Irish Independence Party

The Irish Independence Party (IIP ) was a nationalist or republican party in Northern Ireland which was founded in October 1977 by Fergus McAteer and Frank McManus and the mid- 1980s disbanded. Frank McManus was 1970-1974 MP for Unity in the House. The IIP was against the Internment policy, advocated for the separation of Northern Ireland from the UK and for a special status of the republican prisoners in Northern Ireland.

The Irish Independence Party was born from the fusion of Unity and Nationalist Party. After 1979, Pat Fahy was the leader of the IIP; deputy party leader was Frank McManus; the function of the party leaders took Fergus McAteer. The Protestant John Turnley, who later became deputy leader of the IIP, joined it in 1980 and in the same year in Carnlough, County Antrim killed in an attack by the Ulster Defence Association.

In the British general election, 1979, the IIP competed in four of the twelve Northern Irish constituencies. She stayed with 23,086 votes ( 3.3 % of the valid votes in Northern Ireland) without a mandate. The IIP supported the Republican prisoners in the Maze Prison and their protests, such as the blanket protest, dirty protest and the hunger strikes of 1980 and 1981, the IIP won in May 1981 elections to the District Councils 21 seats. ; Strongholds of the party were Derry, Fermanagh, Newry and Mourne and Omagh. She took part in the elections to the Northern Ireland Assembly in October 1982 in favor of Sinn Féin not participate. This meant that their influence waned and Sinn Féin Republican voters also gained. The IIP was again a candidate for the local elections in 1985, they won only four seats, thus losing 17 over the election of 1981, while Sinn Féin won a total of 59 seats. Subsequently, the IIP broke up and did not run in the next election in 1989.