In July 1972 William Whitelaw introduced Special Category Status for those sentenced for crimes relating to the civil violence. There were 1,100 Special Category prisoners at that time.

"Special Category" status for convicted paramilitary-linked criminals gave them the same privileges previously available only to internees. These privileges included free association between prisoners, extra visits, food parcels and the right to wear their own clothes rather than prison uniforms (Crawford 1979). However, Special Category Status was short-lived. As part of the government's ...

In July 1972 William Whitelaw introduced Special Category Status for those sentenced for crimes relating to the civil violence. There were 1,100 Special Category prisoners at that time.

"Special Category" status for convicted paramilitary-linked criminals gave them the same privileges previously available only to internees. These privileges included free association between prisoners, extra visits, food parcels and the right to wear their own clothes rather than prison uniforms (Crawford 1979). However, Special Category Status was short-lived. As part of the government's policy of "criminalisation", and coinciding with the end of internment, the new Secretary of State, Merlyn Rees, ended Special Category Status from March 1, 1976.


On October 27, 1980, seven Republican prisoners refused food and demanded political status. Thatcher's Conservative government did not initially give in. In December they called off the hunger strike when the government appeared to concede their demands. However, the government immediately reverted to their previous stance, confident the prisoners would not start another strike. Bobby Sands, the leader of the Provisional IRA prisoners, and members of the Irish National Liberation Army (INLA) began a second action on March 1, 1981. Outside the prison in a major publicity coup, Sands was nominated for Parliament and won the Fermanagh & South Tyrone by-election, 1981 (April). But the British government was still resisting and on May 5, after 66 days on hunger strike, Sands died. More than 100,000 people attended Bobby Sands's funeral in Belfast. Another nine hunger strikers died by the end of August before the hunger strike was called off in October. The British government effectively conceded to the prisoners' demands over the next few months, granting them Political Status in everything but name.

Maze Prison escape

(known to Irish republicans as the Great Escape) took place on 25 September 1983. HM Prison Maze
(previously known as Long Kesh) was a maximum security prison considered to be one of the most escape-proof prisons in Europe, and held prisoners convicted of taking part in armed paramilitary campaigns during the Troubles. In the biggest prison escape in British history, 38http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Provisional_Irish_Republican_ArmyProvisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) prisoners, who had been convicted of offences including murder and causing expl...

Maze Prison escape

(known to Irish republicans as the Great Escape) took place on 25 September 1983. HM Prison Maze
(previously known as Long Kesh) was a maximum security prison considered to be one of the most escape-proof prisons in Europe, and held prisoners convicted of taking part in armed paramilitary campaigns during the Troubles. In the biggest prison escape in British history, 38http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Provisional_Irish_Republican_ArmyProvisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) prisoners, who had been convicted of offences including murder and causing explosions, escaped from H-Block 7 (H7) of the prison. One prison officer died of a heart attack as a result of the escape and twenty others were injured, including two who were shot with guns that had been smuggled into the prison.

The escape was a propaganda coup for the IRA, and a British government minister faced calls to resign. The official inquiry into the escape placed most of the blame onto prison staff, who in turn blamed the escape on political interference in the running of the prison.

DETAILS OF ESCAPE IN DETAIL

The Escapees

Later Escapes