It’s to document the era. It will be very important in future years. Just had a look over my old secondary school history book, it’s such nostalgic romantic crap. More than 90 percent of the students didn’t even know there was a civil right problem in the north. How history is recorded an rewritten is very important and the rights of both journalist and subject should have been respected!

Mr. Hamilton,

In that case, so are the family of murdered Belfast Lawyer Pat Finucane. Oh wait, the British government recently refused that… How ironic. They can pick and choose. You can’t see that?

Yes you can’t pick and choose, which is why a process of truth and reconciliation is so very badly needed, and for all sides to engage.

I suppose Michael Collins had “blood on his hands” too? Amazing how some Irish want to return to a colony of Britain again… Sinn Fein are the second most popular political party in Ireland. The “next generation of voters” are not concerned about Sinn Fein’s past either.

Dont even try to compare michael collins to provisional IRA terrorists. Unlike collins, they were fighting for something that was impossible by democratic means. In 1919 and the following years, the vast majority in the south wanted independence. Just because someone believes in democracy and a peoples right to self determination does not mean they want to return to colonialism, the fact is that a majority in NI want to be part of britain and if you believe in democracy, majority rules. Michael collins was one of our greatest statesmen ever, the provisional IRA were terrorists who destroyed the lives of thosands of innocent people. You cannot compare the two so dont even try.

“the fact is that a majority in NI want to be part of britain”

Wow. Where do these intellects come from? Nothing to do with the fact this “majority” are unionist planters who happen to be given annexed land.

Stephen Corrigan – suppose you owned a home in Kiltimagh and someone decided to squat in your property. Then you attempted to re-claim it and got met with resistance. It is nothing more than the theft of your property.

It has nothing to do with Sinn Fein, dimwit. Why isn’t there a criminal investigation into the loyalist terrorism of innocent Catholics? Why are you so silent on that? How doy ou justify the British Govt’s collusion in loyalist terrorism?

Looks like you are allowing yourself to be indoctrinated by Murdochs empire – ‘made in britain’

It’s everything to do with SF, as it’s been widely leaked one of their senior members, who says he was never in the IRA, is proved otherwise by the contents of these tapes.

Kearon,

The IRA were defending our country just like Michael Collins. Nobody cares if anyone was in the IRA, only you do because your clients are probably mostly British. As someone else pointed, if you want to become a british citizen, you know where the Airport is….MOVE.

Stephen Kearon is a former QUANGO adviser to this Government. Check out his profile.

No wonder we have so much waste, overpayment, underperformance and low-achievers in the civil service.

Don’t annoy the monkey, he starts to fling his feces after a while.

@Mark Provos were just a bunch of criminal thugs, thankfully long since defeated.

The fact that so many Shinnerbots are on active keyboard duty reflects the fear of the organisation at the truth contained in these tapes

To be fair the Provo’s had a mandate similar to that of the War of Independence IRA, although on a much smaller scale. It would not be wrong to compare the two.

A very valid point. My problem was with the archive, and the fact they breached the interviewer-interviewee agreement to get at the information. I have some experience gathering interviews for a large work, so I can sympathise with Boston Colleges frustration at the whole affair. It will be scrutinised by people with a criminal agenda, who are seeking prosecutions, even though that will be practically impossible to achieve, and then the records will be lost to the public. The British have many files on Sinn Fein already, so most of this will not be new to them. I agree that their is a need for justice, but I’m not sure this archives movement into British custody brings that any closer. Most of these interviews are circumspect and unusable in a criminal court case. On a human level, I can relate to the McConville’s search though. What sane person could not? I suppose I am in two minds about it all, if I am honest. The archive would have produced more answers if it had been left in situ, where it could have been examined and used to produce other works, many of which would have shed more light on what really happened in Northern Ireland. Now it will simply be classified, and the possibility of getting the illusive answers will be lost forever.

I wonder if these tapes will contain any information relating to the Dublin/Monaghan bombings which would prove collusion between MI5, RUC and loyalist paramilitaries.

Mark. H

Quite the contrary. They are much better men than you

Considering how many time you are calling yourself a “better man”, I’d say you must know it too.
Sounds like desperate self-justification if I’ve ever heard it

Patrick. Mark has resorted to personal abuse,as has fagan, to divert attention from the fact that they have no intelligent point to make. Sad isn’t it?

Diversionary tactic, as they can’t debate using facts so end up throwing verbal abuse around.

Good Stephen – now tell all leeches in your Quango department to do the same.

One thing:

The Irishman who earns his own way and is not a burden is a BETTER MAN than the public servant who tries to vote himself money at the expense of the Irishman.

