Sean Lynch (politician)
Encyclopedia
Seán Lynch MLA is an Irish republican Sinn Féin
politician and a current MLA
for the constituency of Fermanagh and South Tyrone
. Lynch was a former Provisional Irish Republican Army
(IRA) leader in the Maze Prison (known as Long Kesh by Irish republicans). Lynch previously served as Chairman of Sinn Féin
in Fermanagh and as a senior member of the district policing partnership in Fermanagh. Lynch previously stood for the Fermanagh and South Tyrone
constituency in the Northern Ireland Assembly election, 2007
but was unsuccessful. Lynch also served as a councillor on Fermanagh District Council
prior to his election to the Northern Ireland Assembly
.
, County Fermanagh. He is a Roman Catholic. Lynch currently lives in Lisnaskea. His sisters include Ruth Lynch, a Fermanagh District Council
Sinn Féin councillor, and Mary Lynch, author of The Long Road Home
.
. Lynch polled 4,704 votes and finished runner up. His running mates Michelle Gildernew
and Gerry McHugh
both obtained seats in the same election. Lynch was selected by Sinn Féin
in Fermanagh and South Tyrone to stand again as a candidate in the 2011 Assembly Election on 5 May 2011. Lynch was elected on 7 May 2011. He was also eleted to Fermanagh District Council on May 10, 2011. In Line with Sinn Féin
policy Lynch resigned from his council seat to allow for a party member to take his place on the council. In september 2011 Tommy Maguire was co-opted onto Fermanagh District Council
was shot dead when the SAS
opened fire on them as they prepared to ambush a passing army patrol with a huge land mine the Lisnaskea to Rosslea
road. Lynch was shot by the SAS and very seriously wounded. He was then arrested and after four months in Musgrave Park Hospital Military Wing
, Lynch was transferred to Crumlin Road Jail. In December of the same year he was sentenced at a Diplock Court to 25 years for possession of explosives and a rifle and transferred to the Maze Prison. During his time spent there he was promoted to the rank Officer Commanding of Republican prisoners in the prison. He was released in October 1998 under the terms of the Good Friday Agreement, having served 12 years of his 25 year sentence.
to another. He then pursued legal action against the Northern Ireland Office
and won a financial settlement.
. The jury ruled the SAS soldiers
had opened fire without giving Séamus McElwaine a chance to surrender, and that he was actually shot dead five minutes after being wounded. The Director of Public Prosecutions
requested a full report on the inquest from the RUC
, but nobody has been prosecuted for McElwaine's death.
when she won the Westminster seat of Fermanagh and South Tyrone
for the party in 2005
. Lynch also sits on Fermanagh District Policing Partnership.
In an interview given to County Fermanagh based newspaper the Fermanagh Herald
Lynch explained what he believed politics could deliver for the future.
Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
politician and a current MLA
Member of the Legislative Assembly (Northern Ireland)
Member of the Legislative Assembly is a representative elected by the voters to the Northern Ireland Assembly in Northern Ireland.- About :...
for the constituency of Fermanagh and South Tyrone
Fermanagh and South Tyrone (Assembly constituency)
Fermanagh and South Tyrone is a constituency in the Northern Ireland Assembly.The seat was first used for a Northern Ireland-only election for the Northern Ireland Assembly, 1973...
. Lynch was a former Provisional Irish Republican Army
Provisional Irish Republican Army
The Provisional Irish Republican Army is an Irish republican paramilitary organisation whose aim was to remove Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom and bring about a socialist republic within a united Ireland by force of arms and political persuasion...
(IRA) leader in the Maze Prison (known as Long Kesh by Irish republicans). Lynch previously served as Chairman of Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
in Fermanagh and as a senior member of the district policing partnership in Fermanagh. Lynch previously stood for the Fermanagh and South Tyrone
Fermanagh and South Tyrone (Assembly constituency)
Fermanagh and South Tyrone is a constituency in the Northern Ireland Assembly.The seat was first used for a Northern Ireland-only election for the Northern Ireland Assembly, 1973...
constituency in the Northern Ireland Assembly election, 2007
Northern Ireland Assembly election, 2007
The third elections to the Northern Ireland Assembly were held on 7 March 2007 when 108 new members were elected. The election saw endorsement of the St Andrews Agreement and the two largest parties, the Democratic Unionist Party and Sinn Féin, along with the Alliance Party, increase their...
but was unsuccessful. Lynch also served as a councillor on Fermanagh District Council
Fermanagh District Council
Fermanagh District Council is a local council in Northern Ireland. The borders of the district are very similar to those of the traditional County Fermanagh, containing all of that county plus a small section of County Tyrone in the Dromore Road and Kilskeery Road areas. Council headquarters are...
prior to his election to the Northern Ireland Assembly
Northern Ireland Assembly
The Northern Ireland Assembly is the devolved legislature of Northern Ireland. It has power to legislate in a wide range of areas that are not explicitly reserved to the Parliament of the United Kingdom, and to appoint the Northern Ireland Executive...
