Non solo pedofili, ma anche terroristi

[Fritz]

tratto dall'economist.

Uno dei piu violenti attentati terroristici compiuti dall'IRA, fu orchestrato da un prete cattolico, capo dell'organizzazione terroristica nella zona. Invece di essere arrestato fu protetto e condannato, si fa per dire, ad essere trasferito di parrocchia

Cover-ups and the church in Northern Ireland

Aug 24th 2010, 145 by D.M. | BELFAST

NORTHERN IRELAND'S turbulent past has come back to haunt the province once again, this time with an official report confirming that high authorities conspired to hush up a case of mass murder involving a Catholic priest. It goes back to the early 1970s, illustrating once more that things brushed under the carpet in Ulster, no matter how long ago, have a habit of resurfacing and causing major embarrassment.

All hell was breaking loose in July 1972, when the IRA bombed the quiet Londonderry village of Claudy. Nine people, Catholic and Protestant, died. Almost immediately rumours linked a local priest, Father James Chesney (now long dead), to the attack. Many thought the very idea ridiculous, since as an institution the Catholic church was dead set against the IRA and its violence.

But the new report put out on August 24th by the Northern Ireland Police Ombudsman confirms that the rumours were true: Chesney was in fact IRA "director of operations" for the area. That is only the first part of the shock, for it has also turned up documentary evidence that a Catholic prelate of the time (Cardinal William Conway, head of the Catholic church in Ireland) reached a secret arrangement with a senior minister in the British government, William Whitelaw, then secretary of state for Northern Ireland and later Margaret Thatcher's deputy prime minister.

They agreed that Chesney, instead of being arrested, should be discreetly transferred across the border into the Irish Republic, where he spent the rest of his life. The police went along with the arrangement. The cardinal wanted to avoid damage to the Catholic church; the minister wanted to avoid political upheaval; both wished to avoid deadly loyalist retaliation.

So many other factors were in play that it’s impossible to say whether the cover-up saved lives at the time. It certainly saved face for the church, which avoided having one of its priests unmasked as an active terrorist. But the revelations come less than four weeks before the Pope's scheduled visit to Britain, which is already overshadowed by the church's paedophile scandals. They show up, to clerical embarrassment, that its reaction to Chesney was exactly the same as its response to many child-abusing priests—not to pursue justice but to quietly transfer the offenders out of sight.

An old case in Northern Ireland: Cover-ups and the church in Northern Ireland | The Economist


dal Guardian


Claudy bombings cover-up revealed in police report

• Catholic priest James Chesney directed 1972 attacks
• Northern Ireland Office and RUC hid truth for fear of civil unrest

A Catholic priest directed devastating IRA car bomb attacks in the Northern Irish village of Claudy in 1972 and his role was covered up by senior police officers, government ministers and the Catholic hierarchy, an official investigation has revealed.

The government said today it was "profoundly sorry" about the cover-up, while Northern Ireland's Catholic church said it accepted the findings, calling them "shocking".

Nine people were killed and more than 30 were injured when three vehicles exploded on the main street without warning on 31 July. It was one of the worst atrocities of the bloodiest year of the Troubles.

Three of the dead caught up in the mid-morning blast were children. No one was ever charged with the killings, and the IRA at the time denied responsibility.

The long-awaited report by the police ombudsman for Northern Ireland, published today, confirms suspicions that Father James Chesney, a priest in the nearby village of Bellaghy, was directly involved in the IRA operation, and suggests his involvement was even greater than previously assumed.

Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) detectives who investigated the attack, the report says, concluded "that the priest was the IRA's director of operations in South Derry and was alleged to have been directly involved in the bombings and other terrorist incidents".

But they failed to act on the intelligence and evidence they had gathered because senior police officers intervened to prevent them interviewing him, the report adds: "Police ombudsman investigators spoke to a former special branch detective who said he had wanted to arrest Father Chesney in the months after the bombing," it explains, "but that this had been refused by the assistant chief constable (ACC) special branch, who had advised that 'matters are in hand.'"

Senior politicians feared the arrest of a priest in connection with such an atrocity – at a time when sectarian killings in Northern Ireland were out of control and the province stood on the brink of civil war – could destabilise the security situation even further.

A deal was therefore arranged behind closed doors to remove Chesney from the province without provoking sectarian fury. Documents seen by the police ombudsman show that the ACC wrote to the Northern Ireland Office (NIO) on 30 November 1972 saying that he had been considering "what action, if any, could be taken to render harmless a dangerous priest, Father Chesney", and suggesting: "Our masters may find it possible to bring the subject into any conversations they may be having with the cardinal or bishops at some future date."

