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rynner2 What a Cad!
Great Old One Joined: 13 Dec 2008 Total posts: 21362 Location: Under the moon Gender: Male |
 Posted: 24-11-2012 08:33 Post subject: |
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Some happier news:
Peter Robinson: Irish cross-border relations 'have never been better'
By Mark Simpson, BBC Ireland Correspondent
Northern Ireland's First Minister Peter Robinson has said Irish cross-border relations have never been better.
The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) leader was speaking ahead of his keynote speech to his party's annual conference on Saturday.
Mr Robinson said he regards the Irish Republic as "good neighbours" rather than a threat.
On Friday, an Irish government minister was invited to the conference for the first time.
Speaking after the Republic's Agriculture Minister, Simon Coveney, addressed the DUP, Mr Robinson said: "The very fact there was no fuss or fanfare would indicate that normalisation has taken place.
"Our position within the United Kingdom is not under threat - we feel confident and secure within the union and we want to have the best possible relationship with our neighbours," the first minister added.
The DUP is the biggest party in Northern Ireland and the fourth largest at Westminster.
It is in a position of strength, and confident enough to have friendly relations with people once seen as enemies.
The decision to invite a member of the Irish cabinet to speak at this weekend's party conference is the latest sign of changing times in Northern Ireland.
When Ian Paisley founded the DUP 40 years ago, the party's attitude to co-operation with the Irish government was, to use his own phrase, "never, never, never".
The peace process has transformed cross-border relations.
Nonetheless, the current DUP leader Peter Robinson will tell his party's conference on Saturday that he sees Northern Ireland's future firmly within the United Kingdom
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-20473710 |
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| ramonmercado Psycho Punk
Joined: 19 Aug 2003 Total posts: 17931 Location: Dublin Gender: Male |
| Posted: 03-12-2012 22:48 Post subject: |
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| Quote: | Trouble erupts in Belfast after council votes to change Union flag policy
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-20587538
Protesters gathered outside the building while the voted was taking place
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Trouble has erupted at Belfast City Hall after the council voted to change its policy of flying the Union flag outside the building all year round.
A number of loyalist protesters have tried to force their way into the hall and there is disorder in east Belfast.
Police said a number of their officers have been injured. A security guard was also hurt and cars were damaged.
It happened just minutes after councillors voted to fly the flag only on 15 designated days during the year.
A police spokeswoman said they had deployed additional resources to deal with public disorder at Belfast City Hall and the Lower Newtownards Road area of east Belfast.
Two policewomen have been taken to hospital with injuries that are not believed to be life threatening.
'No surrender'
The vote was called when nationalist councillors - who now hold a majority on the council - proposed a motion to remove the Union flag completely.
However, both Sinn Fein and the SDLP backed a compromise amendment, proposed by the Alliance party, to display the flag on designated days, in line with the current policy at Stormont.
The Alliance motion was passed by 29 votes to 21.
Minutes later, a number of loyalist protesters broke through the rear gates of the grounds of the city hall and tried to force open the doors of the building in the which the vote had taken place.
BBC Northern Ireland's political reporter, Martina Purdy, who is at the city hall, said the injured security guard appeared to be bleeding from a head wound while a policewoman had sustained a hand injury.
She said the protesters had shouted "shame" and "no surrender" when they broke into the courtyard of Belfast City Hall, waving flags.
Ahead of the meeting, some of the protesters gave their opinions to BBC Newsline's Gareth Gordon
A pane of glass was shattered as the demonstrators tried to break open the doors of the 106-year-old building.
'Mob rule'
Windows have also been smashed on a number of cars parked within the courtyard, including a vehicle belonging to a DUP councillor.
Our reporter said police had worked to restore calm.
SDLP councillor, Tim Attwood, who took part in the vote, said: "This was an appalling spectacle, resulting in significant damage to property and, most alarmingly, injury to a number of those seeking to keep city hall secure, and our thoughts are with those who were hurt.
"Any attempt at a resort to mob rule cannot be countenanced," Mr Attwood said.
Marie Hendron from Alliance said she believed the violence had been "orchestrated". She said it was a "disaster for this city".
Ahead of the vote, more than 1,000 loyalists gathered in May Street to protest about the proposal to change the flag policy.
'Raising tensions'
Until now, the Union flag had been flown every day of the year at Belfast City Hall.
Nationalist councillors had argued that removing the flag would create a more equal and neutral environment in a divided city.
However, Unionist councillors accused Sinn Fein and the SDLP of "raising tensions" and abusing their majority on the council.
