A cairde
We are friends of Noel Maguire presently being held in HMP Whitemoor; He has informed us that his latest attempt to be repatriated has been denied.
Noel was one of 6 men convicted of three bomb attacks in the U.K on 8th April 2003. All his co accused have been repatriated back to Ireland.
Noel has been refused repatriation on a number of occasions. The Irish authorities claim wrongly that Noel has closer ties to the United Kingdom than to an
Irish jurisdiction despite Noels, having a wife, and a son and daughter, living in County Carlow. This is Noels immediate kith and kin. Although Noel and his
wife are separated she has put in writing she is willing to visit Noel should he be repatriated with the children.
This is Noels response to the refusal;
Dear Mr Ahern
Thank you for your letter dated October 23 in reply to my application for repatriation.
I am aware the Council of Europe Convention on the Transfer of Sentenced Prisoners
does not confer an automatic right to be transferred - nor an obligation on any state to
comply with a transfer request.
However what concerns me is the reason you have given to refuse my application.
You state that on balance you believe I have closer ties to the United Kingdom than
to an Irish jurisdiction. I would dispute this. How can that be?
I have a wife, and a son and daughter, living in County Carlow in the Irish republic.
They are my immediate kith and kin. Although my wife and I are separated she has
put in writing she is willing to visit me should I be repatriated to Portlaoise Prison. A
copy of her letter is in your possession as I write this. If it has been mislaid I can forward a copy.
I have not seen my son and daughter for over nine years. My wife - rightly - isn't happy to bring
them over to this country and put them through the ordeal of visiting me in prison - not to mention
the cost involved traveling and staying overnight in another country.
I have no family in Britain and my sole visitor is a non-relative.
Can you please explain why my wife, son and daughter are not considered to be my next of kin?
Also can you explain how you reached the conclusion I have closer ties to the United Kingdom than to
an Irish jurisdiction - bearing in mind I have no relatives living in the UK whatsoever - and am the
bearer of an Irish republic passport which is still valid.
I look forward to your reply.
Yours sincerely
NOEL MAGUIRE
11.10.2008
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We are approaching every we believe can help Noel in the hope that we can get a concerted writing and lobbying campaign going to bring this man home. Noel lived in Co Fermanagh and holds a valid Irish Passport which expires in 2010 it is without doubt a case where he is being denied recognition as an Irish Citizen and any rights he had have been stripped of him, the words that scream out at you from Noels Letter are I have not seen my son and daughter for over nine years This is so wrong as are the reasons for his being refused repatriation
We are asking for your help on Noels behalf.
We feel that if enough people write to or lobby Dermot Aherns office using the information provided in Noels letter and we can get at least a hundred letters then they will realize that Noel is not going away and in fact has become a focal point in which all Republicans are uniting in a common fight against the authorities and their corrupt system then they may be tempted to allow him home.
We do not represent any group but are a few friends who are in direct contact with Noel weekly and would like every right minded Republican to take Noels case and act immediately asking members and friends of organisations we belong to and the leadership to fight for the rights of one of our own,
The authorities believe we cannot come together for anything and will continue to do their best to ensure that this never happens.
Please take the information within Noels letter which makes our point that Noel should be eligible for Repatriation closer to his immediate family.
Thank You
Friends of Noel Maguire
Contact Information for Dermot Ahern
Constituency Office
Dermot Ahern TD
28 Francis Street
Dundalk
Co. Louth
042 9329023
Dáil Office
Dermot Ahern TD
Dáil Éireann
Leinster House
Kildare Street
Dublin 2
01 618 3000
Alternately you can email me at dermot@dermotahern.ie
Some fact on Noel;
Noel Maguire
Another Miscarriage of Justice by Corrupt British System
At Noels Trial the Evidence against him
The prosecution declared today that there was no direct evidence that any of the three defendants had planted a bomb
Cell site information showed Maguires phone had been in the area of a yard in north London where the taxi used in the BBC bomb was bought.
His thumbprints were subsequently discovered on one of the bank notes handed over for the cab.
Result
Noel Maguire was sentenced to 22 years on the flimsiest of evidence
A knife attack on Noel in 2006 by 2 inmates who have since been charged with attempted murder is an indication of the seriousness of the situation
Noel Maguire is the last remaining Irish political prisoner still incarcerated in an English jail. All his co accused have been repatriated as was their
rights as Irish Citizens
Repatriation
The right to be repatriated to the country of your citizenship to serve a prison sentence on humanitarian grounds as lay down by the European Directive.
A report by British Irish Rights Watch Committee on the Administration of Justice Irish Commission for Prisoners Overseas concluded:
Prisoners denied a transfer is deprived of contact with their families and their home communities, lessening their chances of successful reintegration on
their release. However, the people who suffer most from the failure to transfer prisoners are their families, who are prevented by the long distances involved,
the cost of the journey,
And in some cases poor health, from visiting their relatives. Families visiting republican prisoners in England have sometimes arrived to find that their relative
has been moved to another prison many miles away without their having been informed, a practice known as ghosting. Relatives have also been subjected to
strip searches and been held
under emergency laws when visiting their loved ones. The UK government has consistently put its own political agenda before any
humanitarian consideration or any notion of respect for fundamental human rights where the transfer of prisoners is concerned but it is the Irish Government who are
refusing Noel Repatriation on grounds which do not hold any validity whatsoever.
Reasons Noel should be repatriated:
He is an Irish citizen and holds a current Irish passport, issued in Dublin
He easily qualifies for repatriation under the European directive,
which allows prisoners to be moved back to their own country to
serve their sentence closer to their family for purely humanitarian
reasons. He has not seen his children in 6 Years.
There was an attempt to murder Noel in 2006 in which he received
serious knife wounds. If left alone and isolated his life would be
constantly under threat!
His physical and mental well being is in jeopardy if the Irish
Government refuses him the right to be brought home to serve his
sentence in an Irish Jail
He has not seen his children in 9 Years
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