British Labour Commission gathers evidence of reprisals in Ireland
Cork, 6 December 1920 - Members of a British Labour Commission arrived in Cork today and within their first few hours there witnessed first hand scenes of shootings and street searches by military and Auxiliary police.
The commission was established to investigate alleged ‘reprisals’ and the ongoing violence in Ireland. Delegates, led by Arthur Henderson MP, arrived on 30 November.
Last weekend the commission visited Dublin Castle and met with the Chief Secretary, Hamar Greenwood, and several of the administrative officials, as well as high-ranking military and police officers.
They also visited Skerries where evidence was gathered from eye-witnesses of the recent raiding and burning of several houses there. Later, at the Women Workers’ Club, they heard first hand evidence on the impact police and military raids were having on women and children in the city.
Arrests
The commission’s visit comes amid escalating violence in
Ireland and a clampdown on republican activities by the British
authorities which has seen the homes of Sinn Féin TDs and
other political figures raided all over the country. In all, about
600 people have been rounded up, including Arthur Griffith, Joseph
McGrath, Prof. Eoin MacNeill, Robert Barton, Constance Markievicz,
Eamonn Duggan, Joseph McBride, Paul Galligan and William Sears.
In addition, six members of Dublin Corporation were seized when crown forces interrupted a monthly meeting of the Corporation earlier today. The meeting was being held in City Hall when two officers, both armed with revolvers, appeared suddenly and asked to speak to the Lord Mayor. Armed Auxiliaries then poured into the chamber and began calling out names of members. Alderman Michael Staines TD was among those arrested amid heated scenes in the chamber.
[Editor's note: This is an article from Century Ireland, a fortnightly online newspaper, written from the perspective of a journalist 100 years ago, based on news reports of the time.]