Combined, Sinn Fein and the SDLP now outnumber unionist councillors by 24 to 21. |
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| ramonmercado Psycho Punk
Joined: 19 Aug 2003 Total posts: 17931 Location: Dublin Gender: Male |
| Posted: 11-12-2012 21:00 Post subject: |
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| Quote: | Belfast flag protests: Billy Hutchinson in expulsion call
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-20686612
The BBC's Mark Simpson says fireworks, bricks and petrol bombs were thrown at police
The leader of the Progressive Unionist Party has called on loyalist paramilitary groups to expel members involved in flag protest violence.
There have been eight days of protests over the decision to limit the number of days the union flag in flown at Belfast City Hall.
On Monday night, a police car was petrol bombed in east Belfast while a female officer was inside.
PUP leader Billy Hutchinson, a former UVF prisoner, condemned the attack.
"If individual members are involved, then I think the loyalist organisations need to think about how they deal with that and what I'm talking about is through democratic means," he said.
"If that is the case, I would be hoping that the loyalist leadership, if they are aware of this and have evidence that people were (involved in violence), then they would expel them from the organisations."
The PUP is linked to the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF).
Northern Ireland Secretary Theresa Villiers said the recent violence was ''shaming the flag of our country''
It is understood the UVF leadership met in Belfast on Tuesday afternoon to discuss its position.
Police have said senior members of loyalist paramilitary groups working at local level were orchestrating violence, but said that the leaderships of those organisations may not be involved.
The attack on the police car, which was guarding Alliance Party MP Naomi Long's east Belfast office, is being treated as attempted murder.
The protests followed a vote by Belfast City Council to restrict the flying of the union flag at the city hall.
A number of roads in Belfast and some other parts of Northern Ireland have been blocked for short periods on Tuesday afternoon.
Northern Ireland First Minister and DUP leader Peter Robinson said all unionists wanted "the folly" of what was happening on the streets to stop, but said it would be hard to persuade those involved in violence.
"People who are so proud of the flag that they have to cover their faces I think are going to be very hard to reach," he said.
"We'll talk to those organisations that we know are there who may have influence on the street and a lot of them are already working to try and calm things down.
"But there is no rationale - how do you call yourself a loyalist and then throw a petrol bomb into the back of a police car, it's absurd."
The NI secretary of state said those involved in the recent violence were "dishonouring and shaming the flag".
Ulster Unionist leader Mike Nesbitt has called for the protests to stop.
In the past week, as trouble flared across Northern Ireland, 29 police officers have been injured and 38 people arrested.
The latest and more serious incident took place on Monday at 19:35 GMT, when a gang of six men smashed the back window of the policewoman's car, which was parked on the Upper Newtownards Road, and threw in a petrol bomb.
The woman escaped unhurt.
Ulster Unionist leader Mike Nesbitt said on Tuesday that violence associated with protests could not be tolerated.
"It is anti-British to attack a police officer, it is anti-British to attack an elected representative," he said.
"Peaceful protest is fine but the chances of conducting protests without this kind of repercussion is so high that I have to ask people to give up their right."
Ms Long, the MP for East Belfast, received a death threat last week. A police car has been stationed outside her office since then.
Condemning Monday night's attack, Ms Long said: "There is no doubt in my mind that the car was targeted because it was undertaking patrols in the vicinity of my office and I find that absolutely repugnant."
Assistant Chief Constable George Hamilton said: "This was a planned attempt to kill a police officer which also put the lives of the public in danger and it is fortunate there were no injuries as a result of this attack.
"I am urgently appealing to those involved in ongoing protests to listen to their political leaders and step back from protest activity before someone is seriously injured or killed."
Asked about loyalist paramilitary involvement in the violence, he said: "Loyalism is very fragmented."
Naomi Long MP: ''If any other MP was under a death threat... I believe the government would have intervened''
"What you have is people at a local level in some ways disconnected from the senior leadership of those organisations actively involved in violence."
Ms Long said recent attacks on the Alliance Party bore "all the hallmarks of a pogrom".
Her party colleague, the North Down Alliance MLA Stephen Farry told the assembly on Tuesday there had been a second attempted arson attack on his constituency office in Bangor, County Down, on Monday evening.
Rioting
Labour's shadow Northern Ireland secretary Vernon Coaker said the government needed to act.
There was also rioting in the loyalist Village area of south Belfast on Monday night, while rival crowds had to be separated close to the Short Strand area of east Belfast.
Police are also investigating reports of an attack on a bar in Thomas Street, Armagh, which is owned by the husband of a Sinn Fein councillor.
At about 21:50 GMT, a car struck three men on the Newry Road in Armagh before being driven away. There was a loyalist protest in the area at the time.
A 17-year-old boy who was arrested has been released on police bail.
Police were also attacked in the Village area of south Belfast
Alliance Party members and premises have been targeted since last Monday's vote on the city hall flag.
