Large crowd at funeral of Gerry Conlon in west Belfast

Posted By: June 28, 2014

Large crowd at funeral of Gerry Conlon in west Belfast
Conlon spent 14 years in prison wrongly convicted of the 1974 Guildford pub bombing

One of the Birmingham Six, Paddy Hill wipes a tear as the coffin of Gerry Conlon is carried into St. Peter’s Cathedral for his funeral Mass in Belfast today. Photograph: Charles McQuillan/Getty Images
Gerry Moriarty.Times. Saturday, June 28, 2014

A large crowd gathered in west Belfast today for the funeral of Gerry Conlon, one of the four people wrongfully convicted of the 1974 IRA pub bombings in Guildford in which five people were killed, four of them British soldiers, and 65 people wounded.
His funeral Mass took place at St Peter’s Cathedral close to Mr Conlon’s home in the Lower Falls area of west Belfast. The burial ceremony is taking place at Milltown cemetery, also in his native west Belfast.
Mass was celebrated by Fr Ciaran Dallat with the Bishop of Down and Connor Dr Noel Treanor among the celebrants.
The congregation gathered in the cathedral to remember and celebrate the life of 60-year-old Mr Conlon who, since his release in 1989, had dedicated much of his life to campaigning for people he believed had suffered injustice, just as he had. He died from lung cancer which was only diagnosed 3 weeks before his death.
Fr Dallat, who anointed Mr Conlon shortly before his death, told mourners, that he was amazed at his “readiness”. He said that Mr Conlon told him on his death bed, “I am ready for my Master to come and take me home.”
Fr Dallat said Mr Conlon lived a life filled with great pain but that “in the last 10 years he found some peace for himself”.
He spoke of how Mr Conlon blamed himself for the death of his father Giuseppe who died in prison in 1980 after he too was wrongly arrested and imprisoned. He was arrested when he came to London to try to help his son.
Fr Dallat said Mr Conlon would now have peace with Giuseppe and his late mother Sara. “Giuseppe will reassure him that it was not his fault.”
Mr Conlon’s solicitor, Gareth Peirce, who also represented the Maguire Seven, which included Giuseppe Conlon, and the Birmingham Six, also spoke about the suffering Gerry Conlon endured.

She concluded to loud applause, “In the end Gerry Conlon won. The victory was his.”
After a long campaign, Mr Conlon was released in 1989 along with the other members of the Guildford Four – Paddy Armstrong, Paul Hill and Carole Richardson.
Ms Peirce referred to his powerful reaction as he came out of the Old Bailey in London a free man and how it left a huge impression. As he left the courts he declared to the world that he had spent 15 years in prison “for something I did not do, for something I did not know anything about”.
In the 25 years since his release Mr Conlon involved himself in several possible miscarriage of justice campaigns. Part of his life, however, was blighted by a dependence on drink and drugs although these were problems that he continuously battled and ultimately largely overcame.
He is survived by his partner Alison and daughter Sara, and sisters Anne and Bridie.
One psychiatrist said Mr Conlon suffered from a form of irrecoverable post traumatic stress syndrome which was amplified by the fact that his father Giuseppe, also an innocent man, travelled to London to assist him and was also wrongly arrested and convicted.
The campaigns for the Guildford Four and Maguire Seven were also connected to the finally successful campaign on behalf of the Birmingham Six, who ultimately were exonerated of any involvement in the 1974 IRA Birmingham pub bombings in which 21 people were killed and more than 180 injured.
Among the body of mourners today was Paddy Hill, one of the Birmingham Six.
Also attending were the Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore, former Fianna Fáil Minister Eamon Ó Cuív, SDLP leader Dr Alasdair McDonnell and party colleagues Mark Durkan, Belfast Lord Mayor Nichola Mallon, Alex and Tim Attwood; the West Belfast Sinn Féin MP Paul Maskey and his MLA brother Alex. President Michael D Higgins was represented by his aide de camp Louise Conlon.