Inside the UDA : volunteers and violence / Colin Crawford ; foreword by Marie Smyth.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Crawford, Colin, 1948-

Contributor:

Smyth, Marie.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Paramilitary forces--Northern Ireland--History--20th century.

Paramilitary forces.

Political violence--Northern Ireland--History--20th century.

Political violence.

Unionism (Irish politics).

Northern Ireland--Politics and government.

Northern Ireland.

Northern Ireland--History, Military.

Ulster Defence Association--History.

Ulster Defence Association.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (248 p.)

Place of Publication:

London ; Sterling, Va. : Pluto Press, 2003.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

This book is a unique insight into the beliefs and political ideology of the Ulster Defence Association (UDA) and the Ulster Freedom Fighters (UFF). Featuring interviews with key members of these paramilitary groups, many conducted inside the Maze prison, Colin Crawford presents a thorough analysis of Loyalism and the role that Loyalist paramilitary groups continue to play in Northern Ireland's troubles. He also provides an insider's account of the workings of state-sponsored terrorism. Crawford explores these tensions and assesses the difficulties that the UDA faces in the wake of the Good Friday Agreement. He analyses the Ulster Democratic Party's failure to win seats in the 1998 elections, and he examines the conflict between those who are motivated by the profits of crime and drug trafficking, and those motivated by political ideals. The book makes disturbing and often heartbreaking reading, and it marks an important step forward in understanding the Loyalist position - for it is only through improving our understanding of the experience of all citizens in Northern Ireland that lasting peace can be achieved.

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9781849642088

1849642087

9780585488899

0585488894

OCLC:

53978042