CAPITOL HILL. Monday, December 19, 2016.

‘I am deeply sorry about the death of my dear friend, the great Ben Gilman. May God rest his noble Jewish-American soul.

Ben was a fervent advocate for Irish justice and peace, More than any other Member of Congress

in U.S. history, he tackled the real issues that Congress could rightly address. And more than any other Congressman, he worked closely with me to ensure a great Congressional injustice and cover-up would be ended — the banning of Congressional Hearings on human rights in Northern Ireland.

On October 9, 1973 — just over year since I arrived in the United States— I arranged my first Congressional Hearing. It caused deep concern in both the Irish and British embassies. After that, Congressional Hearings were, in effect, banned for over twenty years with the explicit collusion of Big Name Irish-Catholic Members of Congress.

But when the great Ben Gilman became the Chairman of the House International Relations Committee (Foreign Affairs), one of his first actions was to keep his long-time promise to me: that he would hold Congressional Hearings.

On March 15, to get the Mac Bride Principles passed into U.S. law. And that Hearing would soon be followed by another Hearing on yet another key issue of the Irish National Caucus: exposing the RUC and the need for an acceptable police for The North.

To me, this is a profound life-lesson for Irish-Americans: Irish-Catholic Congressmen covered up British injustice and oppression in Northern Ireland. A Jewish-American Congressman came to the rescue, broke the ban on Congressional Hearings and got the United States Congress to officially stand up for Irish justice and peace.

God rest the great Ben Gilman. May his name live forever in Irish history.