Mr. Ian Bothwell:

Deputy Conlan has triggered something in me as a farmer’s son living at Tynan. I used to ride my bicycle up the Cor road to look at the pothole that separated County Armagh and County Monaghan. It is only in recent years that I have gone over to discover Glaslough and a whole new world on my doorstep. I was very aware as a boy growing up that farmers' sons were targeted. Some of my neighbours' eldest sons from Tynan, Newtownhamilton and Aughnacloy were killed in the Troubles. That made me feel very insecure and very aware. My father continued with the delivery of cattle and hired a man to transport them, a Catholic. I did not quite understand the significance of this at that time in my childhood. This made me think, “Who are they? What is that?” It was such that we were suspicious of the Catholics because they came and found information or addresses or the location of farms, and sometimes a farmer died in an isolated farmyard. I was very aware of that.

A grandmother told me her grandson asked her why she had sold the farm. He said that if she had not sold it, he would have had a site for a house. He said he had no site and she had no farm. He asked her why she sold up? She had to try to recall why she did so. She had no choice. How does one tell someone 20 or 30 years after the event why the farm is gone?

I think farmers need to talk and farmers may find it difficult to find the words because it concerns land, generation and inheritance.

The other group that I feel is too silent in Northern Ireland are the widows of RUC members. They suffered in silence and decided out of loyalty to their husbands not to talk. I have been at meetings where people have talked about their fear when the RUC invaded, kicked in the door, or ripped up the floorboards, and I saw them cringe because that was one side, while their story has yet to be told. If we had that openness for a greater story to come forward, I think there would be more healing and acceptance.