Free from fear or favour
No tracking. No cookies

‘The Gerry Adams Compensation Row Must Not Overshadow Decades of Trauma Inflicted on Civilians’

The priority for the UK Government is not to seek justice for the innocent civilians murdered, but to protect the state from the consequences, argues Emma De Souza

Gerry Adams during an interview at Sinn Fein headquarters in Belfast ahead of the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement in March 2023. Photo: PA Images / Alamy
Gerry Adams during an interview at Sinn Fein headquarters in Belfast ahead of the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement in March 2023. Photo: PA Images / Alamy

Byline Times is an independent, reader-funded investigative newspaper, outside of the system of the established press, reporting on ‘what the papers don’t say’ – without fear or favour.

To support its work, subscribe to the monthly Byline Times print edition, packed with exclusive investigations, news, and analysis.

Northern Ireland rarely makes headlines in Britain; the ongoing threat of paramilitaries, the shocking levels of violence against women, the victims of the Troubles and their families being dragged through the courts by the Government — all barely warrant a whisper.

But the mere suggestion that former Sinn Féin president Gerry Adams may be entitled to compensation for being unlawfully detained during the Troubles? Front page news.

There was a singular focus on Adams in relation to a proposed amendment of the UK’s controversial Legacy Act regarding Troubles compensation, but the changes have little to do with the former Sinn Féin leader.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer leaves Number 10 to go to Parliament for Prime Ministers Questions on Wednesday. Photo: Karl Black / Alamy
Prime Minister Keir Starmer has said he will seek “every conceivable way” to prevent Adams from receiving his compensation. Photo: Karl Black / Alamy

Labour has to amend a restriction set into law by the Conservatives that has been deemed incompatible with the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).

If changed, Adams is among 400 people who could be eligible to claim compensation for having been unlawfully incarcerated in the 1970s.

The Supreme Court ruled in 2020 that interim custody orders (ICOs) following internment were unlawful as they had not been considered personally by the Secretary of State.

The Conservatives attempted to override this decision with a clause in the Legacy Act that blocked Adams and others from seeking compensation for their incarnation and have left Labour with a legal mess that will require remedial action.

The furore around Adams received widespread political attention, with Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch branding the possibility “shameful”, and Prime Minister Keir Starmer yielding that he will seek “every conceivable way” to prevent Adams from receiving his compensation.

Northern Ireland’s Plan to ‘Do What Matters Most Fails to Address key Problems and Ignores Previous Pledges’

The draft programme for government, titled ‘Our Plan: Doing What Matters Most’ drops long-standing proposals to address poverty, transform health, and advance environmental protections.

This was a misstep from Starmer; allowing critics to frame the debate around Adams will inevitably cause political damage later if the Government is forced to concede the absence of a legal basis to do so.

One might have expected, given this rare return of focus on Northern Ireland’s conflict, that another Troubles-related case moving through the courts during the same week would break through the Irish sea border of reportage; an 87-year-old widow, Bridie Brown, seeking justice for her murdered husband being forced back to court by the UK Government. No front pages or prime time radio programs dedicated to this injustice.

We are expected to be outraged by the possibility of Adams receiving the undoubtedly minimal compensation he could be legally entitled to, but not at the trauma being inflicted on a civilian who has spent almost three decades in a protracted legal process trying to access some semblance of truth as to why her husband was murdered, and by whom.

The obstruction, collusion, and complete political failure to address the legacy of Northern Ireland’s conflict is a blight on the peace process; how can we consider the Good Friday Agreement to be a success when citizens are spending decades and all their remaining years struggling for even a modicum of truth and justice? 

In 1997, 61-year-old Sean Brown was abducted while closing the gates to a GAA club in Bellaghy. The father of six was forced into the boot of his car and driven to an isolated road 16.5kms away where he was dragged from the back and shot to death. His partially burned body was discovered beside the scorched remains of his burnt-out car. Brown had six bullet wounds in his head. No one has been convicted of his murder.

‘How Can Northern Ireland’s Education System Still Be Divided Across Religious and Community Lines?

