Niall Ó Donnghaile (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I will start again. Two events this week in the North have once again brought home for many of us the horror of collusion between the British crown forces and loyalists and the consequences for the families affected by it. Last Friday in Loughinisland GAC, the families of the six people massacred at Loughinisland watched a film called "No Stone Unturned", which tells the awful story of how that massacre happened and the role played in it by crown forces and loyalists. This week I spoke to the solicitor Niall Murphy, who represents the families and his plain words to me were that every citizen in Ireland "must see this film". This week in Belfast a landmark judgment was made by Mr. Justice Treacy who directed that the PSNI completes an investigation into dozens of killings carried out by the notorious Glennane gang from County Armagh. In his judgment he said he has made an order compelling the Chief Constable, George Hamilton, to complete this investigation. This Seanad must support Mr. Justice Treacy's order. The Glennane gang is believed to be responsible for killing 120 people. Those involved in the killings were members of the so-called security forces, namely the RUC and the UDR, as well as the UVF. It is an incredible state of affairs that a judge has to compel the police to do its job of investigating the murder of civilians. In many cases, these murders were carried out with the assistance of police officers and other members of the crown forces. Why does the PSNI not feel compelled to uncover the truth for the families affected? Why do families have to go to court seeking the truth?

The Loughinisland film and Mr. Justice Treacy's judgment not only highlight the extent of collusion but also the extent of the cover up that is going on in terms of the blocking of the truth about killings through collusion. This cover-up is directed by the British intelligence agencies and is supported in many instances by the British Government. In the coming days, we will all gather around television screens with family and friends to cheer Ireland on in critical World Cup qualifying matches, exactly as people did on that tragic night in the Heights Bar many years ago. The film "No Stone Unturned" is due for general release tomorrow and I would urge Seanadóirí to watch it and to support the families of those killed at Louginisland and those killed by the Glennane gang in their reasonable demands for the truth to be told about what happened to their loved ones.