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An appeal
for Information
In
the 1970s the IRA shot dead and secretly buried a number of people. This is a
terrible legacy of that period of our history. The families of those
killed have suffered a grievous injustice. Republicans, including the IRA,
recognise and have acknowledged this fact. What happened was wrong and
unjustifiable.
In
the autumn of 1997 as part of the outworking of the peace process and following
representations from Fr. Alec Reid and me the IRA established a special
investigative unit to ascertain the whereabouts of these graves. Following that
investigation the IRA said it believed
that the number of persons involved was nine. In April 1999 it issued a
statement acknowledging this and naming those killed and buried by it.
The
Independent Commission for the Location of Victims Remains was established in
the same month by the Irish and British governments. This followed
representations from myself and Fr. Alec Reid. The hope at that time that the
remains would be quickly recovered proved naïve.
One reason for this is that the IRA –
as is widely acknowledged - had no institutional memory – no records to examine
that would provide accurate information. It was entirely reliant on the
memories of those who were involved. After so many years memories proved
elusive in some cases, small numbers of people were involved and some had died
in the interval. Geography and landscape too had changed making the pinpointing
of locations challenging. And of course the IRA no longer exists.
After
the first bodies were recovered there was then a significant gap. I discussed
this with Fr. Alec Reid and we put a proposal to the governments in 2001 in
which he urged them to employ experts in the recovery of remains. We also
proposed the use of high-tech equipment and archaeological methods, including
archaeological specialists, forensic experts, specialist scanning equipment and
body dogs. We also suggested that ‘a recreation of the scene’ approach be
adopted.
It
took some years for this to materialise. The service of a forensic science
investigative consultant was secured. Geoff Knupfer took up his position in
2005 and immediately carried out a review of the work up to that point.
Republicans
immediately engaged with Mr. Knupfer and up to his retirement last year met
with him on numerous occasions as the efforts to locate remains continued. In
2007 Mr. Knupfer acknowledged the co-operation he and his team received. He
said:
"In a spirit of co-operation and
reconciliation they [the IRA] are trying to help in every way they can. I am
absolutely convinced that they are doing everything they can to assist. The
support we have had from them has been absolutely 100 per cent from day
one."
Geoff Knupfer’s deputy Jon Hill, who has since
taken over as lead investigator, reiterated this.
The
process to date has involved;
·
The use of aerial photographs,
from military or commercial sources of the sites at the time of the killings.
·
Ordinance survey maps of this
period.
·
Forestry records.
·
X Ray equipment.
·
Archaeological experts.
·
Records, maps, photos, reports
of work already carried out on each site.
·
The appointment of a project
manager with the power to make things happen.
It success can be seen in its results.
According to its most recent account the Commission reported that seventeen
people were killed and secretly buried. Seamus Ruddy was victim of the INLA and
his remains were recovered in May 2017 and Seamus Maguire is believed to have
been the victim of another republican group. The list does not include Lisa
Dorrian who is believed to have been killed by the UVF and whose death after
the Good Friday Agreement is outside the remit of the Commission. As a result
of the work of the Commission and information provided to it by republican
sources thirteen bodies have been recovered.
There
are still three outstanding cases that were the responsibility of the IRA.
These are Columba McVeigh; Robert Nairac and Joseph Lynskey. The failure thus
far to find the remaining bodies is not due to any lack of resolve or
cooperation by republicans.
All
of these families have a fundamental right to bury their loved ones with
dignity. I continue to meet with the Commission and I want to appeal again for
anyone with information to bring that information forward. They can do so in
complete confidence to me, or to the families involved or to the Commission. If
they wish to speak to someone else that too is fine. What is important is that
anyone with information makes that information available.
Finally, I want to commend all of the families who have campaigned with dignity for many years to locate the remains of their loved ones. I also want to acknowledge once again the grave injustice inflicted upon them and to express my deep regret about this. I want to thank everyone who has worked to help the families, including the Independent Commission for the Location of Victims Remains, An Garda Síochána and the experts and staff who have been brought in to assist in this work. They deserve our full support.
The killing and secret burial of
people – has long been a brutal feature of war. In 2009 a report by a UN
Working Group recorded a total of 53,232 cases from 1980 affecting 82 states.
According to historians Pádraig Óg Ó
Ruairc and Dr Andy Bielenberg in
an article, ‘Shallow Graves—documenting and assessing IRA disappearances during
the Irish revolution 1919–1923’ the IRA was responsible for killing and
secretly burying approximately 110 people during that period.
No effort was made following the end of the
civil war to establish any process by which these bodies could be recovered and
returned to their families. We must continue our efforts to recover the remains
of Columba McVeigh; Robert Nairac and Joseph Lynskey.
I would appeal to anyone with information to
bring that forward. They can do so directly to the Commission on the basis of
confidentiality. The confidential number for the Commission is 00800 – 55585500.
Israel’s War Against Children
The accounts of the Israeli genocide in the Gaza Strip against the Palestinian people have produced many difficult and heart wrenching moments. The destruction of homes and schools and hospitals; the deliberate killing of over 30,000 children, women and men; the mass murder of health workers, journalists and civilians; the destruction of cemeteries; the premeditated shepherding of civilians into killing zones by Israeli forces, and so much more have shocked and appalled millions around the world. The Israeli state’s war on Gaza will be remembered for all this. It will also be forever remembered as Israel’s war against children.
Hind Rajab was aged 6. Look at the photo of
this beautiful young child. No threat to anyone. She went missing on 29 January
in Gaza City along with her Aunt and Uncle and cousins as they tried to flee in
their car. She spoke by mobile to the Palestine Red Crescent. An audio
recording of her last words were released by it. Her family had been killed by an
Israeli Tank and she was alone in the car with the bodies around her.
She was
terrified. She pleaded for help. “Come take me. You will come and take me? … I’m so scared, please come. Please call someone
to come and take me.” Desperately the Red Crescent sought clearance from
the Israeli Army to send an ambulance. But contact was lost with that also.
At the
weekend her decomposing body and those of her family were found in their bullet
riddled car. The Ambulance was found parked nearby. It was destroyed and the
two medics killed.
This is
Israel’s war on children. Almost 12,000 children have been killed and many more
lie buried under the rubble.
And with
Israel marshalling its forces for an attack on Rafah - the largest displaced
refugee camp in the world – the scene is being set for a humanitarian
catastrophe not witnessed before.
Moore St Raffle
The Moore Street Preservation Trust are raffling a framed,
limited edition Moore Street Print by renowned Irish Artist Robert
Ballagh.
Tickets are €10/£9 and the draw will take place on Easter
Sunday.
Get your tickets here: http://msptshop.myshopify.com/
Remember our history. Support our
campaign. Stop the demolition of Moore Street. Build a
1916 Cultural Quarter.
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