HAUNTING THE HELL BOUND BOMBERS
HAUNTING THE HELL BOUND BOMBERS
Janet DEVLIN
TELEVISION
WHAT are we to make of Panorama's controversial investigation.
Who Bombed Omagh? (Mon, BBC1,10pm). What are we to make of a justice system which allows known killers to walk the streets because the evidence isn't strong enough to put them behind bars?
And why, as the mother of young Donegal victim Oran Doherty asked, shouldn't the bombers pay for what they did?
She's not alone in her confusion. It's a question that many in Northern Ireland have been asking since the Good Friday Agreement.
The RUC believe they know who killed 29 men, women and unborn babies: people of both religions, three nationalities and various political beliefs.
Detectives estimate that 15 Real IRA cohorts were involved in the plot, with Panorama naming four prime suspects.
I do not propose to debate whether or not the programme should have named names - a court decided that the broadcast was no impediment to future legal action.
It was professionally put together, well-researched, and obviously had co-operation from several different sources. I will remark, however, that despite the revulsion that greeted the attack in the Republic, the courts there are already not known for the ease with which they extradite suspected criminals for trial in Northern Ireland.
And that, after two years of intense investigation, it is unlikely the RUC or Garda will achieve any arrests anyway, despite their determination to continue their investigations.
Meanwhile, the Real IRA continues to carry out bombings; but I'm sure members of that organisation and others are by now much better informed in the use of mobile phones.
The Panorama names will surprise few who know the individuals, and have little relevance for those who don't. I suspect that although the alleged perpetrators are inconvenienced and irritated by the media intrusion, they are otherwise uncaring.
So many headlines have been written about Omagh, and so much diligent detective work done, that it is difficult to ascertain what service the programme could have performed, except to give vent to a very understandable expression of public outrage.
Even so, repeating the details might have better informed the rest of us, but will have done little to ease the suffering of the maimed or derive justice for the dead. Presenter John Ware, showing a lot more guts, metaphorically speaking, than Roger Cook, confronted the named men in the heart of bandit country on both sides of the border.
Harrowing film of the aftermath of the blast resurrected the appalling devastation, while relatives of the dead told in heartrending detail how their loved ones spent their final hours.
They cling to the hope that they will finally see justice done, that someone, somewhere, will get an attack of conscience and give evidence in court against the killers. They were powerful appeals and made powerful viewing, but one can't help feeling that they will fall on deaf ears.
An Army medic who helped save lives that day said Omagh town centre looked like hell, and that everytime he looks at his children's faces, he sees the faces of dead children.
Clearly, the degenerates who bombed Omagh have no conscience and are lacking in basic human decency to an extent that would probably shock and appal the victims' relatives to the very bottom of their souls.
But, God willing, the people who made, transported and triggered that bomb, will also be haunted for the rest of their lives by images of dead children on the faces of their own sons and daughters. And, if there is a hell, no doubt they'll go there too.
Janet DEVLIN
TELEVISION
WHAT are we to make of Panorama's controversial investigation.
Who Bombed Omagh? (Mon, BBC1,10pm). What are we to make of a justice system which allows known killers to walk the streets because the evidence isn't strong enough to put them behind bars?
And why, as the mother of young Donegal victim Oran Doherty asked, shouldn't the bombers pay for what they did?
She's not alone in her confusion. It's a question that many in Northern Ireland have been asking since the Good Friday Agreement.
The RUC believe they know who killed 29 men, women and unborn babies: people of both religions, three nationalities and various political beliefs.
Detectives estimate that 15 Real IRA cohorts were involved in the plot, with Panorama naming four prime suspects.
I do not propose to debate whether or not the programme should have named names - a court decided that the broadcast was no impediment to future legal action.
It was professionally put together, well-researched, and obviously had co-operation from several different sources. I will remark, however, that despite the revulsion that greeted the attack in the Republic, the courts there are already not known for the ease with which they extradite suspected criminals for trial in Northern Ireland.
And that, after two years of intense investigation, it is unlikely the RUC or Garda will achieve any arrests anyway, despite their determination to continue their investigations.
Meanwhile, the Real IRA continues to carry out bombings; but I'm sure members of that organisation and others are by now much better informed in the use of mobile phones.
The Panorama names will surprise few who know the individuals, and have little relevance for those who don't. I suspect that although the alleged perpetrators are inconvenienced and irritated by the media intrusion, they are otherwise uncaring.
So many headlines have been written about Omagh, and so much diligent detective work done, that it is difficult to ascertain what service the programme could have performed, except to give vent to a very understandable expression of public outrage.
Even so, repeating the details might have better informed the rest of us, but will have done little to ease the suffering of the maimed or derive justice for the dead. Presenter John Ware, showing a lot more guts, metaphorically speaking, than Roger Cook, confronted the named men in the heart of bandit country on both sides of the border.
Harrowing film of the aftermath of the blast resurrected the appalling devastation, while relatives of the dead told in heartrending detail how their loved ones spent their final hours.
They cling to the hope that they will finally see justice done, that someone, somewhere, will get an attack of conscience and give evidence in court against the killers. They were powerful appeals and made powerful viewing, but one can't help feeling that they will fall on deaf ears.
An Army medic who helped save lives that day said Omagh town centre looked like hell, and that everytime he looks at his children's faces, he sees the faces of dead children.
Clearly, the degenerates who bombed Omagh have no conscience and are lacking in basic human decency to an extent that would probably shock and appal the victims' relatives to the very bottom of their souls.
But, God willing, the people who made, transported and triggered that bomb, will also be haunted for the rest of their lives by images of dead children on the faces of their own sons and daughters. And, if there is a hell, no doubt they'll go there too.
Further Information
Publisher: BELFAST TELEGRAPH
Ref: BT/0608
Published Date: 14-Oct-00
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