The Ulster Unionist Party’s Justice spokesperson, Doug Beattie MC MLA, has said that the UVF promise to reveal the extent of its activities in Ballymurphy in August 1971, should be met with a similar disclosure of IRA activities in the area at that time.
Doug Beattie MC MLA said:
“In conflict truth is a rare commodity. It relies not just on individuals’ recollections of the day and written reports and investigations, but it also needs the input from all those involved. In the case of the Ballymurphy families - who have been searching for the truth for well over 45 years – that truth must be delivered by all those involved over that two-day period where 10 civilians were shot dead.
“The 48-hour period in which ten people lost their lives in Ballymurphy between the 9th and 11th August 1971 was a particularly violent one, even by the awful standards of the time. Across Northern Ireland, 23 people lost their lives, including civilians, soldiers, IRA members and the first serving member of the UDR killed in the Troubles, Winston Donnell. The deaths ranged from Belfast to Londonderry, Tyrone and Armagh. 13 people died on the 9th, six on the 10th and four on the 11th. In reality, all hell was being let loose across Northern Ireland, coinciding with the introduction of Internment.
“With regard to Ballymurphy, it is encouraging to see that over 30 former members of the army who served at that time are willing to give evidence at the inquest – from a company strength of 120, most of whom are either dead or cannot be traced - this is a sizeable contribution.
“However there have always been claims that the military were not the only participant in the conflict over those two fateful days. Indeed ‘Lost Lives’ documenting the death of Joan Connolly on 9th August 1971 clearly states that ‘her death took place as an intensive three-way gun-battle started around Ballymurphy.’ That three-way gun-battle saw soldiers firing from the Henry Taggart base, the Vere Foster school and the rooftops in Springmartin. The UVF were active firing from the Springmartin estate and the IRA returned fire from a variety of locations including Ballymurphy and Moyard.
“This is not new evidence and it is not unusual for the time. In 1972 loyalists and the IRA regularly engaged in gun battles at interface areas, as was the case in the so-called ‘Battle at Springmartin’ in May of that year. What is new is that the UVF have now come forward to claim that they have new evidence and that the evidence will show that they were responsible for some of the deaths which have been attributed to the British military at Ballymurphy in 1971. We do not know if this information is accurate, we do not know if it will hold up to proper scrutiny but what we do need to do is ensure it is tested by the Coroner’s court and the PSNI. After all, the Ballymurphy families want and deserve the truth, not just a narrative that will be undermined in years to come.
“There is of course a third group that was involved during this period and who could help the families by coming forward with their evidence of what happened – the IRA. For them to continue to be silent when it is clear they were involved in various engagements in the Ballymurphy area with loyalist paramilitary groups and the British military shows that whatever is planned for the legacy mechanisms, republican terrorists will not be active participants.
“I welcome any information from any quarter that can give victims’ families truth and hopefully lead to justice. This information the UVF are willing to give to the coroner’s court may well be a piece of the missing jigsaw or it may be shown to be completely inaccurate. Without a doubt, ballistics, eyewitness reports, written reports and the input from the military, the UVF and the IRA would give the families closure and if the truth is what we are after, then nobody should fear anyone willing to give information.”