Cory warned against Finucane inquiry postponement

The British government today flew in the face of Judge Peter Cory’s recommendations in its decision to postpone the public inquiry into the murder of Patrick Finucane until after court action is completed.

Judge Cory warned in his report that the practical effect could be a delay of at least two years in the establishment of an inquiry and said it might be one of the “rare situations” where a public inquiry “will be of greater benefit to a community than prosecutions”.

He said evidence he had considered from a mass of official documents “clearly indicate to me that there is strong evidence that collusive acts were committed by the Army (Force Research Unit), the RUC Special Branch and the Security Service.”

The community at large would, undoubtedly, like to see the issue resolved quickly and it was essential if public confidence in the police, army and administration of justice was to be restored.

Only a public inquiry would suffice, he said.

Judge Cory added: “Without proper scrutiny, doubts based solely on myth and suspicion will linger long, fester and spread their malignant infection throughout the Northern Ireland community.”

It was for the Attorney General to decide on prosecution, but it was extremely difficult to hold a public inquiry at the same time as a prosecution, said the judge.

Delaying the inquiry would be a bitter disappointment to the Finucane family and a large segment of the community, he added.

“The Finucane family will be devastated. A large part of the Northern Ireland community will be frustrated.

“Myths and misconceptions will proliferate and hopes of peace and understanding will be eroded,” said Judge Cory.

He added: “This may be one of the rare situations where a public inquiry will be of greater benefit to a community than prosecutions.”

Judge Cory said it must not be forgotten that the murder of Mr Finucane was 14 years ago. Important witnesses such as army double agent loyalist Brian Nelson, and UDA quartermaster William Stobie were dead – the latter murdered – and memories were fading fast.

“In light of my findings that there is sufficient evidence of collusion to warrant a public inquiry, the community might prefer a public inquiry over a prosecution even if it means that some witnesses must receive exemption from prosecution.

“The difficult decision to be made by the Attorney General will require a careful and sensitive balancing of all the relevant factors,” said Judge Cory.

Judge Cory’s published report had significant sections blanked out on security grounds, but it highlighted the activities of the army’s shadowy Force Research Unit and the RUC Special Branch.

Judge Cory said documents he had examined disclosed the army handlers of double agent Nelson and their superiors “turned a blind eye” to his “criminal acts”.

In doing so, they “established a pattern of behaviour that could be characterised as collusive”.

They were aware Nelson was a central player in the UDA, and that he had “considerable influence in targeting operations”, said the report.

The RUC Special Branch was attacked for acting differently in reaction to threats from the Ulster Defence Association than it did to those of the Provisional IRA and other republicans.

Documents “indicate that Special Branch rarely took any steps to document threats or prevent attacks by the UDA, whereas pro-active steps were routinely taken in connection with PIRA and other republican threats”, he said.

The failure to issue warnings to persons targeted by the UDA “often led to tragic consequences”, Judge Cory said, adding that “this is indicative of attitudes within the RUC Special Branch”.