London, June 15 (IANS) British Prime Minister David Cameron Tuesday tendered an unequivocal apology to the people of Northern Ireland for Bloody Sunday – when 13 innocent people were gunned down by the British army Jan 30, 1972 – in a bid to complete the Irish peace process that began at the turn of the century.
The apology was occasioned by the release of the report of an inquiry by a judge, Lord Saville, into the events that led to Bloody Sunday.
Cameron said: ‘The conclusions of this report are absolutely clear. There is no doubt. There is nothing equivocal, there are no ambiguities. What happened on Bloody Sunday was both unjustified and unjustifiable. It was wrong.’
‘These are shocking conclusions to read and shocking words to have to say. But you do not defend the British army by defending the indefensible,’ he added.
In his report, Lord Saville said there was no justification for the firing, that the soldiers never gave any warning before opening fire and that the firing was the result of the soldiers losing control of themselves.
‘What happened on Bloody Sunday strengthened the Provisional IRA (Irish Republican Army), increased nationalist resentment and hostility towards the Army and exacerbated the violent conflict of the years that followed. Bloody Sunday was a tragedy for the bereaved and the wounded, and a catastrophe for the people of Northern Ireland.’
The inquiry was commissioned in 1998 after the initial inquiry in 1972 by the then Lord Chief Justice, Lord Widgery, was rebuffed by the Irish nationalists. The Widgery Report blamed the civil rights activists for the police firing and even said it were the former who started firing first.
The Saville Report, which cost 191 million pounds and took 12 years to compile – the longest and costliest inquiry in British legal history — was released before the people of Northern Ireland in Londonderry Tuesday morning. The 5,000-page report will go on sale to the public at 550 pounds.
Cameron, quoting from the Saville Report in parliament, said: ‘What happened should never, ever have happened. The families of those who died should not have had to live with the pain and the hurt of that day and with a lifetime of loss. Some members of our armed forces acted wrongly. The government is ultimately responsible for the conduct of the armed forces and for that, on behalf of the government, indeed, on behalf of our country, I am deeply sorry.’
He asked the people to commit to lasting peace. ‘I hope what this report can also do it is mark the moment where we come together in this House and in the communities we represent to acknowledge our shared history, even where it divides us. And come together to close this painful chapter on Northern Ireland’s troubled past.
‘That is not to say we should ever forget or dismiss the past, but we must also move on. Northern Ireland has been transformed over the last 20 years and all of us in Westminster and Stormont must continue that work of change, coming together with all the people of Northern Ireland to build a stable, peaceful, prosperous and shared future.’
Acting Labour Party leader Harriet Harman hoped the Saville Report will help complete the peace process : ‘Notwithstanding the considerable cost of this inquiry, its value cannot be over-estimated, both in seeking the truth and facilitating the peace process.’
Though the people of Northern Ireland generally accepted the report, it was clear that their memories of Black Sunday are not easy to erase.
Jim Allister, leader of Traditional Unionist Voice, said: ‘My primary thoughts today are with the thousands of innocent victims of the IRA who have never had justice, nor benefitted from any inquiry into why their loved ones died. Thus today’s jamboree over the Saville report throws into very sharp relief the unacceptable and perverse hierarchy of victims which the preferential treatment of Bloody Sunday has created.’
People came out in the hundreds to see the Saville Report in the Londonderry Guild Hall and there was jubilation among them, particularly the family members of the Bloody Sunday victims.
Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams said: ‘Today is a day for the families of those killed and those injured on Bloody Sunday. They have campaigned for 38 years for the truth and for justice. They have campaigned for the British government to end their policy of cover-up and concealment.’
Irish President Mary McAleese said: ‘I thank Lord Saville, his colleagues and team for their work and commitment over the last 12 years. I also wish to pay tribute to former prime minister (Tony) Blair and the late Secretary of State (Majorie ‘Mo’) Mowlam for the decision to establish the inquiry.’
