In my view the most significant but alarming paragraph in the statement issued to the media yesterday by PSNI Chief Constable, George Hamilton comes about halfway through the text and reads:
Although still a proscribed organisation, and therefore illegal, we assess that the continuing existence and cohesion of the Provisional IRA hierarchy has enabled the leadership to move the organisation forward within the peace process. Some current Provisional IRA and former members continue to engage in a range of criminal activity and occasional violence in the interest of personal gain or personal agendas.
Translated into ordinary English this says:
The IRA is good for the peace process although there are some bad apples in the ranks who do bad things and have their own agendas. The leadership though has nothing to do with these bad apples who are essentially doing their own thing.
This means that the next time people are killed by Action Against Drugs or whatever fictional group the Provos set up to do their dirty work, the PSNI will have a ready-made response:
Nothing to do with Gerry, or Martin or Big Bobby. It’s just that they have got some bad apples in the barrel and there’s not really a lot they can do about that. These people are really hard to control. Sorry, folks! Now, can we please move on!
Now if you are stupid or naive enough to believe the nonsense that the control freaks who have run the Provisional IRA and Sinn Fein for more than two decades would allow freelance murder, robbery and other criminality to happen without their knowledge and/or approval, then you should apply for a job with the PSNI. A stellar career awaits you.
If, on the other hand, you live in the real world, and can remember what someone like IRA veteran John Kelly once said of the Sinn Fein President, that ‘not a single sparrow can fall from a tree without him knowing’, you will have an entirely different view.
You will recognise the Chief Constable’s statement for what it is: a piece of verbiage that effectively is a licence to murder.
From now on, the IRA leadership can decide to kill this or that opponent, confident that the PSNI will have a ready-made excuse waiting to issue to the media:
It was IRA members who did it, but they were not acting under orders.
And if it is you or one of your loved ones who gets killed, well that’s just tough.
The consolation is that they will have died to preserve the peace process.
Now, isn’t that just great! We have ended up with a peace process in which the police service tells barefaced lies and devises forms of words to permit murder.
Kevin Kearney interview with George Hamilton scroll until 1hr 36mins 48...
ReplyDeleteBrian Rowan, commentator and former Sinn Fein publicity director Danny Morrison and DUP MP Jeffrey Donaldson give their interpretation of George Hamilton's assessment that "The Provisional IRA still exists - and members were involved in the murder of republican Kevin McGuigan."
Stephen Nolan asks Breege Quinn for her thoughts today and does she believe Gerry Adams when said the same before about other killings, including the murder of her son Paul (Sinn Fein have maintained that the brutal execution was carried out by a criminal gang),that the Provisionals weren't involved in the murder of Kevin McGuigan .
Rev. Harold Good gives his opinon to William Crawley on the state of "non decommissioned PIRA weapons." Starts at 7mins 37secs. And why he still believes the Provisionals when they said "That is the last gun out of Irish politics for them. Not that that is the last gun in Ireland..". The discussion continues with Mike Nesbit and Tommy McKearney giving their views.
Lookit.
ReplyDeleteFor years the RUC and other Tools of the State lied to to the man in the street in order to uphold the Unionists in Government.( 1922-1972) and later for the NIO
I am sure Ed Moloney would have written/ exposed this in his time.
All to the good.
Now, If you agree with everything Ed has written in the past few days.
He is making the case that the RUC is now lying on behalf of the Brits/ Unionists and Now SF/IRA to use unionist terminology.
So what?
Do they go back to the old days when lying on behalf of the Brits/ Unionists is the "right thing to do"? is that acceptable?
Who cares, because it's a non runner.
I find myself liking these articles by Ed Moloney.
Unionists benefited by lies, mis-direction and deception..Now their Old Enemies are in the same tent and benefit of the same tools as they did.And unionists aren't liking it one bit.
Boo-Hiss
A fair minded right thinking person from the unionist side of the fence; would exam this and digest it and come to the conclusion that state is rotten to the core.
And should be replaced.
However, we all know that unionism just wants to go back to the days when the lies were for Their benefit. "Their Law" and "Their Order".
So, no progress can be made and no progress will be made.
And unionism has no one to blame but themselves.
They wanted the strait jacket, they can wear the strait jacket.
Until unionism admits to the basic truth of things and until like an addict it admits it has a problem things are locked in.
Plus Ca Change plus ca meme change.
It's over to them..Which way do they jump? only the younger generation will be able to untangle this mess. And the mainstream media is doing nothing other than to pander to unionists who reject any and all notions that they are in any way at fault for the last 90 years of crap. Including the denial of State sponsored Terrorism. Apartheid rule sectarian policies over housing and jobs..etc..etc etc.
As long as unionism is pandered too. and as long as unionists are closed mind about the god awful regime they created.Then nothing will emerge to offer any sort of hope.
Again Ed Moloney is spot on in his assessment. If the Provos can get away with this scot free then they will be free to murder their opponents at will. When you are dealing with ruthless bastards like them you have to use a firm hand. They despise weakness and they will exploit it to the full.
ReplyDeleteI know that most of the contributors here despise unionists, but surely it must be acknowledged that without their insistence on decommissioning and the complete halting of IRA murders, the grave yards would be a lot more full today? In the absence of either police or government will to stand up to the Provos/Sinners the only people left with the ability to put manners on them are the unionist parties. Sadly I suspect that they may be too used to their Stormont pay packets to take the necessary action.
The mental gymnastics by the Pro Sinners everywhere are as always hilarious.
Cue Bono,
ReplyDeletethe Unionists Parties learned nothing from recent PSNI statements that they did not already know. The lot of them are in it together. There is a long history there of remaining silent on violence when it suits them.
Anthony,
ReplyDeleteI suspect that you are correct about that. Strangely the only party so far showing any integrity in this appears to be FF and they are doing it for electoral reasons.
I am confused - Gerry Adams who was never in the IRA can still say definitively that the IRA has left the stage but how would he know if he was never in the organization to begin with? Oh but he gets his information from senior people who are/were in the IRA, but hang on, it turns out some of those senior people are/were working for British Intelligence (sic) so how does he know they are telling him the truth? Or is it that M15 has updated him on the current status of the IRA - it would almost be laughable if people were not dying.
ReplyDeleteI can only imagine how some of you who were actually volunteers and are proud to admit it must feel about how things have turned out.
Well Nesbitt has jumped. Popcorn time now.
ReplyDelete