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http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/politics/government-trying-to-buy-off-dup-kelly-14546351.html
Saturday, 31 October 2009
The Government last night sparked a row over the devolution of policing and justice powers to Northern Ireland after a letter outlining a side deal with the DUP was accidentally sent to Sinn Fein.
Gerry Kelly
Republicans produced a letter signed by Prime Minister Gordon Brown and addressed to DUP leader Peter Robinson offering £20 million to former part-time police officers.
Sinn Fein branded it a bid to “buy off” DUP support for the devolution of the justice powers and claimed Government risked bringing the process into disrepute.
Republicans claimed the letter was sent, apparently mistakenly, to the Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister at Stormont where mail is accessed by both Sinn Fein and the DUP.
Sinn Fein junior minister Gerry Kelly said the effort to transfer policing and justice powers “is being brought into disrepute by the British Government's willingness to buy off the DUP”.
http://u.tv/News/Legal-hold-up-in-IRA-inquest/a7d0b0b2-c332-4fef-89ce-8d53838d7f39
Confusion over legal representation for anonymous witnesses has been blamed for a fresh hold-up in the long delayed inquest of an IRA man shot dead by police 17 years ago.
Friday, 30 October 2009
Administrative oversights in processing anonymity requests from security force members due to give evidence on the death of Pearse Jordan were responsible for the latest postponement, a preliminary hearing was told.
The probe into the controversial shooting in west Belfast had been due to start in January, but in a city court this morning coroner Brian Sherrard admitted this timeframe could no longer be met.
Mr Sherrard was presiding over the case for the first time, following the decision of Northern Ireland's senior coroner John Leckey to stand down from proceedings earlier this month after Jordan's family raised concerns about his handling of the inquest.
In opting to step aside, Mr Leckey's lawyers stressed he did not accept any allegations of bias made against him by the relatives.
Jordan, 23, was shot dead by the RUC in disputed circumstances after a car collision on the Falls Road in November 1992.
Coroner Sherrard heard that uncertainty over which solicitor represented each of the 13 police officers and five soldiers due to testify at the inquest had resulted in some of them not filing applications for their names to be withheld.
It emerged that two policemen who have since left the service - including the sergeant who fired the shot that killed Mr Jordan - have not engaged any lawyer and, as such, no request for anonymity had been made on their behalf.
At risk
Mr Sherrard said he felt compelled to initiate security service threat assessments for those two individuals in the meantime in order to determine for himself whether revealing their names would put their lives at risk.
The coroner was told that some of the other officers had signalled their intention to lodge applications but had not yet done so. A number of the requests are being made at the behest of the Chief Constable.
Noting that it would take at least 18 weeks to process the outstanding bids, Mr Sherrard said he had no alternative but to put back the start date to next April.
"There's already been an inordinate delay in listing this matter and I fully appreciate the distress this will cause the Jordan family and the other participants who have an interest in this matter," he said.
"It's not a desirable situation to be in."
Barry Macdonald QC, representing the Jordans, expressed his concern at the further delay.
"The family is going to receive this news with some dismay because we had been told that January would be the start date," he said.
Mr Sherrard stressed that anonymity would only be granted in exceptional circumstances as the principle of open justice depended on the identity of witnesses being disclosed.
http://www.anphoblacht.com/news/detail/39098
AN upbeat, enthusiastic Sinn Féin gathering in Louth on Thursday, 29 October saw activists from across Ireland commit themselves to a renewed strategy to meet current political challenges and opportunities.
The Ard Chomhairle-Plus was chaired by party Vice President Mary Lou McDonald and addressed by President Gerry Adams, Chief Negotiator Martin McGuinness, Senator Pearse Doherty, General Secretary Dawn Doyle and by Caoilfhionn Ní Dhonnabháin, Director of Political Operations (26 Counties).
There followed an open discussion with many contributors from various parts of the country.
A particular focus was agreement on the strategic way forward for the party in the South including an agreed programme of work for the immediate period ahead.
Preparations for elections North and South, for the upcoming budget and the expected range of savage cuts in the 26 Counties and the need for Sinn Féin to provide radical and effective political leadership in the community in difficult economic times were key themes.