Alliance, Sinn Fein and SDLP councillors voted to limit the flying of the flag while the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) and Ulster Unionists (UUP) opposed the move.
Rush-hour traffic was also disrupted in Belfast on Monday by a series of protests. |
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| ramonmercado Psycho Punk
Joined: 19 Aug 2003 Total posts: 17931 Location: Dublin Gender: Male |
| Posted: 11-12-2012 21:08 Post subject: |
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Looks like a Catholic majority is on the books quite soon.
Census shows gap between Protestants and Catholics narrows to 3% in | Quote: | Northern Ireland
http://www.rte.ie/news/2012/1211/northern-ireland-census-catholic-protestant.html
NI census shows gap between Protestants and Catholics narrowing
The gap between the proportion of Protestants and Catholics in Northern Ireland has narrowed, according to new census figures.
The census reveals that 48% of the resident population are either Protestant, or brought up Protestant, while 45% of the resident population are either Catholic, or brought up Catholic.
Figures show that 5.6% belong to neither faith, nor have been brought up in any religion.
The Northern Ireland census was held on 27 March last year.
The 2011 census was the first time a question on national identity was asked.
Of those questioned, 40% said they were British only, with the remaining 8% choosing British along with another one of the identities, such as British and Irish or British and Northern Irish.
A quarter of the population defined themselves as Irish only, while 21% said they were Northern Irish only.
In terms of religion, in the 2001 census 53% of the population was Protestant with 44% Catholic. |
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| ramonmercado Psycho Punk
Joined: 19 Aug 2003 Total posts: 17931 Location: Dublin Gender: Male |
| Posted: 11-12-2012 21:24 Post subject: |
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More on collaboration and corruption.
| Quote: | Finucane and uncovering the truth
http://www.rte.ie/news/2012/1210/finucane-and-uncovering-the-truth.html?view=print
When John Stevens investigated the murder of Pat Finucane in the 1990s he experienced strenuous efforts by persons unknown trying to prevent him discovering the level of collusion
New details emerge of Pat Finucane murder
In most murder investigations finding the murder weapon would be regarded as a major step towards finding the killers. But the investigation into the murder of Belfast solicitor Pat Finucane in 1989 was different in many ways.
Finding the murder weapon in this case was, it seems, inconvenient. At some stage someone within what was then the RUC decided that the Browning pistol should be returned to the British Army from where it had been stolen by loyalists.
Conveniently that destroyed any evidential value the weapon might have had.
It is clear why this was done. Some members of the RUC Special Branch and the British Army's agent handling outfit, the Force Research Unit, had a good idea who the killers were.
Mainly because it seems they had helped them target Finucane.
He was shot him dead as he and his family had Sunday dinner. Some RUC and military intelligence officers knew who the killers were but didn't pass it on to those actually investigating the murder.
Using agents and informers is a very precarious task for law enforcement organisations worldwide.
Those agents with the best information are those closest to the action. That, by its very nature, means they're involved in law breaking. It is understandable why police and intelligence organisations would seek out such people - to give them a better understanding of what is going on.
But the Finucane case goes way beyond that. It involves the deliberate targeting of a solicitor by officers whose job it was to uphold the law. In effect, they used loyalist gunmen to assassinate Finucane.
Some officers believed he was working for the IRA but his family always denied that and nothing has emerged to prove it. This and other similar cases give rise to concerns that what went on during the 'Dirty War' in the North was more akin to the activities of a South American junta than a western democracy.
When John Stevens investigated the murder of Pat Finucane in the 1990s he experienced strenuous efforts by persons unknown trying to prevent him discovering the level of collusion.
Agents in loyalist gangs were tipped off before they were due to be arrested and the Stevens' team offices inside a secure RUC barracks were set on fire. The phone lines and fire alarms didn't work. Coincidence? He didn't think so.
Despite years of work only four short chapters were ever published summarising his findings in a report known as Stevens III. He found there was collusion between the security forces and loyalist killers in the murder of Pat Finucane and the murder of a Protestant youth, Brian Adam Lambert, who was killed by loyalists in the mistaken believe he was a Catholic.
But the vast bulk of what Stevens found out has never been made public. In an effort to redress that I submitted a request under the UK Freedom of Information Act to the Police Service of Northern Ireland seeking a copy of Stevens III.
It is worth nothing that I still can't do that here as the Garda Siochana are still outside the remit of FOI in Ireland.
Tortuous legal argument
It has taken me four years of tortuous legal argument with the PSNI, the UK Information Commissioner and a Tribunal to get more details about Stevens III.
The request under the UK Freedom of Information Act seeking a full copy of Stevens III (with the necessary redactions to protect sources) was refused by the PSNI. I then appealed to the UK Information Commissioner. My appeal was rejected there after the Commissioner's office discussed the matter with the PSNI but without having ever having seen any part of Stevens III. Then I appealed it to the First Tier Tribunal where the argument was basically did Stevens III 'relate to' the security services. While the work of MI5 is exempt from FOI, the work of the police – even the Special Branch – is not.
