RELATIVES IN APPEAL FOR NEW INQUIRY
Relatives in appeal for new inquiry
FAMILIES of the Omagh bomb victims have this week made a fresh appeal for a new inquiry to be held into the Garda handling of the incident.
Calls have been made for a new inspectorate being set up in the Republic to publicly review the action taken by the Garda in the run-up to the atrocity, and in particular to investigate allegations that senior gardai ignored a bomb warning made by agent handler Detective John White just prior to the attack.
The inspectorate was recommended by the Morris Tribunal into alleged Garda corruption in Donegal.
Mr Michael Gallagher, whose son Aidan died in the blast, said that it was international best practice to review an inquiry regularly using outside experts.
He said: "I know the Metropolitan Police bring in new people to look at a serious crime investigation after 28 days, in the hope that a fresh pair of eyes will notice something different. I would be keen to see this body look at Omagh."
"As far as I am aware, the Omagh investigation by the Garda has never been reviewed. We still have the same senior officer in charge of the inquiry six years after the event and we do not hear updates from the Omagh investigation in the south unless we ask for them," he added.
And as another part of their campaign for a tribunal into events surrounding the massacre, the Omagh families have presented a package of information to the Human Rights Commission in Belfast, which includes a damning report on the North's strategies for defence against terrorism.
Compiled over five years by Mark Breslin, who lost his wife, Geraldine, in the bomb, the dossier looks at anti-terrorism strategies adopted worldwide, and, according to Mr Breslin, Northern Ireland has been left far behind.
A big part of the families' frustration is based on the way that the town was evacuated prior to the explosion, and while they do not blame officers on the ground, they feel that there was a lack of basic training on bomb-threat procedures.
While local councils in Britain are required by law to produce and publish emergency plans, there are no such regulations in place here.
A spokesperson said that a strategic group had been set up to devise overall plans for emergency situations in Northern Ireland, and that a major incident plan had been set out whereby police, ambulance and fire services would work together if a major terrorist attack ever took place.
FAMILIES of the Omagh bomb victims have this week made a fresh appeal for a new inquiry to be held into the Garda handling of the incident.
Calls have been made for a new inspectorate being set up in the Republic to publicly review the action taken by the Garda in the run-up to the atrocity, and in particular to investigate allegations that senior gardai ignored a bomb warning made by agent handler Detective John White just prior to the attack.
The inspectorate was recommended by the Morris Tribunal into alleged Garda corruption in Donegal.
Mr Michael Gallagher, whose son Aidan died in the blast, said that it was international best practice to review an inquiry regularly using outside experts.
He said: "I know the Metropolitan Police bring in new people to look at a serious crime investigation after 28 days, in the hope that a fresh pair of eyes will notice something different. I would be keen to see this body look at Omagh."
"As far as I am aware, the Omagh investigation by the Garda has never been reviewed. We still have the same senior officer in charge of the inquiry six years after the event and we do not hear updates from the Omagh investigation in the south unless we ask for them," he added.
And as another part of their campaign for a tribunal into events surrounding the massacre, the Omagh families have presented a package of information to the Human Rights Commission in Belfast, which includes a damning report on the North's strategies for defence against terrorism.
Compiled over five years by Mark Breslin, who lost his wife, Geraldine, in the bomb, the dossier looks at anti-terrorism strategies adopted worldwide, and, according to Mr Breslin, Northern Ireland has been left far behind.
A big part of the families' frustration is based on the way that the town was evacuated prior to the explosion, and while they do not blame officers on the ground, they feel that there was a lack of basic training on bomb-threat procedures.
While local councils in Britain are required by law to produce and publish emergency plans, there are no such regulations in place here.
A spokesperson said that a strategic group had been set up to devise overall plans for emergency situations in Northern Ireland, and that a major incident plan had been set out whereby police, ambulance and fire services would work together if a major terrorist attack ever took place.
Further Information
Publisher: TYRONE CONSTITUTION
Ref: TC/1865
Published Date: 12-Aug-04
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