Murdered courier's family to take campaign abroad

The family of a Dublin courier murdered by an alleged IRA member is taking its campaign for justice to politicians in Brussels and Washington, it emerged today.

Two sisters of Joseph Rafferty, shot dead in Dublin last April, are meeting US ambassador James C Kenny this week as part of a move to raise awareness of the case with Irish American politicians in Washington.

The family also plan to visit the EU parliament in Brussels, just like the sisters and partner of Robert McCartney, who was killed outside a Belfast bar by alleged IRA members in January last.

Mr Rafferty’s two sisters claim their brother, a 27-year-old father of one, was murdered by an alleged member of the IRA who is now being protected by republicans.

One sister, Esther Uzell said today: “As long as Joseph’s killer is at large, we will continue our campaign wherever we feel people can help us.

“We will be asking the US ambassador on Thursday to give us advice on who to meet in Washington and how to organise our visit.

“We met with the McCartney family in Belfast in September and they gave us great encouragement to go to Europe, to go to the US and wherever, and that is what we intend to do.”

The Rafferty family has already met Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny and Labour leader Pat Rabbitte.

Last month they also briefed a delegation in Dublin from the Independent Monitoring Commission (IMC).

The IMC will include the Rafferty crime in its next report in January but Esther Uzell believes the murder in April was a break in the IRA’s ceasefire.

Mr Rafferty died when he was shot twice in the upper body as he left his apartment at the Ongar Park housing estate in Blanchardstown last April.

He was originally from the south inner city and had been in dispute with a local family who had threatened him that the IRA would "get him".

The Raffertys have also been the victims of ongoing intimidation in the neighbourhood.

Earlier this month, Dublin City Council unanimously backed a motion by local representative, Fianna Fáil’s Councillor Garry Keegan calling for an immediate end to the intimidation of the Rafferty family.

Cllr Keegan promised that more public events will take place in coming days to keep the family’s plight in the spotlight.