Booklet produced for anniversary of pub massacre

Booklet produced for anniversary of pub massacre

13 June 2012

A COMMEMORATIVE booklet to mark the 18th anniversary of the Loughinisland massacre has been produced by the families of the victims.

The booklet will be distributed over a memorial weekend of activities leading up to Monday’s anniversary, which will see the Republic of Ireland wearing black armbands in its Euro 2012 match with Italy.

It will be exactly 18 years since the Ireland v Italy World Cup game and the tragic death of six men who had gathered in the Heights Bar in Loughinisland that evening to watch the match before being shot by UVF gunmen.

The 16-page booklet details the families’ continued quest to prove there was police collusion in the killings. This was not a finding of last year’s Police Ombudsman’s report, which found flaws in the original RUC investigation but not collusion. It also outlines progress in a current Judicial Review into the case.

The booklet goes on to highlight press coverage from last year’s Ombudsman’s report and detail recent trips to the US to promote their campaign.

Among the upcoming memorial events listed in booklet is an under 14 Gaelic Football Tournament, which will be held at Loughinisland GAC on Saturday between 1.30pm and 4.30pm. Among the clubs taking part will be Bellaghy Wolf Tones and St. Enda’s Glengormley, who both lost members during the Troubles. County Tyrone and Loughinisland will also take part in the event.

Saturday night sees the screening of Marie Jones’s play A Night in November, which makes the Loughinisland atrocity the central incident around which the play is written.

On Sunday a Community Big Breakfast will be held at Loughinisland GAC from 10am to 12.30pm, and at 6pm the families will present a Poc Fada for Justice, joined by All Ireland star hurlers.

A panel discussion at 4pm will involve Niall Murphy, the families’ solicitor, John Kelly, a Bloody Sunday campaigner and Mark Thompson, a Director for Relatives for Justice.

A number of tickets are still available for A Night in November by contacting 07976 070036.