Rita O'Hare ( McCulloch; 1943 – 3 March 2023) was the general secretary of

Sinn Féin Sinn Féin ( ; ; ) is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active in both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The History of Sinn Féin, original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffit ...

, and from 1998 to 2023 the party's representative to the United States.

Early life

Born Rita McCulloch on January 13, 1943, in Belfast to her Protestant father, Billy from East Belfast and mother, Maureen, a Catholic. Her father Billy worked in the linen mills and was also a member of the Communist Party. She married Gerry O’Hare in 1960 aged 17 after finishing her education at St Dominic’s Grammar School on Falls Road. They had three children and divorced in the early 1990s. Her second husband was Brendan Brownlee, a republican from Belfast republican with whom she had a fourth child.

Provisional IRA activity

Around 1970, Rita O’Hare would become a member of the

Provisional IRA The Provisional Irish Republican Army (Provisional IRA), officially known as the Irish Republican Army (IRA; ) and informally known as the Provos, was an Irish republican paramilitary force that sought to end British rule in Northern Ireland ...

. In 1971, she served six months in Armagh Gaol for wearing a combat jacket and carrying a hurling stick at a protest. After being released in July, her husband Gerry was

interned Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without Criminal charge, charges or Indictment, intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects ...

in August. In October of the same year, during an armed fight between republicans and the security forces in

Andersonstown Andersonstown, known colloquially as Andytown, is a suburb of west Belfast, Northern Ireland, at the foot of the Black Mountain and Divis Mountain. It contains a mixture of public and private housing and is largely a working-class area with a ...

; she was shot three times by a British army machine gun and another weapon. She sustained a wound to her head and a British soldier was also wounded. O'Hare was arrested in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

in 1972 for the attempted murder of

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

Warrant Officer Warrant officer (WO) is a Military rank, rank or category of ranks in the armed forces of many countries. Depending on the country, service, or historical context, warrant officers are sometimes classified as the most junior of the commissioned ...

Frazer Paton in Belfast in October 1971. She also faced malicious wounding and possession of firearms charges. Upon her release on bail she fled to

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

in the

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 Counties of Ireland, counties of the island of Ireland, with a population of about 5.4 million. ...

where she lived with her family. She was unable to return to the UK due to an outstanding

arrest warrant An arrest warrant is a warrant issued by a judge or magistrate on behalf of the state which authorizes the arrest and detention of an individual or the search and seizure of an individual's property. Canada Arrest warrants are issued by a jud ...

. She stated that she fled South because she and her family received a death threat from another British soldier. Sinn Féin had presented her case to the

British Government His Majesty's Government, abbreviated to HM Government or otherwise UK Government, is the central government, central executive authority of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

as one of the IRA 'on the runs' (OTRs) under consideration to be allowed to return to Northern Ireland. Her husband Gerry was released from Long Kesh internment camp, joined her in the south, where he was imprisoned on paramilitary charges. In February 1975, Rita O’Hare was arrested at her home in Dublin, and was tried and sentenced to three years for handing explosives to a prisoner in Portlaoise Gaol. She was tried and sentenced to three years in

Limerick Prison Limerick Prison in Limerick is an Irish penal institution. It is a closed, medium security prison, and has an official capacity of 290 male beds and 20 female beds. The average daily number of male inmates in 2009 was 298 and of female inmates ...

. Upon her release in 1979, she was immediately arrested again on an extradition warrant. Her extradition from the Republic of Ireland was blocked as the Irish High Court ruled in March 1978 that O'Hare should not be extradited to Northern Ireland, on the grounds that the offences that she was alleged to have committed fell within the

political offence exception A political offence exception (or exemption) is a provision which limits the obligation of a sovereign state under an extradition or mutual legal assistance treaty or statute. Such provisions allow the state whose assistance has been requested ( ...

Sinn Fein activity and later life

She was the editor of the Irish republican newspaper ''

An Phoblacht ''An Phoblacht'' (Irish pronunciation: ; ) is a Sinn Féin-affiliated online Irish republicanism, Irish republican news platform which also publishes a quarterly print magazine format. Editorially the paper takes a Left-wing politics, left-wing ...

'' ("Republican News") from 1985 to 1990 and became director of publicity for Sinn Féin in 1990. Based in

, she was temporarily banned from entering the United States after she traveled to

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

for a meeting (the terms of her special visa require that she first notify authorities before such travel). She was ineligible for a regular visa due to the outstanding warrant. Rita O'Hare became close friends with

Jean Kennedy Smith Jean Ann Kennedy Smith (February 20, 1928 – June 17, 2020) was an American diplomat, activist, humanitarian, and author who served as United States Ambassador to Ireland from 1993 to 1998. She was a member of the Kennedy family, the eighth of ...

who served as the US ambassador to Ireland from 1993 to 1998 and played a significant role in the peace process. After having to turn down an opportunity to speak at an event in New York in 1998 due to being “on the run”; Jean Kennedy Smith helped secure her a visa. She was later asked by

Gerry Adams Gerard Adams (; born 6 October 1948) is a retired Irish Republican politician who was the president of Sinn Féin between 13 November 1983 and 10 February 2018, and served as a Teachta Dála (TD) for Louth from 2011 to 2020. From 1983 to 19 ...

to become the Sinn Féin representative in the USA for two years. The position lasted 21 years and Rita O'Hare travelled between Ireland, USA and Canada during this period. She built up a variety of contacts on

Capitol Hill Capitol Hill is a neighborhoods in Washington, D.C., neighborhood in Washington, D.C., located in both the Northeast, Washington, D.C., Northeast and Southeast, Washington, D.C., Southeast quadrants. It is bounded by 14th Street SE & NE, F S ...

and the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...

and she has been photographed with USA presidents

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

and

Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...

as well as

Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela ( , ; born Rolihlahla Mandela; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist and politician who served as the first president of South Africa f ...

during a 1995 visit to South Africa. O’Hare died on 3 March 2023, aged 80. She died at her home in

following a long illness.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ohare, Rita 1940s births Year of birth missing 2023 deaths 20th-century politicians from Northern Ireland 21st-century politicians from Northern Ireland Fugitives wanted by the United Kingdom Irish republicans Politicians from Belfast Provisional Irish Republican Army members Republicans imprisoned during the Northern Ireland conflict Sinn Féin politicians Women from Northern Ireland in politics Women in war in Ireland Women in war 1945–1999