Loyalist murder victim has ‘no faith’ in PSNI
Posted By: February 23, 2019
IRISH CONGRESSIONAL BRIEFING
Distributed to Congress by Irish National Caucus
“On April 22, 1999, the late, great Congressman Ben Gilman (R-NY), Chairman of the full House International Relations Committee—God rest his noble Jewish-American soul— kept his long-time promise to me and held a Congressional Hearing: ‘Need for New and Acceptable Police for Northern Ireland.’ It was a historic landmark for the Irish National Caucus in its resolute campaign to raise the pivotal issue of biased, sectarian, and Anti-Catholic policing in Northern Ireland.
When I testified, this was the very first paragraph of my Testimony to the Congressional Hearing:’If the peace-process in Northern Ireland is to succeed — and if the great promise of the Good Friday Agreement is to be fulfilled — it is absolutely essential that there be a police service that is acceptable to the Catholic/Nationalist/Republican community. There has never been such a police service in Northern Ireland — and that has always been one of the fundamental causes of The Troubles. Indeed, the police personify what the conflict is about — the imbalance of power between the two communities and the inequality and sectarianism of the State of Northern Ireland [artificially created, of course, by England in 1920 and still maintained by England to this day; we can hardly blame Wales and Scotland].’
How sad it is to read— almost 21 years since that historic Congressional Hearing— on the front page of today’s Irish News of Belfast this headline: ‘Loyalist murder victim has ‘no faith’ in PSNI.’And, the article below explains:’It comes as Sinn Féin said nationalist confidence in the PSNI was at ‘rock bottom’ after the disclosure controversy and amid calls for the return of 50:50 recruitment. The Irish News reported this week that 83 percent of senior officers are Protestant.’
How, in God’s name, does this build up —pending the inevitable re-unification of Ireland —the Beloved Community, for which the Irish National Caucus calls? (The term Beloved Community was first devised by Josiah Royce (1855–1916) but was made world famous by Blessed Martin Luther King, Jr. who invested it with a deeper and wider meaning).”
Sineád Monaghan, whose father Sean McParland was shot dead by loyalists 25 years ago this weekend, says she has ‘no faith’ in the PSNI
Connla Young. Irish News. Belfast. Saturday, February 2, 2019THE daughter of a Catholic man murdered by the UVF says she has “no faith” in the PSNI as the Policing Board revealed plans to hold a special meeting to discuss failures to disclose information about loyalist murders to the Police Ombudsman.
Sean McParland (55) was shot by police informer Gary Haggarty as he babysat his four grandchildren at Skegoniel Avenue in north Belfast in February 1994 and died a week later. Tomorrow is the 25th anniversary of his death. Haggarty, a UVF commander turned supergrass, [‘a police informer who implicates a large number of people’] served just over four years behind bars despite pleading guilty to five murders and more than 500 other paramilitary crimes.
Concerns have been raised after it emerged that the PSNI failed to provide Ombudsman Michael Maguire with “significant” information relating to the UFF murder of five Catholic men at Sean Graham’s Bookmakers on south Belfast’s Ormeau Road in February 1992. The PSNI has since apologized. Mr. McParland’s daughter Sineád Monaghan said she has no confidence in the PSNI in light of recent revelations.
“I have no faith whatsoever in the police because they were behind it. They let it happen. They knew it was going to happen,” she said.
Ms. Monaghan said she was shocked to learn that the police had not provided information to Dr. Maguire.
“It’s another tactic from the police – just holding things back from the innocent people, not letting the families get truth and justice that they deserve,” she said.
Responding, Chief Superintendent Raymond Murray said: “We do not withhold information as a tactic. The Sean McParland murder investigation remains part of a live police inquiry.”
Last year the Public Prosecution Service said it was reviewing decisions not to prosecute eight people – including two retired police officers – in connection with Mr. McParland’s murder.
On Friday a spokesman for the prosecution service said that review is “ongoing”.
A Policing Board spokeswoman said a full report has been received from the chief constable and the disclosure issue will be discussed at a special meeting on Tuesday.
It comes as Sinn Féin said nationalist confidence in the PSNI was at “rock bottom” after the disclosure controversy and amid calls for the return of 50:50 recruitment. The Irish News reported this week that 83 percent of senior officers are Protestant.
On Friday DUP MLA Mervyn Storey called the 50:50 policy “institutionalized sectarian discrimination” and said it will “not be coming back”.
