1982 / 1983 / 1984 AD

1982 January:  In the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, still under the control of Margaret Thatcher and the British Conservative Government, the De Lorien car manufacturer, supported previously by the British Labour Government, was bankrupt and the workers were now unemployed and the British Conservative Government was wary of risking any further monetary assistance to these 6 Counties in Ulster. James Prior the British Conservative Government's appointed Secretary in these 6 Counties in Ulster was now more then ever convinced that a Political Assembly must be set up in these 6 Counties.

January 27th: In the Irish Republic, Patrick Hillery the President of Ireland, allowed a dissolution of the Fine Gael Coalition Government  over the Budget.

February 18th: In the Irish Republic, the Fine Gael Coalition Government in the Irish Parliament, who were now under Garret Fitz Gerald the Fine Gael Party leader, was defeated in the General Election, in a very close 82 votes to 81, while  Desmond O Malley, was intending to challenge Charles Haughey for the leadership of the Fianna Fail Party, but then had second thoughts and withdrew his nomination.

March 9th: In the Irish Republic, Charles Haughey, the leader of the Fianna Fail Party, was returned as the Irish Prime Minister, by 86 votes to 76, supported this time also by Anthony Gregory, Neil Blaney and the 3 Workers Party candidates, and he then took the Stormont Assembly in the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, (as suggested by James Prior, Margaret Thatcher's representative there), to task as a failure, and wanted direct London to Dublin talks reintroduced instead. 

        In the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, still under the control of Margaret Thatcher and the British Conservative Government, the I.N.L.A. were to be neutralised by the change in tactics of the British Government to a more humane type of psychological oppression and extraction of information and many arrests were made of their key members and the Provos hit back by intimidating the families of the "super grasses."

April: The British Conservative Government under Margaret Thatcher produced a White Paper of a 78 seat Consultative Assembly for the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, still under their control, which was then passed as the 1982 Bill for these 6 Counties in Ulster with no mention of any input from the Irish Republic. Charles Haughey the Prime Minister of the Irish Republic refused to sanction her attack on Argentina as he saw it as strengthening the British Conservative Government's hold also over these 6 Counties in Ulster and the Provisional Sinn Fein political Party was totally against it seeing it as further act of hypocrisy by Margaret Thatcher similar to her attack on the Falklands also. The S.L.D. / Social Democratic Labour Party wanted a Council of Ireland instead of Margaret Thatcher's devolution, and the Unionists were not happy with it also, with the "Official" Unionists still requiring majority rule  with no power sharing, and Ian Paisley's D.U.P. wanted it to be used to make Direct Rule accountable, while the Alliance Party were all for it provided there was power sharing.

June:  In the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, still under the control of Margaret Thatcher and the British Conservative Government, Ian Paisley and Owen Carron were refused visas to go to America.

Autumn: 5 men in New York in America were accused of gun running including Michael Flannery the Director of Noraid who admitted the offence, but said it was done with the connivance of the C.I.A and they were found not guilty.

 July 20th: Bombs were detonated in London by the I.R.A., and 11 British Military soldiers were killed when 2 bombs were set off in Hyde Park where members of the P.I.R.A. / Provos ambushed mounted troopers in Hyde Park and 4 were killed including 7 horses and 3 soldiers, 2 police and 17 people were injured. Another bombing also occurred in Regent's Park a few weeks later under a Military band stand and 6 were killed and 24 injured including 4 civilians and the P.I.R.A / Provos released a press statement stating it was their turn to quote Article 51 of the United Nations on the rights of the people to self determination previously quoted by Margaret Thatcher on her attack on the Falklands in Argentina.

       In the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, still under the control of Margaret Thatcher and the British Conservative Government, John Stalker, a British policeman was appointed to inquire into the policing problems in these 6 Counties in Ulster by the British Conservative Government, but he was to be prevented by the R.U.C. police from carrying out a proper investigation, and was to then be eventually removed by Margaret Thatcher.          

October 6th: In the Irish Republic, Charles Mac Creevy tabled a motion of no confidence in the leadership of Charles Haughey, at a parliamentary meeting, and it was successful by 58 votes to only 22 against, and also Dick Spring became the new leader of the Irish Labour Party, replacing Michael O Leary.

      In the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, still under the control of Margaret Thatcher and the British Conservative Government, all of the political Parties put up candidates for the proposed Assembly election with the "Official" Unionist Party gaining 26 seats, the D.U. Party 21 seats,  the S.D.L. Party 14 seats, the Alliance Party 10 seats the Provisional Sinn Fein Party 5 and Independent Unionists 2 seats. During the elections the I.N.L.A attacked some Unionists and candidates whose political wing I.R.S. Party refused to participate along with the Official Sinn Fein and the Provisional Sinn Fein Party and the S.D.L. Party refused to take up their seats and although James Prior pleaded with the S.,D.L. Party, they still said they were not interested. In the meantime the seats in the British Westminster Parliament had increased from 12 to 17, which was to be further to the Unionist advantage in these 6 Counties in Ulster. 

