Mairia Cahill , in an interview with Michael Reade on LMFM said that Adams “was responsible as a head of an armed movement for the murder and torture of thousands of people on this island”.
Readers might imagine that a grand niece of a member of the Army Council is well placed to know that.
One hopes that the PSNI have obtained a statement to this effect from her and submitted it to the deputy director of the PPS for consideration with the rest of the file.
Readers may recall that Barra McGrory, on the basis of a Panorama programme, requested the Chief Constable to investigate the behaviour of the Army. When I asked him to carry out a similar exercise in respect of Martin McGuinness, he refused, then said that he had not refused , then delegated the decision to a senior member of his department.
Now the Attorney General has decided, on the basis of the same programme , to order new inquests into the deaths of Daniel Rooney and Patrick McVeigh.
I have today requested that the A-G order fresh inquests into the murders of my parents on the basis of extensive publications , over the years, asserting that McGuinness was head of northern command PIRA and that he approved the murders of my parents. I also request that the voluminous State intelligence on McGuinness is made available to the Coroner.
Let’s see how even handed the response is.
The Public Prosecution Service has a two step test for prosecution. First, they consider whether or not the evidence which can be adduced in court is sufficient to provide a reasonable prospect of conviction. Secondly they consider if prosecution is required in the “public interest”.
Therefore there could be a case where, on the face of it,there is compelling evidence against X but the prosecution does not take place because it is not in the public interest. This includes “where details may be made public that could harm sources of information, international relations or national security”. [Sometimes referred to as the ‘Shawcross doctrine’]
It does not require a great leap of imagination to consider that members of Sinn Fein/IRA may already have benefitted from this second limb or may do so in the very near future.
What could be more in the public interest than the protection of “the peace process”?
Let’s watch.
The closer the “sinister forces” of the PSNI and the relatives of the people he murdered get to McGuinness and his past, the more cuddly the grandfather from the Foyle pretends to be.
The closer the clang of prison gates , the more he likes the Queen.
None of this good old folksy stuff fools anybody.
“Settling old scores” not too far away now , Martin!
The PPS promised to “revert” to me no later than 28th September. No reply. A performance which would not surprise any Judge or lawyer in this jurisdiction.
On 5th September 2011, in reply to Nigel Dodds, Cameron told the House this:”There is no doubt that the Libyan provision of semtex to the IRA was immensely damaging over many years and it possibly still is today. We need to be clear that this will be an important bilateral issue between Britain and the new Libyan authorities.”
Three years later not a penny has appeared. Other Tories are not impressed.
If you want to see British society at its best, visit the DVA site. Two people were killed and 39 injured in this 1996 PIRA bomb which blew John Major back to the negotiating table without PIRA having to give up its weapons. Despite death, mutilation and lack of interest by successive governments, the people of DVA have reached out to others less fortunate than themselves. Impressive and humbling.
Libya’s semtex did not discriminate between white, black, Christian and Muslim.
On 22 November 2013, the DPP, Barra McGrory, requested the PSNI to investigate alleged British Army killings, based on allegations made in a BBC Panorama documentary. On 18 May 2014 I asked the DPP to conduct a similar exercise, based on allegations made by Ed Moloney, in his book, that McGuinness had approved the murder of my parents. McGrory wrote to me on 28 May 2014, refusing to so do. He said:”I do not therefore consider that any exercise of the power bestowed on me as DPP to require an investigation is necessary in this case”. He wished me well in my quest for justice. That , as far as he was concerned , was that. I pointed out by return that at all material times , he was McGuinness’s legal adviser. I expressed surprise that he had made the decision personally. He replied , denying that he had made “any final decision in respect of the issue”. [When is a decision not a decision?]
He then delegated responsibility for the decision to the Senior Assistant Director. Despite promises, I still await a decision.
The affair highlights two important issues.
1. The poor quality of decision making by Barra McGrory whilst acting as a law officer.
2. The contrast between the twenty four hour decision in the Army case and the five month delay in mine.
Coming soon. My case against McGuinness for the murders of my parents.
On 15th October 1914 HMS Hawke was torpedoed by U9, captained by Otto Weddigen, off Aberdeen. Of her crew of 594, only four officers and 70 ratings survived.
More than twenty men from the north of Ireland were lost, including Lieutenant Commander Ruric Waring, who was a member of the family which gave Waringstown its name. All are commemorated on panel one of the Chatham Naval Memorial.
Less than two years later , in July 1916, this loss would be eclipsed in Ireland by the carnage on the Somme.
Thomas was born on 29th April 1888 in 3 Gable St Belfast, the son of William Sefton, a serving soldier and Eliza Jane Sefton, nee Hiland. He joined the Royal Navy on 31st July 1906 , aged 18. Described as just under five feet five inches tall, with black hair and hazel eyes, he was a stoker.
He served on various ships, joining HMS Hawke on 5th August 1914. She was an elderly cruiser, part of the tenth Cruiser Squadron, attached to the Third Fleet. Being a stoker, the ship having sunk in less than ten minutes, he had no chance of survival.
Thomas was my great uncle. His father, his brother and his nephew, my father, all served the Crown with bravery and distinction.
I will remember Thomas on the one hundredth anniversary of his death “in the grey wastes”.
seftonblog 