McCartney Murder
Guilty parties must be brought to justice

By Joe Higgins, TD

During today's Leaders' Questions, Joe Higgins raised the issue of the murder of Robert McCartney by republicans in the Short Strand, Belfast.

Joe Higgins (Socialist Party): Does the Taoiseach acknowledge that the great majority of residents of the Short Strand area in Belfast are horrified to have criminal butchers in their midst, hiding under the political banner of provisional republicanism, and that revulsion at the bestial murder of Robert McCartney, and the heroic quest for justice by his family, are challenging in an unprecedented way the insidious control of the IRA in many Catholic areas in Northern Ireland? Does the Taoiseach agree that we must categorise as vacuous doublespeak the words about Robert McCartney's murder by the leaders of republicanism such as Messrs. Kelly, Adams and McGuinness? The reality behind the seemingly sincere words of republican leaders is the screaming silence of the 50 witnesses who are terrified to speak out to bring the murderers to justice because of the intimidation coming from the very associates of those leaders, who say they want justice for the family of Robert McCartney.

Every week members of the IRA in Belfast visit mediaeval barbarities on dysfunctional youths. They claim to know what is going on. It would be extraordinary if the republican leaders did not know exactly who butchered a man in front of 70 people, all the more so since a unit of the IRA was responsible.

Mr. Adams said this morning he has a problem going to the police. Does he have a problem in going to the Short Strand unit of the provisional IRA - call it the local SS unit for short - and demanding that it present itself to justice? According to the McCartney family this morning, Mr. Gerry Kelly refused to call a public meeting in the Short Strand to give the community confidence.

I urge the community, in conjunction with the McCartney family, to convene its own independent mass meeting, give mass protection to the witnesses to this bestial murder, and mobilise community power to break the grip of intimidation and remove the killers from its midst by securing their trial and conviction. Those for whom the Sinn Féin leaders in Northern Ireland claim to speak should themselves speak with their own voices in mass action because it is very clear that they repudiate absolutely this type of barbarity in their communities.

The Taoiseach: Deputy Joe Higgins is right. I can only add that the names are known. The people involved are freely spoken about in the Short Strand. I will not mention names but I have talked to several people who told me who was involved. It is well known; there is no mystery about it. The issue is to get people who were there to co-operate with the PSNI to have these people charged. This recalls other cases that happened a year ago. For example, the Tohill case was a similar incident. There have been interesting developments in that area in the year since but I will not go into them now.

These are the issues which the Minister for Foreign Affairs is discussing with the family of Robert McCartney at the meeting that has just commenced. They are a brave family, who have stood up for their rights and we will give them every support we possibly can.

This case typifies issues which I will not go through again. I have raised several of the issues that Deputy Joe Higgins raised today about things that happened to young people. These were regular incidents over the Christmas period, and at other times. They did not happen for many months then returned.

We must move on from that and the only way to move on is for the two governments to get unambiguous, straight answers on the issues we have put forward. We need this not only in writing or reports but in action. Events last year showed that is possible when these incidents were turned off totally during the negotiating period. They can be stopped. There is no doubt that people have control and authority. I am convinced that people can stop these activities when they want and we can get to that end position.

I think I referred to paragraph 11 in reply to Deputy Rabbitte when of course I should have said paragraph 13 of the joint declaration. That is the one we are talking about and focused on. There are other outstanding issues on which we must make progress but the central one is paragraph 13 which deals with paramilitarism, thuggery and criminality. When we achieve progress on that we can move on.

J. Higgins: How genuine are this Government and the British Government in outing criminal intimidation when they tolerated it for so long? Years ago, the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform spoke about things he knew happened but we have seen action only recently. The Taoiseach blew the issue out of the water in recent weeks because the political landscape changed.

Calling the murderers of Robert McCartney to account is a matter of justice for him and his family. More than this, it is a test in present circumstances of whether a working class community is allowed to live in an atmosphere where democratic, human and political rights are respected and guaranteed.

Bringing these murderers to account also challenges in a very real way the political control of Catholic working class communities by republican paramilitaries. The loyalist paramilitaries visit the same intimidation on Protestant working class communities. The reluctance to dissolve the IRA is not because a resumption of the paramilitary campaign against the British State is contemplated - that disaster ran into the sand long ago. It is retained as an enforcer for the political domination of the republican movement in the Catholic working class communities. It plays the same role as the loyalist paramilitary organisations.

I call on the real power in Northern Ireland, the salt of the earth, working class people to mobilise independently, throw the sectarians aside and in this way deliver justice for Robert McCartney and his family. This will also lay the basis for an alternative society where their real needs are met rather than being subjected to sectarian monsters.

The Taoiseach: The barbarity of punishment beatings is well-known and this is not the first time we have talked about them. Last year, there was the Tohill case, the previous year people were shot. There have been many cases, and this has even led to suicide among young people who have been threatened. The focus on it arose before now.

That is why paragraph 13 is in the declaration. It is still the outstanding issue. Criminality and bully boy control of an area is not just sectarian. It is related to the proceeds of crime and other associated issues. While it is not as simple as the Deputy states, his sentiments are correct. We want an end to that.

People have been focussing on it in recent months and we have an opportunity to achieve finality. The Government will do all it can. I spoke to the Prime Minister, Mr. Blair, about that yesterday. I will probably speak to him about it on the telephone tonight or tomorrow. We will continue our efforts to make progress on the issue.

For further information, contact Joe Higgins at (01) 618 3038
Email: joe.higgins@oireachtas.irlgov.ie