Claudy report to be published by Ombudsman

[Denn Forever]

Truth and Reconciliation?

NI Ombudsman to publish Claudy findings

Tuesday, 24 August 2010 10:14
The Northern Ireland Police Ombudsman will today publish the results of his investigation into the IRA bombing of Claudy, Co Derry, in July 1972 in which nine local people were killed.

Al Hutchinson is expected to produce significant new evidence about claims that a Catholic priest, who was a suspect in the police investigation, was moved out of the area and never questioned.

The priest, Fr James Chesney, who was transferred to a parish in Co Donegal soon after the Claudy murders, died from cancer in 1980.

AdvertisementTwo months ago, new British Prime Minister David Cameron made an effort to deal with one of the most controversial days of the Troubles, Bloody Sunday.

Mr Hutchinson will produce new evidence about the three, no-warning, IRA car bombs that went off 16km from Derry city, just six months after Bloody Sunday, killing nine innocent civilians.

Nobody has ever been charged or convicted in relation to those murders and the issue remains extremely sensitive territory.

Mr Hutchinson has examined official police, Northern Ireland Office and Catholic Church material.

His report will detail the different roles played by the RUC, the then Secretary of State William Whitelaw, and the Catholic Church authorities in Fr Chesney's transfer.

[lynchbhoy]

will be interesting to see if anyone is named or arrested arising out of this.
Esp since the authorities and police have known the identities of the culprits immediately after this happening !

[orangeman]

Claudy bomb: conspiracy allowed IRA priest to go free
The report found Fr James Chesney was an IRA leader and was involved in the bombing The police, the Catholic Church and the government conspired to cover up a priest's role in one of the worst atrocities of the Northern Ireland Troubles, an investigation has found.
Nine people died in bombings in Claudy, County Londonderry on 31 July 1972.

The NI Police Ombudsman's probe found that high-level talks led to Fr James Chesney, a suspect in the attack, being moved to the Irish Republic.




No action was ever taken against Fr Chesney, who died in 1980.

In 2002, the Ombudsman, Al Hutchinson, began a probe into the original investigation.

His report, published on Tuesday, found that detectives in 1972 had concluded that Fr Chesney was an IRA leader and had been involved in the bombing.

He added that by acquiescing to a deal between the government and the Catholic Church to move Fr Chesney to a parish in the Irish republic, the Royal Ulster Constabulary was guilty of a "collusive act".
He said this had compromised the investigation and the decision "failed those who were murdered, injured or bereaved" in the bombing.


He said that if officers involved were still alive, "their actions would have demanded explanation, which would have been the subject of further investigation".

As well as investigating complaints made against the Police Service of NI, the Police Ombudsman also has the authority to look at investigations carried out by their predecessors, the RUC.

'Never arrested'

Mr Hutchinson said some detectives' attempts to pursue Fr Chesney were frustrated ahead of a meeting between Northern Ireland Secretary William Whitelaw and the leader of Ireland's Catholics, Cardinal Conway.

There, it was agreed that the priest would be moved to a parish in the Irish Republic.

The Ombudsman found that the Chief Constable, Sir Graham Shillington, was made aware of this decision.

Mr Shillington said he would "prefer a move to Tipperary".

Fr Chesney, who denied involvement in terrorist activities to his superiors, was never arrested.

On Tuesday the head of the Catholic Church in Ireland, Cardinal Sean Brady, said the church was not involved in a cover up over the role of Fr Chesney.

Continue reading the main story
Claudy bombings

Claudy is a small village, with a mixed Protestant and Catholic population, six miles south-east of Londonderry
Nine people were killed in the three blasts, which happened on 31 July 1972
No warnings were given by the bombers
The IRA never claimed involvement, but were assumed to be behind them
Local priest Father James Chesney rumoured to have been a member of the IRA unit responsible
He was transferred by the Catholic Church across the border to Co Donegal
He died in 1980 without ever being questioned by the police over the atrocity
"The Church was approached by the secretary of state at the instigation of senior members of the RUC," he said.

"Furthermore, the Church subsequently reported back to the secretary of state the outcome of its questioning of Fr Chesney into his alleged activities.

"The actions of Cardinal Conway or any other Church authority did not prevent the possibility of future arrest and questioning of Fr Chesney."

Sinn Fein, the political party closely indentified with the IRA, said the deaths in Claudy were "wrong and should not have happened." The party repeated its call for an independent international truth commission.

BBC Ireland correspondent Mark Simpson said that the report lacks any explanation from Cardinal Conway or Mr Whitelaw about how they came to their decision to move Chesney.

"As both are now dead, we can only speculate as to their motives," our correspondent added.

"The most generous theory is that they felt that protecting the priest was the lesser of two evils.

