Dáil debate on collusion

Bertie Ahern renewed his call on the British Government to co-operate with inquiries into collusion during a Dáil debate on the issue yesterday:

The willingness of the British authorities to co-operate with the various inquiries has been tested and in many cases found wanting. We tried to address these issues by establishing inquiries in certain important and representative cases in discussions with the British Government at Weston Park in July 2001. For our part, we have abided by the commitment to establish the inquiry into the murders of Harry Breen and Bob Buchanan, which is now proceeding under Judge Smithwick. While inquiries are under way in the cases of Robert Hamill, Rosemary Nelson and Billy Wright, the inquiry into the death of Pat Finucane has not been established by the British Government. The House and the Government have made clear our view that a proper independent inquiry must be established as recommended by Judge Cory. I again repeat that call today. While I regret that all of our efforts to date have not been fully successful for the victims, that does not mean we will give up trying to get those commitments honoured. I know we have the support of the entire House in that regard.

 

In more recent years, the valuable work of the Police Ombudsman of Northern Ireland has uncovered further clear evidence of collusion. For example, the detailed report into the killing of Raymond McCord was truly shocking, even for those who had long suspected the level of collusion. It also proved that the issue of collusion matters to all of us and to all communities in Northern Ireland. It is not a purely Nationalist concern, as has been eloquently demonstrated by Raymond’s father’s campaign for justice for his son. He has met my officials and me a number of times.

Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny supported the call:

I do not know whether the Taoiseach has had any contact with the current prime minister, Gordon Brown, whether Mr. Brown has had any contact with the Taoiseach or whether officials from both governments have been in touch with each other. This is a matter which we must continue to attempt to sort out.

In his final report on the Dublin and Monaghan bombings of 1974, Mr. Justice Barron said that the notion that members of the security forces in Northern Ireland could have been involved in the Dublin and Monaghan bombings was “neither fanciful nor absurd”. In his report into the Dublin bombings of 1972 and 1973, Mr. Justice Barron says that it is quite possible that the bombs were planted to influence the debate on that Bill in this House. He also said there were some elements of the attacks that were not characteristic of loyalist subversive groups at that time such as the giving of a warning, the use of hired vehicles, the co-ordinated nature of the blasts and the apparent use of a car stolen four months previously. He went on to say that “these features may be consistent with involvement by the British Army or Intelligence Services in the bombings”.

In respect of the bombing of Kay’s Tavern, the sub-committee said that in some of the incidents in question, collusion was almost beyond question. Justice for the Forgotten, quite rightly, have been very concerned and vocal about these reports and the necessity to bring closure.

The Taoiseach is aware that we have all supported the Good Friday agreement and the peace process and attempted in whatever way we can, in or outside Government, to make an impact for the greater good of our communities and people. I remind the British government that strand three of the agreement concerns the development of the east-west relationship between Great Britain and Ireland. This provides an opportunity and a platform for co-operation to again resurrect the requirement that the documentary evidence and written evidence available to the British government be made available so that some closure can be achieved.

Labour's Joe Costello suggested the Irish Government could do more to raise the issue:

The initial important step that could so easily have been taken, namely, the formal adoption of the four reports and their findings by the Dáil and Seanad, never took place nor were the reports ever forwarded to the British House of Commons.

In its fourth and final report in 2007, the sub-committee made its most damning finding.  It stated:

The sub-committee is left in no doubt that collusion between the British security forces and terrorists was behind many if not all of the atrocities that are considered in this report. We are horrified that persons who were employed by the British Administration to preserve peace and to protect people were engaged in the creation of violence and the butchering of innocent victims. The sub-committee is of the view that given that we are dealing with acts of international terrorism that were colluded in by the British security forces, the British Government cannot legitimately refuse to co-operate with investigations and attempts to get to the truth.

These trenchant findings on collusion were made in the light of the accumulation of evidence over the four Barron reports and hearings conducted by the sub-committee.

The sub-committee concluded that “the seriousness of this, i.e., collusion, warrants direction from the Oireachtas and we, therefore, recommend that there should be a full debate in both the Dáil and Seanad on the issue of collusion since it is necessary for there to be greater political impetus to highlight the fact that it occurred and the facts of its scale and to identify measures to bring closure to the victims”. The sub-committee proposed the Oireachtas give direction on the way forward to achieve the necessary action concerning collusion.

While the Taoiseach responded positively in subsequent remarks, I propose four courses of action. First, the interim and final reports of the sub-committee of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Justice, Equality, Defence and Women’s Rights on the report of the independent commission of inquiry into the Dublin-Monaghan Bombing are received, endorsed and approved by the Dáil and Seanad.

Second, the Ceann Comhairle is called upon to formally inform the Speaker of the House of Commons of the UK of the passage of the resolution and to send copies of the relevant reports and other documents, with a request that the matter be considered by the members of that House.

Third, the Taoiseach is called upon to renew his efforts to secure the agreement of the British Government to the courses of action recommended by the sub-committee, to report to the Dáil on a regular basis. If he has no progress of substance to report by the end of this year, he should report on the steps taken for the initiation of proceedings before the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.

Fourth, the Oireachtas requests the Ceann Comhairle to call upon the British Government, as an initial step and as a sign of good faith in dealing with the legacy of the conflict, to provide access to all the original documents relating to the atrocities that occurred in this jurisdiction, in particular the Dublin-Monaghan Bombing of 1974 which killed 32 Irish citizens, a French and an Italian citizen.

Only when these avenues are explored can the victims and families obtain justice and closure on these terrible events.