Eventually the Tribunal decided that while much of Stevens III was exempt, some of it could be released – mainly Chapter 6. Only four chapters were ever published before so it is clear there is still a hidden Chapter 5 still and possible other chapters 7, 8, 9 etc.
The appeal to the Tribunal was argued in papers and written submissions to keep the costs down. While for RTÉ it involved just me doing my own research, for the PSNI it involved legal counsel at unknown cost. And for what?
There is nothing in Chapter 6 of Stevens that threatened the national security of the UK. There is nothing there than could not have been released when Stevens was originally published in 2003. It could and indeed should have been published a long time ago.
What there is in Chapter 6 is damning information about the RUC conduct of the Finucane murder investigation and the willful destruction of evidence.
There is also evidence of rather pointless editing to try and limit the 'damage' to the RUC's reputation - for example removing the phrase "of nationalists" from a sentence in the introduction where Stevens talks about murdering of civilians.
The Finucane family are maintaining their demand for a full public inquiry.
The British Government originally promised it would happen along with a number of others (like the inquiry into Rosemary Nelson's death and the Smithwick Tribunal which is still running here).
However, it seems the British Government has backed away from a public inquiry. The probable reason is to try and avoid exposing the security forces' involvement in 'Dirty War' as much as possible.
Instead the Government of David Cameron asked a respected lawyer, Desmond de Silva to re-examine the circumstances surrounding the murder of Pat Finucane – a move criticised by the family as inadequate.
His report is due to the published on Wednesday. Will we find out more then about the murder of Mr Finucane? Probably. Will we find out everything? Certainly not.
What happens after Wednesday largely depends on the British and, to a lesser degree, the Irish Government and their desire to uncover the truth. |
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| ramonmercado Psycho Punk
Joined: 19 Aug 2003 Total posts: 17931 Location: Dublin Gender: Male |
| Posted: 12-12-2012 14:04 Post subject: |
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At least Cameron acknowledges State responsibility and apologies.
| Quote: | Pat Finucane murder: 'No overarching state conspiracy' says PM
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-20662412
Q&A: The murder of Pat Finucane
A review of the murder of Belfast solicitor Pat Finucane has concluded that were was "no overarching state conspiracy".
However, the prime minister David Cameron said the level of collusion uncovered by the report was "shocking".
Sir Desmond de Silva's report confirmed that agents of the state were involved in the 1989 killing and that it should have been prevented.
The review found RUC officers proposed Mr Finucane be killed.
It said they passed information to his killers and failed to stop the attack and then obstructed the murder investigation.
It also finds that an Army intelligence unit, the FRU, "bears a degree" of responsibility because one of their agents, Brian Nelson, was involved in selecting targets.
However, it concludes that Nelson did not provide his handlers with details of the plot against Mr Finucane.
It finds that MI5 received intelligence two months before the killing that Mr Finucane was under threat but that no steps were taken to protect him.
Controversial
It also found that MI5 helped spread propaganda against Mr Finucane in the years before he was killed.
Mr Finucane was shot dead by loyalists at his north Belfast home. It was one of the most controversial killings of the Troubles.
Sir Desmond de Silva QC carried out the review at the government's request. The Finucanes want a public inquiry as they feared the full truth would not emerge.
Speaking in the House of Commons on Wednesday, Mr Cameron was strongly critical of the RUC and Army for their conduct in relation to the killing.
He said Sir Desmond concluded that there was "no political conspiracy" over the murder but that "ministers were misled".
Mr Cameron added that the report found "no evidence whatsoever that any government minister had fore-knowledge of Mr Finucane's murder".
He said that on behalf of the government and the whole country he wanted to say to the Finucane family that he was "deeply sorry".
Last year, Mr Cameron acknowledged there was state collusion in Mr Finucane's murder and apologised to his family. |
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| Cavynaut Skoumed!
