[ALBSA-Info] Daily Mail

[Agron Alibali]

DAILY MAIL (London) 
May 5, 2001 
A SICK MOCKERY OF JUSTICE 

DAVID WILLIAMS 


A GANG of IRA terrorists shot dead in an SAS ambush as they tried to destroy a police station and murder the officers inside had their human rights violated, a European court ruled yesterday. 

In a decision condemned as 'astonishing and perverse,' seven judges said Britain should pay the families of the eight men - among them some of the Provisionals' most notorious killers - GBP 10,000 each because the cases were not properly investigated. 

The European Court of Human Rights also made similar awards to the families of two other IRA men and a Sinn Fein member killed in separate incidents, and to the family of an innocent man killed in the police station shoot-out. 

Taxpayers face a total bill from the action of GBP 225,000 - GBP 120,000 for the awards in each of the cases and GBP 105,000 for the legal costs of the dead men's families. 

Last night there were fears the ruling could lead to further compensation claims from relatives of terrorists killed by security forces. 

The judges - among them one Briton and an Albanian whose early career was devoted to tracking down opponents of the former communist dictatorship - did not rule that the deaths were unlawful. Instead, their unanimous ruling, related to procedural matters. 

It was greeted with jubilation by the families and with outrage by Unionists and the police. 

David Trimble, Ulster Unionist leader and First Minister at the Northern Ireland Executive, described the judgment as 'astonishing and perverse'. 

'There would be people who would call in question the competence and the judgment of the European Court,' he said. 

East Belfast Democratic Unionist MP Peter Robinson said: 'This ruling is insane and offensive. The Government should ignore it. There should be no compensation payments. There can be no greater absurdity than the human rights of 

killers, in the act of carrying out murder, being protected while they attempt to violate the human rights of others.' 

A spokesman for the Police Federation, which represents RUC officers, said: 'If IRA members are killed in action carrying out a murderous deed, they will be rewarded with a lump sum or pension. There really is no justice.' 

The IRA active unit, known as the 'A Team' was ambushed by the SAS as it attacked Loughgall police station in County Armagh with a 200lb bomb in the bucket of a JCB in May 1987. 

Their plan was to blow up the station and then shoot any RUC survivors. The bomb went off, burying two officers in the rubble, but as the IRA gang began to jump from a van the SAS opened fire, killing all eight, and a motorist caught up in the carnage. 

Among those who died were Patrick Kelly, the commander of the East Tyrone Brigade, who was said to have been responsible for the murder of civilians and mem-By David Williams 

Chief Reporter bers of the security forces, and James Lynagh, known as 'The Executioner' and one of the IRA's top three killers. 

Weapons recovered at the scene were later linked to eight murders and 33 shootings. 

Lawyers for the IRA members' families claimed excessive force was used and that a 'shoot to kill' policy had been sanctioned by the Government and security chiefs. 

The European court ruled that in all 12 cases there had been a breach of human rights because of a lack of police independence and a lack of public scrutiny. 

But the judges said they were not prepared to analyse 30 years of the Troubles in an effort to establish whether the security forces had adopted a practice of using 'dis-proportionate' force. 

Among those sitting in judgment was Kristaq Traja, 46, from Albania. He emerged as a champion of human rights after rising through the public prosecution service of what was Eastern Europe's most backward regime. 

The British judge on the panel was Nicolas Bratza, 56, an Oxford-educated barrister who specialises in human rights. 

The other judges included lawyers from Cyprus and the Czech Republic. 

A lawyer for one of the families of the IRA men said the judges had reminded the Government that 'even in the midst of conflict, they cannot step outside the rule of law'. 

Roisin Kelly, sister of Patrick Kelly, said the ruling meant the Government had been held accountable for the deaths of the families' loved ones. 

'It means the inquest system is fundamentally flawed and that the RUC cannot carry out independent investigations into incidents they are actively involved in.' 

She will now be pressing for an independent inquiry. 

Sinn Fein's Gerry Kelly hailed the ruling as the 'single most important legal judgment in 30 years of conflict'. 

'British policy, the RUC, and the legal and judicial which they created stand indicted before the world,' said Mr Kelly, who was jailed for his part in the 1972 IRA bombing of the Old Bailey. 

However, there were calls for the Government not to pay up. The court cannot force Britain to pay, 

but there is a moral obligation on countries covered by the court to accept its rulings. 

Asked if the Government would hand over the compensation, Tony Blair's spokesman said: 'That is something that will have to be looked at.' 

The Premier's spokesman left open the possibility of an appeal. He said: 'Nothing is ruled in or out. There has been no finding of unlawful killing and no finding of a shoot-to-kill policy.' Northern Ireland Secretary John Reid said: 'The criticisms are of procedures, the investigations, not the deaths themselves.' 

Andrew MacKay, shadow Northern Ireland Secretary, said the ruling flies in the face of natural justice. 

He added: 'Anybody who cares for the rule of law owes the RUC and the Army a tremendous debt of gratitude for their dedication and sacrifice.' 

The three other cases involved two IRA men killed by police in separate shootings in Belfast and near Lurgan, County Armagh in l982 and l992 and a member of Sinn Fein, shot dead by loyalist paramilitary gunmen in County Tyrone in l991. 


---------------------------------
Do You Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Auctions - Click and bid on cool stuff like Dave Matthews Band Tickets & more!
-------------- next part --------------
HTML attachment scrubbed and removed