British Legacy Bill an insult to people of Ireland

Opinion6h

At the end of 2022, the 50th anniversary of the bombings in Belturbet, Clones and Pettigo on December 28 1972, An Garda Síochána announced that they were reopening their investigations into those three attacks. The no-warning bombings on that night showed evidence of the professional technical ability available to loyalist paramilitaries in Co Fermanagh and was a warning that they would be capable of continuing a bombing campaign in border villages and towns. Their bombing campaign did continue over many years. The important questions that remain after five decades are, why was the loyalist bombing campaign successful and who had assisted the loyalists paramilitaries in their deadly campaign south of the British border?

The answers to these questions may expose the level of collusion between the loyalists involved and the British security forces. The loyalists had used top-level security information to avoid detection. Is this why not a single loyalist paramilitary was apprehended either going to or returning from a bombing mission in the south. All of the communications between An Garda Síochána and the RUC were available to the UDR/UVF bombers. The Miami Showband massacre on July 31 1975 was clear and proven evidence of that dangerous alliance.

The British government legacy bill soon to become law at Westminster has nothing to do with Bloody Sunday, the Ballymurphy Massacre or many other British dirty war activities in the occupied six counties during the years of the Troubles. The sole purpose of this law is to prevent any of the information available on British security files being forensically examined and possibly exposing British involvement in the bombing attacks on the civilians of a neighbouring sovereign territory. The British government will do everything possible to hide the evidence of their involvement and their active support of illegal activity on our island. The Legacy Bill when passed would permanently hide the detailed information on the organisations responsible and the identities of the individuals that authorised all of the bombing attacks.

The victims of no-warning car bombs in Dublin, Monaghan, Belturbet, Dundalk, Castleblaney, Pettigo, Clones, Swanlinbar and Blacklion will not be silenced and will not forget. The wonderful organisation Justice for the Forgotten came into existence to offer help and assistance to us. They have asked questions that others did not want to ask. They have investigated what others did not want to investigate. They listened to what others did not want to hear and they have revealed the truth which others tried to hide. Justice for the Forgotten with hard work, genuine commitment and unbelievable dedication have revealed many hidden truths. Their excellent research exposed details which appeared to have been ignored by the political establishment south of the British border. Their investigations explored the depth of collusion between loyalist paramilitaries and the British security forces on both sides of the border on our divided island. The victims of these bombings do not want revenge but they do want the full truth.

The Legacy Bill in Westminster is essential for the British to bury and to forever hide their bloody deeds on our island during the conflict. After half a century of burying the truth, the British Government would be well advised that when trapped in a hole, stop digging.

JOSEPH REID

Termonfeckin, Co Louth