Frances Black (Independent) | Oireachtas source

On Monday last, I was disappointed when the British Government rejected the calls to carry out a full and thorough inquiry into the murder of Pat Finucane. This rejection just compounds the pain and trauma of the Finucane family. Geraldine Finucane said it was an insult that the investigation was refused. I cannot begin to imagine the pain experienced by the family and friends of Pat Finucane since his assassination. In February of last year, the UK Supreme Court ruled that previous investigations into the murder were not effective and fell short of international human rights standards. The British Government previously appointed individuals to examine Pat Finucane's killing, but nothing has provided his family with the full disclosure it is believed only a public inquiry can deliver. We must have a full inquiry in order to achieve justice, restore confidence and promote reconciliation.

Yesterday, the Joint Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement, chaired by Deputy O’Dowd, called for:

... the immediate establishment of a full, independent, public judicial inquiry into the murder of Pat Finucane, as recommended by Judge Cory, which would enjoy the full co-operation of the Finucane family and command the respect and confidence of all of the people on the island of Ireland and all persons committed to democracy, human rights and the rule of law worldwide.

There needs to be full disclosure of all the collusion between paramilitaries and the security forces in killings and it is only when this is done that there will be any hope of restoring confidence in the rule of law and in the administration of justice. The reluctance of the British Government to allow this inquiry is understandable, as the use of murder gangs is a well known counter-insurgency tactic used in its colonies all over the world and the knowledge of this collusion is believed to have gone to the top of the British Government. According to the Canadian judge, Peter Cory, this was known to the then Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher.

While this campaign continues to demand a full inquiry, we must keep the unified spirit in this House and in the Government alive and move forward with the courage the Finucane family have had to dig deep to find for over 30 years. In the words of Geraldine Finucane: "The questions that demand answers around Pat’s murder are not going away, and neither is our campaign for truth and justice."We must continue to move forward with our best efforts to finally bring justice to the Finucane family who have suffered enough. This is paramount. I commend the outstanding bravery of Geraldine Finucane and her family in opening up their past traumas time and again. They have continued to courageously campaign for public justice for over 30 years.