Irish Republican Army and Censorship
The Irish Republican Army (IRA) has a complex history that stretches back to the 19th century, with its modern incarnation emerging in 1917 as a key player in the struggle for Irish nationalism. Throughout its existence, the IRA has engaged in violent tactics to suppress opposition, including targeting British intelligence and police forces. The organization has experienced significant internal divisions, notably splitting into the Official IRA and the Provisional Irish Republican Army (PIRA) in 1969, with the latter remaining active in paramilitary operations and guerrilla warfare.
Censorship has played a critical role in both the IRA's operations and the responses from opposing governments. The IRA and its factions have utilized intimidation and violence to silence informants and dissenters, while being met with extensive censorship efforts by the British and Irish governments aimed at curbing their influence and media presence. Despite these efforts, the IRA has maintained a level of operational resilience and media attention through high-profile attacks.
The landscape of the IRA further evolved with the emergence of splinter groups like the Continuity IRA and Real IRA, particularly in reaction to peace processes like the Good Friday Agreement. While the mainstream PIRA has moved towards disarmament and political engagement, other factions continue to pursue violent means, highlighting the ongoing complexities of Irish republicanism and its relationship with censorship.
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Irish Republican Army and Censorship
Founded: 1917
Type of organization: Nationalistic, ethnic, illegal revolutionary force committed to the expulsion of British forces from Northern Ireland and the creation of a unified Irish Republic
Significance: The Irish Republican Army (IRA) has both employed various forms of censorship and often been the target of numerous state efforts to suppress it and its political message.
Although the name "Irish Republican Army" dates back to the nineteenth century, the basis of the modern group began in 1917 as the army of the Irish Republic. The IRA has a long tradition of suppression, which has typically involved violence. The IRA has used violence to quiet its enemies and has likewise been suppressed with violence. In the 1920’s, the IRA began to target British intelligence operatives and the most effective police officers as enemies of its goal of Irish nationalism. In doing so, the IRA reduced the efficiency of counterterrorist organizations. The IRA also intimidated prison wardens, court witnesses, and jurors.
The history of the IRA is complicated by frequent splits and divisions of various factions, most of which lay some claim to the overarching IRA name. The first major break came in 1922, as the Irish Civil War led to the creation of a new IRA consisting of those opposed to the treaty between Great Britain and Ireland after the Irish war of independence (Anglo-Irish War). This IRA, which opposed both the Irish Free State and Northern Ireland as imperialist creations, was itself split in 1969 into the Official IRA (OIRA) and the Provisional Irish Republican Army (PIRA). While both groups espoused left-wing ideologies, the OIRA was heavily Marxist and eventually phased out its military wing in favor of the political branch that became the Worker's Party of Ireland, while the PIRA remained the larger and more active paramilitary organization.
The PIRA in particular continued guerrilla warfare practices and escalated the level of violence. After 1969 assassinations, involving snipers or bombs, became a modus operandi. In addition to other forms of censorship, factions of the IRA have acted aggressively to suppress and punish informants. Informants have been crippled or executed to stop their testifying and to act as warnings to other potential informers. The PIRA also frequently censored its publications: for example, the forced resignation of an editor of a PIRA newspaper in 1974.
Throughout their existence the IRA, the PIRA, and other offshoots have also faced extensive censorship themselves. Their terrorist tactics have three main goals: to intimidate their enemies; to blackmail the three governments involved (Great Britain, the Irish Republic, and Northern Ireland) into cooperation; and to generate propaganda. The opposing governments have used censorship to attempt to destroy the IRA and PIRA and to reduce the illegal organizations’ access to media coverage.
In 1919 the IRA was banned. In 1922 Northern Ireland passed the Civil Authorities Act, which granted the government the authority to arrest without warrant, intern without trial, ban any organization or meeting, prohibit coroner’s inquest, and to execute suspected terrorists. In 1925 the Roman Catholic church, influential in Ireland, was persuaded to condemn the IRA and to refuse them the administration of sacraments. In 1931 the Irish Republic outlawed the IRA and banned its newspaper. In 1939 and 1940 the Irish Republic passed legislation that allowed internment without trial and execution for terrorist acts. In 1957 the Republic passed the Offenses Against the State Act, which created military tribunals to try IRA suspects. In 1971 Great Britain allowed internment without trial. By 1976 all three governments allowed nonjury trials for terrorists. They also limited access through trials to the media. In 1971 the Irish Republic prohibited any interviews with representatives of the IRA, PIRA, or Sinn Féin, the political wing. In 1974 Great Britain and the Irish Republic banned terrorists from speaking on television. In 1988 Great Britain banned the broadcasting or televising of any pro-Irish terrorist statements. Television shows have been censored of IRA references. Despite these efforts, the IRA and PIRA remained functional, and the use of sensational terrorist attacks—such as attacks on the prime minister and mortar attacks on Heathrow airport in the 1990’s—ensured continuing media exposure for the IRA.
The PIRA also had several factions break away and claim the IRA name, beginning in 1986 with the formation of the Continuity IRA (CIRA), which opposed the PIRA's decision to recognize the Republic of Ireland. After the PIRA announced a ceasefire in 1997, when the Sinn Féin political branch was allowed to join peace talks, the Real IRA (RIRA) splinter group was formed to oppose the peace process. The mainstream PIRA continued to move toward moderation, giving support to the Good Friday Agreement in 1998. In 2005 it announced it would disarm and abandon its paramilitary campaign, while pursuing peaceful means to achieve its political and social goals. However, the CIRA, RIRA, and others claiming the IRA name continued terrorist activities into the 2010s.
Bibliography
Dingley, James. The IRA: The Irish Republican Army. Santa Barbara: Praeger, 2012. Print.
"Full Text: IRA Statement." Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 28 July 2005. Web. 8 Jul. 2015.
Morrison, John F. The Origins and Rise of Dissident Irish Republicanism: The Role and Impact of Organizational Splits. New York: Bloomsbury Academic, 2013. Print.
Noonan, Gerard. The IRA in Britain, 1919–1923: "In the Heart of Enemy Lines." Belmont: Wadsworth, 2014. Print.
Pike, John. "Irish Republican Army (IRA), Provisional Irish Republican Army (PIRA), the Provos, Direct Action Against Drugs (DAAD)." Intelligence Resource Program. Federation of American Scientists, 21 July 2005. Web. 8 July 2015.