Posted by Jim on
Families who lost loved ones at the hands of unionist paramilitaries
acting in collusion with the state have criticised comments made by a
former Director of Public Prosecutions for an end to conflict-related
prosecutions.
Barra McGrory QC said mechanisms proposed to deal with the legacy of the
conflict will only result in “litigating the past for years to come”.
Mr McGrory said that current legacy proposals are “well meaning” but
“unworkable”. He called for the end to prosecutions in favour of a civil
inquiry.
“The criminal process will significantly inhibit the information process
and to what end?
“Very few convictions will result, people will be as unhappy as they are
now, and the opportunity to have a process which makes people truly
accountable will be lost.”
His comments come amid strenuous efforts by Tories to block prosecutions
of British soldiers over killings in Derry and Belfast dating from the
1970s.
Six families who lost loved ones at the hands of collusion have said
they were “disappointed” at Mr McGrory’s comments.
Their loved ones died in attacks in Moy, Cappagh and Craigavon between
1990 and 1992 carried out by the UVF with the support of members of the
locally-recuited British Army mregiment, the UDR.
In a joint statement the relatives said; “It is with dismay and great
disappointment we read the interview with Barra McGrory.
“It is well known our loved ones were killed by paid state agents and
members of the UDR.
“The murders were never properly investigated at the time and it is our
belief that ample evidence exists to easily secure convictions if proper
investigations were instigated.
“To halt such investigations would only serve to add to our suffering
and deep sense of injustice we already feel.
“It doesn�t matter to us if the perpetrators ‘only’ serve two years in
prison, simply to see them convicted in a court of law and named and
shamed would greatly help the healing process and finally give a sense
of closure.
“It is patently obvious Barra McGrory hasn�t a clue what victims’
families go through and we find it hard to understand why he would
effectively give the state an amnesty for its agent’s deeds.”
McGrory’s attitude to prosecutions has also drawn criticism from legal
figures. His decision not to prosecute a British soldier who shot dead a
15-year-old child in Derry in 1972 was described as �irredeemably
flawed� by High Court judges in February.
That decision was formally quashed by the High Court this week after
Daniel’s sister, Margaret Brady, issued judicial review proceedings
against it.
Outside court the schoolboy’s family called on senior prosecutors to now
being charges over the point-blank shooting of their son.
Mrs Brady said: “I would expect the prosecution service to come back
within three months and say we are now going to prosecute, not drag it
out for another four years. Are they waiting for all of the family to
just die off?”
Posted by Jim on
The leader of the British Labour Party, Jeremy Corbyn visited Belfast
this week to mark 20 years since the Good Friday peace agreement and
added his voice to efforts to circumvent unionist intransigence.
Mr Corbyn acknowledged that there is a majority for unity across Ireland
and reiterated his support for Irish reunification in the context of the
1998 peace deal.
In a speech in Belfast on Thursday, Mr Corbyn said that Labour is as
committed to the Good Friday Agreement as it has ever been.
“It has served us well for 20 years and, with commitment and
determination, will provide us with the framework for the next 20,” he
said.
“And with that in mind I want to make a plea to all parties and all
sides. We must do all we can to make powersharing work again in
Stormont. We need all sides to come together and make devolution work
again.
“That means tough choices. It means compromise and give and take. But we
owe it to the people of these islands not to allow political
disagreements to open the way for any return to the grim days of the
past.”
He urged British prime minister Theresa May to revive the moribund
‘British Irish Intergovernmental Conference’, a body set up under the
Agreement to provide Dublin with a consultative role in non-devolved
matters concerning the North.
Nationalists have been demanding the re-establishment of the conference
as a means of dealing with collapse of power-sharing in Belfast, but
have so far been ignored by the British government. It last sat eleven
years ago.
The DUP have refused to support the body as it opposes any Dublin
government involvement in the North, directly or indirectly.
The DUP leader Arlene Foster described the conference as a “talking
shop” and instead called for British Direct Rule ministers to take
decisions for the Six Counties.
BREXIT BLOCKAGE
In a speech last week, Foster accused nationalism of being �narrow and
exclusive� while lauding unionism as standing for �pluralism and
multi-culturalism�.
The DUP leader accused the Dublin government of a “very aggressive”
Brexit stance that made unionists wonder if 26 Counties was asserting a
claim on the north. But she claimed the issues that led to the collapse
of the Stormont Assembly could be resolved.
