The Ulster Unionist Justice Spokesperson, Doug Beattie MC MLA, has again called for the body of Captain Robert Nairac to be returned so that he can receive a Christian burial.
Speaking after a BBC report quoted a former RUC detective that his investigation found no evidence that Captain Robert Nairac was involved in the murder of Lurgan IRA man John Francis Green in 1975, Doug Beattie MC MLA said:
“Our troubled past has been a difficult issue to deal with as we continue to struggle with how to address legacy issues that stretch back over forty years. The speculation that has followed the abduction, torture, murder and disappearing of Captain Robert Nairac GC by the IRA has continued to undermine the memory of this brave soldier, with absolutely no credible evidence being presented that he was anything other than an Army Officer working to protect the people of Northern Ireland from terrorism.
“Of course this will be viewed as a single narrative and I accept there will be other narratives and many who will disagree with me and that is to be expected.
“In January 1975, John Francis Green, an IRA commander from Lurgan, was shot dead in County Monaghan. It is possible that this case may be subject to a future court case, and if so, the claims made by former British Army Captain Fred Holroyd can be properly assessed, along with the evidence of the police officer who investigated his claims over a two-year period as part of a six-person RUC investigatory team. The findings of two Garda inquiries which also found no credibility in Fred Holroyd’s claims can also be scrutinised should the Green family decide to take the UK Government to court in relation to this murder. This will be the Green family's decision but I am in no doubt this attempt by some to undermine the memory of Robert Nairac will be found to be nothing more than a propaganda opportunity.
“In the meantime, I commend the words of Leo Green, a brother of the deceased, in his call for those within the republican movement responsible for the abduction, torture and murder of Robert Nairac to give information into the whereabouts of his remains so the family have the opportunity to have a Christian burial for Robert and have a place to visit in order to reflect on the life of this brave soldier. I fully understand the past of Leo and Francis Green, yet as we – as a society - have moved forward, it is clear that while the Green family may never forgive and want to have the whole truth about the murder of Francis, his brother Leo has shown real compassion on this particular issue in asking for Robert Nairac's remains to be returned.
“I am in no doubt there are those within Sinn Fein and the IRA who know where Robert Nairac is buried and they are making a deliberate decision not to pass this information onto the Independent Commission for the Location of Victims Remains (ICLVR). Is this because the physical signs of torture will show the republican movement for what it was or is it just a mean spirited act or indeed a bargaining chip for other concessions? We will simply never know until the remains of Robert are recovered. Either way the question needs to be asked time and time again of Sinn Fein and the IRA – what do they have to say about the contempt shown by the IRA for the human rights of Robert Nairac and the others who were kidnapped, tortured, murdered and disappeared?”