Usually tired. Joined: 10 Apr 2003 Total posts: 1976 Location: Crouch Wailing. UK. Age: 56 Gender: Male |
| Posted: 14-12-2012 14:53 Post subject: |
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| The least that Cameron could do is authorise a proper public enquiry. |
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| Quake42 Warrior Princess
Great Old One Joined: 25 Feb 2004 Total posts: 5310 Location: Over Silbury Hill, through the Solar field Gender: Unknown |
| Posted: 14-12-2012 15:31 Post subject: |
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| Quote: | | The least that Cameron could do is authorise a proper public enquiry |
What I think should have happened post-Good Friday Agreement is a SA-style Truth and Reconciliation Commission which would have looked at the behaviour of all parties. Too late now I expect - a shame. |
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| ramonmercado Psycho Punk
Joined: 19 Aug 2003 Total posts: 17931 Location: Dublin Gender: Male |
| Posted: 14-12-2012 19:12 Post subject: |
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| Quake42 wrote: | | Quote: | | The least that Cameron could do is authorise a proper public enquiry |
What I think should have happened post-Good Friday Agreement is a SA-style Truth and Reconciliation Commission which would have looked at the behaviour of all parties. Too late now I expect - a shame. |
Maybe not too late. There is still a lot of bitterness on all sides. Including no doubt the families of British soldiers, who wonder why their loved ones died in a part of the UK. The reasons for the conflict would also need to be explored. 50 years of treating Catholics as second class citizens created the space for the IRA to thrive. Why did successive Westminster governments ignore this? |
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| Cavynaut Skoumed!
Usually tired. Joined: 10 Apr 2003 Total posts: 1976 Location: Crouch Wailing. UK. Age: 56 Gender: Male |
| Posted: 15-12-2012 03:09 Post subject: |
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| ramonmercado wrote: | | Why did successive Westminster governments ignore this? |
Yeah, the convention that Westminster did not discuss Ulster as a matter of tradition has always intrigued me. The Six Counties were either part of the UK or they weren't. Stormont seems to me to have been a classic fudge of the sort that the British establishment excels in. |
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| ramonmercado Psycho Punk
Joined: 19 Aug 2003 Total posts: 17931 Location: Dublin Gender: Male |
| Posted: 20-01-2013 21:43 Post subject: |
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| Quote: | Northern Ireland, 1972: a British army-loyalist paramilitary alliance
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/weekend/2013/0119/1224329033796.html
. . .
ED MOLONEY and BOB MITCHELL
The protests of the past six weeks have their roots in a policy established in the early days of the Troubles
As security chiefs and political leaders in Belfast, Dublin and London anxiously watch the Union flag protests deteriorate into greater violence, they could do worse than reflect on one uncomfortable reality: the strength and endurance of groups such as the UVF and UDA in the years of the peace process in no small way derives from a crucial ambivalence towards such groups shown by Britain’s top generals in Northern Ireland, almost from the outset of the Troubles.
Damning evidence that the higher echelons of the British military advocated a counterinsurgency strategy that would encourage the growth of loyalist paramilitary groups in the early 1970s has emerged in documents from the Northern Ireland Office released in the past decade or so.
Ignored or unnoticed by all but a handful of academics, the papers suggest that as early as 1972 British generals effectively championed a strategy of countergangs drawn from the ranks of loyalism to fight the IRA, an idea apparently borrowed from the Mau Mau conflict in Kenya.
While the documents do not say whether the military won the support of the British cabinet for such proposals, there is no record of any opposition to them, and according to one academic who has studied the issue, Dr Huw Bennett of the department of international politics at the University of Wales, in Aberystwyth, it is “very likely” the military got its way in this regard.
The evidence for all this emerges in documentation produced in the wake of the IRA’s first ceasefire, in 1972. On July 9th that year, the same day that short-lived ceasefire ended in a riot and gun battle at the Lenadoon estate, in west Belfast, the British army’s general officer commander, Gen Harry Tuzo, dispatched a paper to Northern Ireland secretary William Whitelaw. The paper, apparently prepared in anticipation of the ceasefire’s breaking down, outlined security options in the next phase of the war against the IRA.
The paper was prepared with the approval of the British army’s chief of general staff, Field Marshall Michael Carver, and therefore reflected the view of Britain’s military establishment on how best to conduct operations against the IRA.
One recommendation, according to Bennett in a paper written for Studies in Conflict Terrorism, in 2010, was to flood IRA strongholds such as west Belfast and Derry with troops to force the IRA into firefights, which would then allow the army not just to kill and arrest IRA suspects but to conduct widespread searches and gather intelligence. Tuzo also sought legal indemnity for the troops involved in this exercise.
A second front
According to Bennett’s paper, the cabinet of the then prime minister, Ted Heath, refused to grant the army indemnity and had qualms about the proposed military occupation of Catholic areas, although the IRA bombings of Bloody Friday, later, in July 1972, created the political circumstances for just such an operation, which became known as Motorman.
Tuzo then made a proposal to Whitelaw that the growth of loyalists paramilitaries should be quietly promoted. The wording of Tuzo’s idea strongly implies the creation of a second front that the Provisional IRA would be forced to fight on.
“Vigilantes, whether UDA [Ulster Defence Association] or not,” he wrote to Whitelaw, “should be discreetly encouraged in Protestant areas to reduce the load on the Security Forces.” The phrase “to reduce the load on the Security Forces” suggests much more than turning a blind eye to groups like the UDA and UVF (Ulster Volunteer Fighters). It comes close to regarding the loyalist paramilitaries as allies.
