Martin: UK ‘inconsistent’ on Troubles legacy Bill
FOREIGN Affairs Minister Micheál Martin has described the British government’s announcement of an inquiry into the Omagh bomb as ‘inconsistent’ with its Bill ending new prosecutions for Troubles offences.
The Northern Ireland Troubles Bill, currently making its way through the British parliament, would give immunity to prosecution for offences committed during the Troubles, and would also preclude any future civil actions.
Bereaved families and victims’ rights campaigners have been strongly critical of the Bill.
Speaking on the UK plan to hold a public inquiry into the 1998 Omagh bomb, Mr Martin described it as ‘somewhat inconsistent with the legacy Bill that is currently going through Westminster’.
The Tánaiste said the Irish Government opposes the Bill and has strongly communicated its views to the UK about it.
He said the recent conviction of former soldier David Holden for the manslaughter of Aidan McAnespie in Co. Tyrone in 1988 shows that court cases can still be pursued.
‘We always have to think of the victims when atrocities have happened. In Omagh we owe it to the 29 victims to do everything we possibly can to provide any information that we have to help clarify the circumstances of that bombing,’ he said.
Mr Martin welcomed the UK’s decision to have a public inquiry into the Omagh bomb, and said Ireland will ‘fully co-operate’ with it.
He added that Ireland may announce its own inquiry into the Omagh bomb but the Government here will want to see the terms of reference of the British inquiry to decide on Ireland’s approach.
‘We will have to establish ourselves the precise mechanisms by which we would pursue this, either by the establishment of an inquiry in the Republic or provide full co-operation in terms of documentation and so forth to the UK inquiry,’ he said.
‘These are issues that we will examine... but we’re working on that already,’ he added.
The dissident republican bomb in Omagh, Co. Tyrone, killed 29 people, including a woman pregnant with twins, in August 1998, just a few months after the signing of the Good Friday Agreement.
Mr Martin also said that if people are seeking information or documentation from the Republic, then ‘that should be forthcoming’.
‘We always have to think of the victims’