Developments in relation to the transfer of policing and justice powers from Britain to the North featured strongly as did discussion of the Sinn Féin’s primary objective of achieving national re-unification and independence.
The Louth meeting was part of a process of political engagement that saw 24 regional meetings involving more than 1,000 party members in recent weeks.
The meeting featured an extremely positive discussion on the way forward. Contributors emphasised issues such as the need for Sinn Féin in the 26 Counties to hone its message and to get it out; to offer leadership in communities against this government’s policies, to set out a real alternative, to make the party bigger and stronger; to deliver an electoral strategy which can drive forward the republican project; to review the model of party membership; to become a truly campaigning party and to take seriously the crucial issue of fundraising.
Describing the meeting as “good” and “realistically optimistic” Gerry Adams said:
“What we are trying to do is unprecedented. This is a partitioned island and we can see the sickly fruits of this all around us. We want freedom but we also want a republican society. Everyone has a birthright to a home, a job, proper healthcare. Getting freedom is a big job and getting such a society is another big job.”
http://www.anphoblacht.com/news/detail/39085
SINN Féin President Gerry Adams has called on the Orange Order to engage in dialogue with local residents to resolve the small number of remaining contentious parades.
Gerry Adams was commenting on the DUP insistence that the resolution of the Parading issue become a pre-condition to the transfer of policing and justice powers.
He said:
“Many citizens will be concerned at the DUP’s insistence that the issue of contentious orange parades be resolved as a precondition to them agreeing to the transfer of policing and justice powers.
“It has always been Sinn Féin's position that the issue of parading can only be resolved through dialogue between the loyal Orders and local communities.
“Irish republicans accept and respect the rights of the Orange institutions to parade and promote their sense of orangeism.
“But this has to be done on the basis of equality and mutual respect and tolerance.
“The Orange Order and Orangeism is part of who we are as a nation. Irish republicans want a dialogue with the loyal institutions in order that we can understand and appreciate each other’s position.
“As a society, we cannot afford the negative and unsustainable political, financial and social costs that flow from parading disputes.
“While the overwhelming majority of orange parades take place without rancour or dispute, there are a small number each year which give cause for concern.
“I am again asking the Orange Order to engage in dialogue with local residents to resolve these contentious parades
.
“Let us together seek to resolve this issue in a common sense and respectful manner.
“Regardless of what structure is in place to mediate on contentious parades there can be no resolution or agreement without dialogue.
“Sinn Féin have no agenda other than to facilitate and help in whatever way we can to create a context and climate where local disputes can be resolved locally.
“All those in positions of leadership within our society have a responsibility to encourage this process.
http://www.newsletter.co.uk/news/Abuse-victims-call-for-full.5780626.jp
Published Date: 30 October 2009
VICTIMS of child abuse in Northern Ireland have demanded a full inquiry into the mistreatment they suffered in institutions run by the Catholic Church and the state.
The victims have called for a major investigation similar to the Ryan Report earlier this year that catalogued abuse by Catholic clergy in the Republic.
They are being supported in their call by DUP MP David Simpson, who has long called for a full public inquiry into the scale of clerical and institutional child abuse.
Sinn Fein has also backed a full probe.
A lawyer for the victims said they suffered sexual and physical abuse in cases dating back to the 1940s, but believed they have been discriminated against since inquiries in the south of Ireland did not extend to Northern Ireland.
Solicitor Joe Rice said he had written to First Minister Peter Robinson and Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness, as well as Secretary of State Shaun Woodward, detailing the demand for an inquiry into child abuse in the jurisdiction over the last 70 years.
Mr Rice said many of his clients had approached him and other solicitors following the release of the Ryan Report.
"We have instructions from a significant number of clients who have been, and are, the victims of abuse, whether sexual, emotional, physical or through neglect, in numerous church and state-run institutions in Northern Ireland since 1947," the victims' letter read.
"It is apparent that the level of abuse was widespread and endemic and moreover that all the institutions involved had a duty of care to those children placed in their trust and responsibility under the different statutory frameworks in the post-war period."
Upper Bann MP David Simpson said the level of both clerical and state abuse needed to be established.
Mr Simpson said: "The Ryan Report uncovered abuse of children on a monumental scale in institutions run by religious orders and by the state in the Irish Republic.