Remember that.

“Soul”, Julie. It won’t drag the North back. People don’t want that all over again. Certain people in the North are great for demanding justice from others but not from themselves. We’ll see how this pans out.

Forced disappearance is a crime against humanity without a statute of limitations. Those involved in its direction should be before the international criminal courts.

Julie,

I agree. The US government dispespected academic protocol by giving the British government priority. The Irish government should have openly opposed the request. The US government used an agreement between britain and the US. However, this is Ireland.

” Those involved in its direction should be before the international criminal courts.”

So may I conclude that by making this comment you agree that the “troubles” was actually a valid war, given that the ICC was set up to deal solely with genocide and crimes of war?

Oops I do believe the postings suggest a coalition of instructions from Headquarters to shut down this story as soon as possible and ridicule contributors who take the Courts view. Someone at a very senior level of the Republican leadership is worried.

@Mark- I am not, and never have been, a member of Sinn Fein or the IRA, so my opinions on this story are my own, and are based on my own academic experiences. If you do not agree with my opinion that is fair enough, but trying to cast such dispersions on my character are not justified or acceptable.

The issues arise due to the fact that statements about a vile murder that is still under investigation appear to be in the public domain and the State is unable to ignore such a reality. If the participants in these interviews had not wished for their contents to be known to the Authorities then they should never have given them. This was a particularly vile murder of a young mother who appeared to have been executed for human kindness shown to a wounded British soldier. She was a non combatant and was not killed by a stray bullet or a shrapnel ricochet but rather by a decision taken at a high level of the Republican movement. Her family are quite entitled to know the truth.

Mark,

Are you serious? You can’t be bothered to do a google search on that???

The participants were informed their interviews would NOT be divulged until after their deaths. The US government then decided to pander like a lapdog to Britain. They need Britain if they want to invade Iran. America is broke after the Iraq invasion.

Well said Mark

As in Mark Hamilton

No man on public sector bloated pay is better than the man who earns his own way.

Your first obligation in life is to not be an undue burden on others.

Every person earning his own way is better than the leech – even you.

Says a loyalist settler desperately trying to open up old wounds.

mcbab is proof that one doesn’t need to know how to write, or think to be a Paisleybot.

Irish government will gain from this as it will most likely damage sinn fein

Your comment suggests you haven’t taken your meds.

Conor,

Leave the past behind you.

Stephen
Just curious:
is mindlessly repeating the same tripe over and over again “manly” ?

@Mark Hamilton- The people on this thread do not have to dance to your tune, regardless of your eagerness to speak down to them from your self created perch They are entitled to add anything that they like to this debate. If Ann wants to discuss other, related things she can and should do so free of your snide interjections. Regardless of your high opinion of yourself, you are not the administrator of this site, so your ignorant dismissal of her addition is unwelcome. The self indulgent assumptions you have made about the contributors to this debate reveal a lot about your character. When I challenged your comments about me earlier, where you cast dispersions on my character, and claimed I was part of a Sinn Fein/IRA attempt to sabotage this debate, you failed to reply, choosing instead to move on to make similar snide remarks to others. I am still waiting for you to withdraw that spurious allegation by the way! While I disagree with many peoples outlooks in this thread, particularly when it comes to the mindless violence perpetrated by the Provos, I respect their contribution and try not to belittle them. The contributors are entitled to add anything they like to the debate. Its the reason the Journal is so popular. It seems that even ignorant people like you can have a voice, which is unfortunate, but we have to take the good with the bad, it seems.

Mark

Let me assure you that I firmly believe the McConville family deserve both justice and the truth, about what happened to their loved one. I would imagine that that would go without saying. People dont need to make that point, it should be automatically presumed.

My first comment was a question posed to Brian Lyons regarding a comment he made, and is directly related to the article. If the tapes are found to incriminate any member of Sinn Fein should that person be brought before the ICC as opposed to a British court with a British judge.

As for my second comment, why would you conclude that it is not relevant? If those tapes also contain any information relating to the collusion between MI5, the British Army, the RUC and loyalist paramilitaries, will this information be made publicly available. The families of those who have lost their lives, and those who have to live with the physical and emotonal scars because of collusion with the loyalist parmilitaries. Are they also not entitled to justice and all information relating to such activities.

Of course the judgement, coming when it did, is taking the focus away from Camerons announcement that they are going to carry out a criminal enquiry into the murder of 14 inncoent people on Bloody Sunday. Really the peoples eyes need to remain firmly on both balls and not let one overshadow the other.

And thankyou Kenneth.