I am a supporter of SF and I’m all for the PSNI investigating every crime that occurred during Troubles, but I do question the effort that goes into some cases while others are completely forgotten about. Why the hierarch of victims. Did people ever hear of Joan Connolly, a mother of 8, shot dead by the British army during the Ballymurphy massacre, which the other day the British government claimed was not in the public interest to investigate further. Her family have every right to seek justice, just as the. McConvilles do.

Why are only crimes committed by republicans and loyalists from the past still being investigated, while those carried out by soldiers are purposely ignored. Paramilitaries should pay for their crimes but so too should British soldiers, who murdered just under 200 civilians, and not one soldier was ever charged with any of these murders!

Brownie for Taoiseach!

I am not a SF supporter but I do find it strange that comments are open for this story while the man is under arrest and yet closed for bankers when they were arrested.

And Sinn Fein would ? Peter were you around, for those times..

What if? Get a grip. What if me aunt had balls. Let’s wait for some facts. Don’t the Journal usually disable comments when someone is arrested but not convicted.

Even if you are one to argue that the conflict in Northern Ireland was a war, to disappear somebody is actually a war crime under international humanitarian law. So no matter what way you look at it, the murder of Jean McConville is completely indefensible.

More whataboutery from the shinners- keep digging boys :D

And if found NOT guilty will you and the rest of your “cult” be happy with that outcome? I sincerely doubt it.

Pat soldiers have been charged in the past. You confuse a soldier protecting himself during a riot etc with blatant murder.

Do you honestly believe a soldier firing a plastic bullet to disperse rioters is the same as say the Kingsmills massacre where 11 innocent men were stopped on their way home from work, lined up by the roadside and shot dead?

There were no 200 murders carried out here by British soldiers, there were thousands carried out though by illegal terrorist groups.

It was nt plastic bullets they were firing in Derry or in Ballymurphy

Remember Jean McConville on May 23rd.

Good man Sean, it’s interesting to see a FF man joining FG and Lab in exploiting a woman’s murder for political purposes. Are things that desperate for FF?

Paul, the Journal disable comments once a person has been charged.

Also remember the many victims resulting from recieved transmissions being passed on to the various Crown Auxilliary Death Squads…..and Peaches of course!!

Your right Jamesy there were more than 200 murders carried out by them but I’m not including the shoot to kill victims or any other paramilitaries, just innocent bystanders. Get your head out of the sand, scores of nationalists had bullets put into them at point blank range in non rioting circumstances. But the way can you name me even 5 British soldiers charged with murder or manslaughter for these hundreds of killings seeing as you say some were charged?

Just to refresh your memory have a read of this
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-24987465

Meanwhile, the selective “cherry-picking” style of British justice means: no investigation, no charges, no arrests, no media leaks, no massive press coverage for members of the Parachute regiment out on a vicious killing spree in Ballymurphy Belfast.

A mother of 8 was riddled to death with mutable high velocity rounds, blowing half her face off – 10 other Irish civilians, including a local priest were dispensed with that night – no questions asked – no investigation, just a blatant amnesty to kill!!

The soldier that shot the joyriders in Belfast in the early 90′s was jailed, I dont believe he was in the wrong as a car sped through the checkpoint and he opened fire on it, how was he to know who was in it. Theres a massive difference between that and going to somebodys house of place of work and assassinating them.

There were also scores of UDR personnel charged with various crimes throughout the conflict most notable the ‘UDR 4′. Look it up.

Billy McCaughey was an RUC man who was involved in UVF attacks, he was jailed for life.

I can research more too if you like.

You said there were NO security forces jailed. I think you need to admit you were wrong here Pat.

And I say again, firing in a riot situation is not murder, its self defence. Of course you’d just want every soldier or RUC man to stand there and get his head pounded in with bricks and bottles. Not in the real world Pat.

And dont try to say shoot to kill operations were murder, look at Loughgall where the IRA fired over 70 shots and detonated a 200lb bomb and wrecked half a police station, hardly murder on the part of the army when they fired at them and took them out.

Contrast that to a year later when the IRA placed a bomb under a van belonging to soldiers who were taking part in a charity fun run in Lusburn and ended up killing 6 of them. Thats an insight into how both sides fought their war here, the IRA fought like cowards while the army fought the way an army should fight.

You’re right monty he is fecked !!

If he was ‘fecked’ he would be charged by now and the comments section would be closed.

Talking all night. Just like the Anglo guys Fitzpatrick et al.

He discredits himself by lying about his past. Have some balls, and people would take him seriously.