Sinn Fein, meanwhile, warned the DUP have no interest in restoring the
Assembly — because Brexit could bring significantly enhanced powers to
the north of Ireland.
The party pointed to revealing comments by the Scottish Brexit Secretary
Michael Russell, who said the DUP were blocking the transfer of powers
from Brussels to Belfast due to a fear of how Sinn F�in might use them.
The British government had published proposals that would see the “vast
majority” of powers in Brussels go directly to the devolved assemblies
after Brexit, but that now appears on hold because of pressure from
unionists in the north of Ireland.
After talks on the issue in London, Mr Russell said he was told
devolution was being “subverted” because of “fear of what Sinn Fein
might do in a legitimate assembly”.
He said he had concerns over the influence the DUP has over the British
government.
“We don’t take part in Northern Irish politics, that is an issue for
people in Northern Ireland, but it does seem that if the DUP is in a
position to veto things happening in Westminster � to veto devolved
settlements � then we’re in a dangerous situation,” he said.
Sinn F�in’s Alex Maskey said the remarks raised questions over British
government�s commitment to restoring the political institutions in the
north.
�In Sinn F�in�s view, his assessment is absolutely correct,” the West
Belfast representative said. He accused Theresa May’s government of
being “in hock to the DUP”.
“It is blatantly obvious they are abandoning any pretence of the
rigorous impartiality demanded of them by the Good Friday Agreement,” Mr
Maskey said.
“It comes as no surprise to us that the British government would be
afraid of Sinn F�in�s approach in a local administration with increased
powers.”
Posted by Jim on
An overwhelming vote in favour of repealing the 8th amendment of the
Irish constitution has opened the way for the liberalisation of
Ireland’s abortion laws, with a final result of 66.4% to 33.6%.
As votes were counted across Ireland, it was a day of tearful
celebrations for pro-choice campaigners, who hailed the referendum as a
historic victory for women and social justice.
The result removes an amendment dating from 1983 which rigidly protected
the unborn and forced women seeking an abortion to travel to Britain for
the procedure, while others were left in a legal limbo.
Even before counting began, the 26 County Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said
Friday’s referendum marked a culmination of a “quiet revolution” that
had taken place over the last few decades.
Mr Varadkar claimed the projected result of exit polls shows the country
was not divided and was one that supports women. “We will have a modern
Constitution for a modern country,” he said.
Voters chose to drop a ban on abortion, currently only allowed when a
woman’s life is at risk, by a margin of more than two-to-one.
Campaigners on the Yes side described the result as a liberation and a
victory for women against the oppression of church and state. Ireland’s
past treatment of unmarried mothers included the horrific Magdelene
Laundries, where pregnant women endured forced labour until their babies
were born and available for adoption.
“This is a monumental day for women in Ireland,” said Orla O’Connor,
co-director of the Together for Yes group. “This is about women taking
their rightful place in Irish society, finally.”
The vote is a “rejection of an Ireland that treated women as
second-class citizens,” she said. “This is about women’s equality and
this day brings massive change, monumental change for women in Ireland,
and there is no going back.”
John McGuirk, spokesperson for the Save the 8th group, said that many
Irish citizens will not recognise the country they are waking up in. The
group said that voters have created a “tragedy of historic proportions,”
but that the vote must be respected.
Katherine Zappone, the country’s minister for children and youth
affairs, said she is confident new abortion legislation can be approved
by parliament this summer. The move could allow an abortion clinic to
commence operation in Dublin by Christmas.
“I feel very emotional,” she said. “I’m especially grateful to the women
of Ireland who came forward to provide their personal testimony about
the hard times that they endured, the stress and the trauma that they
experienced because of the eighth amendment.”
The overall turnout was 64.1%. The highest turnouts were in Wicklow and
Dublin Bay North, at over 70%, while the lowest turnouts were in Dublin
Central and Dublin Bay South, both at under 55%.
Only County Donegal opposed the move as counting concluded this evening,
with a vote of 51.7% against. The strongest constitituency in favour was
Dublin Bay South, at 78.5%. The Dublin area overall was 75.5% Yes, while
Connacht/Ulster was 57.5%.
