Britain guilty of human rights abuse
The European Commission on Human Rights last found found that the
British government violated human rights in the Six Counties.
The Commission found that in the early 1990s two `section 42'
certificates were issued by the British Secretary of State in the
North, under advice from the RUC, which discriminated against two
nationalist firms. Section 42 certificates are used to block the
disclosure of information on the pretext that it would harm
`national security'. The first certificate was used to prevent
Tinnelly & Sons Ltd from finding out why their tender for work
with Northern Ireland Electricity had been turned down. The other
certificate was issued against the McElduff brothers who were
initially granted a contract from the Department of Environment
which was subsequently withdrawn, allegedly on `security'
grounds.
The Commission found that these certificates violated the
European Convention on Human Rights which states that ``everyone
is entitled to a fair and public hearing.''
Tinnelly & Sons were awarded £15,000 damages with the McElduffs
being granted £10,100.
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