October 4 2001
The PFC welcomes the findings of the report of the Police Ombudsman into the case of Sammy Devenny. Today is an emotional and highly significant day for the Devenny family and for the wider community. The events surrounding the assault on the Devenny household on April 19 1969 and the tragic death of Sammy Devenny three months later cast a shadow over this family and city. This in turn poisoned the political climate in the weeks leading up to the Battle of the Bogside, the pogroms in Belfast and the introduction of British troops onto the streets of the North.
The subsequent treatment of the family by the RUC compounded the sense of injustice and hurt. This has now been officially acknowledged in a comprehensive report from the Police Ombudsman Nuala O’Loan. The official silence of the past 32 years has finally been broken.
There is a positive lesson to be learnt from this investigation and report. Acknowledgement of the hurt caused over the past 32 years need not cause further division if handled sensitively and with compassion. A truth process can bring about a healing of wounds and contribute to reconciliation. Any meaningful peace process must be accompanied by a truth process. The report of the Victims
Commissioner, Kenneth Bloomfield, failed miserably to acknowledge the hurt and trauma of many, many other families who, like the Devenny family, have contacted the Pat Finucane Centre. For these other families the search for acknowledgement continues. Some will argue that this only ‘reopens old wounds’. The reality for many is that these wounds have never healed.
There remains unfinished business. The Chief Constable of the RUC, Ronnie Flanagan, has a responsibility to acknowledge the findings of this report. He has been provided with a copy as has the Secretary of State Dr John Reid.