British army shooting victims' families appeal for TD help
Relatives of 11 people killed by the British army in disputed circumstances today appealed for TDs to support their campaign for an independent inquiry.
The victims, including a Catholic priest, were shot dead by soldiers over three days from August 9, 1971 in the Ballymurphy area of west Belfast amid sectarian violence.
All 11 were unarmed and were not members of any terrorist group.
The families of the dead, supported by the Relatives for Justice, are pushing for an independent inquiry and apologies from the British government and the Parachute Regiment.
Andree Murphy, spokeswoman for the group, said the issue must be raised at parliamentary and government levels.
“We want it raised at inter-governmental level. We want a formal meeting with the Minister for Foreign Affairs Dermot Ahern and the new Taoiseach Brian Cowen, when he is in place,” she said.
Ms Murphy said the group were also urging TDs to support an all-party Dáil motion backing their campaign.
“We want them to move a cross-party motion in the Dáil raising the issue and raising the need for an independent inquiry,” she added.
It is claimed soldiers from three battalions of the Parachute Regiment were serving in Ballymurphy when the killings took place, including troops from 1 Para who killed 13 people on Bloody Sunday, January 1972.
A British foreign affairs spokesman said an official from the department was to be briefed on the circumstances around the deaths and the campaign.
“The Consultative Group on the Past are currently looking at all aspects of the legacy of the conflict. The minister has been in contact with the group,” the spokesman said.
The group wrote to every TD and Senator urging them to meet the relatives of the dead as they push for the inquiry.
British authorities have not yet been approached.
Eamon Gilmore, Labour Party leader, said a process was needed to establish the truth.
“This is one of a number of cases from Northern Ireland where families are seeking an explanation into their family member’s death,” the Labour leader said.
“I understand the pain and loss which they are feeling. There is clearly a need for a mechanism to deal with cases like this, so that the families can get to the truth and bring closure to their pain.”
The killings took place amid fierce sectarian violence after the introduction of internment.
British army authorities claimed soldiers believed the 11 dead were carrying guns or had been involved in shootings but inquests rejected these claims.
Some 260 eyewitness statements backing the families’ claims have been collected.
Last month they met Democratic Unionist MP Jeffrey Donaldson who agreed to raise the campaign with his party’s national executive.
They also met the Consultative Group on the Past at the end of last year, headed by former Church of Ireland primate Lord Robin Eames and former Policing Board vice-chairman Denis Bradley, as part of their campaign.
Sinn Féin and the SDLP support the campaign.