Stop Ciarrioch…you are embarassing yourself….It was I interesting to hear Mary Loo Roll whittling on Morning Ireland this morning talking about the “death” of Jean McConville as opposed to her murder…can’t even say what it actually was…pathetic.

KKK – Jean McConville was murdered.
No one disputes that . Splitting hairs on that subject is nonsense , in the same way that the British Army death Squads murdered all around them in Ballymurphy ?
What’s so interesting here though is that KKK – the great Rightwing moralist finds himself in the same moral position as a bunch of Terrorist Dissidents !!!
Isn’t that a funny position that you find yourself in KKK ? A bit of a dilemma , one would imagine? ……..a chara

Mary Lou is on the radio making a very thin argument about TUV and DUP and now the elections in the south – the house of cards is shaking… now accusing the ‘old guard’ of the PSNI…very very thin.

Even though he apparently volunteered to attend.

And she’s saying the ‘death’ of Jean McConville’, she won’t say the word murder.

Well the other side of this is the following, Gerry Adams has always maintained he is innocent of these charges. He has now voluntarily presented himself to the PSNI for questioning. If he is charged then we will have issues. However, if he is unconditionally released then we can definitivly say that there is no evidence that he was involved in the death of Jean McConville and draw a line under these allegations.

I think Ray Burke presented himself to Garda as well, hardly proof of innocence. They did arrest him though, if Michael Martin was arrested by the Garda would you be so quick to defend him.

@Brendan – i think the problem is that it may be impossible to definitively prove either way.. if they have enough evidence to go to trial then it will be an issue. I’m surprised comments have been left open. I hope that SF will not embark on a policy of attacking the PSNI as being politically motivated – they have to be very careful on public pronouncements regardless of what they might say in private.

If only it were so simple Brendan.

“If Michael Martin was arrested by the Garda would you be so quick to defend him”… No we would do the very same as yourself and use it to discredit him and the whole party, we would openly slander the man without one piece of evidence.

We have seen political policing in the North many times. Don’t forget the construction of Stormont Gate and the fabrication of a spying ring. The political system is nearly apoplectic at the rise of Sinn Fein and we expected this after the weekends polls.

But SF support the Police – and encourage people to go to them for justice? and you yourself have said that we should trust them if they come out and exonerate Mr Adams?

The shinner deflection tactics are pathetic as usual :D

Mary Lou has lost all credibility by her blinkered defence of her leader. It all seems a bit North Korea like. All hail to the leader no matter what.

Brendan. Please amend your post. Mrs McConville was murdered.

Kim Jun Adams is in a world of sh*ite :)

I just heard Mary Lou on newstalk refer to the current northern police force as the RUC many times to the point that the broadcaster had to correct her. Her answers relating to Gerry Adams IRA membership sounded pathetic

Brendon Ferron I would have thought you would be too busy to find the time to comment on articles in the journal??how about you go and do something productive with your time like I don’t know….putting up a convincing argument as to why people should vote for you?

A carefully orchestrated plan in order to make it political from SInn Féin..accuse everyone else of making it political while accidentally throwing around terms like ‘securocrat’ RUC i mean PSNI etc etc…you’ll find this sort of mantra by every single SF’er over the course of the day… the cult have been fed their lines.

What a silly silly comment. We’ll know “definitively” when the investigation is finished or if it goes to trial.

So what are you suggesting? Fine Gael, labour, Fianna Fáil have some power over PSNI! Ridiculous

Seems you are Inigo… seem you are very much deluded indeed, If you think FG are not capable of such a thing. Have you read a newspaper in the last few weeks???

KKK the man who has refused countless times to deny his Nazi/Fascist background is talking about conspiracies …good one.

Jeez, he offered to talk to the PSNI and they took him up on his offer! If there were any phone calls made they were between Adams and the PSNI.

Right you are. No reason the Torries or FG would want to visit any disrepute on Sinn Fein.
Why, Maggie would be spinning in her grave should such a thing occur.

Deffo a timely buyback by Team Shatter for re-instatement to the top table of Blueshirt Inc….could blow their collective face into the side of a tree….all being well!!

It’s good to laugh at the deluded shinners :D

SF have never been viewed in a positive manner….just a negative one and rightly so.

I’m not a SF supporter actually I’m an opponent of them in the locals. But this is clearly a political manoeuvre the people that can’t see that either are ok with Jean McConvilles murder being used as a political football or just don’t see who benefits from this action. Adams will be out in few hours…but the headlines are already out there, which was the whole point of this action.

Kendog Maginnis….in d big house!!

