Castlerock - Collusion A British political & military policy objective - PowerPoint Presentation

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Castlerock - Collusion

A British political & military policy objective

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Castlerock 20th Anniversary March 2013- CollusionSlide2

Collusion

the origins of the policy of

In 1970 Brigadier Frank Kitson took command of the 39th

Brigade, which covered

the Belfast area.

Kitson was the British Army’s expert on counter-insurgency.Kitson wrote: ‘The fundamental concept is the working of the triumvirate, civil, military and police, as a joint and integrated organisation from the highest to the lowest level of policy making, planning and administration.’On the use of pseudo gangs, death squads, and the corruption of justice Kitson said: ‘Everything done by a government and its agents in combating insurgency must be legitimate. But this does not mean that the government must work within exactly the same set of laws during an emergency as existed beforehand.‘The law should be used as just another weapon in the government’s arsenal, in which case it becomes little more than a propaganda cover for the disposal of unwanted members of the public.’

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Castlerock 20th Anniversary March 2013- CollusionSlide3

Collusion 1970’s

Kitson’s plan implemented – an emergency situation declared

Counter-insurgency – the use of informers & agentsPseudo gangs –

MRF – no claim attacks

Misinformation

& PropagandaOrganising – UDA/UFF/UVFArming – UDR/RUC weaponsDirecting – sectarian attacks & political assassinationsTerror tactics against a community as a political strategy aimed at defeating insurrection 3Castlerock 20th Anniversary March 2013- CollusionSlide4

Collusion 1980’s

National H-Block-Armagh Committee –

assassinationsHunger strikes – international focus, tactics chang

e

Direct State killings -

loyalists less activeRepublicans engaging electoral politics Anglo-Irish Agreement 1985 seeking to thwart SF– switching off loyalists essential to creating anti-republican consensusBritish policy decision to again priortise military strategy – SAS & loyalists become more active1987/8 – South African weapons shipment Loyalists acquiring unprecedented capacity to kill4Castlerock 20th Anniversary March 2013- CollusionSlide5

Collusion 1990’s

1995 Relatives for Justice Report –

Collusion – found 229 loyalist murders from 1988 until September 1994 involving;South African weaponsWeapons allegedly ‘stolen’ from UDR/

RUC

Victims were detained/arrested & threatened

Missing filesRaids on homes detailing security and layoutRestrictions orders on regular patrols - TCGInterface barriers left openSecurity cameras switched off allegedly not working5Castlerock 20th Anniversary March 2013- CollusionSlide6

Collusion

The political & military Policy objective

To isolate republicansTo terrorise republicans & their families - killing women & children

To terrorise the nationalist community –

sectarian attacks

Attacks on workplaces, where people socialised, homesCreating a culture of fearPan-nationalist frontCreating pressure – This was British Intel not loyalismPolitical conditions & behind the scenes talks – accepting lessEnd game strategy by British - Intensification of loyalist campaign 6Castlerock 20th Anniversary March 2013- CollusionSlide7

Collusion

contradiction in ‘security’ exposed

The SAS were regularly deployed against republicans - TCGDespite loyalists being responsible for more attacks and killings than any other grouping since late 1987 until the end of the conflict, the British did not deploy the SAS in areas of Mid-Ulster or North Armagh to prevent attacks

Investigations into loyalist killings were largely perfunctory –

agents were recruited

RUC abandoned policy on providing ballistics on weapons re loyalist attacks and forensics were ‘lost’Stevens, Cory & De Silva – a truth emerging, but more to do7Castlerock 20th Anniversary March 2013- CollusionSlide8

Collusion

Castlerock Attack

Jimmy Kelly was an active & committed republicanLike most of his generation his politics were forged in the hunger strikes and subsequent years He

understood what was at stake – his family had suffered through loyalist

violence

Targeting Jimmy Kelly wasn’t enough to deter him or other republicans of that generationTargeting him along with his work friends was a core part of the British strategyIs was about creating wider fear, intimidation, and seeking to isolate republicans from within their own communities as Kitson had unsuccessfully tried to do during early 1970’s8Castlerock 20th Anniversary March 2013- CollusionSlide9

Collusion

Castlerock

Jimmy Kelly was threatened by known RUC membersThe RUC passed his details onto loyalistsHis movements were monitored

He

was detained and harassed

regularly and consequently so were his work colleaguesThey were followed days prior to the attack and on the morning of the attack by the RUC and an unmarked car – unusually they were not stopped or harassed RUC cameras overlooking the scene of the attack were switched offThe weapons used in the attack were allegedly ‘stolen’ from members of the UDR & the killer gang had strong links to the UDRThe response to the attack was as ineffective as the investigation wasCastlerock had all the common hallmarks of collusion9Castlerock 20th Anniversary March 2013- CollusionSlide10

Collusion

the human impact & loss

Collusion claimed hundreds of livesThe majority of those killed were uninvolved nationalist Catholics

The campaign of collusion was against a community for a particular political purpose – it was about defeating republicans and everything

was permitted

One of the objectives was to also create a division within the community under attackIt was to deflect blame, cause accusation, and to inflame internal tensions – it was to play on ordinary human emotions and that is totally understandable and we should not judgeWe all need to understand the human toll, impact and loss as a direct consequence of the legacy of collusion The hurt inflicted as a consequence is incalculable for the bereaved and the surviving injured – we need to recognise that impact10Castlerock 20th Anniversary March 2013- CollusionSlide11

Collusion

A failed policy

Collusion undoubtedly hurt our community – it did

not break our community

Collusion is a legacy that we need to address as part of the wider peace process

This requires an independent process of truth recoveryIt requires us as a community to also document our experiences and history and to support those affected by itIt requires us to speak out concerning sham initiatives such as the PSNI’s Historical Enquiries Team, which has yet to make a finding of collusion despite examining hundreds of collusion killingsPost conflict we need to continue to assert our rights and this includes the right to truth about collusion and state violence11Castlerock 20th Anniversary March 2013- CollusionSlide12

Remembering

In remembering Jimmy Kelly we also remember

James McKenna Gerard Dalrymple

Noel

O'Kane They were sons, brothers, husbands, fathers, friends & comrades.They were all victims of a British policy of collusion.They all deserve the truth.12Castlerock 20th Anniversary March 2013- CollusionSlide13

International day for the

Right to

TruthMarch 24

th

2013

Anniversary of the killing of Archbishop Romero, El Salvador13Castlerock 20th Anniversary March 2013- Collusion