February 16 1974
Albert Price, the father of Dolours and Marion Price, the Andersonstown girls still on hunger strike in Brixton Prison, is to fight for the West Belfast seat in the Westminster election.
The dramatic development came late last night after Mr Paddy Kennedy, who was to have gone forward for Republican Labour, announced that he had withdrawn. “I am standing down,” said Mr Kennedy, “and I now call on all anti-Unionist candidates to do the same. The issue in West Belfast must be the plight of the Irish political prisoners everywhere and the hardships they are now enduring.”
It is understood that Mr Price (57) will be going forward in an independent capacity with no political tickets. His slogan will be: “Get me in to get the prisoners out.”
The Republican Labour Party was expected to throw its full weight behind the campaign.
The seat is held by the SDLP leader and Deputy Chief Executive, Mr Gerry Fitt. The Official Unionist candidate is Mr John McQuade.
It was not clear early today whether the Republican Clubs would still be running a candidate in view of the decision by Mr Price to go forward.
The Price sisters are being force-fed in Brixton in their demand for political status and repatriation to serve their sentences in Northern Ireland.
Another vital seat – Mid-Ulster – held by Mrs Bernadette McAliskey, will be contested by SDLP’s Mr Ivan Cooper, Minister of Community Relations, and by Mr Joseph Burns, the former Stormont MP. Mr Burns was selected as Official Unionist candidate at a meeting in Cookstown.
Mr Des Gillespie, SDLP Assemblyman for West Belfast, was last night selected to contest East Belfast where he grew up and lived until recently.
The Belfast Republican Labour Party will be contesting the North Belfast seat. Their candidate will be former Stormont MP Mr Murtagh Morgan, who was once the Dock constituency representative.
The SDLP Chief Whip, Mr Paddy O’Hanlon (29), who lives at Mullaghbawn, south Armagh, defeated Councillor Paddy Crilly, of Lurgan, at a meeting of 66 party delegates. The chairman of the Assembly Party, Mr Seamus Mallon, did not seek nomination.
Mr O’Hanlon said later that judging from the results in the county in the Assembly election, the SDLP would present a formidable challenge for the seat.
After his selection at an East Belfast constituency meeting, Mr Gillespie said he was delighted to accept the nomination for an area with which he had many associations. He had lived in the constituency for many years and he was aware of the problems facing the area, including the scandalous housing situation which was highlighted by Mr Austin Currie, the Housing Minister, during the past week.