Boris Johnson apologises ‘unreservedly’ for Ballymurphy deaths
Boris Johnson has apologised for the British army operation that resulted in the death of 10 innocent civilians in the west Belfast neighbourhood of Ballymurphy in 1971.
The prime minister made the apology on Wednesday, a day after an inquest in Northern Ireland found the use of force had been unjustified, implicating the army in a Troubles atrocity to rival Bloody Sunday.
Johnson made his remarks in a phone call to Northern Ireland’s first minister, Arlene Foster, and the deputy first minister, Michelle O’Neill, Downing Street said in a statement.
“He said the conclusions of the Ballymurphy inquest, published yesterday, were deeply sad and that the events of August 1971 were tragic. The prime minister apologised unreservedly on behalf of the UK government for the events that took place in Ballymurphy and the huge anguish that the lengthy pursuit of truth has caused the families of those killed,” it said.
The statement followed mounting pressure from political leaders and the families of those killed for an official apology for the killings and for the fact that it took 50 years to establish the truth.
John Teggart, whose father, Daniel, was one of those killed at Ballymurphy, said Johnson’s statement was not a public apology. “The apology was to third parties, it wasn’t to the Ballymurphy families,” he told the BBC. “What kind of insult is it to families that he couldn’t have the conversation with ourselves. His office couldn’t come and speak to the families of what he was doing. That’s not acceptable to the families and never will be. This is not an apology to us.”
The killings took place when the army swept through republican districts across Northern Ireland to round up suspects for internment without trial. Violent street protests erupted.
The Parachute regiment spent several chaotic days detaining and shooting people in Ballymurphy from 9 to 11 August. There were no TV crews or newspaper photographers to document what happened, unlike in Derry five months later when the same regiment massacred protesters and triggered worldwide condemnation.
The inquest concluded that soldiers killed nine of the Ballymurphy dead. The coroner, Mrs Justice Keegan, could not establish who killed the 10th victim, John McKerr. “All of the deceased in the series of inquests were entirely innocent of wrongdoing on the day in question,” her report said.
Her blistering report rejected army claims that troops had opened fire only when they perceived they were under threat. No weapons were recovered from any of the dead, who included a parish priest, Hugh Mullan, and a mother of eight, Joan Connolly.
Briege Voyle, one of Connolly’s daughters, said Johnson’s apology was not enough. “Is he trying to sneak it in? I don’t care about an apology, I want to know why. Our loved ones were all
completely innocent, so why were they shot? His apology means nothing. We need him to go back to the MoD and tell them to tell the truth, tell our legal team the names of the soldiers who murdered our loved ones and ask them why.”
An apology in the House of Commons would have been more respectful, she said. “To do it this way is trying to push it under the carpet.”
David Cameron apologised in the Commons after the findings of the Bloody Sunday inquiry in 2010. That Johnson made his apology off-camera in a phone call may reflect the government’s sensitivity to army veteran groups and their campaign to shield veterans from prosecution for alleged crimes during the Troubles.
“The prime minister restated the government’s intention to deliver a way forward in Northern Ireland that focuses on reconciliation, delivers for victims of the Troubles and ends the cycle of reinvestigations,” the Downing Street statement said.
“He stressed the importance of working hard to keep the gains made through the Belfast/Good Friday agreement and of all parties doing their utmost to help the victims’ families find out what happened to their loved ones, so that future generations are not burdened by the past.”
Some families may welcome the statement, but they are expected to continue to pursue a civil action against the Ministry of Defence. Some also want the police to launch a criminal investigation.
The shadow Northern Ireland secretary, Louise Haigh, welcomed the apology as vindication for families who campaigned amid “disgraceful slurs” against their loved ones. “If this apology is to be meaningful the PM must immediately confirm that amnesty will not feature in any upcoming legacy legislation,” she said.