When it comes to brass necks and barking nonsense, the DUP has it in spades.
Saturday past was the 16th anniversary of the disappearance of Lisa Dorrian. She was only 25. A girl described as being full of life.
The Dorrians have been robbed of any sense of closure. They deserve better.
Unfortunately Lisa’s mother, Pat died six years ago. A heart worn down and broken by the knowledge that there are people out there not only responsible for Lisa’s murder but also for the callous disappearance of her body.
Only days before the Dorrian anniversary, the DUP leadership met with the Loyalist Communities Council (LCC). The LCC is a preposterous connivance which has no place in a civilised democracy. It is supported by the UVF, Red Hand Commando (RHC) and the UDA. Its alleged purpose is to give a voice to “neglected” loyalist communities.
Such a voice apparently extends to ‘warning’ voters not to vote for the Alliance party. It’s one thing for a political party to ask would be voters not to vote for a rival. That’s legitimate. But a ‘warning’ from paramilitary organisations takes on a whole new meaning. That’s a sinister threat. The DUP don’t condone such actions or violence.
It is widely believed members of loyalist paramilitaries were behind the disappearance of Lisa Dorrian. In fact, there is little doubt about that. The late David Ervine, (formerly of the UVF) was quick to blame the LVF.
Since then it has been suggested members of the UVF or RHC were involved. But a mafia-like an omertà protects the perpetrators.
I wonder did it occur to any of the DUP leadership who met with the LCC to ask those present about loyalist paramilitary involvement in Lisa’s murder? I doubt it.
In 2017, the DUP leadership also met with the UDA, in the form of a prominent member of the LCC. This was two days after the murder of Colin Horner who was shot by loyalists in front of his toddler son, Oscar.
The PSNI linked the murder to a UDA feud. The DUP did not raise the murder of Mr Horner with the UDA at the meeting.
And let’s not forget King Rat, the brutal and murderous Billy Wright of the Mid Ulster UVF - the man who became too extreme even for the UVF.
And yet, in the mid 1990s at the height of Wright’s infamy and fragile inter community tensions, a then DUP MP was content to share a platform with the notorious loyalist. Remember too, that Wright was against the loyalist ceasefires, such as they were.
The DUP founder, Ian Paisley, had no problems marching side by side with the UDA and other loyalist paramilitaries during the Ulster Workers Strike, at a time when they were bombing civilians in Dublin and Monaghan.
The lines between political unionism and loyalist paramilitarism have time and again been blurred. Sometimes less so.
Loyalists occasionally felt betrayed by the rhetoric of firebrand unionists who took no responsibility for their words and left teenage Protestants to languish in prison.
This writer abhors paramilitarism. Far from being a member of the ‘chattering class’ I know from growing up the pain and fear caused by paramilitaries. Particularly within communities they claim to serve. Paramilitaries have their own hierarchy and everyone beneath is cannon fodder or expendable.
Loyalist paramilitaries leech off their communities. They need routed not feted. Bizarrely, it’s the chattering classes amongst unionism and the NIO who fete them.
The ministerial code calls on each minister ‘to challenge all paramilitary activity and associated criminality’. Such challenges should be the first (if not only) item on the agenda when politicians meet paramilitary representatives. Especially those allegedly ‘transitioning’ from criminality.
Failure to call out paramilitarism at every opportunity requires a brass neck.
Though brass necks don’t come more brassy than Sammy Wilson’s, who instead of blathering balderdash at the health minister should act like a grown up.
