The thirty-year commemoration of the bombing of the workers’ van at the Teebane crossroads took place on Sunday 16 January 2022. A Christian service was organised at the roadside in front of the memorial stone where the bomb exploded, killing eight innocent men who were on their journey back home after an honest day’s work, as Reverend William McCrea said. The minister had encouraging words for the bereaved families and their close friends as well as those injured in the same incident, reminding them of the two pilgrims on the way to Emmaus who invited the Lord Jesus Christ to be their guest. He then became their host before he was recognised as the risen Saviour. Earlier on Reverend Ivor Smith had opened in prayer, making mention of the need of the victims to be supported every day of their lives since the tragedy took place.
Jean Caldwell was gently supported by both her daughters, standing either side of her. She expressed her disappointment that no one has ever been made accountable for this act of terrorism, which deprived her of her beloved husband. Reverend McCrea stated that those responsible may have escaped the justice of men, but will not escape the justice of God and he hinted that some of them may already have faced divine justice.
It was encouraging to see so many people attending the Christian service. This tragedy and its victims of terrorism have not been forgotten. Following the report issued by the Historical Enquiries Team (HET) there remain questions to be answered and issues to be addressed. For this reason, a complaint has been lodged and accepted for investigation by the Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland (PONI). This complaint deserves to be supported by as many victims of the Teebane atrocity as possible. If they wish to do so, those bereaved or injured are invited to contact the Ulster Human Rights Watch Advocacy Service to access support.
Ulster Human Rights Watch are seeking to recruit a part-time Advocacy Support Worker (22.5 hours/week; £17,794.22 pa) and a part-time Administrator (20 hours/week; £10,800.96 pa). Both posts are based in Brownlow House, Lurgan. Further information about posts, and application forms can be downloaded from the links below. The closing date for applications for both posts is 28 February 2022.
Our organisation, the Ulster Human Rights Watch (UHRW), has recently deposited personal testimonies with the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (PRONI) to create the Legacy of the Past Record (LPR) to give a ‘platform’ to people to tell their moving and harrowing stories about what terrorists did to them and their families.
Nine detailed accounts are now freely available to view online through PRONI’s e-Catalogue (search PRONI Ref: D4791/1*) which graphically and factually recount what happened to them. Unlike the people who carried out gun and bomb attacks, these innocent victims are solely motivated to tell the truth. Not for them any empty political justification for barbarism and brutality.
The victims tell it as it was and how, many years later, they still revisit with vivid clarity the hour, the day, the month they were robbed of a loved one for no reason whatsoever. The killers are long since out of jail and getting on with their lives but for many innocent victims suffering appalling physical injuries and debilitating psychological conditions, time stands still.
For them, there is no early release date, no amnesty, no line in the sand and no forgetting what happened. They are the permanent victims of ‘The Troubles’ where, for many, closure remains elusive.
Our nine stories feature, for example, a sister whose school teacher brother was gunned down at the top of the stairs in their east Belfast home. Senseless. Pointless. Another victim, a young woman on a bus on her way from work, burned by a petrol bomb and dying a short while after. And a third, a baby, killed in his pram by a bomb placed at a furniture store.
Preserving these unique historical narratives with PRONI is a first for us and we would like to see this developed further. The nine narratives are our baseline and in coming months, we believe the Legacy of the Past Record could be expanded to include other victims. Further developments could involve audio-visual content.
Work of this nature addresses a deficit and a dreadful shortcoming in how we deal with the past and what decent people had to endure. For too long, the voice of the mother who lost a son or daughter or a police officer or soldier who was left permanetly disabled from an under-car booby-trap bomb went unheard and unheeded.
Now, at long last, people who were the innocent victims of a senseless and futile ‘war’ are given the opportunity to balance the books, as it were. They will inject objectivity and honesty into the public square and they must be listened to by those in power. They are also a primary first-hand source for serious students of history committed to exploring the unvarnished truth of what happened in Northern ireland for more than a quarter century.
The voices of family members of these nine innocent victims who were courageous enough to step forward to relate their stories are a simple yet effective counter to the unapologetic propagandists who seek to justify murder and anarchy.
The perpetrators of some of the vilest crimes are not the ones who matter. No, the people they maimed and murdered, and their families, are the ones who matter and deserve respect and practical assistance.
We now have the Victims’ Payments Scheme up and running but, so far, no financial awards have been made. We in the UHRW appreciate that individual assessments are necessary as part of the process, but that should not be a long drawn-out exercise, but rather one that is done with the minimum of fuss and maximum sensitivity.
UHRW Advocacy Service has helped many people complete their applications for this payment scheme. Incident and impact statements are part of the process and we saw our role as demystifying and simplifying what had to be done and will continue to do so for others who may need our assistance.
We have to believe that 2022 will be a new beginning for those in our community who did nothing to warrant the murderous attentions of the bomber or gunman. Our workload this year will see us continuing to ensure that no innocent victims are left behind.
I acknowledge that the Copyright, Design and Patents Act 1988 applies to the Family Reports that are made available by the Ulster Human Rights Watch.
I understand that ‘the copy’ as designated below relates to a copy made by me or supplied to me, whether hard - copy or digital, of the material or part thereof referenced; and that a copy supplied to me will be treated as if I had made the copy myself.
I agree that I will not use the copy except for non-commercial purposes such as private study, research and/or educational purposes and will not supply a copy of it to any other person. I understand that should I, at a later date, wish to reproduce or publish the copy in print, online or via any other media, I will first seek the authorisation of the Ulster Human Rights Watch; and that it is my responsibility to ensure copyright is not infringed.
I commit not to make or request a copy of a work which has been published prior to deposit in the Legacy of the Past Record and where copying would be in breach of copyright, or where copying has been prohibited by the Ulster Human Rights Watch or copyright owner, without first obtaining the necessary authorisations.
I recognise that if this statement is false in relation to any family report, the copy shall be an infringing copy and that I shall be liable for infringement of copyright.
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