congressional_record: CREC-2002-11-22-pt1-PgE2126
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| granule_id | date | congress | session | volume | issue | title | chamber | granule_class | sub_granule_class | page_start | page_end | speakers | bills | citation | full_text |
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| CREC-2002-11-22-pt1-PgE2126 | 2002-11-22 | 107 | 2 | PAT FINUCANE REPORT IN NORTHERN IRELAND | HOUSE | EXTENSIONS | ALLOTHER | E2126 | E2126 | [{"name": "Frank Pallone, Jr.", "role": "speaking"}] | 148 Cong. Rec. E2126 | Congressional Record, Volume 148 Issue 152 (Friday, November 22, 2002) [Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 152 (Friday, November 22, 2002)] [Extensions of Remarks] [Page E2126] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov] PAT FINUCANE REPORT IN NORTHERN IRELAND ______ HON. FRANK PALLONE, JR. of new jersey in the house of representatives Friday, November 22, 2002 Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to call on the London Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir John Stevens to expeditiously complete the report on the February 1989 killing of Pat Finucane in Belfast. Sir Stevens has been investigating this case for almost 3 years. Pat Finucane was shot and killed by British-Loyalist paramilitaries while he sat eating a Sunday meal with his wife and three children. Since his murder in 1989, Amnesty International and the United Nations have called on the British Government to investigate any collusion between the RUC/British Government officials and the Loyalist paramilitaries. Unfortunately, after 3 years of investigation still no report has been made public. Prior to being murdered, Mr. Finucane was a human rights lawyer who defended several individuals that were detained by the RUC. According to the UDA, Ulster Defense Association, which claimed responsibility for his murder, Mr. Finucane was profiled as an individual who was helping support the procatholic, pro-Republican cause in Northern Ireland. Last week, Sir John Stevens announced, for a second time, that the Finucane report would be delayed as a result of a British military witness being reluctant to speak to the police. Stevens claims that the report will be released `before next spring', however, there continues to be speculation that the report may be delayed further should a public inquiry be ordered. There are few who will dispute the facts in this case. According to Brian Nelson, a former British military intelligence agent who also served as chief intelligence office of the UDA, he directly assisted in the targeting of Pat Finucane and passed a photograph of Pat Finucane to a UDA member just days before the killing. However, Mr. Nelson claims have never been examined in an open court. To date no one has been prosecuted for the murder of Pat Finucane. The facts in this case seem quite straighforward--once again a pro- Loyalist police force used its authority to further sectarian rule and continue the rash of violence against the Catholic Community. I call on Prime Minister Tony Blair and London Metropolitan Police Commissioner Stevens to finally release the current report and then immediately open a full public inquiry into this matter. My hope is that by putting an end to this long drawn-out process we can bring both justice to the individuals who undertook this gruesome act and take steps to ensure that this doesn't happen again. This whole matter once again reinforces my belief that for too long both the British government, along with their police force, and the Loyalist paramilitary groups in Northern Ireland have worked in tandem to usurp the rights of the Catholic Community. A full public inquiry into this matter will show the world that the only way peace can last in Northern Ireland is for a full fair and just reform in policing in Northern Ireland. Northern Ireland must immediately implement all of the Patten Commission's recommendations on policing. Mr. Speaker, if there is to be a just and lasting peace in Northern Ireland we must learn from what happened to Pat Finucane and ensure that it never happens again. ____________________ |