RUC & PSNI Colluded with Loyalists Murderers

international | rights, freedoms and repression | press release Monday January 22, 2007 16:56 by rdooling@swbell.net - Irish American Unity Conference (IAUC) rdooling at swbell dot net

Per Ombudsman's Report Released Today

One loyalist and his associates murdered ten people and committed
seventy-two other crimes while colluding with police in N. Ireland.
This occurred with the knowledge and support of the Police command
at the highest level. These are the conclusions of the N. Ireland Police
Ombudsman’s (Nuala O'Loan) report publicly released today regarding
the actions of one loyalist unit between 1991 and 2003.

RUC & PSNI Colluded With Loyalists Murderers - Ombudsman Reports

For Immediate Release

January 22, 2007 – Washington, DC – One loyalist and his associates
murdered ten people and committed seventy-two other crimes while
colluding with police in N. Ireland. This occurred with the knowledge
and support of the Police command at the highest level. These are
the conclusions of the N. Ireland Police Ombudsman’s (Nuala
O'Loan) report publicly released today regarding the actions of one
loyalist unit between 1991 and 2003.

Dr. Robert C. Linnon, President of the Irish American Unity
Conference (IAUC), said: “The reluctance of Sinn Fein to support a
police force mired in corruption is understandable.

“These killings included both Catholics and Protestants victims.
They occurred as late as two years after the signing of the Good
Friday Agreement and are indicative of widespread and systematic
corruption in the police force of N. Ireland.

“Mrs. O’Loan’s reported on murders, attempted murders, shootings,
beatings, bomb attacks and drug dealings committed by loyalists
with the knowledge and consent of the Royal Ulster Constabulary
(RUC) and the Policing Service of N. Ireland (PSNI).

"Mrs. O’Loan stated that the police ‘could not have operated as they
did without the knowledge and support at the highest levels of the
RUC and the PSNI.’ These are the most damning disclosures yet.

“Sources from within the PSNI have reported that some of these
Special Branch officers are still in positions of authority with the
PSNI.

“This report provides additional information on collusion and affirms
earlier reports written by:

:: Sir John Stevens (Metropolitan Police Commissioner),
:: Retired Canadian Judge Peter Cory,
:: Professor Douglass Cassel (Law professor at Notre Dame), and
:: John Stalker (Manchester Deputy Chief Constable).

“At last year’s IAUC convention in Chicago, Professor Cassel said
that neither the Police Ombudsman nor the PSNI Historical Enquiries
Team could fully investigate these conspiracies. Neither one has the
authority to delve into collusion involving the British military, nor to
determine how far up the political chain of command these actions
were sanctioned.

“We believe that the British government needs to repudiate the prior
illegal actions of the RUC, the PSNI and the British military. They
need to establish an independent inquiry into collusion and
prosecute those who failed to enforce the rule of law.

Mrs. O’Loan’s report related only to one loyalist group in one section
of Belfast. The public inquiry should be broader in scope to include
all allegations of collusion which have evidential support.

“The ‘public interest’ excuse, often used by the Northern Irish Public
Prosecution Service not to bring charges in politically sensitive
cases, should not be used here. These incidents are neither isolated
nor ancient history. They indicate an endemic corruption of policing
and political authority, which very well may exist today despite any
reforms or safeguards that have recently been implemented.

Dr Linnon concluded: “To gain the confidence of all sections of N.
Ireland in the PSNI, the British government needs to do more than
ask for it. It needs to affirmatively demonstrate by its conduct that
confidence in the government is warranted."
# # #

Links:
N. Ireland Police Ombudsman’s office
www.policeombudsman.org

Operation Ballast: Public Statement
http://www.policeombudsman.org/press.cfm?Press_ID=153&a...=2007

The full report can be found on our website at
http://www.policeombudsman.org/publicationsuploads/BALL...F.pdf

Contact: Deanna Turner

Irish American Unity Conference
National Office
611 Pennsylvania Ave, SE #4150
Washington, D.C. 20003
#1-800-947-4282

http://www.iauc.org
Email: iauc@iauc.org

National Press Officer: Jay Dooling
Email: rdooling@swbell.net

"Working for Justice and Peace in a Re-united Ireland"
The IRISH AMERICAN UNITY CONFERENCE is a nationwide,
nonpartisan, nonsectarian, chapter-based human rights
organization working for justice and peace in Ireland. We
are a wholly American 501(c)(4) organization that advocates
the end of British colonial occupation and the peaceful
reunification of Ireland. We endeavor to achieve these
goals by working through the American democratic process.
Individually, our members represent every occupational and
educational stratum in the United States.

Posted by: Jay / 10:32 AM