Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

Last night, I was privileged to speak at a meeting marking the 50th anniversary of Bloody Sunday. It was attended by hundreds and hundreds of people from this country, including many young people wanting to learn about the history of Bloody Sunday. The meeting was addressed by Kate Nash of the Bloody Sunday families, people from the Black Lives Matter movement and people from the Hillsborough disaster campaign. The message at that meeting was resounding. After a long struggle at least to deconstruct the disgusting narrative that tried to blame, if you like, the victims of Bloody Sunday for what happened that day, as eventually happened with the Saville inquiry, there still has not been real accountability for the military commanders and political leaders who the families hold responsible for the massacre, the murder, by the British state that took place 50 years ago. The families are still seeking that justice, accountability and truth about the political culpability of the people who ordered that massacre and the senior military figures, not just the foot soldiers, who were responsible for that massacre.

As we approach the anniversary, I ask the Taoiseach whether he agrees that we still need justice and accountability for Bloody Sunday. As we approach the half century anniversary, what is the Government going to do to try finally to get justice and accountability for the Bloody Sunday families?

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