The RUC - Guilty or Not Guilty?

British army 'sanctioned' killings in N Ireland
By John Murray Brown in Belfast
Published: April 17 2003 18:28 | Last Updated: April 17 2003 18:28


British security forces were involved in sanctioning killings in Northern Ireland, according to the senior police officer investigating allegations of official collusion in murders by loyalist paramilitaries.

In a damning indictment of the way the intelligence services operated in the 1980s in the counter-insurgency effort against the IRA, Sir John Stevens, commissioner of London's Metropolitan Police, said his investigation had found evidence of "unlawful involvement of agents in murder." This, he said "implies the security forces sanction killings."

Brice Dickson, head of the Northern Ireland human rights commission who was present at Thursday's press conference said he was horrified at Sir John's conclusions but not surprised. "To hear him say the security forces were involved in murder. That was shocking. That means the security forces have reduced themselves to the level of the terrorist."

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So, how reliable is this investigation? If its true, how far up in the police service does it go? Maybe it goes even beyong the police service, and right into the political arena?

What further action should be taken? How can we shake up the police service to get rid of these organized asassinations?

Maybe the police service are right in these asassinations. After all, its perfectly acceptable for Isreal to bulldoze terrorist suspect homes, why not asassinations?

My opinion on this: There needs to be a full Judicial review and investigation. We need to find out who's involved and how high up it goes. Those we find guilty should be imprisoned for a long, long time. The Northern Ireland Police Service is a complete joke, and it needs to be completely reformed. Its not a service many Catholics would want to join, and with good reason.

 

If we punish those responsible for govt/military sanctioned illegalities, we should also pursue the IRA terrorists who acted equally illegally; even those now in respectable political positions within the republican movement.

My own feelings are that the peace process continues to move forward. Let's do the right thing, but be aware that times and agendas have changed. I don't think we need a witchhunt.

 

It doesn't really say who the victims of these sanctioned killings were.

If they were terrorists, I couldn't care less. But if they were just suspects, then I suppose that those responsible should be brought to justice (as well as all IRA and loyalist terrorists, regardless of age and whether they've already been freed by the Good Friday agreement)

 

It's took me a few days to respond to this because I have been trying to think of exactly how I can express my disgust and contempt for the treatment of the British Army and security services by this abhorant government and the liberal elite of this country. They heap criticism on these organisations in the same arrogant way that they watched the situation in Northern Ireland from a comfortable distance and sneeringly referred to it as 'The Troubles'.

The reality of course was that British security services were in a state of war with the IRA. Over a thirty year period the IRA murdered thousands, including hundreds of policemen and soldiers. Tens of thousands of people lost loved ones to IRA action. Throughout this time the security services were on the frontline of this undeclared war. Counter terrorism is messy business, there are few black and white areas of morality. Gathering intellegence was they key and this was largely achieved through infiltration and the acquiring of informers. Managing these informers and agents was not easy, when the security services learnt of various IRA operations from one agent they could not stop them all without compromosing the agent. Try and put yourself in the position of the men making the decision, you stop all the operations, no lives are lost but you lose your agent and your ability to prevent future attacks is diminished. The alternative is that you let certain operations go ahead knowing that innocent people will die.

Meanwhile the security services also infiltrated loyalist terror groups, mostly just groups of thugs who killed catholics for the hell of it as opposed to fighting for a political cause. It seems that on occasions, and all the evidence indicates that this was a small number of occasions, members of the security services directed loyalist terror groups to murder certain individuals, the lawyer Pat Finucane being the most prominant. I do not condone such action but believe it has to be measured in the context of the situation. As far as the security services were concerned they were at war with the IRA, innocent lives were being lost including that of their comrades in the police and army. The year of Finucane's death 1989, was a fairly quiet year but even then 57 deaths including 26 soldiers and 9 policemen where atributed to the IRA. Is it surprising that a few individuals who were in the extrememely stressful and difficult world of counter terrorism, where they spent most of their time undercover and had little contact with their superiors, would let their anger and frustration get the better of them. After all they were at war, these loyalist thugs were going to kill someone, why not focus them on the people who we would like to see disapear as opposed to some random catholic. It is understandable that it happened. Perhaps a few agents should have been moved to less stressful duties, maybe senior officers missed the signs that their agents where going rogue but it is easy to say that with hindsight.

As for Pat Finucane himself, those who use his death to champion their cause paint him as a peace loving human rights lawyer who stood up for victimised catholics. Sean O'Callaghan was head of the IRA Southern Command but secretly a British Army informer. According to him Pat Finucane was a very senior member of the IRA who used his position as a lawyer primarily for the IRA's benefit. He would often see captured IRA men, not only to help with their legal defense but to find out what they had told the security services, to find out if any other IRA men or operations had been compromised. According to O'Callaghan he also operated as an important conduit of information between the IRA leadership and their men in prison.

Over 30 extremely difficult years the British security services operated with massive and comendable restraint in Northern Ireland. Yes there were mistakes, there always are in a war of any kind. Ironically the biggest mistake was made by a politician when Ted Heath (Prime Minister 1970-1974) made internment legal in Northern Ireland, agai