1981 Irish hunger strike showdown between the prisoners and the British Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher. One hunger striker, Bobby Sands, was elected as a Member of Parliament during the strike, prompting media interest from around the world. The strike was called off after ten prisoners had starved themselves to death—including Sands, whose funeral was attended by 100,000 people. The strike radicalised Irish nationalist politics, and was the driving force that enabled Sinn Féin to become a mainstream political party. There had been hunger strikes by Irish republican prisoners since 1917, and twelve had previously died on hunger strike, including Thomas Ashe, Terence MacSwiney, Seán
2010 Mapuche hunger strike 2010 Mapuche hunger strike In Araucania, southern Chile, resides a large Indigenous group, by the name of the Mapuche. This group makes up the majority of individuals living in this region. They were deprived of their territorial and political rights after Chile declared independence from Spain. This decision resulted in the government forcing the Mapuche to live on reserves they were forbidden full ownership of. Due to the perceived injustices they had been experiencing, they decided to start a hunger strike in hopes of changing the current property laws. During 2009, the president of Social Democrats Michelle Bachelet had suggested