Fergal Caraher wreath-laying ceremony

THE annual wreath-laying ceremony in memory of Fergal Caraher (left) took place at Cullyhanna on the night of Sunday 30 December 2012.

Sinn Féin Councillor Colman Burns, who chaired proceedings, said that it was a fitting tribute to Volunteer Fergal Caraher and his family that such a good crowd turned out on such a cold night, 22 years after his death.

Councillor Burns, said:

“The brutal murder of Fergal Caraher along this road on the cold winter’s evening of 30 December 1990 sent shockwaves through the entire South Armagh area and further afield. Coming as it did, at a time when families join together to celebrate Christmas and the New Year, makes this time of year very difficult for the Caraher family. I hope that this annual show of solidarity helps in some way to get them through this sad time.”

Brian Reel, speaking on behalf of the Michael McVerry Sinn Féin Cumann in Cullyhanna, thanked everyone who helped with the evening’s proceedings. He said that although it was now 22 years since Fergal was murdered, it only seemed like yesterday to all those who knew the very likeable young man.

The shooting – 30 December 1990

Fergal and his brother Míċeál were in Cullyhanna when they stopped to help a man whose car had broken down and were then approached by a group of British soldiers. They checked them – their names, addresses etc – and they then moved on.

Fergal then proceeded to drive up the road in the opposite direction and parked his car in an open car-park to wait for Míceál.

When Míċeál was dropped off at the car-park to join Fergal, he noticed that a soldier had been speaking to Fergal.  Fergal said to the soldier: “Are we right?”

The soldier nodded and the two boys got into their car to drive on out of the village.

As they drove onto the road, the car was hit with sustained gunfire.

Míċeál recalls Fergal saying, “I’m hit, I’m hit!” and slumping over towards him.

Míċeál at that stage thought that he would drive to the hospital in Newry, about 15 miles away, to get assistance, but only got about a mile up the road when he himself began to lose consciousness.

The family at that stage had no idea of what had happened but news came quickly to their door that something awful was after taking place.

When the boys’ father and brother went to Cullyhanna to see what had happened, they were met with nothing but anger and abuse from the British Army. The soldiers were in a state of frenzy.

At one stage the soldiers were outside a shop and one shouted at the female shopkeeper to go back in. She refused, as she believed that if she did they would certainly shoot them.

News spread that Fergal was dead and people began to come to the house to help in whatever way they could.

While the family were in a hurricane of grief and despair, the Brits were busy.

Reports on the television were saying that the car had driven through a check-point and that a soldier had been carried along the road on the bonnet of the car.

The locals came to say that that was NOT the case. They had been sitting in the checkpoint and had seen the whole incident unfold.

Míċeál had driven out on to the road… and the Brits just opened fire.

The Inquiry

In June 1991, just six months after the shooting, with the help of the Irish National Congress, a two-day public inquiry into the murder of Fergal and the wounding of Míċeál was held.

People from all over the area came to assist in the quest for the truth and organised a historic event in the local Community Centre.

Michael Mansfield QC (right) chaired the proceedings and there was a panel of jurists from America, Germany and France.

The inquiry was recorded and relayed to the crowd that spilled over to a marquee and a reconstruction of the shooting took place on the Tullinaval Road.

It was an amazing achievement for such a historic event to be organised by the local community and was a huge source of comfort and pride for the Caraher family.

After careful examination of the events and of witnesses to the shooting on December 30 1990, they found that there was excess use of lethal force on the day and that:

❛ There are sufficient grounds to indict or charge with murder those soldiers who unreasonably fired their weapons with intent to kill Fergal and Míċeál Caraher. ❜

Although it is widely believed that there were three soldiers shooting, only two soldiers were brought to court in 1993 and, after a long and arduous trial, the family were given the outcome. The soldiers got off. (It has also been found out since that one of those soldiers was given a promotion in the British Army.)

The people were under no illusions.  They knew that the court case was a farce and that this would indeed be the outcome, as was always the outcome in such cases.

• See the interview with Michael Mansfield in the January 2013 issue of An Phoblacht.