THE sister of a teenager killed on Bloody Sunday has claimed a call for an inquiry into the prosecution of soldiers responsible for her brother’s death was a “delaying tactic.”
Jean Hegarty, whose brother, Kevin McElhinney (17) was one of those shot dead on Bloody Sunday, said soldiers should be treated the same as any other citizen facing allegations of murder or unlawful killing.
Ms Hegarty was responding to news that up lawyers for 15 former soldiers had called for an independent inquiry into moves to prosecution them for troubles-related killings. A spokesman for London law firm, Devonshires said the soldiers, who include some of those who served in Derry on Bloody Sunday, were not being treated fairly.
Ms Hegarty said: “I think what would happen if it was me, I would be prosecuted even 45 years later. It’s a delaying tactic.”
A number of former soldiers intend staging a protest at Westminster this weekend, the 45th anniversary of the 1972 killings. The move has been branded “offensive” by the Bloody Sunday Trust.
Trust chairman, Robin Percival said the timing of the protest, this Saturday, was not coincidental.
“They can’t have failed to notice that the end of January is the anniversary of one of the most notorious massacres carried out by their colleagues. The timing is deliberate and is intended to offend,” he said.
The annual Bloody Sunday anniversary march, supported by some of the victims’ families, takes place this weekend. The march, which starts in Creggan at 2.30pm, follows the route of the original 1972 protest. The march will be addressed by Sheila Coleman from the Hillsborough Justice Campaign. A full programme of anniversary events has been organised for the weekend.
