British soldiers may be charged for perjury in Bloody Sunday affair

Prosecutors in Northern Ireland and in England have confirmed that they are considering legal action against British soldiers for perjury after the Saville report found that they had lied about their involvement in the Bloody Sunday killings.

Lord Saville's 12 year inquiry concluded that 14 unarmed boys and men died after being shot at by members of the Parachute Regiment during a civil rights march in Derry.

But families of the dead acknowledge that prosecuting the soldiers risks reigniting sectarian tensions in Derry, a city still battle scarred from four decades of fighting.

Read more: http://www.abc.net.au/pm/content/2010/s2929965.htm

 

Another Report By Irish Central

Lawyer Michael Mansfield QC, who represented the families of some of the victims of Bloody Sunday, has said that those soldiers who submitted fraudulent accounts of events should be charged with perjury.

The Saville Inquiry found the members of the British Parachute Regiment "knowingly put forward false accounts". They attempted to justify firing on unarmed civil rights activists.

Mansfield said, "I do think, given the strength and clarity of the conclusions, where invented stories or falsehoods were told, that the Director of Public Prosecutions, either here in Northern Ireland or in London, should consider whether it is so serious - because the rule of law has been flagrantly breached on this occasion by a number of soldiers on a number of UK citizens - that consideration should be given to a prosecution."

The report found that "Despite the contrary evidence given by soldiers, we have concluded that none of them fired in response to attacks or threatened attacks by nail or petrol bombers. No one threw or threatened to throw a nail or petrol bomb at the soldiers on Bloody Sunday."

On Wednesday Taoiseach (Prime Minister) Brian Cowen met with the relatives of those killed on Bloody Sunday. Members of the McKinney, Duddy, Nash and Young met with the Taoiseach to present him with an original copy of the Saville report. Mickey McKinney’s 27-year-old brother Roy was among those shot dead by British paratroopers.

He said, "Somebody has to be held to account for what happened on Bloody Sunday." The Public Prosecution Services will pass a judgment on whether to prosecute any individuals. Their decision is not expected for some time. Northern Ireland's First Minister Peter Robinson has also come forward saying that all wrongdoings should be put on public record.

He said, "We can't expect the truth to be told and then not be prepared to tell it yourself…There's a requirement from all of the paramilitary organizations to 'fess up and indicate the roles that they played." He accepted the findings of the Saville Inquiry into Bloody Sunday and hoped that it will bring some closure for the families of its victims. He also said that it was now time for everybody to come clean.

 

The Bloody Sunday killings came at a violent time in the Troubles. Spiraling violence had been met with the internment of more than 700 people without trial, virtually all of them republicans, at the insistence of the Northern Ireland prime minister, Brian Faulkner, against the advice of senior military officers. The result was more bitterness among Catholics and the growth of the IRA.

 

What are the Brits still doing in Northern Ireland?

They really enjoy occupying and oppressing people in Her Majesty's Service.

 

we stole ireland 800 years ago, 90 years ago we gave most of it back, keeping the area we had populated with scottish protestants. cant see it changing anytime soon

you ever lived in northern ireland denz?

oh and as for the soldiers being charged, cant see it happening myself. so many other things that the british soldiers did that no one was ever held accountable for icluding the deaths of 8 children shot dead with plastic bullets on the falls road in the 70's/80's

the people in northern ireland both protestants and catholics just want things to stay calm with no more stirring up of tensions and the fighting.

 

they also interned protestants ya know, just not in as big a number as catholics. they all ended up in the cages at long kesh ( look up the name and you should be able to work out which side of the divide i lean towards )

oh and the catholics bitterness grew due to thier civil rights being denied, internment and the armys depoyment was just the catalist for the ira to up campaigns against military and government targets

 

:smt030

(In lieu of a "news" or "popcorn" smilie)






















OpinionsCartoonStudios@Yahoo.Co.UK

 

just a quick list of books you might like to read ( if ya cant find em on amazon, give the sinn fein offices a ring )

nor meekly serve my time
cage 11
before the dawn
nothing but an unfinished song
writings from prison
cant remember the published name for this but it was origionaly called "unrepentant fenian bastards"