How did the PIRA keep drugs out of Northern Ireland

Jackpoiuy

I always found it remarkable how in the 80s and 90s with the heroin epidemic and hard drugs in general the republican areas in the north remained unscathed, heroin and other hard drugs were practically unheard of while working class areas in the republic and the rest of the United Kindom were completely destroyed.

There had to be more to this than simply killing drug dealers as there wasn't even many dealers killed. If there's one good thing the IRA did it's this

steddyeddy

By killing the drug dealers.

Poor Uncle Tom

Jackpoiuy wrote: »

I always found it remarkable how in the 80s and 90s with the heroin epidemic and hard drugs in general the republican areas in the north remained unscathed, heroin and other hard drugs were practically unheard of while working class areas in the republic and the rest of the United Kindom were completely destroyed.

There had to be more to this than simply killing drug dealers as there wasn't even many dealers killed. If there's one good thing the IRA did it's this

No it didn't....

It was under the control of the PIRA...

marcus001

Assuming what you say is true maybe the threat of killing drug dealers was what made it difficult for the trade to thrive. Maybe also the heavy police and army presence all over the place as well as strict border and customs controls.

Jackpoiuy

steddyeddy wrote: »

By killing the drug dealers.

I'm aware of that but I was thinking there had to be more to it as is evident around the world that fighting drugs with violence simply doesn't work so why did it work in Northern Ireland?

the_syco

Jackpoiuy wrote: »

I'm aware of that but I was thinking there had to be more to it as is evident around the world that fighting drugs with violence simply doesn't work so why did it work in Northern Ireland?

I'd say it was a supply issue.
Acting suspicious gets you pulled over by the police.
Or getting stopped and searched at the army checkpoints.
Or getting stopped and searched at terrorist vigilante checkpoints of either side.

Jackpoiuy

marcus001 wrote: »

Assuming what you say is true maybe the threat of killing drug dealers was what made it difficult for the trade to thrive. Maybe also the heavy police and army presence all over the place as well as strict border and customs controls.

Yes that does actually make sense with how heavy the army presence was in the republican areas I guess it was a mixture of all those things with some other factors, I heard before that the army and MI5/MI6 actually wanted drugs to enter the republic as it was good propaganda if republican areas were drug infested slums.

Ulysses Gaze

Jackpoiuy wrote: »

I always found it remarkable how in the 80s and 90s with the heroin epidemic and hard drugs in general the republican areas in the north remained unscathed, heroin and other hard drugs were practically unheard of while working class areas in the republic and the rest of the United Kindom were completely destroyed.

There had to be more to this than simply killing drug dealers as there wasn't even many dealers killed. If there's one good thing the IRA did it's this

They didn't

They took over the drugs trade.

steddyeddy

Poor Uncle Tom wrote: »

No it didn't....

It was under the control of the PIRA...

You're confusing them with later IRA incarnations.

Berserker

Not sure that the IRA did much to keep drugs out of NI during the trubbles. I'd say that the very strict border controls and strong army presence made importing drugs difficult. Guns and bomb making equipment were imported instead. The IRA tried to take control of the drugs trade in Dublin with their 'republicans against drugs' campaign but they didn't have the power to overthrow the dealers. Doing great business in the drug trade in NI these days, which shows that they were never anti-drug.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

Jackpoiuy wrote: »

Yes that does actually make sense with how heavy the army presence was in the republican areas I guess it was a mixture of all those things with some other factors, I heard before that the army and MI5/MI6 actually wanted drugs to enter the republic as it was good propaganda if republican areas were drug infested slums.

:rolleyes: And where did you hear this??

Jackpoiuy

the_syco wrote: »

I'd say it was a supply issue.
Acting suspicious gets you pulled over by the police.
Or getting stopped and searched at the army checkpoints.
Or getting stopped and searched at terrorist vigilante checkpoints of either side.

Sounds about right but the loyalist areas certainly didn't escape the drug epidemic although they didn't really have an army presence like the republican ones did.

BowSideChamp

Ní ceapaim.

Jackpoiuy

Louis Famous Barn wrote: »

:rolleyes: And where did you hear this??

I think it was the book called the undercover war in Northern Ireland.

Berserker

Jackpoiuy wrote: »

I heard before that the army and MI5/MI6 actually wanted drugs to enter the republic as it was good propaganda if republican areas were drug infested slums.

They lived in filthy slums, drugs wouldn't have made a difference. Care to tell us who and where you heard this nonsense?

Jackpoiuy

Berserker wrote: »

Not sure that the IRA did much to keep drugs out of NI during the trubbles. I'd say that the very strict border controls and strong army presence made importing drugs difficult. Guns and bomb making equipment were imported instead. The IRA tried to take control of the drugs trade in Dublin with their 'republicans against drugs' campaign but they didn't have the power to overthrow the dealers. Doing great business in the drug trade in NI these days, which shows that they were never anti-drug.

