Tim O'Malley (Limerick East, Progressive Democrats)

I join other speakers in deploring the murder of Robert McCartney. It would be impossible to do otherwise. Any murder is abhorrent, but Robert McCartney's murder was particularly shocking. A murder which apparently arose from a bar room brawl quickly escalated into a cover up operation, startling in both its speed and its scale. This is something which would normally only be undertaken by a structured and trained organisation. It was an automatic reflex by an organisation determined to protect its own. There was no question of even rudimentary justice. The first instinct was to get away with it; for self-survival. Whoever they were, the people who rendered Magennis's bar forensically sterile are guilty of a very serious crime. They should face prosecution for their actions as surely as the person or persons who were guilty of stabbing Robert McCartney and Brendan Devine should face prosecution.

In order for such prosecutions to be successful and in the regrettable absence of physical evidence, witnesses will have to take the stand against these men. I am happy to respond to the motion by adding my voice to those of other public representatives who have encouraged those with knowledge of this crime to give statements to the investigating police so that the justice in the courts sought by the McCartney family can be achieved.

When laws are drafted and enacted in this House or any other parliament in the world, we build in protections to ensure that no one can be convicted without compelling evidence. However, as legislators we are particularly affronted when those protections are abused by the guilty to protect themselves from conviction for their misdeeds. Destroying evidence and intimidating witnesses hits at the very foundation of a criminal justice system. Although the situation seems bleak at present, I hope and believe that justice will be done in the end. The demands of the McCartney family should not and must not be ignored and the will of the people cannot be ignored.

When those accused of the crimes which took place in Magennis's bar come to justice, they will face the consequences of their actions. Are they so far removed from any sense of morality or personal responsibility that they are more content to expend their energies on protecting themselves and yet damage the cause to which they claim absolute allegiance? We deplore the summary justice of paramilitaries. This House does not recognise any "court martial" held by the IRA. The IRA is not qualified or mandated to try anyone. Only the courts can perform that role, operating under the laws enacted by democratically-elected representatives of the people.

The McCartney family has made a simple, dignified and consistent plea for those with information to co-operate with the police. We can only imagine the strain which the events of recent weeks have placed on the family. They have found themselves not only bereaved but suddenly on centre stage as spokeswomen for their community. I hope they are drawing strength from the support they are receiving. It is evident in the House today, as it was last night, that there is almost unanimous support for this motion.

The people of the Short Strand too have found themselves in agreement on the McCartney case, which represents a fundamental moral choice and a key political decision for the party most implicated in it. They have come out publicly in support of the McCartney family, standing in vigil on the streets of their community, wanting justice to be done, appalled that anyone, much less their erstwhile political leaders, should shield the perpetrators from the law. Their comments have prompted Sinn Féin to make some public statements. However, in those statements and in the amendment which they presented to this House on this motion, Sinn Féin does not accept the core issue, which is the need to work with the Police Service of Northern Ireland.

Instead of leading, Sinn Féin has taken the back seat hoping all of this will go away. Much hard work on the ground has gone into the reform of the police service in Northern Ireland. With no help from Sinn Féin, local communities have nominated representatives to district policing partnerships to work with the policing board to deliver a service which can inspire the confidence of all the community. No one is asking Sinn Féin to make a leap of faith on policing, only to co-operate with the fundamental role of the police in bringing the perpetrators of a heinous crime to justice.

We have seen what can happen in a community where public support for policing is obstructed. It allows, and is meant to allow, a situation where paramilitaries are themselves entirely beyond the law. That attitude was the critical factor in the murder of Robert McCartney and its attempted cover-up. That is why it has such implications for society and the peace process as a whole. However, the McCartney family, the people of the Short Strand and the plain people of Ireland will no longer stand for those who set themselves up as an alternative judge, jury and executioner at the expense of justice for an innocent man slaughtered without compunction. I support the motion.

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