November 24th: In the Irish Republic, in the General Election, Charles Haughey and the Fianna Fail Party won 75 seats, while the Fine Gael Party under the leadership of Garret Fitz Gerald won 70 seats and he then became the new Prime Minister of Ireland by forming a Coalition Government, as the Irish Labour Party had won 11 seats, and they combined with the Fine Gael Party, which then gave the Fine Gael Coalition a 6 seat majority overall of 85 to 79.    

      In the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, still under the control of Margaret Thatcher and the British Conservative Government, her Secretary there, James Prior, tried to reintroduce some type of Power Sharing based on an Irish Assembly, which would only have Legislative powers. A new Stormont Assembly was elected, which included some Irish Nationals, but it was still to be totally controlled by the Ascendancy "Official" Unionists, so the Irish Nationals withdrew, as they considered as usual there was to be no effective role for them in that Parliament. The political Sinn Fein Party, re - affirmed their position also, that their main objective was the re - unification of Ireland, and would stand for the elections, although they would not be taking up their seats, and were supported on both these issues by the S.D.L. Party / Social Democratic Labour Party.

December: Ken Livingstone the leader of the greater London Council put out feelers for the Provisional Sinn Fein Party to visit London to discuss ways of bringing about a British withdrawal from the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, still under the control of the British Labour Government and unification of Ireland, but the British Government under Margaret Thatcher banned any chance of the delegation under the Prevention of Terrorism Act.

      In the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, still under the control of Margaret Thatcher and the British Conservative Government, at a disco in Bally Kelly, which was popular with the British Military the Provos set off a bomb that killed 11 British soldiers and 6 civilians, and the next day the Dublin Court in the Irish Republic extradited Dominic Mac Glinchey, a South Derry A.S.U. member. While in jail he had left the Provos and joined with the I.N.L.A. as he was against left wing leanings and hunger strikes.  

    Another 137  people were to meet a violent death again this year in these 6 Counties in Ulster, still under the control of the British Conservative Government.

1983 In the Irish Republic, Finnbarr Nolan, who was the seventh son of a seventh son, was at this time a renowned healer, who lived at Loch Gowna - Arua in the the Ulster Province. The Irish Grand National was held in Co. Meath in the south- east of Northern Leinster.

January: The National Council of Civil Liberties and the British Society for Social Responsibility in Science wanted plastic bullets banned.

February: The European Parliament's Political Affairs decided to investigate the political situation in Ireland, but came up with no conclusions.

March: John Hume persuaded Garrett Fitz Gerald, who now back in as the Prime Minister of the Irish Republic, to set up a cross border forum of all interested parties in Ireland, to discuss the political future of the the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, still under the control of the British Conservative Government,

April 14th: In the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, still under the control of the British Conservative Government ,John Hume, the M.P. for Foyle from the  S.D.L. Party / Social Democratic Labour Party was prominent, in trying to negotiate Peace there. The British Government security forces were now shooting any members of the I.R.A. on sight, with John Hume producing a list of 10 men who had been killed from November 1982 to April 1983.                    

May: Ray Mac Creesh, died.

           In the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, still under the control of the British Labour Government, in a very public display of their increasing popularity, Gerry Adams from the political Sinn Fein Party was to defeat Gerry Fitt for the seat of West Belfast in the British Westminster Parliament. The political Sinn Fein Party won 40 % of the Irish Nationalist vote, with 13.5 % all over, against the 3 % they had previously won in these 6 County Ulster Assembly Elections back in 1973. The Social Democratic Labour Party / S.D.L.P. of John Hume, were to lose electoral ground, by capturing only 18% of the vote, and were to be back from the 22% support they had gained previously in the 6 County Assembly Elections in 1973.  At this time 80% of the people situated to the east of the River Bann, were solid Unionist voters.

May 30th: As to the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, still under the control of the British Labour Government, John Hume, from the S.D.L. P. / Social Democratic Labour Party there succeeded in getting the Fianna Fail Party, the Fine Gael Party, the Irish Labour Party and his own the S.D.L. Party to meet in Dublin Castle to set up the New Ireland Forum previously proposed by him. They wanted to come up with democratic proposals to re - unite the 32 Counties for a United Ireland again, to end the on going violence and turmoil created by the artificial separation in the first place. but the political Sinn Fein Party was not invited, and the forum was to last only 11 months after it was to be also boycotted by the "Official" Unionists.