An RTE exit poll which predicted the overall measure passing by 69% to
31%, said just 52% were in favour of abortion being available on request
up to 12 weeks. Although that policy would likely not have been passed
if put directly to the people, abortion rights activists said they
expected to be able use the momentum of today’s result to get the key
measure through parliament.
Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin, who supports making abortion fully
available in sharp contrast to his party, said it looked like the
referendum had been “emphatically passed” and that the parliamentary
should move efficiently to enact “the will of our people”.
LoveBoth spokesperson Dr Ruth Cullen said she would hold the Taoiseach
to his promise of limited abortion.
“We will hold the Taoiseach to his promise that repeal would only lead
to abortion in very restrictive circumstances. He gave his word on this,
now he must deliver on it. No doubt many people voted for repeal based
on the Taoiseach’s promises in this regard,” she said.
Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald said she was delighted by the result.
She said the vote would make it easier to convince her party to adopt a
more liberal policy on abortion. There was “new politics” in action, she
said.
“This is a situation where the people were well ahead of some
politicians. The people set the pace.” She said it was an important
message of compassion and progress and the vote was “cathartic”. She
added: “We have without doubt done right by Irish women for this
generation and many to come.”
Ms McDonald was one of a number of campaigners who pointed to the
exclusion of the voters in the North, where voting is prohibited under
Irish law and abortion remains illegal. She and Sinn Fein Deputy Leader,
Michelle O’Neill, held up a sign to read ‘The North is Next’ at the
final declaration this evening at Dublin Castle.
The father of dentist Savita Halappanavar, who died of sepsis in Galway
in 2012 after being denied an abortion during a protracted miscarriage,
has expressed delight at the Yes victory. Andanappa Yalagi told local
media in India that he was “very happy today”.
He added: “We’ve got justice for Savita. What happened to her will not
happen to any other family.
“I have no words to express my gratitude to the people of Ireland at
this historic moment.”
OVERALL RESULT
YES 66.4%, NO 33.6%
RESULTS BY CONSTITUENCY
Carlow-Kilkenny: YES 63.50%, NO 36.50%
Cavan-Monaghan: YES 55.46%, NO 44.54%
Clare: YES 64.28%, NO 35.72%
Cork East: YES 64.12%, NO 35.88%
Cork North-Central: YES 64.02%, NO 35.98%
Cork North-West: YES 60.10%, NO 39.90%
Cork South-Central: YES 68.84%, NO 31.16%
Cork South-West: YES 64.51%, NO 35.49%
Donegal: YES 48.13%, NO 51.87%
Dublin Bay North: YES 74.69%, NO 25.31%
Dublin Bay South: YES 78.49%, NO 21.51%
Dublin Central: YES 76.51%, NO 23.49%
Dublin Fingal: YES 76.96%, NO 23.04%
Dublin Mid-West: YES 73.27%, NO 26.73%
Dublin North-West: YES 73.08%, NO 26.92%
Dublin Rathdown: YES 76.10%, NO 23.90%
Dublin South-Central: YES 74.79%, NO 25.21%
Dublin South-West: YES 74.91%, NO 25.09%
Dublin West: YES 74.02%, NO 25.98%
Dun Laoghaire: YES 77.06%, NO 22.94%
Galway East: YES 60.19%, NO 39.81%
Galway West: YES 65.95%, NO 34.05%
Kerry: YES 58.27%, NO 41.73%
Kildare North: YES 73.56%, NO 26.44%
Kildare South: YES 70.66%, NO 29.34%
Laois: YES: 61.35%, NO 38.65%
Limerick City: YES 66.87%, NO 33.13%
Limerick County: YES 58.08%, NO 41.92%
Longford-Westmeath: YES 58.27%, NO 41.73%
Louth: YES 66.55%, NO 33.45%
Mayo: YES 57.07%, NO 42.93%
Meath East: YES 69.21%, NO 30.79%
Meath West: YES 63.95%, NO 36.05%
Offaly: YES 58.05%, NO 41.95%
Roscommon-Galway: YES 57.21%, NO 42.79%
Sligo-Leitrim: YES 61.08%, NO 38.92%
Tipperary: YES 59.15%, NO 40.85%
Waterford: YES 69.43%, NO 30.57%
Wexford: YES 68.40%, NO 31.60%
Wicklow: YES 74.26%, NO 25.74%