Between 1917 and 1981 a total of 22 Irish men have died on Hunger-Strike in this phase of the Struggle for Irish Unity! He was sentenced to 14 years imprisonment in 1977, but wouldn't survive to see release. Terence McSwiney, Cork, 74 days, 25 October 1920. PKK POW Zülküf Gezen. The first hunger strike began in October 1980. Ten days into the strike he began refusing fluids as well as food. In the jails the struggle was stepped up, culminating in a mass hunger strike in Mountjoy Prison, Dublin. Hunger follows life in the Maze Prison, Northern Ireland with an interpretation of the highly emotive events surrounding the 1981 IRA Hunger Strike, led by Bobby Sands. By then 40 other prisoners have joined him. The 27-year-old IRA dissident was incarcerated at HM Prison Maze (also known as Long Kesh) in Northern Ireland following arrest for his involvement in the 1976 bombing of the Balmoral Furniture Company in Dunmurry. The Mountjoy Hunger Strike begins. ‘Hunger Strike 1980’ deals with a crucial chapter in understanding and honoring the legacy of the 1981 Hunger Strike. McKee, however, was determined. Ten men died on the doorstep of the British government in one of the most turbulent periods in the tragic history of Anglo-Irish relations. The 1981 Hunger Strike is one of the most consequential events in Irish history with added meaning next year, in direct contrast with British celebrations of the 100th anniversary of partition and formation of the Orange State. In 1981, Sands lead a group of 22 other inmates in a hunger strike, demanding a … "Martyrs" to many, others saw them as IRA "terrorists". Hunger strikes had been employed before as a political protest, both by Irish dissidents and British suffragettes, though they rarely succeeded. There, thirty-eight republican prisoners faced down the system of British rule within a new and uncertain arena of struggle, the hunger strike. Seven men were selected to take part. The most highly publicised strike began on Easter Monday, 5 April 1920, when thirty-six Irish Volunteer prisoners in … In Support Of Kurdish HDP and PKK POWs and Activists, Engaged on Hunger Strike Against Detention, November 2018-onging. Written by Icon. News of McKee’s determined stand quickly reached the outside world. On Easter Sunday 4 April the IRA burned out tax offices and RIC barracks throughout Ireland, effectively forcing the British crown forces to concentrate in the larger towns and cities. With an epic eye for detail, the film provides a timely exploration of what happens when body and mind are pushed to the uttermost limit. A hunger strike led by IRA Belfast commander Billy McKee lasts for 35 days. The ancient conflict between Britain and Ireland was now condensed within the walls of Mountjoy Prison in Dublin. Forty years ago Bobby Sands was the first of 10 Irish republican hunger strikers to die after refusing food for 66 days. By the time the prison hunger strike ended on October 3, 1981, 10 young men had starved themselves to death. The Roll of Honour of these Martyrs of Irish Republicanism is as follows: Thomas Ashe, Kerry, 5 days, 25 September 1917 (force fed by tube, died as a result). On May 5, 1981, having completed 65 days on hunger strike, republican prisoner Bobby Sands died in the H-Block prison hospital at Long Kesh.