Set a place for Mr Nelson please
By Meadbh Gallagher
Brian Nelson is a wanted man. ``An influential group of
Irish Americans'', the Irish News reports, want to speak
to him, and are willing to pay ``a seven figure sum'' to
do that.
A leading UN lawyer wants to talk to him too, for free.
His role in the murder of solicitor Pat Finucane is
just one of the reasons why he finds himself in the
news again.
Unless there's a judicial enquiry, the UN
representative says, ``it will be difficult to have
confidence in the institutions of the state''.
The Sunday Telegraph also put Mr Nelson back in the
frame with their `The army and the Death Squads'
exposé, which, without a hint of irony from Telegraph
towers, carried the headline: ``Everything was done to
stop the truth coming out''.
It's no wonder old Paddy Mayhew was driven to write a
letter of protest to the Daily Telegraph in the days
after. Of course the DT turned it into a half page
opinion piece, but don't let that get to you.
Paddy's piece was a defence of the realm that he used
to share with the RUC back in the good old days.
It had `all the hallmarks', to use a phrase current in
those days, of the ominous noises that emit from your
old banger car as it retches into its dying moments.
Served you well at the time but no use now, you know.
Blusterer turned prophet of doom, Paddy must be feeling
pretty left out.
Brian Nelson, on the other hand... well, his place in
history is assured. No matter what the outcome at
Stormont, the British agent and UDA chief intelligence
officer will continue to cover column inches. His is no
story that will just die down. His victims are too
many, his connections with the British state too
far-reaching.
But as the British satirical magazine Private Eye
pointed out last week, sometimes the timing of the
latest Nelson `exposé' can set you thinking about the
reasons behind it. Private Eye complain they have been
talking about him for years but no one was listening.
Well, so too have Phoenix magazine here, never mind An
Phoblacht and Republican Publications.
Released from prison now, Brian Nelson might wish
himself out of the limelight. His British handlers
certainly wish he was. But Brian Nelson will not just
go away - his living ghost will haunt the British
government's every move.
![[An Phoblacht]](http://republican-news.org/graphics/title_gifs/aprn.gif)