.
Background
Born in 1954 into a farming family in rural Co. Fermanagh, Seán Lynch is the eldest of 12 children, raised in Baltreagh, outside LisnaskeaLisnaskea
Lisnaskea is the second-biggest settlement in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. It had a population of 2,739 people in the 2001 Census. The town is built around the long main street, which bends at almost 90 degrees along its course.- History :...
, County Fermanagh. He is a Roman Catholic. Lynch currently lives in Lisnaskea. His sisters include Ruth Lynch, a Fermanagh District Council
Fermanagh District Council
Fermanagh District Council is a local council in Northern Ireland. The borders of the district are very similar to those of the traditional County Fermanagh, containing all of that county plus a small section of County Tyrone in the Dromore Road and Kilskeery Road areas. Council headquarters are...
Sinn Féin councillor, and Mary Lynch, author of The Long Road Home
The Long Road Home
The Long Road Home is a 2005 compilation album. It combines John Fogerty's work with Creedence Clearwater Revival, as well as his solo hits....
.
Northern Ireland Assembly Election 2007 and 2011
Lynch stood as a candidate in the 2007 Assembly ElectionNorthern Ireland Assembly election, 2007
The third elections to the Northern Ireland Assembly were held on 7 March 2007 when 108 new members were elected. The election saw endorsement of the St Andrews Agreement and the two largest parties, the Democratic Unionist Party and Sinn Féin, along with the Alliance Party, increase their...
. Lynch polled 4,704 votes and finished runner up. His running mates Michelle Gildernew
Michelle Gildernew
Michelle Gildernew is an Irish republican Sinn Féin politician and former Minister for Agriculture and Rural Development in the Northern Ireland Executive...
and Gerry McHugh
Gerry McHugh
Gerry McHugh MLA is a nationalist politician in Northern Ireland. He represented Sinn Féin on Fermanagh District Council from 1993 to 2007 and has sat as an independent since then. He was elected to the Northern Ireland Forum in 1996, then to the Northern Ireland Assembly at the 1998 election as a...
both obtained seats in the same election. Lynch was selected by Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
in Fermanagh and South Tyrone to stand again as a candidate in the 2011 Assembly Election on 5 May 2011. Lynch was elected on 7 May 2011. He was also eleted to Fermanagh District Council on May 10, 2011. In Line with Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
policy Lynch resigned from his council seat to allow for a party member to take his place on the council. In september 2011 Tommy Maguire was co-opted onto Fermanagh District Council
Fermanagh District Council
Fermanagh District Council is a local council in Northern Ireland. The borders of the district are very similar to those of the traditional County Fermanagh, containing all of that county plus a small section of County Tyrone in the Dromore Road and Kilskeery Road areas. Council headquarters are...
Provisional IRA membership
In April 1986 Lynch was seriously wounded and fellow IRA member Séamus McElwaineSéamus McElwaine
Séamus Turlough McElwaine was a volunteer in the South Fermanagh Brigade of the Provisional Irish Republican Army killed by the Special Air Service in 1986...
was shot dead when the SAS
Special Air Service
Special Air Service or SAS is a corps of the British Army constituted on 31 May 1950. They are part of the United Kingdom Special Forces and have served as a model for the special forces of many other countries all over the world...
opened fire on them as they prepared to ambush a passing army patrol with a huge land mine the Lisnaskea to Rosslea
Rosslea
Rosslea or Roslea is a small village in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland, near the border with County Monaghan in the Republic of Ireland. It stands on the River Finn and is beset by small natural lakes. Roslea Forest is nearby...
road. Lynch was shot by the SAS and very seriously wounded. He was then arrested and after four months in Musgrave Park Hospital Military Wing
Musgrave Park Hospital
Musgrave Park Hospital is a regional specialist hospital, managed by Belfast Health and Social Care Trust in Belfast, Northern Ireland. It specialises in orthopaedics, rheumatology, sports medicine and rehabilitation of patients of all ages. These specialties are spread out across a large site in...
