PRESSURE BUILDS ON MACKEY TO RESIGN
Pressure builds on Mackey to resign
By Jonathan Turner
OMAGH councillor Francie Mackey came under pressure from a leading anti-intimidation group yesterday to resign his seat on the council.
Glyn Roberts of Families Against Intimidation and Terror said the chairman of the 32 County Sovereignty Committee should quit after Saturday's bombing.
The committee is widely regarded as the political wing of the 'Real IRA, who claimed the attack yesterday.
Mr Mackey refused to condemn the murders of the 28 victims outright when he gave a brief interview to the press on Monday.
Yesterday Mr Roberts said if Mr Mackey had "any honour or feeling for what happened" he would resign.
"There is no doubt that the 32 County Sovereignty Committee is the political wing of the Real IRA," he claimed.
"How can Mr Mackey remain a member of Omagh district council, when clearly his committee is the front for the fascists who slaughtered 28 innocent men, women and children in his own town?
"Quite frankly it is now apparent that he doesn't give a damn about the victims of Omagh, otherwise he would have condemned it outright. He should go and go now."
Meanwhile Ulster Unionist East Antrim MP Roy Beggs yesterday expressed sympathy for the victims of the Omagh bombing.
"Those who carried out the horrific attack on Saturday afternoon shoppers showed absolutely no regard for human life," he said.
"I can only express my deepest sympathy and that of my constituents in East Antrim to all the bereaved families and injured victims.
"In our prayers we ask almighty God to comfort and sustain those who have lost loved ones and to heal and restore those, who will bear the scars of the injuries sustained throughout life."
Mr Beggs added that the people of Omagh had paid a "high price" for the failure of the Irish and British governments to tackle paramilitaries.
"These evil men and women, when convicted in court, must be sentenced to serve prison sentences which match the enormity of the crimes committed against the innocents whom they brutally slaughtered in Omagh."
Meanwhile the DUP's Ian Paisley jnr called on both governments to put the release of paramilitary prisoners on hold after Saturday's attack.
"It is a disgrace that the government continues to concentrate on the release back into society of some of the most ruthless criminals," he said.
"It appears that Tony Blair has done nothing about this issue since arriving in Northern Ireland and has no intention of raising the matter."
Mr Paisley added that parties at the Maze for inmates and their families -due to start this week -should be held off until it was clear security was adequate.
IRA prisoner Liam Averill escaped during a Christmas party at the prison last year.
Workers' Party president Tom French compared the killings in Omagh to the genocide in places like Auschwitz, East Timor and Cambodia.
"The defeat of terrorism cannot be dealt with in security terms alone," he said.
"It necessitates the building of democracy in Northern Ireland. It necessitates the continuing support for the Belfast peace deal around which all our citizens can be mobilised against terrorism."
Former Northern Ireland minister Michael Ancram MP yesterday said the Omagh attack showed that decommissioning was a priority.
But reiterating Tory support for the government, he said additional measures must be introduced to prevent such an atrocity happening again.
By Jonathan Turner
OMAGH councillor Francie Mackey came under pressure from a leading anti-intimidation group yesterday to resign his seat on the council.
Glyn Roberts of Families Against Intimidation and Terror said the chairman of the 32 County Sovereignty Committee should quit after Saturday's bombing.
The committee is widely regarded as the political wing of the 'Real IRA, who claimed the attack yesterday.
Mr Mackey refused to condemn the murders of the 28 victims outright when he gave a brief interview to the press on Monday.
Yesterday Mr Roberts said if Mr Mackey had "any honour or feeling for what happened" he would resign.
"There is no doubt that the 32 County Sovereignty Committee is the political wing of the Real IRA," he claimed.
"How can Mr Mackey remain a member of Omagh district council, when clearly his committee is the front for the fascists who slaughtered 28 innocent men, women and children in his own town?
"Quite frankly it is now apparent that he doesn't give a damn about the victims of Omagh, otherwise he would have condemned it outright. He should go and go now."
Meanwhile Ulster Unionist East Antrim MP Roy Beggs yesterday expressed sympathy for the victims of the Omagh bombing.
"Those who carried out the horrific attack on Saturday afternoon shoppers showed absolutely no regard for human life," he said.
"I can only express my deepest sympathy and that of my constituents in East Antrim to all the bereaved families and injured victims.
"In our prayers we ask almighty God to comfort and sustain those who have lost loved ones and to heal and restore those, who will bear the scars of the injuries sustained throughout life."
Mr Beggs added that the people of Omagh had paid a "high price" for the failure of the Irish and British governments to tackle paramilitaries.
"These evil men and women, when convicted in court, must be sentenced to serve prison sentences which match the enormity of the crimes committed against the innocents whom they brutally slaughtered in Omagh."
Meanwhile the DUP's Ian Paisley jnr called on both governments to put the release of paramilitary prisoners on hold after Saturday's attack.
"It is a disgrace that the government continues to concentrate on the release back into society of some of the most ruthless criminals," he said.
"It appears that Tony Blair has done nothing about this issue since arriving in Northern Ireland and has no intention of raising the matter."
Mr Paisley added that parties at the Maze for inmates and their families -due to start this week -should be held off until it was clear security was adequate.
IRA prisoner Liam Averill escaped during a Christmas party at the prison last year.
Workers' Party president Tom French compared the killings in Omagh to the genocide in places like Auschwitz, East Timor and Cambodia.
"The defeat of terrorism cannot be dealt with in security terms alone," he said.
"It necessitates the building of democracy in Northern Ireland. It necessitates the continuing support for the Belfast peace deal around which all our citizens can be mobilised against terrorism."
Former Northern Ireland minister Michael Ancram MP yesterday said the Omagh attack showed that decommissioning was a priority.
But reiterating Tory support for the government, he said additional measures must be introduced to prevent such an atrocity happening again.
Further Information
Publisher: THE IRISH NEWS
Ref: IN/0071
Published Date: 19-Aug-98
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