There is nothing in Bennett’s paper or research that he has been able to unearth elsewhere to indicate that either Whitelaw or the Heath cabinet vetoed or even objected to this aspect of the Tuzo plan.
The weeks before the preparation of the Tuzo report are replete with evidence of British ambivalence, to say the least, towards the UDA. In June 1972, Whitelaw held three meetings with the UDA, twice with a delegation that arrived at Stormont Castle wearing hoods and sunglasses. His third meeting was with the entire UDA inner council.
Also in June, up to 8,000 masked UDA men, armed with iron bars and cudgels, confronted British troops in the Shankill Road area. The British commander of land forces, Maj Gen Robert Ford, arrived to negotiate with the UDA in the back of a Saracen; the deal they struck saw the UDA and British army conduct joint patrols of the area.
Mau Mau tactics
In several key ways, the UDA and the British army were already acting as allies when the Tuzo plan arrived on Whitelaw’s desk.
“What seems to be the case to me is that in 1972 the military really took charge of the situation,” Bennett says now. “There doesn’t seem to be that much regular cabinet interference in what they are doing.”
Bennett says he found all this reminiscent of the way the British handled the Mau Mau uprising in Kenya, in the 1950s. Under the direction of a rising young British military officer named Frank Kitson, the British created countergangs, recruited from rival Kenyan tribes, to fight the Mau Mau. Between 1970 and 1972, the same Frank Kitson, by then a general, headed the British army’s Belfast brigade and was a key figure in the military hierarchy in Northern Ireland.
“As I was writing this,” says Bennett, “it seemed to me an obvious decision by HQNI [British army headquarters] that from a purely objective point of view you could consider the loyalist paramilitaries to be just as significant a threat to security and ordinary people in Northern Ireland. And if they were going to be completely impartial they should have been conducting counterinsurgency against both loyalists and republicans.”
Final, absolute proof of which direction British military policy took in the wake of Tuzo’s paper will have to await the disclosure of even more confidential material.
There is no doubt, however, that 1972, especially the months following the July IRA ceasefire, was the year of huge growth in loyalist paramilitary activity. If the violence of 1972 and what followed was like a stone thrown into the middle of a lake, then the angry flag-waving protests, rioting and now shooting that Northern Ireland has seen in the past six weeks are the ripples still breaking against the shore. |
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| ramonmercado Psycho Punk
Joined: 19 Aug 2003 Total posts: 17931 Location: Dublin Gender: Male |
| Posted: 29-01-2013 20:41 Post subject: |
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| Quote: | HET report says Joe McCann shooting was unjustified
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-21245123
The Historical Enquiries Team have said that the shooting of Joe McCann was unjustified.
Related Stories
Review ordered into work of HET
HET enquiries must be even-handed
A new report has found that the Army was not justified in shooting dead an Official IRA man in Belfast during the Troubles.
Joe McCann was shot by soldiers in disputed circumstances in Joy Street in the Markets area close to his home on 15 April 1972.
The review team's report said: "Joe's actions did not amount to the level of specific threat which could have justified the soldiers opening fire in accordance with the Army rules of engagement."
The Historical Enquiries Team has carried out an investigation into his death.
Members of the Parachute Regiment shot Joe McCann several times as he ran away from police in Belfast, a team of detectives said. He was unarmed at the time.
Mr McCann's daughter, Nuala, said: "The shooting of our father was not justified. It was unjustified."
The report also stated that the review team was unable to question the officers present on that day. "The lack of access to their identities has been a major inhibitor in being able to provide a full and comprehensive review of all the circumstances of Joe's death."
Mr McCann's daughter Aine said that the failure of the the PSNI to reveal the identity of the police officers involved on the day was 'shameful': "It has not been possible to question the Special Branch version of events because, incredibly, the RUC then and the PSNI now, claim not to be aware of the identities of the two Special Branch officers that were following Joe that day."
He was one of the Official IRA's most prominent activists in the early days of the Troubles.
Mervyn Jess reports for BBC Newsline.
At the inquest into his death, soldiers said they had expected him to be carrying a weapon. He was unarmed when shot. It is also thought that he had disguised his appearance.
The HET is a unit of the Police Service of Northern Ireland set up in September 2005 to investigate the 3,269 unsolved murders committed during the Troubles (specifically between 1968 and 1998).
