United Campaign Against Plastic Bullets is an organisation based in

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

that opposes the use of

plastic bullets A plastic bullet or plastic baton round (PBR) is a non-lethal projectile fired from a specialised gun. Although designed as a non-lethal weapon, they have caused a number of deaths when used incorrectly. Plastic bullets are generally used for ...

by the

British army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

and the Northern Ireland

police The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest and t ...

. Following the death of John Downes, killed by a plastic bullet fired by members of the

Royal Ulster Constabulary The Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) was the police force in Northern Ireland from 1922 to 2001. It was founded on 1 June 1922 as a successor to the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC)Richard Doherty, ''The Thin Green Line – The History of the Royal ...

in August 1984, the campaign was founded by Clara Reilly and

Emma Groves Emma Groves (1920 – 2 April 2007) was a human rights activist, a leading campaigner for banning the use of plastic bullets, and a co-founder of the United Campaign Against Plastic Bullets in Northern Ireland. She began her campaign after she w ...

(1920–2007),who had been blinded by a

rubber bullet Rubber bullets (also called rubber baton rounds) are a type of baton round. Despite the name, rubber bullets typically have either a metal core with a rubber coating, or are a homogeneous admixture with rubber being a minority component. Altho ...

in 1971. After John Downes, two more youths were killed by plastic bullets: Keith White, a 22-year-old from Portadown, in 1986 and Seamus Duffy, aged 15, from Belfast, in 1989. In March 2005, the

Northern Ireland Policing Board The Northern Ireland Policing Board ( ga, Bord Póilíneachta Thuaisceart Éireann, Ulster-Scots: ''Norlin Airlan Polisin Boord'') is the police authority for Northern Ireland, charged with supervising the activities of the Police Service of Nor ...

agreed to substitute the last variant of the plastic bullet, the L21, for the less-lethal

Attenuated Energy Projectile A plastic bullet or plastic baton round (PBR) is a non-lethal projectile fired from a specialised gun. Although designed as a non-lethal weapon, they have caused a number of deaths when used incorrectly. Plastic bullets are generally used for ...

(AEP). The deployment of the AEP is monitored by the Northern Ireland

Police Ombudsman The Office of the Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland (OPONI; ga, Ombudsman Póilíní do Thuaisceart Éireann, Ulster-Scots: ''Owersman fur tha Polis o Norlin Airlann'') is a non-departmental public body intended to provide an independent, im ...

References

External links

BBC News, Thursday, 2 August 2001, 12:35 GMT 13:35 UK - The trouble with plastic bulletsBBC News, Friday, 1 June 2001, 21:38 GMT 22:38 UK - NI plastic bullet records 'inadequate'Irish Democrat, 2002 - Army called upon to disclose plastic-bullet guidelines
* ttp://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c105:H.R.1075.IH: Northern Ireland Peace Act(Introduced in the United States House of Representatives 13 March 1997, but not passed) Sponsored by Donald M. Payne. Proposed U.S. legislation from 1997 would have banned the export of plastic bullets to the United Kingdom, and included the following "finding": "The United Campaign Against Plastic Bullets claim that the use of plastic bullets has caused further alienation of nationalists and increased distrust of the security forces of the United Kingdom while contributing to the destabilization of Northern Ireland."
An Phoblacht, Thursday, 23 May 2002 - Plastic Bullet outrageBelfast Telegraph, Friday, 17 September 2004 - Campaign urges ban on plastic bullets- Relatives remember 1982 Derry tragedy.
Political organisations based in Northern Ireland Organizations established in 1984 The Troubles (Northern Ireland) 1984 establishments in Northern Ireland Baton rounds Eye injury {{NorthernIreland-org-stub

See also

References

External links