Bloody Sunday victims remembered

Marches were held in Derry yesterday to mark the 40th anniversary of Bloody Sunday.

Relatives of victims attended a memorial service at the Bloody Sunday monument in the Bogside, where a minute’s silence was also observed.

But the majority of the families refused to take part in a subsequent march that retraced the route of the demonstration in which British paratroopers killed 14 civil rights marchers on Jan 30, 1972.

A public inquiry by Lord Saville declared all victims to be innocent, prompting an apology in 2010 from British Prime Minister David Cameron.

While many of the families are pressing for the prosecution of the soldiers, most of them decided to end the annual march they led for 39 years, arguing they had been vindicated by the Saville findings.

Relatives of those killed and wounded attended the memorial service, which involved both Protestant and Catholic clergy.

But later, Kate and Linda Nash, whose teenage brother William was killed on Bloody Sunday, opted to continue the march.

Kate Nash said the march should remain an annual event to help lobby for other bereaved families seeking justice.

“I am delighted with the turnout,” she said.

“But even if it had just been myself and my sister, we would still have a right to march. That is democracy.

“We are going to continue to march for prosecutions, but beyond that, this is a unique march and it should continue for all those who are seeking justice,” Ms Nash said.

Estimates suggest the march drew more than 1,000 people, but organisers believed the figure was higher.