Ha…what are you on about Martin. Ranting again…Am I going to have to give you a history lesson once again based on actual events where the IRA conspired with Nazi Germany to invade Ireland. You Provos are great for looking for the “truth” when it’s anybody else…God forbid you would tell the truth yourselves…pathetic.

And what if he is not, will you still defend him.

I will defend him till he is found guilty in a court of law.

@brendan – absolutely – but as i mentioned below – because of the allegations it will be quite difficult to prove either way. If the PSNI come out and say ‘he had nothing to do with it’ – then everyone will have to accept it and wish Mr Adams well and then he should be apologised to by those who in the Dáil and elsewhere wrongly accused him. I feel though that may only come about the other end of a trial.

@Brendan – you will accept the judgement of a British court of law presided over by a magistrate appointed by ‘Her Majesty’ ? That must stick in the craw a little.

Sinn Fein have fully singed up to policing and justice in the North. Now six people have been arrested on the back of these tapes. One has been charged as they incriminated themselves, four have been unconditionaly released, one remains in custody. If the current one is released unconditionally then they are innocent of any charge.

And if he is released with conditions? Where to then bould Brendan the Fearless

Lets see if that happens, I believe he will not be charged and we move on from there. I knew while canvassing last night this was going on. I was still out knocking doors, I will be doing the same tonight as well.

?I wonder who was there to defend Jean as she was being tortured and murdered on adam’s orders?

Not her handlers anyway…..but then that would have been standard operating procedure with such spent sources!

And you will do the opposite, no matter what.
Can you cite some level of proof that would satisfy you that Adams had no part in that killing?
My guess would be you can not.

Saul where did I say the Adams is a hero of mine. That aside can you point out where my defense of a persons right to be considered innocent until proven guilty goes against the norms of society. Everybody no matter who they are or what they are accused of has the right of presumption of innocence but I presume from your post that you don’t agree with that or am I wrong.

The reason that we have this presumption is because muppets like Sharon who posted below “Delighted he has finally been arrested. Let us pray he now just admits his guilt” get their information from tabloid rags and love the rabid mob mentality as opposed to the rule of law.

If I am guilty of blindly defending anything it is the blind defense of presumption of innocence, production of evidence, trial by jury and administration of justice. Do you have a problem with that?

They defend Kim jun Adams to the death

When did the norms of society ever apply to adams and his ira killers?

Summed up quite nicely Capitaine!

Inigo he volunteered last month but the PSNI only decided to do it now, why? In NI a man is arrested for the UVF bombing of McGurks Bar and the UVF (yes they are still around you know) are blamed for a petrol bomb attack on an Alliance party office but there isn’t a peep out of the British media and barely a few lines in the Irish media.

In the Republic, we have water protests, SF looking at wiping out Labour and making huge gains not to mention Martin McGuinness upstaging Kenny and co by meeting the Queen of England.

All this is forgotten about now that Gerry Adams has been arrested. Coincidence?

Thanks Ted, I enjoy your comments too man.

Well Brian perhaps more evidence has come to light…. if the UVF’s political wing was in government in the north and their leaders were higher profile it might be an issue.

Also in the past month two other people were arrested and questioned – this is all on foot of the PSNI receiving those Boston Tapes relevant – so i think its a natural progression that the man named as being the head who organised the abduction is arrested for questioning.

What wrangles with me, as an independent republican, is how quickly Brendan Hughes contribution is being whitewashed from the last 40 years and suddenly a trusted man of Adams’ is now ‘untrustworthy’.

No light in the Dark, just a shot!

Squeaky bum time for the baron of Belfast :D

Brian how do you know the UVF petrol bombed the Alliance party office in Belfast?

Was it because Martin McGuinness said so?

Inigo the reason Hughes is being whitewashed is because he didn’t toe the party line and so became a “dissident”. Now, who gave SF the right to say who is or isn’t a “dissident” republican is beyond me seeing as they were once the supporters of the “dissident” Provisional IRA. I certainly don’t need SF to tell me as to who is a Republican and who isn’t.

As for the Boston tapes, they are the real whitewash seeing as they are inadmissible in court as they were not taken under oath. This is just like the Stormantgate “spy ring” all over again. The usual morons will throw judicial procedure out the window and have now problem with using a families tragedy to score political points. Of course Enda Kenny’s use of Jean McConvilles murder to block any hard questions from Adams has lead to this sort of mud slinging.

Jamesy 2 petrol bomb attacks in 2 days in East Belfast on Alliance Party offices. Who do you think it was, the Girl Guides?

BTW, adams is the biggest coward of them all!