June: The Irish Republic Government proscribed the I.N.L.A. mainly due to Dominic Mac Glinchey's exploits, and the Provos kidnapped Galen Weston and Don Tidey over the next few months. 

    Margaret Thatcher called a British Government election for Westminster and the Conservatives gained a greater majority with the seats in the the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, still under her control at 15, "Official" Unionists 11, D.U.P. 3 S.D.L. Party / John Hume 1,  while in West Belfast Gerry Fitt lost to Gerry Adams and Provisional Sinn Fein who refused to take it up.

    A number of U.D.R./ Ulster Defence Regiment and R.U.C. police were convicted of murdering Irish Catholics in the Falls area. 

July: In the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, still under the control of the British Conservative Government, the Orange marches occurred with further riots and 2 R.U.C. police were killed in Derry in Co. Derry.

August: In the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, still under the control of the British Conservative Government, 80 Noraid members visited to investigate discrimination against the Irish Catholics and one of them was arrested for throwing stones at the British Military security forces so Margaret Thatcher banned them from these 6 Counties in Ulster.   

September 22nd:  In the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, a successful break out occurred, by 38 of the I.R.A. prisoners escaping from Newry Prison, who were led by Brendan Mac Farlane, who had taken over the leadership there after the death of Bobby Sands and only 19 were recaptured within a few days. Over half of the convictions, against the suspected Irish prisoners up to 1985,were the result of the testimony of the "super - grasses," who gave their evidence in the British Government 's Diplock Courts to gain lighter sentences for themselves. 64 out of the 65 Irishmen there, who had been incarcerated in these 6 Counties in Ulster, were to be eventually released on appeal.

November early: Garret Fitz Gerald the Prime Minister of the Irish Republic met with Margaret Thatcher to discuss the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, still under the control of the British Conservative Government.

November: In the Irish Republic, at the Ard Fheis / Convention held by the political Sinn Fein Party, Ruairi O Bradaigh and Daithi O Connell stood down as their President and vice - President, respectively. A Chief Executive was kidnapped in Dublin who would be released on payment of 5 million pounds, but he was rescued by the Garda / Irish police 3 weeks later after a gun battle. 

November 20th: In the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, and still under the control of the British Conservative Government, at Darkley in Co. Armagh a group fired on a congregation at the Pentecostal hall and 3 people were killed and 7 wounded and the R.U.C. police blamed  the I.N.L.A. and the "Official" Unionists walked out of the Assembly against James Prior's lack of effectiveness against terrorism.

December 10th: A bomb was set off near the guard room of the Royal Military Barracks at Woolwich, which was the same place as in October 1974.

December 17th: The I.R.A. detonated a car bomb, in a side street near Harrods in London and 2 policemen and 3 civilians were killed and 91 were injured but the Official I.R.A. and the I.N.L.A have not been active in recent years, as the Officials were continuing on under Cathal Goulding's declaration in 1978.

     In the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, and still under the control of the British Conservative Government, another 77 people were to once again meet with violent deaths, during the year.   

1984 In the Irish Republic, Sean Mac Entee, who had been one of the revolutionaries, and a Minister in the Fianna Fail Party, in the Irish Republic, died in Dublin at 94 years of age.  Liam O Flaherty (1896 - 1984) the novelist, who had been born and lived on Inishmore, off the coast of Co. Clare in the north - west of the Munster Province, also died this year. The United Ireland Forum, set up by John Hume from the Social Democratic Labour Party / S.D.L.P. put forward 3 proposals to re - unite the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province with the other 26 Counties of Ireland.

January: In the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, still under the control of the British Conservative Government, Derry City Council, who now had an Irish Catholic majority, decided to call Londonderry by it's proper Irish name of Derry.

February: The U..S. ambassador to London stated that the U.S.A. was going to clamp down on Noraid or any other Irish organizations who they believed was assisting P.I.R.A. / Provos.

March 14th: the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, still under the control of the British Conservative Government, Gerry Adams the president of the political Provisional Sinn Fein Party was shot 3 times by a Loyalist Para - military force in Belfast.

March 17th: In the Irish Republic, Domonic Mac Glinchy, who was the Chief of Staff of the splinter group, who were now known as the I.N.L.A. / Irish National Liberation Army, had jumped bail as he knew he was up for extradition to the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, still under the control of Margaret Thatcher and the British Conservative Government, He was captured on this day at Newmarket on Fergus in Co. Clare by the Garda Siochana / Irish police and Garrett Fitz Gerald, the Irish Prime Minister, was now in a hurry to show his willingness to co - operate with the British Conservative Government and also with the Official" Unionists in these 6 Counties in the Ulster Province, He arranged for Domonic Mac Glinchy to be extradited to the 6 Counties in Ulster still under their control, and it was to take them over 6 months to find a charge that they could lay against him.  

