Families of Bloody Sunday victims criticise decision
Wednesday, 13 October 1999 22:11
The families of fourteen people shot dead on Bloody Sunday in Derry have criticised a decision by the Saville Inquiry to grant anonymity to all soldiers who were present in 1972. In a series of rulings, the Bloody Sunday Inquiry said it that had no option but to withhold the identities of all military witnesses.
Lord Saville's inquiry originally ruled that British soldiers who fired their weapons on Bloody Sunday would be identified. In July, that decision was overturned by the Court of Appeal in London. In its latest decision following a preliminary hearing in Derry, the inquiry team has extended anonymity to soldiers who did not discharge their weapons.
A British Ministry of Defence spokesman said that the decision provided a crucial measure of protection for all military witnesses who, he believed, could have been subjected to the threat of terrorist reprisal. However, solicitor Peter Madden, whose firm represents most of the 14 bereaved families, disputed the claim.
He said that the relatives believed the soldiers had nothing to fear from being named, apart from the embarrassment of being involved in the events of Bloody Sunday. The Bloody Sunday Inquiry also ordered several media organisations to disclose the identities of their sources in programmes and articles about the shootings, unless it can obtain the information by other means.
Lord Saville's team said that it was referring the case of Daily Telegraph journalist, Toby Harnden, to the Director of Public Prosecutions for destroying notes and audio tapes of interviews with several of his sources.
