INTERVIEW WITH TOP DISSIDENTS SPARKS OUTRAGE
Interview with top dissident sparks outrage
A ROW broke out today after RTE broadcasted an interview with Bernadette Sands McKevitt as Omagh buried its dead.
Fine Gael Northern Ireland spokesman Charlie Flanagan said it was "particularly insensitive" to broadcast the interview at a time when funerals were taking place for the victims of the Real IRA bomb attack in Omagh.
He added: "I think it was particularly bad judgment. I think Bernadette Sands McKevitt succeeded in beating around the bush and dodging and weaving like republicans have been doing for many years in this country."
Ms Sands, the partner of dissident republican Michael McKevitt, appeared live on radio yesterday to condemn the bomb attack on Omagh.
Bernadette Sands McKevitt also welcomed the Real IRA's suspension of military operations.
Ms Sands McKevitt, together with Michael McKevitt, has reportedly moved out of their home in Dundalk because of fears for the safety of their family.
She made the comments on RTE's Liveline, a daily phone-in and interview programme. Ms Sands McKevitt, a sister of IRA man Bobby Sands who died on hunger strike in the Maze prison in 1981, said she did not know why she, Michael McKevitt and Francis Mackey, a dissident republican councillor in Omagh, were being singled out in the wake of the bombing.
She said of last Saturday's incident that left 28 people dead and more than 200 injured: "It is condemned. We will not condone it. The loss of innocent lives cannot be justified."
Vice-chairperson of the 32-County Sovereignty Committee - allegedly the political wing of the Real IRA - she said: "I don't agree with violence such as we have witnessed. I would prefer we see this done by peaceful means, because that is the only way forward."
A ROW broke out today after RTE broadcasted an interview with Bernadette Sands McKevitt as Omagh buried its dead.
Fine Gael Northern Ireland spokesman Charlie Flanagan said it was "particularly insensitive" to broadcast the interview at a time when funerals were taking place for the victims of the Real IRA bomb attack in Omagh.
He added: "I think it was particularly bad judgment. I think Bernadette Sands McKevitt succeeded in beating around the bush and dodging and weaving like republicans have been doing for many years in this country."
Ms Sands, the partner of dissident republican Michael McKevitt, appeared live on radio yesterday to condemn the bomb attack on Omagh.
Bernadette Sands McKevitt also welcomed the Real IRA's suspension of military operations.
Ms Sands McKevitt, together with Michael McKevitt, has reportedly moved out of their home in Dundalk because of fears for the safety of their family.
She made the comments on RTE's Liveline, a daily phone-in and interview programme. Ms Sands McKevitt, a sister of IRA man Bobby Sands who died on hunger strike in the Maze prison in 1981, said she did not know why she, Michael McKevitt and Francis Mackey, a dissident republican councillor in Omagh, were being singled out in the wake of the bombing.
She said of last Saturday's incident that left 28 people dead and more than 200 injured: "It is condemned. We will not condone it. The loss of innocent lives cannot be justified."
Vice-chairperson of the 32-County Sovereignty Committee - allegedly the political wing of the Real IRA - she said: "I don't agree with violence such as we have witnessed. I would prefer we see this done by peaceful means, because that is the only way forward."
Further Information
Publisher: BELFAST TELEGRAPH
Ref: BT/0103
Published Date: 20-Aug-98
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