Kelly's failed action comes on the heels of similar unsuccessful outings in the courts by his Sinn Fein colleagues, Michelle O'Neill and Liam Lappin.
Kelly had sought to sue O'Doherty for allegedly defaming him by publicly stating that the former IRA prisoner and current Stormont MLA was responsible for shooting a prison officer in the head during the Long Kesh escape 41 years ago. The judge ruled that the action fell within SLAPP, describing it as "scandalous, frivolous and vexatious".
While it was a significant victory for O'Doherty who opted to stand his ground rather than retreat when Kelly tried to cross the portal shouting 'SLAPP' it was an even more crucial success for journalism in general and the right to free inquiry. The NUJ assistant General Secretary, Seamus Dooley, in describing the outcome as 'extremely significant' emphasised the threat posed by SLAPP to journalists:
Such threats have a chilling impact on journalists and journalism. The unambiguous language used in the determination should give those intent on using SLAPPs pause for thought.
Sinn Fein, it seems, intends to smother both investigative journalism and critical commentary so that in the event of it exercising formal power in Leinster House it will not be subject to the type of scrutiny so crucial for keeping a democratic culture porous. The judge in the case homed in with laser-like accuracy to the objective behind the lawsuit which was:
initiated not for the genuine purposes of vindicating a reputation injured by defamatory statements, but rather for the purpose of stifling the voices of Mr Kelly's troublesome critics.
Perhaps Gerry Kelly did not shoot John Adams but there is no one I know of who ever claimed it was anybody else. If he did fire the shot I think no less of him for that. He was an IRA volunteer on a precision timed operation and behaved in accordance with military necessity. It was not a gratuitous act of violence. In the H Blocks Kelly was held in very high regard by his fellow prisoners for his operational prowess and his courage. He would have been held in much less esteem were it believed that he hesitated at a crucial operational moment and failed to shoot John Adams, thereby allowing the alarm button in the control room to be hit, leading to the escape being aborted.
It is simply not possible, therefore, to believe that Gerry Kelly genuinely felt his reputation was somehow impugned by an allegation that as a member of the IRA he carried out an armed IRA operation. The SLAPP action pursued by Kelly is simply a variant of Section 31 which was used by the Dublin government to muzzle Sinn Fein.
Moreover, implicit in Kelly's legal action is the perspective that if he did not fire the shot then the person who did is of a lesser moral character than Kelly. Why should the action of another IRA volunteer on the same military operation as Kelly be considered by Kelly as something of a moral low that he would not stoop to and for which a British court must be entreated to find that IRA operations were so heinous that a man of Kelly's character would not deign to carry out one?
I have never criticised Gerry Kelly for taking a Royal Pardon, feeling that he would have been foolish not to avail of it. But there are no grounds to pardon him for seeking British courts to rescue his reputation from the effects of a genuinely held belief that he carried out an IRA operation.
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No dissent tolerated. One Party One Voice. Journalists first against the wall when they get into power.
ReplyDeleteThis case and Liam Lappin's a couple months ago represent an interesting intersection of two phenomena: Sinn Féin further distancing themselves from the IRA campaign and an intensifying new 2020s campaign to intimidate journalists. Glad this was thrown out.
ReplyDeleteHenry Joy Comments
ReplyDeleteI'm delighted for Malachi O'Doherty.
I have a copy of his 2021 book 'THE YEAR OF CHAOS, Northern Ireland On The Brink Of Civil War' on my bookshelf and have been dipping in and out of it over several months.
It's a scrupulous record of the period, yet peppered with nudges from the author, most of which skillfully invite the reader to consider alternative histories.
Aaron Edwards said of it: 'Essential reading for anyone trying to make sense of a past frequently distorted by rival sectarian myths, and attempts to rewrite history. We need more of this kind of pragmatic history if we are to move forward into a more peaceful future.'
It's shameful that Kelly proceeded with this farcical action.
He lost every which way - as a result of his action it is likely that more people now believe he did fire the shot than previously. And SLAPP has taken a pounding. The costs are not going to be light either.
DeleteI'm surprised the solicitors' firm ran with this as what Malachy said, even if it was shown to be blatantly untrue, doesn't even fall within the definition of defamation. To defame you need 1. An untrue statement that 2. Harms your reputation in the eyes of your peers. Both parts are needed for a successful case, not just one. It is of a similar nature to other events in Gerry's past so would hardly injure his reputation but could arguably enhance his reputation in the eyes of his peers.
ReplyDeleteI believe many cases taken by Sinn Fein had to be taken because of the plethora of hatchet job stories of the press, mainly in the South which were full of untruths but now they seem to be getting carried away.
A bit of restraint and much wisdom is needed or else they'll look foolish.