A controversial legacy unit has said its head of investigations was speaking in a “personal capacity” after he suggested it was created to protect British soldiers from prosecution.
Former police officer, Peter Sheridan was confirmed as the new Commissioner for Investigations at the Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information Recovery (ICRIR) last month.
The body has been established as part of the British government’s disputed new legacy legislation.
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Peter Sheridan: Legacy Law designed to protect British soldiers
The Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act, which passed into law in September, provides immunity in some circumstances and ends all inquests and civil cases.
The body, whose chief commissioner is former Lord Chief Justice Sir Declan Morgan, is bitterly opposed by many victims and relatives of those who died and has recently faced a legal challenge.
Although the British government has insisted the new body is designed to deliver truth recovery and reconciliation, many believe it has been introduced to protect British soldiers from accountability for their part in the conflict.
During a special event with the Weatherhead Centre for international affairs at Harvard University last month, Mr Sheridan spoke about the legislation.
“The reason why there is so much opposition to it is the British government decided on this because they want to protect the veterans,” he said.
“So, there was a view in the British government, particularly in the Conservative Party, that there was a focus on soldiers who had been involved in the conflict in Northern Ireland and that’s where the police investigations were following the soldiers, so you were starting to see soldiers appearing in court for offences that happened 30 and 40 years ago.
“So, there was a big lobby group, pressure group, in the UK and Boris Johnson, when he was the Prime Minister, said they were going to bring in this legacy act and the focus was, everybody knew it even though the government didn’t say it that way, but everybody knew it was about the veterans, soldiers.
“And they also had an eye on prosecutions against soldiers, British soldiers in Iraq, Afghanistan and other places around the world.”
Mr Sheridan also confirmed that he previously took the view that the new legislation may not have complied with Article Two of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), which protects the right to life.
“I gave evidence to the Council of Europe, the ministers in the Council of Europe about, we felt that it breached Article Two under the human rights convention, about the need for a thorough investigation and so on,” he said.
In a statement on Wednesday the ICRIR said Mr Sheridan, who was previously chief executive at Co-operation Ireland, was speaking on his own behalf.
“Peter was speaking in a personal capacity as part of an international academic talk,” a spokesman said.
“His comments were based on his personal perception rather than any direct knowledge.
“He also spoke about the importance of finding answers to questions from victims and survivors of the Troubles and supporting reconciliation and that his view had changed, hence applying for the commissioner role.
“This is why the Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information Recovery was established - to help families get the answers they deserve.”