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FEBRUARY 2007
david wright wins declaration
David Wright, father of murdered LVF leader Billy Wright, won his judicial review against the Secretary of State and gained a Declaration by the High Court that the Secretary of State had not taken into consideration all the matters that he should have done in deciding to convert the statutory basis for the Billy Wright Inquiry to the Inquiries Act 2005. The judgment contains some important criticisms of the Inquiries Act and the lack of independence of inquiries held under the Act. It remains open to someone else to challenge the Act’s compatibility with the European Convention on Human Rights. The full hearings of the Billy Wright Inquiry will now commence on 30th May 2007 in Banbridge Court House.
hamill inquiry to appeal re anonymity
The Robert Hamill Inquiry has sought leave from the House of Lords to appeal against the Court of Appeal’s decision that they had erred in asking whether appearing as a witness before the Inquiry put police officers at any greater risk than they already faced as a result of their involvement in the case. So far, the courts have backed requests for anonymity by a number of police officers, but if the case reaches the House of Lords the issue and the principles concerned will be put beyond doubt.
DAVID McILWAINE
I travelled to Belfast on 5th February 2007 to discuss with members of the Police Ombudsman’s team the complaint made by Paul McIlwaine concerning the police investigation into the murders of his son David and Andrew Robb. Following the meeting I began to compile a lengthy submission, which will be sent to the Police Ombudsman when it is complete. On 26th February the Preliminary Inquiry began into the cases of Steven Brown and Mark Burcombe, who were both committed for trial for the murders. Our thanks to Abed Natur of the Committee on the Administration of Justice for observing this hearing.
BIRW SEEKS DEPUTY DIRECTOR
There is still time to apply for the post of Deputy Director at British Irish rights watch. The deadline for applications is 19th March. See our website for details.
HET MEET THE FAMILY OF LORRAINE McCAUSLAND
Also on 5th February I attended a preliminary meeting between members of the PSNI’s Historical Enquiries Team and the family of Lorraine McCausland, who was murdered by the UDA in 1987, with the involvement of known police informers. Her son Craig was murdered twenty years later by the UVF, so this family have had more than their fair share of grief.
DISTRICT POLICING PARTNERSHIPS
BIRW has commented on the Policing Board's consultation on the future of
District Policing Partnerships. BIRW was broadly supportive of the
majority of measures the Policing Board suggested. However, as with
many consultation documents, the proposals lacked detail which prevented
a solid exploration of the issues under consideration. Of particular concern to
BIRW was the acknowledgement that the work of the DPPs, like the Policing Board
and the PSNI itself, have been hindered by intimidation of members by both sides
of the community and the politicisation of policing. We encouraged the Policing
Board to equality screen this draft policy as any change to DPPs will have an
impact on those groups identified in the legislation as being at greatest risk
of discrimination.
BIRW TO BE EVALUATED
BIRW is to be evaluated during 2007.
Steven Burkeman and Alison Harker have been appointed to carry out the
evaluation.
QUASHING CONVICTIONS
Although, as so often happens, BIRW was
not consulted, we have made a detailed submission concerning the government’s
latest attack on the criminal justice system. This time, they want the Court of
Appeal to allow a conviction to stand even if there were procedural
irregularities during the trial, provided the Court is convinced that the
defendant is guilty really. Furthermore, the Home Office did not invite
comments on this proposal, but merely wanted ideas on how to implement it. If
the government gets its way, huge uncertainty will be injected into the appeal
system, with the Court of Appeal having carte blanche to make prejudiced
decisions based on their instincts rather than the evidence. There is already a
perfectly good mechanism at the Court’s disposal if it has any qualms about
quashing a conviction; it can send the case back for a re-trial.
COMPLAINT TO THE POLICE OMBUDSMAN
We have made a confidential complaint to the Police Ombudsman on behalf of a person who alleges that police officers leaked details obtained during police interviews to the press.
helping the disappeared
We have recently helped the family of
one of the Disappeared (people murdered by the IRA whose bodies, for the most
part, have not been found) to put together a statement for the Historical
Enquires Team about the loss of their loved one.
“human bombings”
On 26th February I met the Historical Enquiries Team in relation to one of the so-called “human bombings” in which the IRA attempted to murder soldiers and others by forcing victims to drive vehicles loaded with explosives into checkpoints and other army installations.
Jane Winter,
Director,
28th February 2007
For Peace Justice & Human Rights
