WHEN IS SOMEONE GOING TO SAY SORRY
When is someone going to say... SORRY
Barry White
HOW I SEE IT
IF you listen carefully, you may hear the sound of reputations shattering and credibility disintegrating. I'm sorry, but I can't accept that the two inquiries into the Omagh investigation - by the RUC themselves and by the Ombudsman - were wrong and that the police did an impeccable job.
At least Ronnie Flanagan hasn't succeeded in convincing the victims' families of this. There were too many strange decisions taken, or not taken, and the explanations were not accepted by the Ombudsman's team nor, I would imagine, by a majority of the public.
We've all had a crash course in how the police work, after a major terrorist attack, and it has been illuminating. Clearly there was a lot of intelligence gathering, sifting through the data from one billion phone calls, using US satellites, they say.
There were four mobiles, we read, two of which were pay-as-you-go and can't be traced. But the bomb was crossing the border, and presumably that was why the bombers needed two that could operate north and south, as they had done before. So they borrowed them; thank goodness they didn't steal them. As soon as the Garda knew who owned the phones, which couldn't have taken them long, the investigation was as good as over. They had a complete picture of the bomb route, and the leading operatives, and all they had to do was break the false alibis.
The Garda were successful enough with Colm Murphy, the phone supplier, even though there was a little problem with false interview notes. But what about the other 15 or so? We've heard the criticism of the RUC investigation by the Ombudsman, but the Garda's action was just as important, since all the Real IRA people lived south of the border.
If we want to know how they are known but not charged, only the Garda have the answers. Why can't they be asked to give a blow-by-blow account of their activities, in the same way as the RUC?
It would have been nice to hear two of their senior officers quizzed in Omagh this week, even though I think I know their answers. The investigation is continuing, we would be told, and careless talk could prevent arrests.
The law, you might say, has been an ass in Omagh, just as it is in Derry, for the Bloody Sunday lawyers' benefit match. (Off on its travels soon, with the waters indelibly muddied by two imaginative films which again emphasise that facts and good entertainment don't mix).
The sooner the police learn to say sorry and Ombudspeople admit that investigating a crime across two jurisdictions is a nightmare, the better. We need their help, right now, without a sectarian tug-of-war.
Barry White
HOW I SEE IT
IF you listen carefully, you may hear the sound of reputations shattering and credibility disintegrating. I'm sorry, but I can't accept that the two inquiries into the Omagh investigation - by the RUC themselves and by the Ombudsman - were wrong and that the police did an impeccable job.
At least Ronnie Flanagan hasn't succeeded in convincing the victims' families of this. There were too many strange decisions taken, or not taken, and the explanations were not accepted by the Ombudsman's team nor, I would imagine, by a majority of the public.
We've all had a crash course in how the police work, after a major terrorist attack, and it has been illuminating. Clearly there was a lot of intelligence gathering, sifting through the data from one billion phone calls, using US satellites, they say.
There were four mobiles, we read, two of which were pay-as-you-go and can't be traced. But the bomb was crossing the border, and presumably that was why the bombers needed two that could operate north and south, as they had done before. So they borrowed them; thank goodness they didn't steal them. As soon as the Garda knew who owned the phones, which couldn't have taken them long, the investigation was as good as over. They had a complete picture of the bomb route, and the leading operatives, and all they had to do was break the false alibis.
The Garda were successful enough with Colm Murphy, the phone supplier, even though there was a little problem with false interview notes. But what about the other 15 or so? We've heard the criticism of the RUC investigation by the Ombudsman, but the Garda's action was just as important, since all the Real IRA people lived south of the border.
If we want to know how they are known but not charged, only the Garda have the answers. Why can't they be asked to give a blow-by-blow account of their activities, in the same way as the RUC?
It would have been nice to hear two of their senior officers quizzed in Omagh this week, even though I think I know their answers. The investigation is continuing, we would be told, and careless talk could prevent arrests.
The law, you might say, has been an ass in Omagh, just as it is in Derry, for the Bloody Sunday lawyers' benefit match. (Off on its travels soon, with the waters indelibly muddied by two imaginative films which again emphasise that facts and good entertainment don't mix).
The sooner the police learn to say sorry and Ombudspeople admit that investigating a crime across two jurisdictions is a nightmare, the better. We need their help, right now, without a sectarian tug-of-war.
Further Information
Publisher: BELFAST TELEGRAPH
Ref: BT/0845
Published Date: 26-Jan-02
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