Opinion

It seems that the UVF can be influenced by public opinion

The four families that were forced to flee their Cantrell Close homes were and are obviously subject to great distress, yet, in a twisted way their ordeal has become a symbol of progress here. Many people have rightly been aghast that this type of naked sectarianism has continued into the 21st century, but this disgust should be tempered by the comparatively sustained furore that has greeted the whole sordid incident. In the 20th century these crimes would have caused hardly a ripple in the media and a shrug of the shoulders to the rest of us. Even the UVF has been ‘embarrassed’ into the small gesture of removing their flags in the Close. I don’t qualify this group with the words ‘East Belfast’ because all the UVF are the same – they are dinosaurs who should only be found within the confines of a museum. That they still exist is, in no small part, the responsibility of the PSNI who have pandered to this loose collection of criminals as if they were a political party rather than convict and jail them at every opportunity. When the PSNI ‘consult’ with representatives of this and other illegal organisations then by definition those people have committed a crime and should be arrested. Republicans have been arrested for making speeches yet loyalist paramilitaries are feted for their capacity to turn violence on and off to order. The PSNI continues to legitimise crime and worst of all undermine the respect of nationalist and republican colleagues, who must feel belittled every time their employers make a partial political decision that harks back to the most insidious role of the services former incarnation, the RUC. Older readers will remember when the random murder of Catholics was greeted by RUC silence at times when the loyalist group would claim to have killed an active republican. There was an obvious change in policy, no doubt pushed from London, when the ceasefires were first mooted that meant that the RUC could within hours and sometimes minutes pronounce the latest murder to be a sectarian crime and that the victim was innocent of their killers’ propaganda. The PSNI only belatedly named the UVF as the origin of the threats that forced Cantrell families to leave their homes. Why, if not for political reasons? Given the number of informers within the ranks of these gangs why did they not instantly lay the blame for the threats where they belonged. It seems that the UVF can be influenced by public opinion. 

GERARD HERDMAN


Belfast BT11 

Health Service should target management tiers for major savings

It is clear to everyone in Northern Ireland that we spend disproportionately on the mountain of bureaucracy that administers public services here.  The recent revelations in respect of the differences in the monies spent in the of administration  of education  in comparison to England and Wales, is scandalous. Monies that should be directly spent on the education of individual pupils is evidently being wasted on administrators. This is the only conclusion one can come to when these  figures are examined. Why can our administrators not be as efficient  in the exercise of their duties as their colleagues in England and Wales?

If this is the culture in one public body I would suggest this is the ethos that underpins all our public bodies. Some years ago a major report recommended that a number of tiers of administration should be reduced in administering health and social care. This still hasn’t happened and yet £70 million has to be saved before the end of the financial year. As a response the Belfast Trust has highlighted low impact measures it intends taking to  reduce management costs by £500,000. 

In the light of proposals to reduce management tiers that haven’t been implemented, can I suggest the Health Service target this area for major savings. The impact here on the  care of patients and service users will  I suggest be negligible.

Again the usual lines have been targeted. Care packages to older and frail people are to be reduced. The logic from the Belfast Trust that underpins this proposal is perplexing. Surely, if frail people are not supported adequately they are going to find themselves in hospital costing a lot more. The trust has a poor recent history in administering home care services to the elderly – unable to efficiently implement new systems which resulted in an gross overspend.

They have also a poor record with in dealing with the private sector leading to overpayments running into hundreds of thousands of pounds. The trust response was to appoint –you have guessed it – more managers.  I feel until we address the ethos underpinning public administration in Northern Ireland, the impact on our children, patients and service users  will continue to be deleterious. 

We hear a lot from commentators about the impact that demographic changes will have on health service resources.


I think a major honesty and integrity pill needs to be swallowed by management, consultants and trade unions within health and social care. There are significant areas which are under extreme pressure and no-one with eyes and ears can dispute this.

Public service has to be mature and agree the way forward is no more highly paid sinecures.     

TED GALLAGHER


Belfast BT12

Attempting to rewrite history

How or why in the name of all that is holy were a group allowed to dress in paramilitary garb and carry replica firearms to re-enact murderous events in Londonderry? If they wanted to show the horror of terrorism they should also have poured gallons of blood and body parts onto the streets to illustrate the effects of these attacks. There is no doubt in my mind the re-enactment was an attempt to glorify terrorism. Here we had the brave terrorists in paramilitary uniforms targeting their ‘foe’ – these cowards hid in the dark streets of cities and happily walked up behind police officers and shot them in the back of the head. I am sure this was not part of the display. These cowards planted bombs under an officer’s car totally unconcerned if the officer or his wife were driving, totally unconcerned if the children of the officer were in the car. They targeted officers at churches, social gatherings and at their homes.

Clearly this is a further attempt to rewrite history – murder is murder. There was nothing glorious about the actions of terrorists they were heinous inhuman acts and we must remember the victims not the perpetrators.

ROSS M HUSSEY


Omagh, Co Tyrone

Catholic teaching values life

The involuntary loss of a pregnancy at any stage –  through miscarriage is devastating for mothers, fathers and the wider family circle. Pro-life groups, including Life (NI) offer pregnancy loss counselling and assistance to women in these circumstances.


The Churches recognise the pain of this loss at the annual remembrance service held alternately in St Anne’s or St Peter’s Cathedral, Belfast.

Unfortunately, recent media debates have obfuscated the important distinction between miscarriage (often rather insensitively referred to as spontaneous or medical abortion) and deliberate abortion.

A miscarriage arises when the heartbeat ceases and the baby has sadly already died in the womb.


Medical intervention may be required to deliver or surgically remove the baby’s remains. This is in stark contrast to deliberate abortion which involves a decision to prematurely and intentionally end life before birth.

It is also wrong to claim that the Catholic hierarchy urges voters to vote for a particular party.


Catholic teaching values life from conception to natural death and unsurprisingly promotes the need for the law to protect the unborn from deliberate abortion.


The voter is free to determine which candidate does this best.

MARY LEWIS


Iona Institute, Belfast