The 1981 hunger strike from inside Armagh jail

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http://www.derryjournal.com/news/local/the_1981_hunger_strike_from_inside_armagh_jail_1_3097831

Published on Wednesday 28 September 2011 08:00

As part of an ongoing series to mark the 30th anniversary of the 1981 hunger strike, ‘Journal’ reporter Michael McMonagle spoke to MARIE DOHERTY, a former prisoner in Armagh jail, about her experiences both inside and outside of the prison and the legacy of the hunger strikes. The former prisoner will speak at a public event to mark the end of the hunger strike in the city on October 3rd.

The period of the hunger strikes left many enduring images but for one former prisoner from Derry, the sight of the sisters of Thomas McElwee carrying his coffin from his south Derry home is one she will never forget. Marie Doherty watched one of the most turbulent periods of recent Irish history, the hunger strikes, from both inside and outside prison.

Arrested in 1977, she served several years in Armagh women’s prison, where she took part in the prison protest during the first hunger strike, before being released in 1981, shortly before start of the second hunger strike, during which ten republicans died.

Marie went into prison as the protest by republican prisoners was escalating. “I was arrested in February 1977 and when I went into jail the political status had gone at that stage,” she said.