An NIO official wrote back a week later confirming that the secretary of state, Willie Whitelaw, had held a meeting with Cardinal Conway, the head of the Catholic church in Ireland, and: "The cardinal said that he knew that the priest was a very bad man and would see what could be done. The cardinal mentioned the possibility of transferring him to Donegal."

A number of senior RUC officers, including the then chief constable, Sir Graham Shillington, saw the correspondence. Shillington commented on the letter: "I would prefer Tipperary". (Donegal is only just across the border with the Irish Republic; Tipperary is 200 miles south.)

Church records confirm the deal: "An entry in Cardinal Conway's diary for 5 December 1972 confirms that the meeting with the secretary of state took place. It records that he had a "rather disturbing tête-à-tête at the end about C".

Chesney was subsequently ordered to take sick leave in early 1973, and was transferred to a parish in County Donegal later that year. When questioned by his superiors, he denied involvement in the Claudy bombings. He died in 1980.

The Northern Ireland secretary, Owen Paterson, said: "For my part, on behalf of the government, I am profoundly sorry that Father Chesney was not properly investigated for his suspected involvement in this hideous crime, and that the victims and their families have been denied justice.

He added: "My anger at the actions of those responsible for the attack is matched in strength by my sorrow that the survivors of the atrocity and the relatives of the dead did not see those responsible brought to justice for their crimes.

"I recognise, of course, that all those involved in combating terrorism at the time were making decisions in exceptionally difficult circumstances and under extreme pressure."

In a joint statement Seán Brady, the archbishop of Armagh, and Séamus Hegarty, the Bishop of Derry, described the bombing as "an appalling crime", saying: "We accept the ombudsman's findings and conclusions."

They added: "Throughout the Troubles, the Catholic church, along with other churches in Northern Ireland, was constant in its condemnation of the evil of violence. It is therefore shocking that a priest should be suspected of involvement in such violence.

"This case should have been properly investigated and resolved during Father Chesney's lifetime. If there was sufficient evidence to link him to criminal activity, he should have been arrested and questioned at the earliest opportunity, like anyone else. We agree with the police ombudsman that the fact this did not happen failed those who were murdered, injured and bereaved in the bombings."

It is believed Chesney joined the south Derry brigade of the IRA in early 1972 in response to the killings of civil rights protesters in Derry on Bloody Sunday by British soldiers.

All the senior figures involved in the deal to remove Chesney and hush up his role have since died. The police ombudsman's inquiry stresses there is no evidence to suggest that any intelligence was discovered before the attack that could have prevented the atrocity.

In a highly critical conclusion, the report states: "For senior police officers to have had the weight of intelligence and information that they had pointing to Father Chesney's possible involvement in terrorism and not to have pursued lines of inquiry, which could potentially have implicated him in or eliminated him from the investigation, was wrong and compromised their investigation into the Claudy bombings."

The decision amounted to collusion between the church and the state, according to the police ombudsman, Al Hutchinson. "I accept that 1972 was one of the worst years of the Troubles and that the arrest of a priest might well have aggravated the security situation," he said. "Equally, I consider that the police failure to investigate someone they suspected of involvement in acts of terrorism could, in itself, have had serious consequences.

"In the absence of explanation the actions of the senior RUC officers, in seeking and accepting the government's assistance in dealing with the problem of Father Chesney's alleged wrongdoing, was by definition a collusive act."

Had the participants in the deal still been alive, Hutchinson said, "their actions would have demanded explanation which would have been the subject of further investigation".

Claudy bombings cover-up revealed in police report | UK news | guardian.co.uk




Dopo la rivelazione ufficiale dell'attentato di Claudy, diretto da un prete cattolico, altri casi stanno emergendo di complicità diretta tra membri del clero e terrorismo cattolico



Three more IRA priests in Claudy link

Revelation of further clergy involvement in 1972 massacre prompts calls for full inquiry into cover-up


Calls have been made for a full public inquiry into the role of clergymen in terrorism after The Observer learnt that three more priests were involved with the Provisional IRA at the time of the 1972 Claudy bomb massacre.

One of the priests was the IRA's officer commanding the Provos' North Antrim Brigade. He cannot be named for legal reasons.

The other priests who joined the IRA at the beginning of the Ulster Troubles were Father Patrick Fell and Father John Burns.

Fell served more than 10 years in an English jail over a conspiracy to cause explosions in Coventry during the early Seventies. He was convicted alongside Frank Stagg and Michael Gaughan, two IRA men who died on hunger strike in English prisons.