The team aims to bring closure to many bereaved families who still have unanswered questions about the death or disappearance of their loved ones. |
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| ramonmercado Psycho Punk
Joined: 19 Aug 2003 Total posts: 17931 Location: Dublin Gender: Male |
| Posted: 31-01-2013 22:31 Post subject: |
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| Quote: | Pat Finucane killing: 'Far worse than anything alleged in Iraq or Afghanistan'
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-21283169
Pat Finucane was shot dead by loyalists in front of his family in 1989
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Calls for full Finucane inquiry
Finucane review casts spotlight on MI5
State murder collusion 'shocking
'
One of David Cameron's closest advisors described the murder of Belfast solicitor Pat Finucane as far worse than anything alleged in Iraq or Afghanistan, the High Court has heard.
Sir Jeremy Heywood also questioned whether the prime minister believed it was right to "renege" on a previous administration's commitment to hold a public inquiry into a killing.
His family are challenging that decision.
Mr Finucane was shot dead in 1989.
On Thursday, Mr Justice Stephens heard how Mr Heywood, now cabinet secretary, referred to Mr Finucane's murder as "a dark moment in the country's history".
Details of emailed correspondence between the top civil servant and another senior Downing Street official were revealed as lawyers for the Finucane family pressed for complete disclosure of notes or recordings from a series of ministerial meetings.
They want the material as part of their legal challenge to the British government's refusal to order a full, independent probe into the 1989 assassination.
A review carried out by lawyer Sir Desmond de Silva QC and published in December confirmed agents of the state were involved in the murder and that it should have been prevented.
Collusion
However, it concluded there had been no overarching state conspiracy in the shooting, carried out by the loyalist Ulster Freedom Fighters at the solicitor's north Belfast home.
Although Mr Cameron expressed shock at the level of collusion uncovered by Sir Desmond, Mr Finuncane's widow, Geraldine claimed it was a sham and a whitewash.
Opening the family's application for discovery of the documents, Barry Macdonald QC said the case was about past and present abuse of state power.
The first instance in 1989 involved the murder of a solicitor perceived to be "a thorn in the side" of the government, police and security services, he claimed.
Mr Macdonald continued: "Secondly, it's about abuse of power in 2011 by the current government when it decided to renege on a solemn commitment to conduct a public inquiry into those events in 1989."
The full scale of what went on has yet to be revealed, according to the barrister.
He told Mr Justice Stephens: "The applicant, Mrs Finucane, knows the name of the person who pulled the trigger. The question is who was pulling the strings?
"In a 500-page report by Sir Desmond de Silva, consideration of the government's role takes up five pages."
Stressing the gravity of the case, Mr Macdonald detailed an email Sir Jeremy sent to Simon King, a private secretary to the prime minister, ahead of a ministerial meeting in July 2011.
In correspondence already disclosed to the parties, he asked: "Does the prime minister seriously think that it's right to renege on a previous government's clear commitment to hold a full judicial inquiry?
"This was a dark moment in the country's history - far worse than anything that was alleged in Iraq/Afghanistan.
"I cannot really think of any argument to defend not having a public inquiry. What am I missing?"
A reply email stated that the prime minister "shares the view this is an awful case, and as bad as it gets, and far worse than any post 9/11 allegation", the court heard.
Transcripts
According to Mr Macdonald, the exchange provided a flavour of the seriousness of the alleged abuse of power in not holding a public inquiry.
Material being sought by the Finuncanes' lawyers includes original notes, minutes, recordings or transcripts of:
A meeting between the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland and Prime Minister on November 5, 2011
A meeting of officials from the Northern Ireland Office, Cabinet Office and Prime Minister's Office on May 16, 2011
A meeting of ministers on July 11, 2011
A Cabinet meeting on October 11, 2011
Copies of letters from MI5 to the Northern Ireland Office in February and March 2011
Paul McLaughlin, appearing for the government, told the court that the decision taken in the Finucane case followed a detailed balancing exercise.
He said it involved weighing any commitment by a previous government against current public interest.
Mr McLaughlin also pointed out that retired Canadian Judge Peter Cory had already examined the case and concluded there should be a public inquiry.
He argued that some of the material being sought would not advance the plaintiff's cause any further.
In a statement, a spokesperson for the prime minister said: "There is nothing we want to add to this story."
Mr Finucane was shot dead by loyalists in front of his wife and children at his north Belfast home in 1989.
Mr Cameron acknowledged in 2011 there had been state collusion in Mr Finucane's murder and apologised to his family.
The hearing continues. |
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| ramonmercado Psycho Punk
Joined: 19 Aug 2003 Total posts: 17931 Location: Dublin Gender: Male |
| Posted: 01-02-2013 19:06 Post subject: |
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| Quote: | Ambush of RUC officers in 1989 was 'classic IRA operation'
Updated: 17:01, Friday, 01 February 2013
http://www.rte.ie/news/2013/0201/365644-smithwick-tribuanal/
The Provisional IRA has claimed that between 30 and 40 members were involved in the ambush that resulted in the murder of two RUC officers in March 1989.