, Lynch was transferred to Crumlin Road Jail. In December of the same year he was sentenced at a Diplock Court to 25 years for possession of explosives and a rifle and transferred to the Maze Prison. During his time spent there he was promoted to the rank Officer Commanding of Republican prisoners in the prison. He was released in October 1998 under the terms of the Good Friday Agreement, having served 12 years of his 25 year sentence.
Legal Case against Northern Ireland Office
While still recovering from his injuries, Lynch claimed to have been forcibly removed by the riot squad team from one H-BlockMaze (HM Prison)
Her Majesty's Prison Maze was a prison in Northern Ireland that was used to house paramilitary prisoners during the Troubles from mid-1971 to mid-2000....
to another. He then pursued legal action against the Northern Ireland Office
Northern Ireland Office
The Northern Ireland Office is a United Kingdom government department responsible for Northern Ireland affairs. The NIO is led by the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, and is based in Northern Ireland at Stormont House.-Role:...
and won a financial settlement.
Seamus McElwaine Inquest
In January 1993 an inquest jury returned a verdict that McElwaine had been unlawfully killedUnlawful killing
In English law unlawful killing is a verdict that can be returned by an inquest in England and Wales when someone has been killed by one or several unknown persons. The verdict means that the killing was done without lawful excuse and in breach of criminal law. This includes murder, manslaughter,...
. The jury ruled the SAS soldiers
Special Air Service
Special Air Service or SAS is a corps of the British Army constituted on 31 May 1950. They are part of the United Kingdom Special Forces and have served as a model for the special forces of many other countries all over the world...
had opened fire without giving Séamus McElwaine a chance to surrender, and that he was actually shot dead five minutes after being wounded. The Director of Public Prosecutions
Director of Public Prosecutions
The Director of Public Prosecutions is the officer charged with the prosecution of criminal offences in several criminal jurisdictions around the world...
requested a full report on the inquest from the RUC
Royal Ulster Constabulary
The Royal Ulster Constabulary was the name of the police force in Northern Ireland from 1922 to 2000. Following the awarding of the George Cross in 2000, it was subsequently known as the Royal Ulster Constabulary GC. It was founded on 1 June 1922 out of the Royal Irish Constabulary...
, but nobody has been prosecuted for McElwaine's death.
Political career following prison release
Since his release from prison Lynch has worked as a senior member for Sinn Féin and was on the officer board of what was then the Sinn Féin Six-County Cúige and subsequently as a Six-County representative on the party’s ruling Ard Chomhairle. Lynch was director of elections for Michelle GildernewMichelle Gildernew
Michelle Gildernew is an Irish republican Sinn Féin politician and former Minister for Agriculture and Rural Development in the Northern Ireland Executive...
when she won the Westminster seat of Fermanagh and South Tyrone
Fermanagh and South Tyrone (UK Parliament constituency)
Fermanagh and South Tyrone is a Parliamentary constituency in the British House of Commons. The current MP for the constituency is Michelle Gildernew of Sinn Féin....
for the party in 2005
United Kingdom general election, 2005
The United Kingdom general election of 2005 was held on Thursday, 5 May 2005 to elect 646 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party under Tony Blair won its third consecutive victory, but with a majority of 66, reduced from 160....
. Lynch also sits on Fermanagh District Policing Partnership.
In an interview given to County Fermanagh based newspaper the Fermanagh Herald
Fermanagh Herald
The Fermanagh Herald is a weekly newspaper published and sold mainly in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. It was founded in 1902 by the North West of Ireland Printing and Publishing Company, who had been established a year earlier by the Lynch family...
Lynch explained what he believed politics could deliver for the future.
"We are in a transitional period, and in my opinion we are moving towards an All-Ireland. The Six-County statelet is a failed entity. I think some Unionists are coming to the same conclusion. Britain is taking less of a role. I don't think they have any key strategic, economic or other interests in this part of Ireland."
See also
- Séamus McElwaineSéamus McElwaineSéamus Turlough McElwaine was a volunteer in the South Fermanagh Brigade of the Provisional Irish Republican Army killed by the Special Air Service in 1986...
- Long KeshMaze (HM Prison)Her Majesty's Prison Maze was a prison in Northern Ireland that was used to house paramilitary prisoners during the Troubles from mid-1971 to mid-2000....
- Sinn FéinSinn FéinSinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
- Northern Ireland Assembly elections, 2007
- Northern Ireland Assembly election, 2011