Government paper discovery sparks internment test case

the_syco

http://www.breakingnews.ie/ireland/government-paper-discovery-sparks-internment-test-case-515956.html

Mobile Uers: http://m.breakingnews.ie/ireland/government-paper-discovery-sparks-internment-test-case-515956.html

The discovery of government papers from the early years of the North's Troubles has sparked a court action by former prisoners held without trial under the controversial policy of internment.

Six former internees who have reported being tortured by British troops are suing the British Ministry of Defence, the Secretary of State, the police, as well as the estate of the late Brain Faulkner, former Northern Ireland Prime Minister.

The group, who see their action as a test case for the 2,000 people interned in the early 1970s during some of the worst years of violence, said the confidential documents confirmed their long-standing belief that the policy was directed against the Catholic community and included indiscriminate arrests.

This could be interesting. Hopefully the documents show lots of details.

Sunnyisland

The ferocity of the security force tactics and the targeting of Catholic districts also turned the policy into a political own-goal that fuelled discontent.

A total of 1,981 people were detained over the period, with 1,874 internees drawn from the Catholic community, while 107 were Protestant.

A document from 1974 recording a meeting of the Northern Ireland Office, but which included the Attorney General, the British Home Office and the Ministry of Defence, showed officials asking "why only Roman Catholics were interned before 1973".

The reason given was that "in the view of the security forces there was no serious Protestant threat in that period of a kind which led to death and serious injury".

This was despite the fact that by the end of 1972 loyalist paramilitaries had killed 150 people.

imme

The article (small and not very detailed as it is) talks about new documents but doesn't go into detail.

Have they seen it or are they just reporting that a new document has been discovered.

Former internees are suing the police the report goes on to say, who is this the PSNI, they can hardly sue the RUC. Although if people are suing the estate of a man that's been dead for 40 years why not.

Whatever are they hoping to achieve by suing the former PM of NI's estate. All very odd.


As regards the jist of the story, there was a policy of internment, the policy was directed at catholics. This is the history of NI.

There was discrimination in all sorts of ways before and after The Troubles.

Is anyone surprised at this 'new' information.

nesf

Current on-going court cases cannot be discussed on here due to legal reasons. Sorry.