Bloody Sunday families call for publication of inquiry into affair

FAMILIES bereaved in the British Army killings on Bloody Sunday yesterday repeated calls for the publication of the inquiry into the affair, as new plans for the report’s eventual release were announced.

Government lawyers are examining the report compiled by Lord Saville on the events of January 1972 when soldiers opened fire during a civil rights march in Derry, killing 14 people.

But while relatives await the report’s release, it was confirmed that the authorities will now allow two members of each family early access to the report on the day of its release, despite initial plans to allow only one relative to read the document in the hours before it goes public.

The Bloody Sunday families said they were informed of the decision by Secretary of State Shaun Woodward.

Gerry Duddy, whose 17-year-old brother Jackie was shot dead on Bloody Sunday said: “This development is obviously a lot better than one person being granted prior access to the report.”