(New York, March 14, 2000)—International and local human rights
organizations marked the first anniversary of the murder of Rosemary
Nelson by urging the UK government to act immediately to set up an
independent inquiry into all the circumstances surrounding her death.
Rosemary Nelson was the second human rights lawyer to have been killed
in Northern Ireland; the first was Patrick Finucane in 1989. Loyalist
paramilitaries claimed responsibility for both murders.
The many questions in the wake of Rosemary Nelson's murder cannot be
dealt with by the current criminal investigation because it is limited
to the specific circumstances of the murder. We therefore urge the UK
authorities to meet their obligations under international standards to
carry out an independent, thorough and impartial inquiry into these
questions.
|
|
Rosemary Nelson was killed by a car bomb in Lurgan on 15 March 1999.
Loyalist paramilitaries later claimed responsibility for her murder. She
was killed following numerous death threats and after many appeals had
been made to the authorities to protect her life. Her murder seriously
undermined the rule of law in Northern Ireland since the UK government
and the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) so tragically failed to protect
her or to deal with the alleged intimidation of defence lawyers by RUC
officers.
The many questions in the wake of Rosemary Nelson's murder cannot be
dealt with by the current criminal investigation because it is limited
to the specific circumstances of the murder. We therefore urge the UK
authorities to meet their obligations under international standards to
carry out an independent, thorough and impartial inquiry into these
questions.
The inquiry should investigate Rosemary Nelson's complaints about RUC
harassment and intimidation and how the authorities ultimately failed to
protect her life. It is also vital to examine allegations of RUC
harassment and intimidation of other lawyers through their clients in
special interrogation centres.
Amnesty International
British Irish rights watch
Center for the Independence of Judges and Lawyers of the
International Commission of Jurists
Committee on the Administration of Justice
Human Rights Watch
Irish Council for Civil Liberties
Lawyers Committee for Human Rights
Liberty
Pat Finucane Centre
Relatives for Justice
Scottish Centre for Human Rights
For more information contact:
Halya Gowan, Amnesty International +44 171 413 5566
|