BALLYMURPHY, AUGUST 1971 | 11 CIVILIANS SHOT DEAD BY BRITISH ARMY’S PARACHUTE REGIMENT

Families see new inquests as ‘a starting point’

BY PEADAR WHELAN

NEWS that the North’s Attorney General is to reopen inquests into the deaths of 10 of the 11 people killed by British paratroopers in 1971 is “a very important step”, the families have said.
In August 1971, two days after internment on 9th August, 11 civilians - including a local priest and a mother of eight children - were shot dead by the Paras.
Campaigning under the banner of ‘The Ballymurphy Massacre Group’, the families of the 11 people killed in the area in the aftermath of the internment raids are demanding an “international, independent investigation” into the slaughter.
The disclosure on Tuesday 15th November that Attorney General John Larkin has confirmed new inquests into 10 of the deaths was welcomed “as a starting point” by Briege Voyle, whose mother, Joan Connolly, a mother of eight, was shot dead by the elite British Army regiment.
The Attorney General’s decision not to call for a new inquest into the death of Pat McCarthy, however, is a disappointment to the group. Pat McCarthy died of a heart attack after he was intimidated by British paratroopers who subsequently refused to let an ambulance crew treat him.
In their statement, the families of the dead described Larkin’s decision as “the right one”.
They labelled the original inquests as “sham inquests” that left a lot of unanswered questions.
None of the British soldiers involved in the shootings was compelled to give evidence in person and their statements were accepted, without question, by the coroner.
The families say that key civilian witness evidence was also withheld from the inquest.
Recent changes to the Coroner’s Court influenced the families to apply to the Attorney General to have the cases reopened.
These include the ruling Under Article 2 of the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR) that inquests must comply with the European standard of openness.
Also, those British soldiers involved in the shootings can be compelled to appear in person and give evidence.
Concluding their statement the families said they regard the reopening of the inquests as “a very important step on our journey for truth”. They added a cautionary note, though:
“But even a fully resourced and effective inquest will have limitations. It will be able to provide facts and gather crucial forensic, logistical and witness testimony evidence but it will not be able to examine the causes, context and consequences of the massacre and answer so many of the questions that must be answered.
“We believe that only an international, independent investigation can facilitate the discovery of the facts and provide an accurate historical account of the events of August 1971 on the streets of Ballymurphy.”
Welcoming the news, Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams TD, who has supported the families when he was MP for the area and has worked with them on an ongoing basis, said:
“This is a welcome announcement by the Attorney General and moves the campaign for justice for the Ballymurphy victims a step closer. But while this is an advance in the campaign it should not be seen as fulfilling the demands of the families to a full, independent, international inquiry.”