Ireland

Survivor of 1974 UVF Dublin bombing says legacy plans will 'snatch away' victims' hopes for justice

Maeve Taylor and her daughter Michele Keane, both of whom were injured in the Dublin Monaghan bombings, at a commemoration in Dublin to mark the 45th anniversary of the bombings in 2019. Victims' families and survivors of the Dublin-Monaghan bombings have called for full disclosure of all sensitive documents relating to the atrocities. Picture by Michelle Devane, Press Association
Maeve Taylor and her daughter Michele Keane, both of whom were injured in the Dublin Monaghan bombings, at a commemoration in Dublin to mark the 45th anniversary of the bombings in 2019. Victims' families and survivors of the Dublin-Monaghan bombings have called for full disclosure of all sensitive documents relating to the atrocities. Picture by Michelle Devane, Press Association

A SURVIVOR of the 1974 Dublin/Monaghan bombings, who lost his father in the UVF attack, said the British government's legacy proposals will "snatch away any last remaining hope we have of ever getting closure".

Edward O'Neill's father Edward Snr died on Parnell Street in Dublin on May 17 1974 when the first of three UVF bombs planted in the capital detonated.

No one has ever been charged with the atrocity.

In a letter to The Irish News, Mr O'Neill said his family was left "virtually destitute" following his father's death.

"My mother had to work three jobs at times scrubbing floors and cleaning other people’s toilets to ensure food was on the table," he wrote.

"Despite the hardship we as kids never went hungry and we always got new clothes at Christmas and holidays as well as presents.

"It’s a testament to my mother and her determination to ensure we were all kept together. My mother did an excellent job bringing us up."

Mr O'Neill said the bomb exploded as he left a barber's shop with his father and brother.

"I was blown across the road and was buried alive under falling rubble and masonry," he wrote.

"Oil from a tank in a building had seeped through the rubble and burned me, leaving me with second and third degree burns on my back and stomach.

"The day my dad was murdered I can still remember what was on the radio - Terry Jacks' Seasons in the Sun - what he gave me for breakfast - orange juice and toast and sections of fruit cut up - and the smell of the soap off his face after he shaved when he hugged me.

"I remember him dressing me and me tossing his hair and then laughing and kissing me on the cheek.

"I loved my dad; he was my hero. He is still my hero. In many ways now I try to be the type of man I hope he would be proud for having the courage and determination to see this fight through.

"I had a dream recently that I, as an adult, met my dad and we sat on a bench.

"He told me he was proud of me and loved me. Then he touched my cheek like the day he did when he was killed and told me to live my best life. I woke up crying from my sleep."

Mr O'Neill said his family feels "abandoned" by the Irish government and An Garda Síochána.

And he said plans by the British government to introduce legislation which bring an end to Troubles-related prosecutions "will cruelly snatch away any last remaining hope we have of ever getting closure for ourselves and the cruel wrongs done to our families if implemented".

Mr O'Neill alleged that Garda files on the bombing have been hidden.

He highlighted claims from former Irish justice minister Michael McDowell in October that, following the Good Friday Agreement, "in this State, a de facto moratorium on investigation and prosecution of IRA members (other than those described as dissidents) came into operation".

And he questioned if the alleged moratorium also extended to the UVF.

"It might sound like a rhetorical question, but what has the Good Friday Agreement done for victims and survivors left behind? The answer is nothing," he wrote.

"The Government in the Irish Republic need to step up to the plate and acknowledge their responsibilities, remove the barriers for us, release all files and ensure that we are treated better than the terrorists who caused our injuries," he wrote.

He thanked the Victims' Support Service and victims' group SEFF for their help.

"I cannot change the past, but I can change the future," he said.

A Garda spokesman said: "An Garda Síochána does not comment on ongoing investigations.

"An Garda Síochána reaffirm its commitment to continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding the bombings of Dublin and Monaghan in 1974 with the objective of identifying and holding those responsible to account for their criminality in relation to these matters.

"An Garda Síochána continues to appeal to any person who has any information in relation to the events in Dublin and Monaghan in May 1974 either, who has not contacted An Garda Síochána to this day, or who may have provided information to An Garda Síochána at some stage but has further information which they may now be able to provide at this time to make contact with An Garda Síochána at any Garda Station or the Garda Confidential Line 1800 666 111."

Irish foreign affairs minister Simon Coveney has previously said the Irish government is opposed to the British government's the amnesty proposals.

“No party in Northern Ireland does,” he said.

“And none of the victims' groups do either. But we are, as a government, of course willing to work with the British government in partnership to try to find a basis for consensus."

Meanwhile, it emerged last week that a review of RUC Special Branch compiled by MI5 in the year before the Dublin/Monaghan bombings will stay secret.

Campaigners and victims' families had hoped the 1973 report could shed light on alleged collusion between Special Branch and loyalist paramilitaries.

The court ruling to keep the documents secret was made in August but was only reported on last week.

Under UK law, MI5 documents can stay secret for ever.