by Laura Friel

A posthumous award is to be presented for human rights lawyer Rosemary Nelson. The murder of the Lurgan solicitor, who died in a car bomb attack on March 15, continues to attract widespread international condemnation.The award is to be presented at New Jersey's Seeton Hall during a ceremony at the end of the month. It will be collected by Rosemary's husband Paul Nelson. This is the second posthumous award presented to the Nelson family since Rosemary's death. It comes at a time of growing international support for an independent international investigation into the killing.

Since the launch of the Rosemary Nelson Campaign in Belfast three weeks ago, delegates from the group set themselves a punishing schedule. There was no let up in the pace this week with the official launching of the campaign in Dublin. Last week the group returned from a successful trip to America where spokesperson Robbie McVeigh addressed a Congressional hearing considering the future of policing in the Six Counties.

Next week, the focus of the campaign will shift back to Belfast, where an emergency general meeting of the Law Society will decide whether or not to back the call for an independent inquiry into the Nelson murder. A negative response would leave the society with the rather dubious distinction of being the only Law Society within the island of Ireland, and probably throughout the world, refusing to support the campaign's objectives.

The dynamic of the Rosemary Nelson campaign stands in sharp contrast to the continuing footdragging response of the British authorities. The British government's response to the report by United Nations Special Rapporteur, Param Cumaraswamy spawned a wave of nationalist criticism which dubbed the Britain's response as arrogant, unacceptable and inadequate.

A senior source within the Dublin government described the decision to appoint John Stevens to head a `probe' into the killing of Pat Finucane as causing ``considerable irritation.'' John Stevens is the British police chief who conducted an inquiry into crown force collusion with loyalist death squads in the early 1990's. The full report of the inquiry was never published and allegations of collusion have continued to the present day. The source described the appointment as ``unhelpful and clearly an attempt to frustrate a public and fully independent inquiry.''

Further controversy followed an admission by John Stevens who contradicted official accounts of his handling of the Pat Finucane murder case. Responding to international calls for a public inquiry into the Finucane murder the British government claimed that the matter had already been investigated by Stevens.

Last week Stevens insisted that this was not the case. At ``no time'' said Stevens had he ever investigated the Finucane killing. As recently as April 16 this year, British government spokesperson Doug Henderson MP told London's House of Commons, ``the murder of Pat Finucane was investigated by both the RUC and subsequently by the investigation team led by John Stevens.''

Meanwhile the FBI has pulled out from the investigation into Rosemary Nelson's death. The four strong team led by Special Agent John Guido returned to America as rumours that the RUC were about to arrest two loyalist associates of Francie Curry began to circulate. Curry was released after serving a jail sentence for driving while disqualified on the day of Rosemary's murder. He was shot dead two days after he was released.

Identifying the already dead Frankie Curry as their prime suspect is suspiciously convenient for the RUC, a point not entirely lost to the media, creating ``a firewall which could prove impenetrable for any further outside investigators''. Less conveniently Frankie Curry has already been exposed as an agent for the RUC Special Branch. It is believed that the RUC will refuse to make available intelligence reports and computer files relating to Curry's contacts with RUC handlers on security grounds.

Rosemary Nelson Dublin campaign launch

BY SEAN BRADY

``If you do not have protection for human rights defenders you do not have human rights'', so said lawyer Dr Robbie McVeigh at the Dublin launch of the Rosemary Nelson Campaign on Wednesday, 5 May.

A huge sense of grief and loss followed the murder of Rosemary Nelson on 15 March and there was a recognition by her family and friends that work had to be done, sensitively and properly, to get to the circumstances behind her death. The result was the Rosemary Nelson Campaign initially made up of the Lurgan solicitor's family and friends, aswell as lawyers and human rights activists.

The objectives of the campaign are truth and justice for Rosemary Nelson, the means- an independent investigation into the circumstances of her murder followed by an independent, international judicial inquiry.

The Dublin campaign launch was chaired by the murdered solicitor's husband Paul Nelson. Robbie McVeigh said that the issue of human rights lay at the core of the Good Friday Agreement. Rosemary Nelson had testified in the US Cogress and at the United Nations regarding harassment and death threats from the RUC and it was therefore entirely inappropriate for the RUC to be involved in the investigation.

The campaign has been gaining widespread national and international support, particularly at a political level in the United States Congress, the European Union Parliament and the United Nations.

Pointing out that a bad inquiry was worse than none, as in the case of Bloody Sunday, Robbie McVeigh drew attention to the statement by Colin Port, who is involved with the official British investigation, that the collusion aspects of the investigation sat completely with the RUC. Port had also raised questions as to whether it was necessary for collusion to occur for the murder to happen. ``The question shoul properly be- Did it occur?'', McVeigh said.

Asked about Bertie Ahern's stated position that according to the advice he received the RUC has to be involve, McVeigh agreed that it sounded as if he was listening to advice from the British government.

Some people did not actually think that an independent, international inqury was possible but Colin Port himself had already been involved in such inquiries in Bosnia and Rwanda. the argument that there had to be RUC operational involvement did not stand up. The current Stevens inquiry has no RUC involvement.

Since the murder there has been a huge groundswell of support and sympathy for Rosemary Nelson in the 26 Counties, particularly in Dublin and it was important McVeigh said that pressure was brought to bear in terms of political support. A petition was being raised and the campaign intend to distribute postcard which people can forward to Bertie Ahern and the British Premier.