Oration for Christopher "Crip" McWilliams -- Stormont Watch

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Date Posted: Tue, Jul 01 2008, 3:53:58 PDT
Author: Danielle Ni Dhighe
Subject: Oration for Christopher "Crip" McWilliams

The Irish Republican Socialist Committees of North America send our
condolences to the family and friends of our comrade Christopher
"Crip" McWilliams, who passed away after a long battle with cancer.
We share your sorrow at his passing.

Oration for Christopher "Crip" McWilliams

Delivered by Willie Gallagher on behalf of the Irish Republican
Socialist Movement on 30 June 2008

Comrades, we stand here today in memory of and in solemn salute to
the life of an Irish revolutionary, Irish National Liberation Army
Volunteer Christopher McWilliams.

The Republican Socialist Movement stand in grief beside his family,
acutely aware that they have lost a husband, a father, a son, a
brother and an an uncle and whilst we are saying our last farewell to
a brave and valued comrade who has came to the end of his long
journey, we recognise that their loss is deep and profound. We
respect them in this time of grief.

I have spoken over the past number of weeks to many of Crip's
comrades, many of whom are here today, and all are in a state of
disbelief. One comrade said, and I make no apology for repeating it
here today, "since hearing the news of Crip's deteriorating
condition I had the same gut-wrenching feeling as I had in 1981 as we
waited for the hunger strikers to die one by one in the H-Blocks of
Long Kesh."

Crip of course was no stranger to British prisons having spent most
of his adult life incarcerated by the British occupation forces.
Indeed for many who only knew Crip by reputation may believe that his
only contribution to the struggle was the execution of Billy Wright
in Long Kesh. Nothing could be further from the truth: Crip was a
well-rounded and experienced Volunteer, highly respected by his
peers, courageous and determined to play his part in the struggle.
Though there were many attempts to vilify and demonise him by the
media, and others, he never sought or countenanced notoriety. Crip
was not a man of letters or of endless theoretical speculation,
however this did not mean that he was unthinking or did not possess
the ability to look forward and plan and execute revolution in
Ireland.

Crip had energy and intelligence, he was accurate and thorough, known
for his sense of humour and tenacity and as a human being displayed
great concern and humanity for his fellow people. He was both a
thinker and a man of action with an outstanding mind and personality,
respected by his fellow volunteers and this generation of republican
socialists.

He was a Belfast man born and bred and grew up in a republican
neighbourhood in West Belfast. His brother Paul was murdered by the
British Army when he was just 16 years old. Crip joined the INLA when
just a teenager and in 1984 was imprisoned after being captured after
a gun battle in a Lenadoon flat in which his friend and comrade
Paul "Bonanza" McCann was killed. He was sentenced to 14 years and
served half of it in the H-Blocks.

In 1991, a few short months after his release, he was arrested and
convicted for the IPLO killing of a bar manger in Belfast. Charges he
passionately contested and spoke often about and remained consistent
right up to his death about his innocence. Whilst in prison Crip once
again re-joined the INLA and was involved in a number of operations
in Maghaberry Prison before rejoining his comrades in May 1997 in
Long Kesh.

For a time in the '80s along with his friends and comrades Gino
Gallagher and Bonanza McCann and others who must remain anonymous at
this time took the war against the British war machine in their
native Belfast to new heights of determination and execution. In
short, they had the enemy on the run for long periods of time. Indeed
the very mention of their names had the Brits running for cover.

It is true that the life of an Irish revolutionary is often a short
one with generations of freedom fighters either dying in a hail of
bullets whilst on active service, by stealth of assassination from
British death squads, or languishing in British prisons and dying on
hunger strike or exile from the land of their birth. That Crip
endured imprisonment and oppression all his life is undeniable,
however, it was a very different type of struggle he had to undertake
when he was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer shortly after his
release from the H-Blocks.

He faced this struggle against cancer with the same courage, tenacity
and philosophy as when waging war against the British and it was
these qualities, along with treatment, I believe, which brought his
cancer into remission and allowed him to enjoy his last few years in
the bosom of his loving family, enjoying the normality that so many
take for granted. We, his comrades, are thankful that he enjoyed
those few short years surrounded by those he loved and cared for.

During these past few weeks Crip and I had many long and deep
conversations on a wide range of subjects. He spoke of his deep love
for Julie and Carla and how much happiness and peace they brought him
since his release. He spoke of his love for his son and the rest of
his family in Belfast and how proud he was of all of them who
supported him through thick and thin. He spoke about how touched he
was during a visit in the hospital a few weeks ago with the relatives
of some of Billy Wright's victims. One of them asked him if he had
any regrets about his part in the operation in removing this mass
murderer. He said "As an INLA volunteer I have absolutely no regrets
whatsoever in my part in the operation against Billy Wright. I take
no pleasure in his death and done what I had to do and I will take
that to the grave with me." This man then shook his hand and thanked
him for bringing him justice and a sense of closure to the family's
suffering.

He spoke too about the public Inquiry into Wright's death and that he
was looking forward to taking part in it. The Inquiry were in contact
with Crip's solicitor a number of months back stating that they would
be summonsing him and they supplied a number of written questions
which they demanded answered. They stated that failure to answer all
the questions would result in a term of imprisonment. Some of the
questions were "how were the weapons smuggled in. Who was involved
in the smuggling. Who else outside the prison was involved?" Crip made
it quite clear that whilst he would cooperate he would not
incriminate any Volunteer nor would he compromise the methods used in
smuggling weapons into prisons and that he was prepared to spend the
rest of his life in prison protecting those secrets. He believed that
the Inquiry was just a sop to the DUP and scorned at the notion of
collusion and regretted that the Inquiry's remit did not cover
Wright's murder campaign as a British agent.

Crip, quite rightly, was proud of what he described as his "small
contribution" to the noble struggle for freedom and of his first
involvement as a teenager with the Irish National Liberation Army.
After his release from prison Crip once again offered his services to
the INLA and remained a valued and committed Volunteer right up to
his death.

It is fitting today when we lay our gallant comrade to rest in his
adopted home of Newry that we recall past Irish republicans
revolutionaries from this area, the Young Irelanders, John Mitchel
buried at Old Meeting House Green on the High Street and John Martin
buried in Donaghmore. In February 1848 John Mitchel founded a
newspaper the 'United Irishman' as an organ for revolution, its
overriding principle is a fitting epitaph for INLA Volunteer
Christopher "Crip" McWilliams:

"The Irish people have a just and indefeasible right to Ireland and
to all the moral and material wealth and resources thereof, to posses
and govern the same for their own use, maintenance, comfort and
honour as a distinct sovereign state."

We lay you to rest safe in the knowledge that you are lying among
friends. We salute you comrade, rest in peace with the other brave
soldiers of the INLA and IRA.

On a final note comrades, a simple message to British micro-minister
and chief macra hypocrite Martin McGuinness, "we are not going away."

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