| Republican News · Thursday 31 January 2002
Fifteen years ago this month - March 1988 - was a period of intense upheaval in the Six Counties. It began with the killing of three IRA Volunteers by the SAS in Gibraltar on 6 March 1988. Mairéad Farrell, Sean Savage and Dan McCann were unarmed when they were gunned down in broad daylight before the terrified gaze of onlookers. The three Volunteers became the latest victims of the unofficial British policy of the time - shoot to kill. They never had a chance. The state-sponsored media immediately launched into a now familiar refrain. The IRA had just planted a 500-pound bomb, the world was told, and were killed in a fierce gun battle. There were whisperings of an alleged "Basque connection" and British forces proudly trumpeted that the surveillance operation that had monitored the Volunteers' movements had been ongoing for months. But the day after the killings, the story suddenly changed. The British admitted there had been no bomb at all, and grudgingly acknowledged the Volunteers had been unarmed when they were shot. When the bodies of the three landed in Dublin to begin the long journey home, their families were there to claim them. And although it was now night, thousands of people lined the route of the funeral cortege - all the way to Belfast. As the procession crossed the border, the RUC tried several times to delay it. They ordered that the National flags that draped the coffins be removed. RUC Land Rovers then closed in on each hearse, following close behind the vehicles. At several points they actually struck the hearses. Unionist mobs had also lined the route, ready to shout abuse and throw whatever was handy at the bereaved. On arrival in Belfast, a senior RUC man was seen spitting on the hearse carrying the body of Volunteer Dan McCann to his Cavendish Street home. There had been constant harassment by state forces at the funerals of nationalist and particularly republican dead for some time prior to this. Mourners were regularly attacked by riot gear-clad RUC men and British soldiers. Families were threatened, abused, insulted. Graves were trampled on. Republicans could not bury their dead with dignity. On 3 March, just prior to the funerals of the Gibraltar Three, there had been funerals for two other IRA Volunteers. Brendan Moley and Brendan Burns were buried in Crossmaglen, South Armagh. The family of Brendan Moley actually had to fight to have his body released and when the funeral processions finally took place, the mourners were again attacked by the RUC. So, when the bodies of the Gibraltar Three were returned to their respective homes in Belfast prior to burial, no one was too surprised that the RUC and British Army maintained a presence around their family homes and harrassed mourners who were attending their wakes. It was like rubbing salt into an open wound. In response, the IRA took to the streets, and on 14 March, as he was preparing to launch an attack on crown forces intimidating mourners outside the Turf Lodge home of Sean Savage, Volunteer Kevin McCracken was shot in the back by a British soldier. McCracken had been an H Block blanketman, and was a dedicated republican. He died before an ambulance arrived. Two other nationalists died at the hands of unionist paramilitaries in the following two days. Charles McGrillen, a 25-year-old father from the Ormeau Road in Belfast, was shot at close range by a lone loyalist gunman on 15 March as he helped a workmate unload goods in a yard on the Annadale embankment. The attack came only 24 hours after the UDA issued a statement saying that "innocent Catholics had nothing to fear" from their campaign against republicans. Then Kevin Mulligan, who had been shot by a UDA gunman while working in a garage a year earlier, succumbed to his injuries and died in hospital. Due to the ongoing threat of sectarian violence and the constant presence of British state forces and their continuing harassment of nationalist mourners, tensions were high as the funerals of the Gibraltar Three began on 16 March. But strangely enough, as events commenced there were few RUC or British Army units lurking nearby. By the time the funeral cortege reached Milltown cemetery in West Belfast, there seemed to be no crown forces about at all - with the exception of two British Army helicopters overhead. When the coffins of McCann, Farrell and Savage were lowered into the ground, a respectful hush descended on the assembled crowd. That was when unionist paramilitary Michael Stone began his attack. Stone later claimed his original intention was to kill Gerry Adams, Martin McGuinness and/or Danny Morrison. He stated he had even been near the three men during and after the funeral Mass, but had for one reason or another, chosen to wait. In Milltown he decided to act. Wearing a cap, dark jacket and jeans, Stone stood up from behind a headstone some 50 yards away from the gravesites and lobbed a grenade into the mourners. It landed just 20 yards from the republican plot and exploded, injuring several people. The crowd was unsure what was happening at first. There was confusion and screams as the injured fell. People scattered in panic and dropped to the ground for cover as stewards desperately appealed for calm. Some lay over others, using their bodies to offer protection from the onslaught. Everyone was looking around, trying to ascertain where the attack was coming from, what was happening, and who was behind it. Stone reached into the pouch he had around his waist and pulled out more grenades. As he continued to throw the devices, many in the crowd began to pursue him in a selfless attempt to disarm him. Stone was undoubtedly surprised by this. He pulled out a pistol and opened fire, while still throwing the grenades, but those rushing to confront him pulled back only momentarily and then surged forward again. Stone continued to retreat towards the M1 motorway at the bottom of Milltown, throwing grenades and firing shots as he went. Those who were chasing him gave no thought for their own safety. They simply wanted to stop him before he hurt anyone else. Their courage was exceptional. As the crowd followed Stone towards the motorway, many then noticed a white van parked on the hard shoulder. Stone made his way towards it, but it suddenly sped away. Stone then tried to stop several vehicles at gunpoint to make his escape, but he was unsuccessful and republicans finally reached him. He was knocked to the ground and apprehended as he tossed his final grenade. It was only then that the RUC arrived and intervened, threatening the crowd with plastic bullet guns in order to pull Stone away from them. Later, Stone would claim that his gun had jammed and his mates had "fucked off and left me". He then decided to retract that remark, and instead claimed he had acted alone.
