Palestine Action: Prison hunger strikes that shaped history

Palestine Action: Prison hunger strikes that shaped history Four Palestine Action members are continuing hunger strikes in the UK, following a protest practice with a long history - from Ireland and India to South Africa and Guantanamo. Four members of the advocacy group Palestine Action have pledged this week to continue their hunger strike amid grave medical warnings and the hospitalisations of their fellow protesters. The group’s members are being held in five prisons in the United Kingdom over alleged involvement in break-ins at a facility of the UK’s subsidiary of the Israeli defence firm Elbit Systems in Bristol and a Royal Air Force base in Oxfordshire. They are protesting for better conditions in prison, rights to a fair trial, and for the UK to change a July policy listing the movement as a “terror” group. Recommended Stories list of 4 items list 1 of 4 Palestine Action hunger strikers launch legal action against government list 2 of 4 British police detain Greta Thunberg at pro-Palestinian protest in London list 3 of 4 UK police drop probe into Bob Vylan’s chants about Israeli military list 4 of 4 Four Palestine Action hunger strikers vow to continue as two pause protest Palestine Action denies charges of “violent disorder” and others against the eight detainees. Relatives and loved ones told Al Jazeera of the members’ deteriorating health amid the hunger strikes, which have led to repeated hospital admissions . Lawyers representing the detainees have revealed plans to sue the government . The case has brought international attention to the UK’s treatment of groups standing in solidarity with Palestinians amid Israel’s genocidal war in Gaza. Thousands of people have rallied in support of Palestine Action every week. Hunger strikes have been used throughout history as an extreme, non-violent way of seeking justice. Their effectiveness often lies in the moral weight they place upon those in power. Historical records trace hunger strikes back to ancient India and Ireland, where people would fast at the doorstep of an offender to publicly shame them. However, they have also proved powerful as political statements in the present day. Here are some of the most famous hunger strikes in recent world history: Irish Republican Movement hunger strikes Some of the most significant hunger strikes in the 20th century occurred during the Irish revolutionary period, or the Troubles. The first wave was the 1920 Cork hunger strike, during the Irish War of Independence. Some 65 people suspected of being Republicans had been held without proper trial proceedings at the Cork County Gaol. They began a hunger strike, demanding their release and asking to be treated as political prisoners rather than criminals. They were joined by Terence MacSwiney, the lord mayor of Cork, whose profile brought significant international attention to the independence cause. The British government attempted to break up the movement by transferring the prisoners to other locations, but their fasts continued. At least three prisoners died, including MacSwiney, after 74 days. Later on, towards the end of the...

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