Gerry Kelly

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For the Northern Irish broadcaster, see Gerry Kelly (broadcaster). For the English footballer, see Gerry Kelly (footballer). For the golfer, see Jerry Kelly.

Gerry Kelly
MLA
Junior Minister Assisting the Deputy First Minister
In office
8 May 2007 – 16 May 2011
Deputy FMMartin McGuinness
Preceded byDenis Haughey
Succeeded byMartina Anderson
Member of the Legislative Assembly
for Belfast North
Assumed office
25 June 1998
Preceded byOffice created
Personal details
Born (1953-04-05) 5 April 1953 (age 71)
Belfast, Northern Ireland
Political partySinn Féin
SpouseMargaret Kelly
Children7
Residence(s)Belfast, Northern Ireland
Alma materSt Peter's Secondary School, Britton's Parade, Belfast
PortfolioPolicing
Other organisationsProvisional Irish Republican Army volunteer (formerly)
WebsiteNorth Belfast - Gerry Kelly

Gerard Kelly (Irish: Gearárd Ó Ceallaigh; born 5 April 1953) is an Irish republican politician and former Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) volunteer who played a leading role in the negotiations that led to the Good Friday Agreement on 10 April 1998.[1] He is currently a member of Sinn Féin's Ard Chomhairle (National Executive) and a Member of the Northern Ireland Assembly (MLA) for North Belfast.[2][3][4]

Old Bailey attack[edit]

Main article: 1973 Old Bailey bombing

The IRA planted four car bombs in London on 8 March 1973. Two of the car bombs were defused: a fertilizer bomb in a car outside the Post Office in Broadway and the BBC's armed forces radio studio in Dean Stanley Street. However, the other two exploded, one near the Old Bailey and the other at Ministry of Agriculture off Whitehall. As a result of the explosions one person died and almost 200 people were injured.[5]

Kelly, then aged 19, and eight others, including Hugh Feeney and sisters Marian and Dolours Price, were found guilty of various charges relating to the bombings on 14 November 1973. Kelly was convicted of causing explosions and conspiracy to cause explosions, and received two life sentences plus twenty years.[6]

Imprisonment and hunger strike[edit]

Upon imprisonment in Britain, Kelly, and the other prisoners went on hunger strike demanding political prisoner status and to be transferred to prisons in Northern Ireland. After 60 days on hunger strike, during which he subsequently alleged he was force-fed by prison officers, Kelly was transferred to HMP Maze prison in Northern Ireland in April 1975.[7]

While imprisoned in the Maze, Kelly again went on protest and made a number of escape attempts in 1977, 1982 and 1983. On 25 September 1983, Kelly was involved in the Maze Prison escape, the largest break-out of prisoners in Europe since World War II and in UK prison history.[8][9] Kelly, along with 37 other republican prisoners, armed with six hand-guns, hijacked a prison meals lorry and smashed their way out of the Maze past 40 prison officers and 28 alarm systems. During the escape Kelly shot a prison officer, who attempted to foil the escape, in the head with a gun that had been smuggled into the jail. The officer survived.[10]

After the mass break-out Kelly was on the run for three years and again became involved in IRA activity in Europe. Whilst on the run Kelly claimed he was aided in his escape by "all kinds of people", including prominent Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael supporters in the Republic of Ireland.[11]

On 16 January 1986, Kelly was arrested in the Netherlands along with Brendan "Bik" McFarlane at their flat in Amsterdam. At the time of their arrest, cash in several currencies, maps and fake passports and the keys to a storage container holding 14 rifles, 100,000 rounds of ammunition and nitrobenzene were recovered by the Dutch police.[12][13]

On 4 December 1986, the pair were extradited from the Netherlands to the United Kingdom by RAF helicopter and were returned to the Maze prison.[14] On 2 June 1989, Kelly was released in line with the extradition conditions agreed on with the Dutch authorities.[15]

Political career[edit]

Upon leaving prison, Kelly became actively involved in politics, becoming a leading member of Sinn Féin. Kelly and fellow Sinn Féin member Martin McGuinness both engaged in protracted secret negotiations with representatives of the British Government from 1990 until 1993.[16] Kelly also published a collection of poetry, Words from a Cell, in 1989.[17] Kelly played a role in the Northern Ireland peace process negotiations that led to the Good Friday Agreement on 10 April 1998. In promoting the peace process he had talks with Nelson Mandela, Thabo Mbeki, Bill Clinton, Tony Blair and Bertie Ahern.[18]