But had it not been for the courageous actions of those who pursued Stone that day, the toll would have been much higher. The three men killed by Stone were Thomas McErlean, John Murray and IRA Volunteer Caoimhín Mac Brádaigh. A reporter from the Irish Times, who had been in attendance that day, said of their actions: "This was not simply bravery; this was a heroism which in other circumstances I have no doubt would have won the highest military decorations." There was never any inquest into the deaths of McErlean, Murray or Mac Brádaigh. In fact, the mother of 20-year-old Thomas McErlean was told quite bluntly that there wouldn't be one. She was told this not by the coroner, but by an RUC man. Fifteen years later, Sally McErlean still feels her son's absence profoundly. Speaking on a Belfast-based community radio show last week, she was clearly still affected deeply by his loss. But with a trembling voice she remarked: "In the end I raised a hero, and no matter what, I'm proud of him." If there had been an inquest into the deaths, it would have revealed that they had been killed with weapons that were part of a shipment of arms from South Africa organised by British agent Brian Nelson. State forces had allowed most of the shipment to be delivered into the hands of unionist paramilitaries unhindered, and were well aware they were being used to target nationalists. The day of his attack in Milltown, Stone had used a Belgian manufactured Browning 9mm pistol of the same type as those brought in from South Africa. He also had a US manufactured .357 Ruger Magnum revolver, the same type as those acquired by the RUC in the early 1980s. Both weapons had had their serial numbers removed. Stone had also cut the tip of the trigger finger off one of the gloves he wore, allowing for more accurate control of the weapon, and witnesses said he was wearing a plaster around his finger to prevent leaving fingerprints. Clearly, he had thought he would make good his escape. Questions still remain about the suspicious white van that sat on the motorway hard shoulder. Were the RUC using it? Or were those inside part of Stone's back up who fled when they saw the crowd chasing Stone? There had been roadblocks in place all day within yards of the M1 exits at Kennedy Way and Broadway. The graveside oration and burials had taken place within sight of cameras mounted atop the RUC Andersontown barracks and the Broadway tower block, but no crown forces emerged to protect the crowd or apprehend the gunman. The RUC did not move to apprehend Stone until he had already been caught by the pursuing crowd. The two guns used in the attack were recovered not by the RUC or British Army but by the IRA, who put them on display on the front page of An Phoblacht. "It is no coincidence that the first funeral to be unaccompanied by crown forces in 18 years was the occasion for a carefully planned loyalist attack," read a statement issued by the Belfast Brigade of the IRA. "Clearly, the attackers were informed by someone or some people in the crown forces about the strategy which was to be adopted by the RUC and British Army. There was collusion." Stone was charged with the killings of the three men he had killed in Milltown, and the additional deaths of three other nationalists as well - Paddy Brady, Kevin McPolin and Dermott Hackett. When charged with these killings, Stone stated: "I saw his file. He was a legitimate target." To what file was he referring? Who had compiled it? The day after the Milltown attack, Volunteer Kevin McCracken was laid to rest. In spite of the danger and tension, there was a massive turnout for his funeral. Security was tight, but his burial passed off peacefully. The month was now only half over. On 19 March, the funerals of those who had confronted Stone in Milltown took place. IRA Volunteer Caoimhín Mac Brádaigh's funeral began quietly enough. Republican stewards with two-way radios monitored the funeral cortege as it inched along the Andersonstown Road. But when the procession reached Casement Park, a grey Volkswagen Passat with two male occupants drove directly towards the crowd. The car had ignored the warnings of the stewards, and although the driver saw the cortege up ahead of him, he did not take the opportunity to turn off onto a side street or do a U-turn and go back the way he had come. Instead, he accelerated at high speed and mounted a footpath, narrowly missing several of those who had gathered to line the route. The car then quickly reversed but was cut off by several Black taxis, who were at the head of the cortege. Believing they were again under attack by unionist paramilitaries, men began to surround the vehicle. One of the occupants produced a handgun and fired. The crowd pulled back for a second before fearlessly attacking the car again. Both occupants were dragged out of the vehicle and beaten. The IRA arrived on the scene and took custody of both men. The IRA determining that the two were British soldiers in civilian clothing and subsequently executed them. The first three weeks of March 1988 left an indelible impression on the political landscape of the North and its reverberations are still felt today. Michael Stone is now a free man and spends his time painting and selling prison stories about Johnny Adair to tabloid scandal sheets. The Gibraltar Three lie in the Republican Plot of Milltown cemetery, alongside Volunteers Kevin McCracken and Caoimhín Mac Brádaigh. The RUC has changed its name to the PSNI but little else about the force has changed, and the spy cameras mounted atop Andersontown barracks still watch mourners as they come and go from Milltown. "The horrendous catalogue of events in the first three weeks of March 1988, from the Gibraltar killings to the corporals' executions, each incident more unexpected, bizarre and shocking than its precursor, marked for many people the lowest point of the troubles," writes author Brian Feeney in his book, Sinn Féin - A Hundred Turbulent Years. "There had been incidents which were worse either in terms of the number of casualties or in the tragedy visited on individuals, but taken together the series of horrors that disfigured that month made many people despair."
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