Republican News · Thursday 31 January 2002

Tyrone inquest controversy

BY LAURA FRIEL

Relatives of people killed in separate incidents in County Tyrone have accused the British government of attempting to cover up the circumstances surrounding the deaths. The families were speaking as another preliminary hearing into the scheduling of four inquests opened in Cookstown Court House this week.

In the village of Coagh in June 1991, the British SAS in a pre-planned ambush killed Tony Doris, Lawrence McNally and Pete Ryan. In February 1992, in Clonoe on the outskirts of Coalisland the British SAS executed Kevin Barry O'Donnell, Peter Clancy, Sean O'Farrell and Daniel Vincent in a similar ambush. In both incidents no attempt was made to arrest and none of those killed were given the opportunity to surrender.

A month earlier, father of four Kevin McKearney and his 70-year-old uncle Jack McKearney were shot dead by the UVF at their butcher's shop in Moy. The McKearney family had received a death threat the week prior to the killing that named the day of the attack. Despite informing the RUC of the pending attack, no action was taken to thwart it.

On the outskirts of Dungannon in May 1994, loyalists shot dead elderly pensioner Roseanne Mallon in the home of a relative. After the discovery of sophisticated surveillance equipment overlooking the murder scene, it emerged that a covert British Army unit had been observing the Mallon house during the killing. It was later established that the unit was ordered not to intervene during the loyalist attack.

Speaking on behalf of the families, Roisin Uí Mhuirí described the killings as "unjust and unlawful".

"In Coagh and Clonoe there was ample opportunity to make arrests and prevent the loss of life, yet a very conscious decision was taken to kill our loved ones. Those responsible for that decision must now be made accountable, as too must those who carried out the killings," said Roisin.

"In the killings involving loyalists, collusion between the death squads and British state is widely believed and strongly evidenced," she said.

Calling for independent public inquiries, the families of the victims pointed out that the inquest system in the north of Ireland is completely inadequate in dealing with disputed killings.

"All these killings occurred in highly controversial and disputed circumstances which to date remain contested and at variance with official versions of events provided by the state," said Roisin.

"The inquest system does not comply with international human rights standards or the international obligations undertaken by the British government. The European Court of Human Rights recently highlighted this in relation to four very similar incidents."

The United Nations Special Rapporteur on Summary and Arbitrary Executions has been contacted by the relatives and will be examining the killings. The families are currently seeking urgent meetings with British Secretary of State Paul Murphy and Irish Foreign Affairs Minister Brian Cowen.

"We are calling for proper independent investigations that comply with international human rights standards," said Roisin.

Meanwhile, the presiding coroner Roger McLernon launched an unprecedented public attack on the lack of resources in the inquest system. Speaking during the hearing, McLernon said that coroners outside Belfast had no administrative back up system and the inquest system was in danger of grinding to a halt if more resourses were not made available by the British government.

Sinn Féin's Martin McGuinness described the inquest hearing as "an insult to the families who had come here in the hope of uncovering the truth".

Commending the coroner for highlighting concerns about the inquest system, the Mid Ulster MP said he would taking the matter up with the two governments. Criticising the failure of lawyers acting for the RUC and British Army to produce relevant documents about the killings to the coroner, McGuinness said it was important "to ensure that the tactics used by the British military establishment in its attempts to frustrate the Bloody Sunday Tribunal are not deployed to prevent open and transparent inquests".