The families of the Time for Truth Campaign are horrified that the British Government wants to legislate to bury British war crimes in Ireland and protect its killers.
The families of the Time for Truth Campaign are horrified to hear the British Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Brandon Lewis, propose Tory plans to protect British armed forces who murdered and maimed citizens in the north of Ireland.
The families of the Time for Truth Campaign insist that this unilateral move by the British state under the cover of Covid-19 is nothing but an attempt to bury British war crimes and protect murderers.
This perfidy follows widespread white-picket protests by the families of the Time for Truth Campaign on Saturday (10th July) across the north of Ireland which demanded:
- · NO amnesty for murderers in the British armed forces;
- · NO political interference in due process of the law, including legacy inquests, civil actions and judicial reviews;
- · NO stay on current or future prosecutions.
Spokesperson for the Time for Truth Campaign, Ciarán MacAirt said:
“Thousands have joined the Time for Truth Campaign and marched in support of the Stormont House Agreement, which was agreed by the British and Irish Governments, and by the main parties in the north of Ireland. We mobilised in support of the Lord Chief Justice’s 5-year legacy inquest plan and the proper funding of the Office of the Police Ombudsman. Nearly 15 thousand of our families and friends responded to the consultation on dealing with the legacy of conflict in the country. We are resolute that there should be no amnesty for conflict-related offences and we all should be equal in the eyes of the law.”
“Nevertheless, the perfidious British Government wants to ignore its international agreements and suppress our voices. It is running scared from truth, justice and acknowledgement.”
“The weaselly words of Brandon Lewis and the British Government count for nothing, and they treat victims and survivors with contempt. The British state’s interests may now lie in burying its war crimes and protecting its killers, but our families will continue to fight for our basic human rights.”
/ENDS
NOTES FOR EDITORS
For further comment, email Ciarán info@tftcampaign.com
For further information on the Time for Truth Campaign >> here
Time for Truth’s modest demands:
- · Implement the Stormont House Agreement in a human rights compliant manner and properly resource its mechanisms for dealing with the legacy of the past;
- · Provide proper funding for the Lord Chief Justice`s 5-year legacy inquest plan;
- · Provide adequate funding to allow the Office of the Police Ombudsman to complete outstanding historic investigations;
- · Fulfil outstanding Weston Park legacy Agreements and hold a public inquiry into the State murder of human rights lawyer Pat Finucane.
The families of the Time for Truth Campaign have campaigned to protect the rights of victims and survivors of the conflict in the face of British Government intransigence and failure to address the legacy of the conflict in the North of Ireland. Our fears over the British Government’s proposed Legacy Bill are shared by leading Human Rights NGO’s, academics and lawyers.
