Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 15 January 2014
6. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he discussed recently with the Northern Ireland Secretary of State the serious issues relating to collusion outlined in the publication, Lethal Allies: British Collusion in Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1480/14]
View answerI welcome Ms Anne Cadwallader's publication. Reading it was chilling. She recounted the stories of 120 people murdered by loyalist gangs, some of which had been armed from UDR depots. All bar one of those 120 people were not involved in violence. Just one was linked to the IRA. The rest were citizens going about their daily work. Some were active members of the SDLP or the GAA. That was their only public involvement. What their families deserve at minimum is the truth. Society deserves the truth about those awful murders.
I have read Ms Cadwallader's book, Lethal Allies: British Collusion in Ireland. It is important to say that the 1972-78 period, which forms the backdrop to the book, was a dark one in the history of Northern Ireland and our island as a whole. While the book concentrates on sectarian attacks on the Nationalist community, the author acknowledges that the agony in those dark days was by no means restricted to one community and that dozens of individual Protestants, RUC officers and UDR soldiers lost their lives also.
Allegations of collusion, investigations and calls for public inquiries have featured in our discussions with the British authorities since the 1970s. More recent accusations about collusion between state actors and paramilitaries, including in Ms Cadwallader's book, have brought to the fore painful reminders of the devastation that the conflict had on families and communities across Ireland. Allegations about collusion and murder are stark evidence that dealing with the past remains a central issue for society. That is why it has been a key focus of the recent negotiations led by Dr. Haass and Dr. O'Sullivan. At various times when speaking with the Secretary of State, Ms Theresa Villiers, in recent weeks, particularly during the intense discussions around the Haass process, I raised the issue of collusion while more generally discussing how best to deal with the issue of the past. I continued to emphasise dealing with the past as a priority as those talks reached their conclusion.
As mentioned by Dr. Haass and Dr. O'Sullivan in their statement on 8 January, the proposals, if implemented, would make real progress towards contending with the legacy of Northern Ireland's past. We continue to urge all parties to grasp the opportunity offered by the proposals to address the legacy of the past as part of a comprehensive agreement.
I welcome the fact that the Tánaiste raised in the Haass talks the issue of collusion. Ms Cadwallader's book raises a series of questions about the past that have a strong bearing on those talks. Murder is murder and no one would condone the murder of any person, regardless of his or her political beliefs or religion.
Some years ago, a unanimous motion in the House called on the British Government to co-operate on the matter of the Dublin-Monaghan bombings. Of the 120 murders outlined in Ms Cadwallader's book, one third were south of the Border. Sadly, a number of people were killed in my constituency - in the Belturbet bombing and in the bombing of Monaghan town. It is important that we address the issues of the past.
Representatives of the families of the disappeared and of other victims addressed the Good Friday committee just before Christmas. The demand of those families is for the truth. They do not want revenge, just the truth. I compliment Margaret Irwin of Justice for the Forgotten and Anne Cadwallader on their ongoing advocacy work on these very difficult issues. They will make a presentation to the Good Friday Agreement committee tomorrow as well, which is important.
The Tánaiste must assure the public about the issues in regard to collusion. I listened to Seamus Mallon and Denise Mullen some months ago in Armagh. Denise Mullen was a four year old child when her father was murdered. Seamus Mallon gave an outline, in chilling terms, of the number of people he knew and could practically identify who colluded in the murder of innocent people. It is important that this issue is given momentum and is not forgotten, and that the families are assured that the issues of the past and the loss of their loved ones will be given the attention they deserve.
Like Deputy Smith, I have met with some of the relatives of the victims of these murders. I met Denise Mullen in Armagh last November and talked with her about her memory, the many other murders that were committed and the suffering it has caused subsequently for families. The families and survivors want to find out the truth. The outcome of the Haass process has produced the framework within which that can be done. What has been proposed on how to deal with the past is a means by which these issues can be addressed, and survivors and families can get information and get closure on what has been a hugely agonising experience for them. It is important that we make more progress with that, that we get those proposals implemented and that there is a means by which families can pursue the truth. I hope it will be possible to do that.