The next generation cannot take forward the peace process if they continue to be subject to segregation and reinforced division that defined previous generations, argues Emma DeSouza

A 2004 police ombudsman report interrogating the investigation into Brown’s murder found that several key files were missing and that “no earnest effort was made to identify those who had carried out the murder”.

After 26 years, the family was finally granted an inquest. The hearing was subsequently halted in 2024 after the coroner stated that he could not proceed due to material being withheld on the grounds of national security. Mr Justice Patrick Kinney revealed that more than 25 people, including State agents, have been linked to the murder by intelligence material. 

The coroner heavily criticised State parties, calling the delays to the disclosure process “deplorable”. He later wrote to the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland requesting a public inquiry into the Brown murder, a request that was supported by PSNI Chief Constable Jon Boucher. The UK government refused. 

In December, the High Court ruled that the UK Government was in breach of its Article 2 obligations under the ECHR in relation to the Brown case, wherein the judge ordered the Secretary of State Hilary Benn to open a public inquiry. On New Years Eve the government instead lodged an appeal against the order.

The Sean Brown family were back in court last week. As morning programs fixed their attention on Adams, the Brown family were making their 57th court appearance.

Bridie, Brown’s widow, is 87-years-old. She was joined by her children and grandchildren in the courtroom, political representatives including the First Minister walked with the family to court.

Labour Urged to ‘Redouble Efforts’ in Implementing Good Friday Agreement in Full as Political Unionism Deteriorates in Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland will now be represented by a wide range of views in Westminster – but while Keir Starmer has years of austerity to undo he’s been urged not to forget about NI

Brown’s son, Damian, had been a permanent fixture at these hearings, he spent half of his life in court and left every session disappointed. He died in 2021.

Damian was with his father 15 minutes before his estimated abduction time. His sons Damon and Declan now shoulder the burden of injustice. How would you feel if this was your family?

The continued refusal to grant a public inquiry into the murder of Sean Brown is abhorrent, Labour has proven itself to be no different than the Conservatives; the priority of the UK Government is not to seek justice for the innocent civilians murdered or the grieving families they leave behind, but rather to protect the state and State actors from the consequences.

Starmer should not be able to evade the trauma and pain being inflicted on this family and so many others through the actions of his Government.

The Legacy Act has been roundly rejected in Northern Ireland, with vast portions of the legislation found to be incompatible with human rights law, yet Labour insists on salvaging what they are able.

Rather than repeal the Act, Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Hilary Benn is cherry-picking the legislation, removing the bare minimum in an attempt to make the Act compliant with the ECHR. Benn started the process of removing the amnesty portions of the Act last week but insists on maintaining contentious elements such as the Independent Commission and Information Recovery (ICRIR).

The ICRIR does not have the support of victims’ groups in Northern Ireland and the courts have found that the Commission’s disclosure process, which provides the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland with the ability to veto disclosure, to be incompatible with the ECHR.

ENJOYING THIS ARTICLE? HELP US TO PRODUCE MORE

Receive the monthly Byline Times newspaper and help to support fearless, independent journalism that breaks stories, shapes the agenda and holds power to account.

We’re not funded by a billionaire oligarch or an offshore hedge-fund. We rely on our readers to fund our journalism. If you like what we do, please subscribe.

Benn is, however, completely wedded to it and won’t be deterred. In September, he denied two further requests for public inquiries, advising the McKearney and Fox families to use the ICRIR. You cannot force people to trust a structure created under the premise of shielding British armed forces from exposure and consequence.

Kevin McKearney, 32, and 69-year-old John – known as Jack – McKearney were murdered as they worked into their butcher shop in 1992. Charles Fox, 63, and his wife, 54-year-old Teresa, were shot in their home that same year. Responsibility for all four murders was claimed by loyalist paramilitaries.

There are 1,300 unsolved murders connected to the Troubles; families have spent decades in a system designed to deny them even a degree of justice and many have died without answers and many more might still. How can this be considered acceptable? Where is our collective outrage at what is being inflicted on these families? 


Written by

This article was filed under
, , ,