"We need to know the scale of the problem of child abuse in similar institutions in Northern Ireland so that we can bring the guilty parties to justice and ensure that those affected receive the help that they deserve."
Sinn Fein MLA Sue Ramsey, who sits on the Stormont health committee, said her party supported the victims' call.
She said: "Victims in the north deserve to have their abuse and mistreatment acknowledged, there needs to be full accountability and restitution from the religious orders. They need to fully accept their moral obligation to the victims."
The Catholic Church last night issued a statement on behalf of the northern bishops.
It said that any decision to hold an inquiry must be made by the state.
The statement said: "Anyone who has concerns about child abuse should raise them with the civil authorities and, if they wish, with the church's National Office for Safeguarding Children, where these concerns will be dealt with appropriately."
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/local-national/sinn-feins-gerry-kelly-in-talks-to-free-priest-14545794.html
Friday, 30 October 2009
Abducted Wexford priest Fr Michael Sinnott is alive and receiving treatment for his heart condition from his kidnappers in the Philippines, reports claimed last night.
Sinn Fein MLA Gerry Kelly and an aide to former British prime minister Tony Blair are involved in secret talks aimed at securing the Columban missionary's freedom.
Fr Sinnott (78) was abducted in Pagadian City on the island of Mindanao over two weeks ago.
Fears had been raised over his health due to a heart condition that led to a quadruple heart bypass four years ago.
However, Mr Kelly revealed last night that he had been given medication from the kidnappers for the illness.
“The fact that there is word from the kidnappers is actually being looked upon as a good thing and there has been word from the kidnappers in terms of a ransom,” he said.
“So this is all good news that he is in good health and they believe they know, at least, the area . . . where he is.”
Mr Kelly is working alongside former Downing Street chief of staff Jonathon Powell as part of the negotiating team.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/8333948.stm
A prominent loyalist seeking bail on child sex charges has had his case adjourned after the court heard there could be other potential victims.
Mark Harbinson addressed the media during the Drumcree dispute
Mark Harbinson from Sheepwalk Road in Stoneyford, County Artrim is in custody on charges of raping a 13-year-old girl and four other sexual offences.
A crown lawyer told the High Court that police said they were investigating other lines of inquiry in the case.
The 42-year-old was a prominent Orangeman during the Drumcree standoff.
He was arrested on Monday and charged with a number of child sex offences including the rape the 13-year-old, all of which he denies.
Police investigating the case also confiscated a number of mobile phones and found two indecent images on one of them.
Mr Harbinson's defence barrister said his client was prepared to adjourn his bail application but wanted police to carry out their inquiries as quickly as possible.
He added that the Mr Harbinson was currently the main breadwinner in his family and his wife was on maternity leave.
Mr Justice Weatherup agreed to adjourn the case.
No date for the next hearing has been set as yet.
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/local-national/noam-chomsky-warns-against-rise-of-extremists-using-poverty-to-attract-support-14546212.html
Friday, 30 October 2009
Far-right political groups could use rising poverty to attract support for their extremist policies, leading international commentator Noam Chomsky warned today.
Professor Chomsky met students ahead of giving the annual Amnesty International lecture as part of the Belfast Festival at Queen's University.
He warned that in the US right-wing voices are trying to tap-in to grievances and he urged communities around the world to mobilise against poverty and inequality in their society as a safeguard against extremism.
"In the US, inequality has soared to unprecedented heights," he said.
"There is now a mass of people with real grievances, who want answers but are not receiving them.
"The far-right is providing answers that are completely crazy: that rich liberals are giving their hard-earned money away to illegal immigrants and the shiftless poor.
"A common reaction in elite educated circles and much of the left is to ridicule the right-wing protesters, but that is a serious error.
"The correct reaction is to examine our own failures. The grievances are quite real and should be taken seriously."
The leading intellectual said history showed that it would be a mistake to fail to answer those calls.
"If the protesters are getting crazy answers from the hard-line right-wing extreme, the proper reaction is to provide the right answers, and do something about them," he said.
"An organised public can achieve a great deal, as we see right now in many places.
"In South America, there are at last serious steps to confront poverty and other severe human rights abuses. The driving force is mass popular movements.
"They are beginning to address what Amnesty calls 'the unheard truth': that 'poverty is the world's worst human rights crisis, this generation's greatest struggle'."