 May 2nd: The New Ireland Forum, previously set up by John Hume from the S.D.L. Party, published a report stating that the Irish Republic / 26 Counties must be involved in any solution to end the ongoing troubles in the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province still under the control of the British Conservative Government, but the violence still continued.  

May: the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, still under the control of the British Conservative Government, Gerry Fitt the previous M.P. for West Belfast was driven out of his house, which was then burnt down for constantly verbally attacking the P.I.R.A / Provos. The I.R.S. / Irish Republican Socialist Party headquarters were also burnt down in Belfast and and a number of the S.D.L. / Social Democratic Labour Party offices were also burnt. Convictions were now occurring on the evidence of "super grasses" only.

May: In the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, and still under the control of the British Conservative Government, Cardinal O Fiaich, and the Irish Nationalist leaders complained about the ongoing conduct of the R.U.C. police there, and the treatment handed out to the Irish people there, and their "Shoot to Kill" policy. John Stalker, the Deputy Chief Constable from Manchester in England had been sent over by the British Conservative Government, to investigate the conduct of the R.U.C. police there, especially as to their impartiality. The British Government now had 8 Military Battalions, with 6 of these up for a 2 year tour of duty, and the R.U.C was also strengthened and no Court Martials were declared during the present troubles.

August 12th: In the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, and still under the control of the British Conservative Government, Martin Galvin the Noraid publicity director visited  the these 6 Counties and addressed a crowd of Irish Catholics and the R.U.C. police tried to arrest him and rioting broke out and 1 man was killed by a plastic bullet and 20 others were injured by the R.U.C police. It was all seen on TV. by British viewers who could personally see the R.U.C police breaking the rules laid down, who were aiming at the upper part of his body and firing at close range. 

September: In the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, and still under the control of the British Conservative Government, Margaret Thatcher replaced James Prior as her Secretary in these 6 Counties in Ulster with Douglas Hurd.

October 12th: The British Conservative Party Annual Conference was held at the Grand Hotel at Brighton in England and at 3 a.m. a bomb went off in the upper floor and 3 people were killed, including an M.P., and 7 were injured including Norman Tebbitt the British Secretary of State for Trade & Industry and his wife. The bomb had been placed under the floorboards of a bedroom up to 4 weeks before, close to where Margaret Thatcher  the British Conservative Prime Minister was  supposed to be staying, as the I.R.A. were after her and her Cabinet, for the deaths of the 10 young "hunger strikers," but she was not there.

November: In the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, still under the control of the British Labour Government, a British Military soldier killed a drunken unarmed man as he ran away and he was found guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment and the last incident of the British Government soldiers shooting of the I.R.A. members on sight occurred when their S.A.S shot 2 P.I.R.A. / Provos this month.

November 18 - 19th: In the Irish Republic, Garrett Fitz Gerald, as the Fine Gael Prime Minister of Ireland, met with Margaret Thatcher the British Conservative Prime Minister, and put John Hume's 3 proposals forward to re - unite the 32 Counties in Ireland, but she dismissed the lot. The Kilbrandon Committee, recommended that an Executive be set up of 1 Irish Minister, 1 x British Minister, and 3 elected representatives from the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province that were still under British Conservative Government control.

      At this time the fortunes of the political Sinn Fein Party were not going too good at the polls, as they won only 4.9 % of the vote for the European Parliament elections. 

December 18th: In the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, and still under the control of the British Conservative Government, 40 men from Derry in Co. Derry were put before the court, but the case collapsed due to the "super grasses"  as 1 "super grass" was a convicted terrorist and an unreliable witness and "super grass" evidence was now questionable to use.  

December 25th: In the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, and still under the control of the British Conservative Government, a charge was finally brought against Dominic Mac Glinchy who was given life imprisonment for the death of a casualty on one of the raids he had carried out there. At the same time a British Military soldier was also given a life sentence for killing a Catholic Irish demonstrator, but was to be released in 1988, and re - instated in the British Imperial Army.

      In to the 6 Counties artificially partitioned from the 9 in the Ulster Province, still under the control of the British Conservative Government, a Prevention of Terrorism Act, an extension of the Emergency Provisions Act, was brought in giving them greater powers and enabling them under British Law to further violate any human rights there. Gerry Fitt the leader of the S.D.L. Party had his house in Belfast attacked and burnt as the Labour Party lost the Catholic workers to the S.D.L. Party who were now more Unionist in their approach.

Another 64 people, were to meet with violent deaths in these 6 Counties in Ulster still under the British Government control, which was to be the lowest for many years.

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