FINUCANE MOD FILES WITHHELD - 'Colonel J' file goes to DPP
Andersontown News, www.irelandclick.com
February 14, 2003
The North Belfast News has learned that the MOD is stalling on the hand-over of thousands of documents relating to the murder of solicitor Pat Finucane.
An informed source yesterday confirmed that the MOD has been holding documents back from investigators, which are thought to be crucial to the case.
On the same day that the MOD stalling emerged, Metropolitan Police Commissioner John Stevens announced that papers are to be sent to the DPP regarding former Force Research Unit (FRU) chief Brigadier Gordon Kerr.
The FRU was a British Army special unit which handled the loyalist agents involved in the murder.
But Pat Finucane's son, Michael, blasted the announcement by the 'Stevens 3' investigation as "nothing more than an empty headline".
"This is simply a very hollow, transparent piece of public relations.
“There is no prosecution. There are no charges.
"The Stevens investigation has been doomed from the outset and it is destined to fail. And this announcement is simply an attempt to justify the unjustifiable.
"Stevens tried to extract confidential information from journalist Ed Moloney – and failed."
"He tried to prosecute Billy Stobie – and failed. And ultimately he cost Billy Stobie his life," he said.
Michael Finucane was speaking after a meeting yesterday between the Finucane family and Taoiseach Bertie Ahern in Dublin.
The family used the meeting to express deep concern at the British government's response to the outcome of Canadian Judge Peter Cory's examination of the North Belfast solicitor's murder in 1989.
Key concerns include the with-holding of security documents and the possible use of Public Interest Immunity (PII) Certificates. The family also expressed fears to the Taoiseach that the British government will selectively interpret and systematically stall on implementing any of Judge Cory's recommendations.
The British government included Pat Finucane's murder in a set of six cases to be looked at by Judge Cory following negotiations between the North's political parties at Weston Park.
At a meeting on Wednesday – Pat Finucane's anniversary – the family made a formal submission to Judge Cory calling for a "full, independent, international, public inquiry into all of the circumstances surrounding the murder of Pat Finucane".
The family's position has been supported by Sinn Féin MLA Gerry Kelly.
"A lot of the detail of what happened around the murder of Pat Finucane is common knowledge. We all know that evidence in this case has been suppressed, with-held and in some cases destroyed.
"It is recognised internationally that Pat Finucane's murder was the result of British state collusion with loyalist paramilitaries yet the British government are stalling on the setting up of a transparent inquiry to expose the truth.
"What we need now is immediate action from Tony Blair," he said.
North Belfast SDLP councillor Pat Convery was also forthright in his demand for a "full, transparent public inquiry that lays bare every detail and every involvement of the security forces and loyalist paramilitaries surrounding the murder of Pat Finucane.
"The Finucane family and the community, in general, should be afforded the full co-operation and support of the British and Irish governments."
Cllr Convery also said that the investigation team should be "fully encouraged and supported to find the truth, prosecute the guilty and inform society".
The case of Pat Finucane has been at the centre of a crescendo of collusion claims over recent years.
These culminated in February 1999 when British Irish Rights Watch prepared a confidential report on the complicity of RUC and British army agents, working within loyalist murder-squads, that was submitted to the British and Irish governments.
Speaking in the Dáil, Irish Foreign Minister Brian Cowen said it was as a direct result of this report that “the government called for a public inquiry into the circumstances of his murder".
When the Cory Report was announced at Weston Park in May 2001, both governments gave assurances that they would implement all recommendations emanating from Judge Cory's examination.
But Judge Cory's terms of reference have been widely criticised as "toothless" – due to the inability to subpoena witnesses and the reliance on "assurances" of co-operation from the British government.
Meanwhile, the third investigation into the murder being conducted by Metropolitan Police Commissioner John Stevens, at the request of the RUC, is still no nearer to completion.
Speaking at his Belfast press conference yesterday, John Stevens confirmed that he now has no idea when the investigation – which was scheduled to finish in November – will be completed.
The 'Stevens’ 3' investigation was previously headed up by the current PSNI Chief Constable Hugh Orde.
Pat Finucane's family have expressed deep concern about Orde's recent admission that the 'Stevens’ 3' report will never be published in full due to "intelligence issues".
Journalist:Jarlath Kearney