Amnesty International's Northern Ireland programme director Patrick Corrigan said Noam Chomsky's message is as relevant for people in Belfast as it is for those in Beirut, Baghdad or Beijing.
"We all have a responsibility to stand up for justice and to stand against those who would take away the human rights of the most vulnerable," said the Amnesty spokesman.
"By standing together, through organisations like Amnesty International, ordinary people can make a call for justice which will be heard in all the world's capitals."
http://www.derryjournal.com/county/Greysteel-families-break-their-silence.5782462.jp
Published Date: 30 October 2009
The heartbroken parents of two of the victims murdered in the 1993 Rising Sun massacre in Greysteel have broken their silence to describe their relief that "evil" UFF killer Torrens Knight is back behind bars.
Loyalist UFF 'Trick or Treat' killer, Torrens Knight, at his first court appearance days after the Rising Sun massacre in Greysteel.
massacre in Greysteel.
Both parents, who lost children in the Halloween tragedy, say Knight should serve 12 life sentences for the 12 people he was involved in murdering - eight in Greysteel and four in Castlerock.
"I think he should be behind bars for the rest of his life," said the grieving mother of one victim. "He should never have been released in the first place."
Knight had been freed early from his sentences under the terms of the Good Friday Agreement after serving only seven years, but last week he was found guilty of attacking two sisters in a bar in Coleraine on 30 May 2008. His licence was suspended by Northern Ireland Secretary, Shaun Woodward, who said Knight's convictions for assault and disorderly behaviour demonstrated that he had "breached the terms of his life licence" and presented "a risk to the safety of others".
"When he (Knight) is capable of harming again, as in Coleraine, he is capable of anything," said the woman. "He's worse than an animal, just evil. The badness is there and that's it."
The father of another victim from the Greysteel shootings said "justice seems to be done, but it'll never do any good for my family", he said.
"This boy could be back out again in a few months. All the things he did and what the Government did for him. What about all the things the Government didn't do for my family? I would be sinning my soul to say what I really think of him (Knight). He is a vile, nasty person. He deserves to be locked away for life."
Both parents say they have tried to get on with their lives but the horror of what happened that October evening never leaves them. They also question why the loyalist killer was released in the first place.
"As another year goes by it gets a bit easier, but you never forget it. It never leaves me," said the woman of the tragedy 16 years ago.
"I've been robbed of a life with my child. She didn't deserve to die in that way."
She added: "I suppose it's a relief to know he (Knight) is somewhere he can't harm people, to know he is back where he belongs. They say Greysteel was a turning point, but I don't think it was. I never had any peace in my life after what happened."
http://www.irishnews.com/articles/540/5860/2009/10/27/631049_398222839402Tracesof.html
The Prison Service last night confirmed that traces of a chemical used in Semtex explosives have been found in cells of republican inmates inside Maghaberry jail.
The high-security Maghaberry Prison
The explosive substance, which is described as a “component part” of Semtex, is understood to have been found after a specialist search team carried out swab tests on the cells of republicans being held at Rowe House inside the high-security prison.
A Prison Service spokesman confirmed that traces of the chemical had been discovered on a number of surfaces but said no explosives had been found, despite extensive searches carried out by the Immediate Reaction Force.
The discovery has caused serious concern among prison officers.
In the past republicans have used explosives to try to escape and to kill inside jails.
In 1991 UDA prisoner Robert Skey and UVF inmate Colin Caldwell died after an IRA bomb exploded behind a radiator inside Crumlin Road Prison in north Belfast.
In 1985 10 PIRA prisoners used explosives to try to break out of Portlaoise Prison in Co Laois.
Prison Officers Association spokes-man Finlay Spratt raised concerns that explosives had now been smuggled into the Co Antrim jail.
“I am aware that traces of Semtex have been found after forensic tests on cells inside the prison,” he said.
“Prison officers have no other choice but to carry out their duties as best they can but it is alarming to think that there may be Semtex in the jail.
“We don’t know if it has been smuggled in as part of a plan by dissident prisoners to escape or is going to be used to kill a prison officer or other prisoners.
“All we can do is hope that if there are explosives in Maghaberry that they are found as a matter of urgency.”
Updated: 11/5/2009
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