Shanahan enquiry finds collusion
Family to go to UN
By Martha McClelland
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and the European Court
of Human Rights will be asked to intervene in the case of Patrick
Shanahan, a Sinn Féin election worker murdered six years ago by
the UFF.
The Shanahan family announced their next move at the publication
on Tuesday of the findings of a public enquiry organised by the
Castlederg/Aghyaran Justice Group last September. The enquiry
found overwhelming evidence of collusion between the RUC,
loyalists and the British Government in Patrick's murder.
The report's findings are based on witness statements - including
from RUC members at the scene - as well as forensic reports.
Evidence which the High Court had banned from being heard at the
official inquest was also heard.
Judge Somers, the US judge who presided over the enquiry, said in
summarising the report, ``not only is there ample evidence of
collusion but one would have to come up with very strong
evidence to argue that there was NOT collusion in Mr Shanahan's
death, a policy of selective assassination by British Forces,
loyalist killers and the British government and judiciary.''
The enquiry was chaired by Caitríona Ruane, involved an
impressive panel of human rights activists including Paul
Mageean, CAJ, Des Wilson, Martin Finucane of the Pat Finucane
Centre, Fr Joe McVeigh, Jane Winters of British Irish Rights
Watch. The Castlederg/Aghyaran Justice Group, chaired by Tina
McGarvey, organised the enquiry which brought an entire community
together to make a stand for the truth.
Patrick's sister, Mary Bogues, thanked everyone for their ``great
achievement'' in publishing the report and stated the case
eloquently: ``None of us should have to be here today. But in view
of the way the RUC behaved, my family and indeed the whole
community have had to speak out. We had no choice.
``We should not have had to wait five years for Patrick's
inquest...We should not have had to listen to eyewitness accounts
of Patrick's murder, for the first time first years after his
death. We should not have had to listen in horror as a police
officer calmly described how he refused to let a doctor attend
Patrick as he lay dying...We should not have had to seek the
support of an independent forensic expert to highlight the
inadequacies of the police investigation into Patrick's death.
``We should have had the support of the law in helping us find out
what happened to Patrick. Instead we found the legal system
hindering our attempts to establish the truth.''
She cited the High Court order suppressing evidence of death
threats against Patrick instead of investigating them, and
another order barring the testimony of a forensic expert from the
Coroner's Inquest. She reminded us of collusion, with photo
montage and personal details falling from the back of a British
Army vehicle and ending up in the hands of loyalists, on the
RUC's own admission, and of the RUC constable under oath stating
that he was instructed by a senior officer to go to the scene of
a shooting at 8 am - a full 25 minutes before Patrick was shot.
Witness after witness testified about RUC members actually
boasting about being involved in his death.
Mrs Bogues called for two recommendations made by the recent
Human Rights Watch/Helsinki report (on policing) to be
implemented with respect to Patrick's murder:
1. The RUC should investigate Patrick's death in compliance with
UN Principles on the effective Prevention and Investigation of
Extra-legal, Arbitrary and Summary Executions.
2. The complaints by Patrick's mother to the Independent
Commission on Police Complaints be investigated rigorously, and
action taken against any RUC members found to have acted against
the law or in violation of RUC policy.
Patrick's sister, Mrs Anna Pauling, praised the achievement of
the Castlederg/Aghyaran Justice Group, commenting, ``Like so many
families who have lost a loved one in violent circumstances, we
have quietly accepted this as a tragedy of a society where we can
have no hope of finding justice. In a community where we can have
little faith in either the law or the political system, we must
have the courage to speak the truth. The Castlederg/Aghyaran
Justice Group has allowed us as a community to do this...We hope
this will give other families who have lost loved ones in similar
circumstances the courage to conduct their own inquiries.''
A copy of the report can be obtained from:
Castlederg/Aghyaran Justice Group, 84 Hillview Park, Castlederg,
Co. Tyrone, BT1 7PR, for £3 (which includes p+p)
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