Sorry I should have been more specific there certainly were drugs in the north if I remember correctly Ballymena was the heroin hotspot of the UK I meant that the areas the IRA had a heavy presence in which and some of those areas were complete and utter slums but remarkably they were actually lovely areas socially because drugs weren't around.

steddyeddy

M15 supported loyalist terrorism in the North. Lacing areas with drugs wouldn't be out of character.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

Jackpoiuy wrote: »

... some of those areas were complete and utter slums but remarkably they were actually lovely areas socially...

Really? I visited such areas from the late 60s through to the 80s. Lovely, socially or otherwise, they most certainly were not.

Jackpoiuy

Berserker wrote: »

They lived in filthy slums, drugs wouldn't have made a difference. Care to tell us who and where you heard this nonsense?

Drugs wouldn't have made a difference? Do you have any understanding how drugs affect our society?

Also a bit of history for you in those slums like the bogside and the creggan prior to the troubles they actually had some of the lowest crime rates on these islands.

Berserker

Jackpoiuy wrote: »

I think it was the book called the undercover war in Northern Ireland.

That book is about WWII not NI.

steddyeddy wrote: »

M15 supported loyalist terrorism in the North. Lacing areas with drugs wouldn't be out of character.

Given how much of a presence M15 had in those areas, they would have had no problem flooding those areas with drugs, if they wanted to. It would have been very similar to the manner in which republicans have flooded those areas with drugs since the peace process started.

Jackpoiuy wrote: »

Drugs wouldn't have made a difference? Do you have any understanding how drugs affect our society?

Also a bit of history for you in those slums like the bogside and the creggan prior to the troubles they actually had some of the lowest crime rates on these islands.

Yes, I know more than enough about drugs. Wouldn't have made those areas any worse. Crime rates were low in those areas because crimes were not reported.

riffmongous

Provo vigilantes would have played a role in keeping drugs out of certain areas anyway, petty crime was bad for business when you needed to keep the police out.

It's amazing when you think about it, considering the huge scale of fund raising the PIRA had through racketeering and smuggling, and the huge profits that come from the drugs trade, it would certainly have made sense for them to be heavily involved in the drugs trade yet there is no actual evidence that they were involved.

Jackpoiuy

Louis Famous Barn wrote: »

Really? I visited such areas from the late 60s through to the 80s. Lovely, socially or otherwise, they most certainly were not.

Don't get me wrong there would be rocks flying left right and centre, the army and locals would be spitting on each other and never mind the gun battles and bombings but I was talking about in a different kind of way.

There wasn't a heroin problem in cork in the 80s or 90s.
It was the 00s before daz was widely used in cork and only in the last 10 years has there been relatively significant heroin problem.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

Jackpoiuy wrote: »

I think it was the book called the undercover war in Northern Ireland.

Hi again!

You need to get facts before bluffing. Wrong book for that particular conspiracy theory.

Berserker

riffmongous wrote: »

It's amazing when you think about it, considering the huge scale of fund raising the PIRA had through racketeering and smuggling, and the huge profits that come from the drugs trade, it would certainly have made sense for them to be heavily involved in the drugs trade yet there is no actual evidence that they were involved.

No, there is no evidence that the IRA has ever had any involvement with the drugs trade in Columbia, Liverpool, Glasgow & the USA. :rolleyes:

Jackpoiuy

riffmongous wrote: »

Provo vigilantes would have played a role in keeping drugs out of certain areas anyway, petty crime was bad for business when you needed to keep the police out.

It's amazing when you think about it, considering the huge scale of fund raising the PIRA had through racketeering and smuggling, and the huge profits that come from the drugs trade, it would certainly have made sense for them to be heavily involved in the drugs trade yet there is no actual evidence that they were involved.

I doubt it was because of any moral reasons more that they would have lost the support of their communites if they were flooding the communities with drugs rather than keeping them out.

Dyr

Well If the provos weren't running drug dealers out of norn iron back then I'd love to know how they all wound up in my neighborhood in dublin during the 80's

I doubt it was army and RUC checkpoints that did the trick

Jackpoiuy

Berserker wrote: »

No, there is no evidence that the IRA has ever had any involvement with the drugs trade in Columbia, Liverpool, Glasgow & the USA. :rolleyes:

No. There never was evidence.

riffmongous

Berserker wrote: »

No, there is no evidence that the IRA has ever had any involvement with the drugs trade in Columbia, Liverpool, Glasgow & the USA. :rolleyes:

Please post the list of convictions. There were members of the PIRA convicted for many forms of crime and racketeering, if there was so much evidence then where were the convictions?

Ash.J.Williams

Jackpoiuy wrote: »

I always found it remarkable how in the 80s and 90s with the heroin epidemic and hard drugs in general the republican areas in the north remained unscathed, heroin and other hard drugs were practically unheard of while working class areas in the republic and the rest of the United Kindom were completely destroyed.

There had to be more to this than simply killing drug dealers as there wasn't even many dealers killed. If there's one good thing the IRA did it's this

We get it... You love the Ira...

Jackpoiuy

riffmongous wrote: »

Please post the list of convictions

I don't know where the myth about the IRA selling drugs came from, you only really hear about it on sites like these even the British army had said the IRA were not involved in drugs.