Ulster mob attacks woman peace leaders

Press, 12 October 1976, Page 8

Ulster mob attacks woman peace leaders

NZPA Belfast' Within a few hours of condemnation by the Roman Catholic Bishop of Londonderry (Dr Edward Daly) of the LR.A.’s smear campaign against the W,men’s Peace Movement, the two leaders of: the movement. Miss Mai read Corrigan and Mrs Betty Williams, had to run for their lives from a hostile mob of 6<JO people, some a-med with: clubs. The mob smashed and overturned the cars tn which the two women had arrived to address a meeting of the Turf Lodge Tenants’ Association held to protest against the death earlier in the daw of a hoy. aged 13. who had been hit with a plastic bullet I fired by a British soldier. A group of men formed a protective ring around Miss'

(Corrigan and Mrs Williams,: who ran across the street and took sanctuary in a church. "The mob was right behind 1 us and I saw them pulling Miss Corrigan’s hair and try - ing to rip the clothes off her ]back, while Mrs Williams was kicked in the stomach,” said a member of the Women’s Peace Movement who asked not to be identi- : ’led for fear of reprisals. “We had to stay in the church for about 11 hours before it was safe to leave.” Later, a man’s body, which had been severely beaten and set on fire, was found I in an alley in the Protestant heartland town of Ballymena. The two deaths brought to 1634 the toll in Ulster since ‘the violence began seven years ago. Dr Daly, speaking in

,: County Donegal, in the Irish 1, Republic, denied allegations Jin the Sinn Fein’s new propaganda drive that ‘‘the peace J people” were protesting only - against I.R.A. violence, and rjnot against attacks by s Protestant extremists or J British Army troops in ? Ulster. t| Dr Daly also called for the -punishment of abuses by ? British security forces. ‘‘The r explanation of some deaths s where security forces have been involved has been far it from satisfactory,” he said. i "The fact that British I(soldiers and other members tJ of the security forces seem to .ibe able to perpetrate evil ) and unjust deeds with apparent impunity is certainly 7 a t serious impediment to the achievement of peace in i: Northern Ireland today.”