Taoiseach vows to ‘speak up for victims’ on Loughinisland massacre anniversary

By George Lithgow, PA

Taoiseach Simon Harris has vowed to continue to “speak up for victims” on the 30th anniversary of the Loughinisland massacre.

Six Catholic men were killed, and five others injured when two loyalist gunmen burst into a bar in the County Down village in 1994.

They opened fire on locals watching the Republic of Ireland play Italy in the World Cup in the United States.

No-one has ever been brought to justice.

Mr Harris told the Dáil he completely condemned what happened, adding: “Just because there’s a passage of time, it doesn’t mean that these issues can be ignored.”

The Government has begun a legal case against the UK under the European Convention on Human Rights over the controversial Northern Ireland Troubles Legacy Act.

Asked about the progress that had been made in the Government’s case, he said: “I think all parties in this house, and certainly all parties in Northern Ireland, have rightly come together to condemn and oppose the Legacy Act that has been introduced by the British government.

“We will continue to speak out and speak up for victims, for survivors, for the need for justice, for truth and for reconciliation.

“I intend to meet with the British prime minister after the result of the UK election, this is one of the many issues I wish to discuss.”

The UK’s Legacy Act looks to end legal proceedings relating to the Troubles by granting immunity to people who co-operate with the Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information Recovery.

Those murdered were Barney Green, 87, Adrian Rogan, 34, Malcolm Jenkinson, 53, Daniel McCreanor, 59, Patrick O’Hare, 35, and Eamon Byrne, 39.

Two journalists were arrested in 2019 over the alleged theft of a police watchdog document that appeared in their film No Stone Unturned on the massacre.