along Finaghy Road North, Belfast. The car then went out of control and ploughed into the Maguire family who were walking on the pavement. Three children were killed as a result of this incident, Joanne Maguire (9), John Maguire (3) and Andrew Maguire (6 weeks). Two of the children died at the scene and the third died the following day. In the aftermath of these deaths, there were a series of peace rallies held in Belfast and across Northern Ireland. There were rallies on the 12th of August, 14th of August, 21st of August, 28th of August and in London on the 27th of November. The rallies were organised by the children's aunt, Mairead Corrigan, and another woman, Betty Williams (they were later joined by Ciaran McKeown). The rallies were the first since 'the Troubles' began when a large number of Catholics and Protestants joined forces on the streets of Northern Ireland to call for peace. On the 10th of October 1977, it was announced that Mairead Corrigan and Betty Williams would receive the Nobel Peace Prize for their work. On the 5th of October 1978, the original leaders of the Peace People announced that they were stepping down from the leadership of the organisation.
11/08/76 - Civilian Michael Quigley (33) was killed during an IRA gun attack on a British observation post at Meenan Square, Derry.
14/08/76 - Majella O'Hare (12), a young Catholic girl, was shot dead by British soldiers while she was walking near her home in Ballymoyer, Whitecross, County Armagh.
18/08/76 - The UFF shot dead UVF member Robert Walker (32) and left his body on Flush Road, Belfast. The killing was part of a Loyalist feud.
19/08/76 - There was a gun attack on the home of the Grand Master of the Orange Order at West Circular Crescent, Belfast. Thomas Passmore (68) was shot and died of his wounds on the 26th of August. The attack was blamed on the IRA. The Grand Master, a frequent critic of the IRA, was thought to have been the target.
19/08/76 - Civilian William Creighton (77) was shot attempting to stop a bomb attack on his garage, Upper Lisburn Road, Belfast.
24/08/76 - An OIRA sniper shot and seriously injured a British soldier standing in a Land Rover in the Ballymurphy area of Belfast.
26/08/76 - RUC officer James Heaney (20) was shot dead, outside his mother's home, by an IRA unit in Andersonstown, Belfast.
27/08/76 - The OIRA in South Down and South Armagh claimed responsibility for several recent gun attacks against the British Army, stating they were in retaliation for the "extreme brutality" of the 3rd Parachute Regiment stationed in the area.
31/08/76 - Catholic civilian Patrick Cunningham (29) was found dead on Carlow Street, Belfast. He had been tied up with wire, badly beaten and then shot in the head. Police believed UDA members had taken him from a pub and killed him when they found he was a Catholic. He died two days later, on the 2nd of September 1976.
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Bombings in August 1976
03/08/76 - The IRA carried out a series of six bomb attacks on Portrush, County Antrim.
08/08/76 - British soldier James Borucki (19) was killed by an IRA bomb hidden in a booby-trapped bicycle in Crossmaglen.
16/08/76 - The UVF exploded a no-warning car bomb outside the Step Inn in Keady. Catholic civilians Elizabeth McDonald (38) and Gerard McGleenan (22) were killed and 22 were wounded. The attack has been linked to the Glenanne Gang.
27/08/76 - Three members of a Catholic family, Joseph Dempsey (22), Jeanette Dempsey (19) and Brigeen Dempsey (10 months), were killed in a petrol bomb attack on their home in Hillman Street, New Lodge, Belfast. The attack was carried out by Loyalists.
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Some recommended reading based on research for this instalment.