Twenty-Fifth Anniversary Of Bloody Sunday (No. 2)

EDM number 431 in 1996-97, proposed by Harry Barnes on 22/01/1997.

That this House notes that 30th January 1997 is the 25th anniversary of Bloody Sunday in Derry when 14 unarmed civilians were killed by British troops; further notes that this was a key event for recruitment into the Provisional IRA; regrets that the tribunal headed by the then Lord Chief Justice, Lord Widgery, did not hear all the relevant evidence; welcomes the Prime Minister's statement in 1992 that those killed on that fateful day should be regarded as having been found not guilty of having been shot whilst handling a firearm or bomb and his statement, a year later, in response to the honourable Member for Foyle that they were 'innocent'; further notes new evidence that the peaceful demonstration in 1972 may have come under fire from British soldiers on Derry's walls as well as from the Paratroop Regiment on the ground; strongly urges the British Government to waive the 30 year rule on relevant historical documents and to institute an independent inquiry, with independent British, Irish and other historians, to investigate these new claims, to examine the outcome of the Widgery Tribunal and to apologise to the relatives of those who were killed; and believes that such actions would not only bring comfort to the families of those killed but would also help undermine the ruthless way in which the Provisional IRA has hypocritically exploited Bloody Sunday for its propaganda purposes by putting a line under this tragic event.

This motion has been signed by a total of 12 MPs.