Ulster Unionist Leader Mike Nesbitt is calling on the Commission for Victims and Survivors to clarify the reasons for appointing Evelyn Glenholmes to the Victims' Forum.
The Strangford MLA, who is also Chair of the OFMDFM Committee, questions the value of putting such high profile, notorious characters onto the Forum.
"It may well be that Ms Glenholmes meets the definition of victim under the 2006 Order, but then so might some of the Paratroopers who served on the streets of Londonderry on Bloody Sunday. How would republicans react if a member of the Parachute Regiment was appointed to the Forum? I would say the same thing about that as I do about Ms Glenholmes. What added value does she bring, compared to the number of innocent victims who will be put off by her presence.
"I am not arguing there is no place at the table for republicans, or even republican ex-prisoners who meet the definition of victim. I am simply questioning the impact of high profile characters. It clearly distracts from the vital work the Forum needs to undertake, but if it also deters innocent victims from engaging with the Forum and Commission, it is clearly a mistake.”
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