OPINION: The victims of Omagh deserve fight for justice

WE FIND ourselves approaching the third anniversary of the Omagh atrocity.

Just three short years ago a group of armed and desperate men decided to ignore the wishes of 78 per cent of the people north and south.

They thought the best way to end British rule in Ireland was to kill other people who lived in Ireland. This is what they were good at and had trained for over the past thirty years and like smoking it is hard to give up.

On the week before August 15 they started to put a plan into action by stealing a red Cavalier, preparing it for its last and most deadly journey north, continually playing cat and mouse with the security forces both sides of the border.

As the car approached the town center of Omagh the driver would have had a long look at where he would park because the traffic was particularly heavy that day due to a cross-community festival involving lots of children that was about to go through the town.

As they parked the car on that very hot Saturday afternoon and walked past mothers holding toddlers in their arms and pushing babies in prams, having activated the bomb, they casually made their way to safety.

How can they now hold on to their sanity?

When news of the carnage was broadacst, we experienced an extra- ordinary outporing of generosity from old and young, national and international, in fact people from the four corners of the world.

This, for many of us, helped to demonstrate the mutual trust and respect that lies just beneath the surface in everyone. It was sad that Omagh had to be tragically famed in this way.

It was hoped that Omagh would be a turning point in our violent history. For who could imagine anything more wicked or evil.

The dead that day ranged from grandmothers to unborn children and almost 800 people were affected personally.

We must surely examine our conscience if we believe that this is anything other than genocide.

In the days and weeks after the bomb many of the most famous politicians and people in public life came to Omagh. Some most likely never knew the place existed before but we were grateful for their support and kindness.

A large cross-border joint inquiry was set up. New legislation was introduced in Dublin and a week later in London promises were made privately and publicly that those responsible would be brought to justice. To date not one single person has been charged with the Omagh murders.

Surely we must ask the question: "Has the instrument of the law got so blunted? Have we as a civilized community reverted back to the law of the jungle?"

How can someone murder 31 souls including two unborn children, cover his tracks and get away with it.

As a group of families directly affected we came together to try to find a way to find justice ourselves.

At this point OJ Simpson's civil action case was considered. We then contacted London lawyers who had experience in terrorist related work and then it started - the quest for a civil action against the alleged bombers.

The biggest problem we have is raising the money necessary to bring a case like this to the courts.

It is action by the people and for the people. We owe it to our dead to fight for justice because they can't.

The men, women and children that died in Omagh were not soldiers and never wanted to be apart of any war.

They killed them in their pity

They killed them in their prime

They killed them in their kindness.

They killed them from behind.

I have no doubt that the people of this island who supported us in our darkest hour will not let us stand alone on this occasion.

Let this be a lesson to any terrorist - wherever you come from or whatever your so-called cause - you can be challenged by the victims' families.

If you go out to murder, think of the consequences. The police are not your only pursuers.

We must continue to look at new and diverse ways to deal with people who can manipulate the system.

Sadly Northern Ireland seems to be slipping back into the ritual destruction and sectariansim.

The murder of young Gavin Brett, who managed to live life avoiding the terrible cancer of bigotry that eats away at so many, was very disturbing.

How many more innocent young names must be listed among the murdered before we can live together?

We are all victims of the conflict in Northern Ireland and so we should unite with determination to stop the killing, otherwise the terrorists could succeed and that would be unthinkable.

Please support our legal action by organizing a function or making a donation.

We, the families of the Omagh victims, would be entirely grateful.

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