The Smithwick Tribunal, which is investigating claims of garda collusion with the IRA in the murder of Chief Supt Harry Breen and Supt Bob Buchanan, heard today what three former volunteers said about the operation.
The former members said no garda passed information to them about the RUC officers visit to Dundalk Garda Station in March 1989. Instead, it was described by them as a "classic IRA operation".
It started out when one person saw an RUC officer getting out of a car at Dundalk Garda Station in spring 1988.
The IRA then said it put in place a surveillance operation that involved putting people into an empty house opposite the garda station. This continued on a casual basis until early the following year.
From purely surveillance, it then became a military operation when regular visits and patterns were noted, the tribunal was told by the former IRA members.
They identified the routes the car took and mounted an operation to "arrest, question and execute" those in the car. They were not aware the car belonged to Supt Buchanan, but knew it belonged to some RUC officer. They attempted to ambush the car on four separate occasions.
It involved two active service units, each with five or six members, placed in two locations close to the border where they could intercept the car after it left Dundalk Garda Station.
On the first two attempts, the car did not show up, the third attempt was aborted due to British Army helicopters being present in the area. The fourth attempt took place on 20 March 1989. The former IRA members said that they stopped the car, but it reversed.
They opened fire killing both occupants while they were in the car. They did not know who was in the car, other than the fact they were RUC officers.
They described the shooting of Chief Supt Breen as a "bonus". He was a target for them because they believed he was involved in the ambush of IRA members at Loughgall.
The former members of the IRA told the tribunal they had convened a meeting of six people involved in the ambush to recollect the events, but the passage of time and the fact they did not keep records had affected their ability to provide exact dates and times.
Earlier, it emerged that no new intelligence has been obtained by gardaí relating to the murder of the two officers since the tribunal started.
The PSNI had said it got new intelligence about the ambush since the tribunal started and given it to Judge Smithwick.
It also emerged at the tribunal this morning that no evidence has been found to back up claims in PSNI intelligence that another, unidentified garda passed information to the IRA, which allowed them ambush the two RUC officers.
Three former garda sergeants, Owen Corrigan, Leo Colton and Finbarr Hickey, have all been questioned by the tribunal and strenuously denied any allegation of collusion. |
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| ramonmercado Psycho Punk
Joined: 19 Aug 2003 Total posts: 17931 Location: Dublin Gender: Male |
| Posted: 18-02-2013 20:32 Post subject: |
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| Quote: | COUNTER-GANGS: A history of undercover military units in Northern Ireland 1971-1976
Tom Griffin, 28 January 2013
Last month, the De Silva report into the 1989 murder of Pat Finucane highlighted the scale of collusion between loyalist paramilitaries and undercover units of the British Army in the late 1980s.
A new report published today by Spinwatch and the Pat Finucane Centre traces the roots of this covert relationship to the earliest days of the Northern Ireland conflict.
COUNTER-GANGS: A history of undercover military units in Northern Ireland 1971-1976 shows how the application of colonial counter-insurgency theory led to the recruitment of paramilitaries by plain-clothes army units in the early 1970s.
The author of COUNTER-GANGS, Margaret Urwin is secretary of Justice for the Forgotten, an arm of the Pat Finucane Centre which works with victims of cross-border bombings in the 1970s.
Her report is based on years of work including interviews with former members of the security forces and extensive documentary research. Among its key findings:
Senior Army officers at Headquarters Northern Ireland instructed subordinate commands in late 1971 to develop informal contacts with loyalist paramilitaries, described as ‘unofficial unarmed bodies... ...working in the public interest.’
The Army created plain-clothes Military Reaction Forces (MRF) in late 1971. The subsequent exposure of MRF activities led to their replacement a year later by a larger and more professional organisation: the Special Reconnaissance Unit (SRU).
The SRU relied heavily on SAS manpower. Successive governments went to great lengths to conceal this fact from Parliament and the media in order to be able to deny an SAS role in Northern Ireland.
Deliberately misleading information about the undercover units was fed to the press as part of a black propaganda campaign. The resulting press stories included information that would have enabled the IRA to identify Louis Hammond as an MRF agent in their ranks. Hammond was shot shortly afterwards.
COUNTER-GANGS is the most comprehensive study available about the Military Reaction Force and its successor the Special Reconnaissance Unit.
The report is the first of the State Violence and Collusion Project, an online research collaboration between SpinWatch and the Pat Finucane Centre, established with funding from the Scurrah Wainwright Charity.
The report is available for free download here.
http://www.spinwatch.org/images/Countergangs1971-76.pdf
Tom Griffin is a freelance journalist and researcher. See http://www.tomgriffin.org |
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