Irish News - Law Society U-turn over Nelson death


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from the Irish News
12 May, 1999

 Law Society U-turn over Nelson death
By Liz Trainor

THE NORTHERN Ireland Law Society broke a 30-year tradition of
neutrality last night to back calls for an independent inquiry into the
murders of Pat Finucane and Rosemary Nelson.

The landmark move came after a four-hour special AGM at the Europa
hotel in Belfast attended by around 700 solicitors from across Northern
Ireland.

The meeting was the first of its kind in 10 years and one of the
largest in the society's history.

The body's 30-strong ruling council was criticised for remaining
neutral over calls for independent inquiries into the 1989 murder of Mr
Finucane and that of Mrs Nelson in March this year.

Demands for members of the ruling council to resign over their stance
were overwhelmingly defeated but two motions calling for inquiries were
passed.

The council was accused of misjudging the mood of its members by
failing to back calls for public inquiries - despite similar motions
from law societies in England, Wales, the Republic, and the Bar Council
of Northern Ireland.

Members were angered that they were not consulted by the ruling council
over its public stance.

Speaking after the meeting Law Society president Catherine Dixon said
she was "glad" the motion of no confidence was defeated and conceded
the voice of solicitors had forced them to move away from their neutral
stance.

"I have never seen so many solicitors together in my entire life, a
third of our membership turned out and they all came out because these
were big important and sensitive issues for them.

"We have espoused neutrality for 30 years but the society has called
for this so we have to move with it," she said.

A petition at the special AGM called on the membership to pass three 
resolutions.

The first two called for the Law Society to support calls for
independent inquiries into the circumstances surrounding the murders of
Pat Finucane and Rosemary Nelson.

The first motion was overwhelmingly carried while the second for the
inquiry into Rosemary Nelson's case was passed by a narrow margin of
only nine votes.

Ms Dixon said the vote on Mrs Nelson's murder had only been passed by a
narrow majority because many members felt it may be too early to call
for a judicial inquiry before the police investigation was complete.

Demands for public inquiries have been steadily mounting since the
publication this year of several reports, including one by United
Nations special rapporteur Param Cumaraswamy, outlining evidence of
possible security force collusion into the murder of Pat Finucane in
1989.

But Fermanagh-based solicitor Arlene Foster, a member of the Ulster
Unionist group Union First, voted against the motion.

"It's very sad that the Law Society has been taken over for political
reasons and it's very sad they have put solicitors above other citizens
who have been killed in Northern Ireland."

Belfast-based solicitor Barra McGrory said: "I was always of the view
that the majority of solicitors wished the circumstances of Pat
Finucane's murder to be cleared up.

"And as far as I'm concerned the Law Society's neutral stance was
clearly out of line."

The Rosemary Nelson campaign welcomed the decision to endorse calls for
an independent judicial inquiry, bringing it into line with England,
Wales, Scotland and the Republic.

Campaign spokesman Dr Robbie McVeigh said: "This adds further strength
to the Nelson family's demand for a fully independent inquiry into
Rosemary Nelson's murder."
 
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