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Few issues in recent times have caused as much anger among
decent people in Northern Ireland than the suggestion that
an amnesty might be granted to terrorists.
It is perfectly understandable, as the vast majority of people
have waited patiently for something tangible to be done to
recognise the suffering of victims of the Troubles.
Instead, there has been an inclination to seize on a small
minority of cases in which a case can be made for claiming
that there was collusion between some members of the security
forces and loyalist paramilitaries who committed crimes.
No-one has ever denied that there have not been a small number
of people within the ranks of the RUC and the Army who let
down the overwhelming majority who served the Crown, the United
Kingdom, and the people of Northern Ireland with honour and
distinction.
It should never be forgotten the price that was paid for
this with hundreds of soldiers and policemen losing their
lives, and many thousands being maimed and wounded.
The majority of the murders carried out during the Troubles
were by the Provisional IRA and other republican organisations,
and in saying this, it does not seek to detract from the equally
horrific murders by loyalist paramilitary organisations.
But the issue of victims must not be allowed to be hijacked
by republican elements who would seek to single out certain
killings and use them as a means of attacking the security
forces, and the British Governments of the day.
Since the Belfast Agreement, and the release of prisoners,
the attention has been mainly centred on the alleged misdeeds
of security force personnel and the alleged collusion with
loyalist groups.
Hardly anything has been done to highlight the suffering
and the continuing anguish of families of the many victims
of the Troubles, who died at the hands of the IRA.
Over 300 Orangemen lost their lives in the Troubles, a high
proportion of them serving with the security forces. They
must not be forgotten, and the Orange Order will not allow
this to happen.
In the coming weeks further public meetings will be held
when people will have their opportunity to tell the Eames-Bradley
group of their feelings, and what they want to see done to
provide the victims of the Troubles with a vehicle to publicise
their sufferings and their demand for justice.
As for the suggestion that the squalid campaign of terrorism
was a 'war', people are not fooled. They remember only too
well the many statements by British Governments and their
Ministers, that this was "an insurrection" waged
by "criminals", and stressing that in no way could
this be classified as a war.
It must be back to the drawing board for the Northern Ireland
Office if it is to provide a genuine forum for the feelings
of victims to be ventilated. Failing that, the onus is on
the Eames-Bradley group to grasp the feelings of the innocent
victims and their families, and to reflect this in any proposals
which are suggested, and to abandon any idea of going down
the amnesty for terrorists road.
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