Remembering state violence
Bloody Sunday 1972-1999
`State the Truth' was both the theme for the 1999 Bloody Sunday
commemoration programme and the demand made of the British
authorities as victims of state violence were remembered last weekend
in Derry. Reports by Fern Lane.
The atmosphere up at the Creggan shops on the cold, damp January day
in 1972 where people had assembled for what began as a march to
demand human rights but which would end up as a massacre a few hours
later, must have been similar in many respects to that at the
gathering which took place in the same spot 27 years later to
commemorate those who were killed and injured at the hands of the
British state.
The same cold, damp weather, the same sense of anticipation mingled
with adventure. And, most importantly, many of the same people; the
families of those who were killed - still fighting for the truth to
be told and justice to be done.
That something like 20,000 people from Derry and around the world
turned out on Sunday 31 January 1999 to support them suggests a
degree on cynicism at British assurances made two years ago that the
new Saville inquiry would be thorough and fair. Despite the promises,
the struggle is far from over.
Earlier on Sunday morning, the families of the dead, together with
Martin McGuinness, Martin Ferris and Labour MP Jeremy Corbyn gathered
at the Bloody Sunday memorial to hear mass, at which Reverend Stephen
Kingsnorth, a methodist minister from the Warrington Reconcilliation
Group gave a reading, and to lay wreaths in memory of those who were
lost.
The march traced, as it always does, the steps of the original march
from Creggan, winding down to the Bogside, growing in number on the
way down as people joined along the route. The atmosphere down there
was as happy as it had been up at the Creggan - in stark contrast to
the utter incomprehension and desolation which pervaded the area at
the same time in 1972.
It was the culmination of a weekend of commemoration, political
debate, workshop and drama which explored the theme of state violence
and in particular the way in which the newly politically-loaded term
`victim' has been decreed by the Northern Ireland Office to mean
those killed or injured by the IRA but not anyone else, and most
certainly not by the army or any other agents of the state.
As the demonstration reached the Bogside a newly painted mural
commemorating the dead was unveiled before people moved on to Free
Derry Corner to stand in absolute silence as the name and age of each
of the dead was read out.
Delivering the main address was Sinn Fein's Martin Ferris, who spoke
of his pride at being invited to address the gathering. He also spoke
of the difficulties being created in the implementation of the Good
Friday Agreement, pouring scorn on the supposed weakness of David
Trimble within his own party. He said; ``David Trimble is the leader
of the Ulster Unionist Party, the first minister designate and he
can, if he wishes, secure the support of two thirds of the total
membership of the assembly across all of the parties. He is not, as
he would portray, in a position of weakness.''
Tony Doherty, whose father Patrick was killed, spoke passionately
about the ``sliding scale of victimhood - with nationalists at the
bottom.''
Alice O'Brien, who lost her 21 year old sister, brother-in-law and
two baby nieces in the Dublin and Monaghan bombings of 1974, talked
of the inspiration that the Bloody Sunday relatives offered her and
other bereaved families in their own search for justice. She also
commented that the bombs, which constitute the worst atrocity in the
30 years of conflict had been consistently ignored by the media which
constantly referred to Omagh as bearing that dubious distinction
(this was evidenced on Monday when her presence at the march was
almost entirely ignored by the Irish and British media).
Breandan MacCionnaith, leader of the Garvaghy Road residents, told
marchers that Derry provided a potent symbol for all nationalists.
``Unionism tried to break nationalism in Derry on Bloody Sunday but it
failed. Now the Orange Order is trying to break nationalism in small
areas like Garvaghy Road, Bellaghy and Lower Ormeau,'' he said. But he
appealed to nationalists; ``I beg of you, don't let us down and, more
importantly, don't let politicians on either side of the border or of
the Irish Sea let us down for the sake of short-term political
expediency.''
![[An Phoblacht]](http://republican-news.org/graphics/title_gifs/aprn.gif)