1. Gerard Kelly is an Irish republican politician and former Provisional Irish Republican Army volunteer who played a leading role in the negotiations that led to the Good Friday Agreement on 10 April 1998.
19 Facts About Gerry Kelly
1. 2.
Gerry Kelly is currently a member of Sinn Fein's Ard Chomhairle and a Member of the Northern Ireland Assembly for North Belfast.
3.
Gerard Francis Gerry Kelly was born on 5 April 1953 on Raglan Street in the Lower Falls area of Belfast.
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Gerry Kelly went to St Finian's Primary School on the Falls Road.
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Gerry Kelly's family was not particularly political; however his grandfather was a supporter of the Labour Party.
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Gerry Kelly later went to St Peter's Secondary School, obtaining his O-Levels, before receiving his first job, aged 17, in the Civil Service as a clerical officer with the Belfast Corporation Electricity Department.
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In 1971, Gerry Kelly joined the militant republican youth organisation, Fianna Eireann.
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Gerry Kelly was later arrested in August 1971 and imprisoned in Mountjoy prison for several months.
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Gerry Kelly was convicted of causing explosions and conspiracy to cause explosions, and received two life sentences plus twenty years.
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On 25 September 1983, Gerry Kelly was involved in the Maze Prison escape, the largest break-out of prisoners in Europe since World War II and in UK prison history.
11.
Whilst on the run Gerry Kelly claimed he was aided in his escape by "all kinds of people", including prominent Fianna Fail and Fine Gael supporters in the Republic of Ireland.
12.
On 16 January 1986, Gerry Kelly was arrested in the Netherlands along with Brendan "Bik" McFarlane at their flat in Amsterdam.
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On 2 June 1989, Gerry Kelly was released in line with the extradition conditions agreed with the Dutch authorities.
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Gerry Kelly published a collection of poetry, Words from a Cell, in 1989.
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Gerry Kelly played a role in the Northern Ireland peace process negotiations that led to the Good Friday Agreement on 10 April 1998.
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In 2013, aged 60, Gerry Kelly was criticised by other MLAs in Northern Ireland, for holding on to the front of a Police Service of Northern Ireland vehicle, as it drove away with him during a protest in his constituency.
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Gerry Kelly was a Sinn Fein representative during the talks chaired by Richard Haass in 2013 on contentious issues in Northern Ireland.
18.
Gerry Kelly brought libel proceedings against a journalist who had talked in two 2019 radio interviews about the 1983 prison officer shooting.
19.
Gerry Kelly's case was dismissed by the Belfast High Court in January 2024 as "scandalous, frivolous and vexatious".