"During that turbulent period in 1972, many believed that Northern Ireland was on the brink of a sectarian civil war. Almost 500 people were killed that year.

"If a priest had been arrested in connection with the Claudy bomb, it could have pushed community relations over the edge."

Both Protestants and Catholics were killed in the blasts.

The youngest victim was eight-year-old Kathryn Eakin who was cleaning the windows of her family's grocery store when the first bomb exploded.

The other people killed were Joseph McCluskey 39, David Miller aged 60, James McClelland 65, William Temple 16, Elizabeth McElhinney 59, Rose McLaughlin aged 51, Patrick Connolly, 15, and 38-year-old Arthur Hone.

Mr Hutchinson said that he accepted some of the decisions taken "must be considered in the context of the time" but added that the conspiracy still amounted to collusion.

"I accept that 1972 was one of the worst years of the Troubles and that the arrest of a priest might well have aggravated the security situation.

"Equally I consider that the police failure to investigate someone they suspected of involvement in acts of terrorism could, in itself, have had serious consequences."

He said he had found no evidence of criminal intent by anyone in the government or the Catholic Church.

[mc_grens]

I'll tell you what, whatever about Chesney, it's a total joke that all of the focus is on a dead priest, when other KNOWN culprits (I'm sure you know who I mean lynchbhoy) are walking around un-mentioned.

[Trout]

I wonder do Nally Stand and paper seller extraordinaire glens abu think those bombs were "justified"? No doubt we will get the usual weasel words.

[glens abu]

I wonder do Nally Stand and paper seller extraordinaire glens abu think those bombs were "justified"? No doubt we will get the usual weasel words.

I dig out an old copy of An Phoblacht and send it up to you for the truth

[Trout]

I wonder do Nally Stand and paper seller extraordinaire glens abu think those bombs were "justified"? No doubt we will get the usual weasel words.

I dig out an old copy of An Phoblacht and send it up to you for the truth

Well instead of doing that why don't you answer the question, or are uou waiting for a press release from Sinn Fein?

[glens abu]

I wonder do Nally Stand and paper seller extraordinaire glens abu think those bombs were "justified"? No doubt we will get the usual weasel words.

I dig out an old copy of An Phoblacht and send it up to you for the truth

Well instead of doing that why don't you answer the question, or are uou waiting for a press release from Sinn Fein?

Dont really need to answer to someone who runs away from other discussions but will answer you this once.Totally wrong and cannot be justified.

[lynchbhoy]

I wonder do Nally Stand and paper seller extraordinaire glens abu think those bombs were "justified"? No doubt we will get the usual weasel words.

I dig out an old copy of An Phoblacht and send it up to you for the truth

Well instead of doing that why don't you answer the question, or are uou waiting for a press release from Sinn Fein?

sinn fein were not even around at that stage, what are you talking about.

this bombing was completely and utterly wrong.

it smacks of Omagh that the culprits were 'allowed' to carry out this while the authorities knew about it from its planning until it was carried out.
the priest is a complete red herring and despite the culprits being known, there were hundreds lifted and dozens accused of planting and collaborating with this bomb and the culprits (imo most obv police informers) were allowed run away round the place scot free.

'findings ' like this are an insult to the people that died (and all other deaths in the north of Ireland).

[mc_grens]

Wouldn't completely agree. I think the priest is one hundred percent guilty, and I'm one hundred percent sure ther was indeed a cover up involving the upper echelons of the church.

I would however agree that there are people out there who everyone knows had a hand in this. Some of whom have been fairly f**king bare faced over the years.

[lynchbhoy]

Wouldn't completely agree. I think the priest is one hundred percent guilty, and I'm one hundred percent sure ther was indeed a cover up involving the upper echelons of the church.

I would however agree that there are people out there who everyone knows had a hand in this. Some of whom have been fairly f**king bare faced over the years.

he (the priest) is not guilty of what he is being accused of. he is guilty of being (at least) friendly with some of this gang.
this report and I suspect the aftermath will have him as the planner, brains and operative that carried it all out !

[mc_grens]

Disagree fella. And have reason to do so.

[Orior]

I wonder do Nally Stand and paper seller extraordinaire glens abu think those bombs were "justified"? No doubt we will get the usual weasel words.

Were you about during the early seventies? I reckon probably not. Therefore you have no idea how much support the IRA had then, and the environment that drove so many to do things they would not do now.

That was a different era, so to start pouring over old justifications is irrelevant and unhelpful.

[Banana Man]

To be quite frank I wouldn't want to hang my hat on anything either the catholic church or the british government had to say.

To label either of them as having 'form' in relation to peddling lies and covering up the truth would be a massive understatement ffs

[Minder]

What exactly would you have to do to get banished from the Catholic Church?