On 27 June 1998, he was elected to the Northern Ireland Assembly. He was Deputy Chair of the Social Development Committee in the 1998-2003 Assembly, and is currently Sinn Féin Spokesperson for Policing and Justice, and a political member of the Northern Ireland Policing Board.[18][19][20][21]

In 2013, aged 60, Kelly was criticised by other MLAs (Members of the Legislative Assembly) in Northern Ireland, for holding on to the front of a Police Service of Northern Ireland vehicle, as it drove away with him during a protest in his constituency.[22]

Kelly was a Sinn Féin representative during the talks chaired by Richard Haass in 2013 on contentious issues in Northern Ireland.[23]

Kelly brought libel proceedings against a journalist who had talked in two 2019 radio interviews about the 1983 prison officer shooting. His case was dismissed by the Belfast High Court in January 2024 as "scandalous, frivolous and vexatious".[24]

Cultural references[edit]

In the 2017 film Maze dramatising the 1983 prison break, directed by Stephen Burke, Kelly was portrayed by Irish actor Patrick Buchanan.[25]

References[edit]

  1. ^ British, Irish accord experts hold lecture on N. Ireland experience Archived 23 August 2011 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ Gerry Kelly - Biography from NI Assembly Archived 11 August 2006 at the Wayback Machine
  3. ^ GERRY KELLY MLA (SF) Archived 28 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ "The peace warriors". The Guardian. London, UK. 29 June 1999.
  5. ^ "From the archives: Ten held after Provo bombs blast London", 1973 archives, The Guardian, 9 March 1973, retrieved 30 May 2013
  6. ^ Searcs Web Guide: Gerry Kelly profile Archived 19 October 2006 at the Wayback Machine, searcs-web.com; accessed 15 January 2016.
  7. ^ Ruairí Ó Brádaigh, the Life and Politics of an Irish Revolutionary by Robert White (ISBN 978-0253347084), page 235
  8. ^ O'Day, Alan (1997). Political Violence in Northern Ireland: Conflict and Conflict Resolution. Praeger Publishers. p. 88. ISBN 978-0-275-95414-7.
  9. ^ Louisa Wright (10 October 1983). "The I.R.A.'s 'Great Escape'". Time. Archived from the original on 14 November 2007. Retrieved 29 July 2007.
  10. ^ Byrne, Nicola (21 September 2003). "Maze party with jelly and ice cream". The Observer. London, UK.
  11. ^ Killers party at Maze escape night, unison.ie; accessed 15 January 2016.
  12. ^ "Passport in man's home bore the name of another man". Irish Examiner. 30 April 1998. Archived from the original on 13 September 2006. Retrieved 11 March 2007.
  13. ^ "Westminster accepts them, but we don't". Irish Independent. 3 February 2002. Retrieved 14 March 2007.
  14. ^ "Dutch Extradite Two I.R.A. Fugitives". The New York Times. 4 December 1986. Retrieved 11 March 2007.
  15. ^ De Baróid, Ciarán (2000). Ballymurphy and the Irish War. Pluto Press. p. 337. ISBN 0-7453-1509-7.
  16. ^ "Setting The Record Straight - Sinn Féin booklet as PDF download" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 May 2010. Retrieved 13 July 2010.
  17. ^ Jason O'Toole (21 December 2016). "Leonard Cohen Tribute: IRA prisoners adopted 'Bird on a Wire' as their freedom anthem". Hot Press.
  18. ^ a b Gerry Kelly profile Archived 30 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine, sinnfein.ie; accessed 15 January 2016.
  19. ^ "These are the future leaders of Ulster if the St Andrews Agreement is endorsed" Archived 28 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine, ivanfoster.org; accessed 15 January 2016.
  20. ^ Critics mock Kelly's actions in Ardoyne Archived 11 August 2004 at archive.today
  21. ^ "The NI Policing Board". nipolicingboard.org.uk. Retrieved 22 August 2015.
  22. ^ "Tour of the North parade: Sinn Fein members criticised". BBC News. 23 June 2013.
  23. ^ "Richard Haass talks continuing into night". BBC News. 31 December 2013.
  24. ^ "Gerry Kelly libel case against journalist thrown out". BBC News. 8 January 2024. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
  25. ^ Burke, Stephen (22 September 2017), Maze, Tom Vaughan-Lawlor, Barry Ward, Martin McCann, retrieved 4 August 2018

External links[edit]

Northern Ireland Forum
New forum Member for North Belfast
1996–1998 		Forum dissolved
Northern Ireland Assembly
New assembly
 MLA for Belfast North
1998–present 		Incumbent
Political offices
Preceded by Junior Minister,
Office of the First Minister and deputy First Minister
2007–2011 		Succeeded by
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