With Sympathies Like These Who Needs Enmities?

In a letter to the Irish News New York attorney-at-law Martin Galvin again challenges Trevor Ringland over British state culpability.

Re: Trevor Ringland - Sympathies lie with victims and families of Loughinisland atrocity - February 2-2018

A chara,

Trevor Ringland writes his 'Sympathies lie with victims and families of Loughinisland atrocity.'(February 2nd) He advises these families to shun republican minded supporters and stop blaming Britain, if British troopers, constabulary, or agents murdered loved ones. With sympathies like these who needs enmities?

Mr. Ringland wants families to accept that British troopers or constabulary who murdered, acted "outside the law" are "innocent until proven guilty', and no excuse for holding Britain accountable. His alternative facts show the deep divide keeping legacy justice a fundamental issue.

Did British troopers, constabulary or agents act "outside the law" at Loughinisland, Ballymurphy etc.? Certainly they acted outside the letter of British law. Certainly anyone charged by the crown should be presumed innocent and get a fair trial (unlike Internment.)Why do families believe that the killing of their loved ones, while outside the letter of the law was part of actual British policy?

Look at Loughinisland. No Stone Unturned names and shows recent film of suspects, then reveals, besides DNA evidence available from the recovered car, weapons, and clothing, the wife of one of the gunmen had telephoned and written confessing her involvement and naming the gunmen.

No one was ever charged. Are families promised "no stone unturned" then stonewalled, wrong to believe killers were not "innocent until proven guilty", but innocent by British state immunity?

Look at Ballymurphy. These families say that British troopers murdered innocent people, including a Catholic priest, and mother of eight. After taking 11 innocent lives, and parents from 57 children the British massacred the truth. Victims became posthumous gunmen. The crown made their troopers innocent and the dead guilty.

Families fought for their right to establish truth at a British inquest. Now Britain moves towards pardons dressed up as statutes of limitations, for British troopers and constabulary. Have families no right to believe that the British are putting their undeclared immunity into law?

Former RUC officer and Glenanne Gang member John Weir, said the British government at "the very highest level", was aware of the murder gang's activities. (Irish News, August 28,2017) Despite promises and Court orders, these families have not gotten their right to an overarching investigation. Can these families not ask whether a full investigation might show Weir was right?

The divide over legacy justice is deep. Clearly the mechanisms agreed in the past failed to work. Any new agreement on legacy mechanisms must give real truth to victims. Families must get more than hopes of justice, followed by disillusionment.

Martin Galvin is a US Attorney-At-Law.