On his release Fell, like the priest who bombed Claudy, Father James Chesney, was allowed to serve as a priest in a rural parish in Donegal.

In 1972, Burns disappeared from his parish at St Theresa's Catholic Church in the Possilpark area of Glasgow. He fled back to Ireland after Strathclyde police raided his home searching for weapons and explosives. He was given sanctuary by fellow priests but later left the priesthood.

The role of the priests emerged following revelations that the Catholic hierarchy and the British Government colluded to cover-up the involvement of Chesney in the Claudy atrocity.

Chesney was a member of the IRA unit that left three 'no warning' bombs in the Co Derry village in July 1972. Nine people including three children were killed.

Chesney's involvement in the massacre was discussed at a private meeting in December 1972 between the first Northern Ireland Secretary William Whitelaw and Cardinal William Conway, leader of Ireland's Catholics.

Documents found by police showed that Whitelaw and Conway were both aware of Chesney's activities. A briefing note was sent by a senior official at the Northern Ire land Office to police headquarters the next day.

Assistant Chief Constable Sam Kincaid - the officer currently investigating Claudy - said the letter states that the cardinal mentioned the possibility of transferring the priest to Donegal. By January 1973 'intelligence suggested he was working there'.

Chesney was actually transferred to a parish at Malin Head, in Co Donegal across the border. He died from cancer in 1980.

Last night, a prominent community activist in Derry called for the resignation of the Catholic hierarchy in Ireland. Proinsias O'Mianain, a leading figure in the Irish language movement and a Catholic, also demanded a public inquiry.

'These people should have been reported to the police as soon as their murderous activities came to light. But instead the Church just moved them to remote parishes in the Irish Republic ... and then engaged in a conspiracy of silence which blocked investigations.'

David Trimble, the Ulster Unionist leader, also called for a Bloody Sunday-style inquiry into the Claudy bombing which he said would reveal the role of other priests in terrorism.

Three more IRA priests in Claudy link | UK news | The Observer

Qui l'articolo dell'observer sugli altri preti implicati nel terrorismo nordirlandese



queste furono le vittime dell'attentato organizzato dal prete

Patrick Connolly, 15 The teenager died in hospital over a week after being caught up in the first blast, outside McElhinney's pub and shop.

Kathryn Eakin, 9 The girl was cleaning the windows of the family's grocery on Main Street when the first bomb exploded.

Arthur Hone, 38 The married father of two died a fortnight after the bombing. Two of his uncles – both priests – conducted a requiem mass at the insurance salesman's funeral.

Joseph McCluskey, 39 The factory worker died instantly when the first bomb detonated.

Elizabeth McElhinney, 59 The owner of the pub and shop where the first car bomb went off was serving petrol from the shop's pump when she was killed.

James McClelland, 65 The street cleaner was killed by the third and final bomb, planted in a minivan.

Rose McLaughlin, 52 The mother of eight and cafe owner died in hospital four days after the attack.

David Miller, 60 The street cleaner was killed by the third blast.

William Temple, 16 The milkman's helper from nearby Donemana, in County Tyrone, was on his round in the village when the bombs went off.

Victims of the Claudy bombings | UK news | guardian.co.uk

[Scipione]

........Uno dei piu violenti attentati terroristici compiuti dall'IRA, fu orchestrato da un prete cattolico, capo dell'organizzazione terroristica nella zona. Invece di essere arrestato fu protetto e condannato, si fa per dire, ad essere trasferito di parrocchia,,,,,,,,,

Mio caro, egli non ha fatto altro che applicare il messaggio evangelico:

“Non pensate che io sia venuto a portare pace sulla terra; non sono venuto a portare una pace, ma una spada” (Mt 10,34)

Amen...... hefico: :gluglu:

[codino]

in Italia, invece, abbiamo avuto prevalentemente terroristi laici...hefico:

[Scipione]

In altri tempi il terrorismo lo esercitava sistematicamente la chiesa cattolica apostolica romana. Ma guarda un po'.... hefico: :gluglu:

[edera rossa]

potrebbero offrire una diocesi a monsignor Cappucci ,che parrocci adatti certamente non mancheranno.

[edera rossa]

in Italia, invece, abbiamo avuto prevalentemente terroristi laici...hefico:

parecchi dei quali sono usciti dalla Università Cattolica o da quella facoltà di sociologia di Trento voluta dal mondo cattolico. E senza dimenticare quelli dell'autonomia aventi come leader morale, si fa per dire, una delle più belle promesse del vivaio di Monsignor Bordignon.

[P958]

hai dimenticato i finanzieri ladri

[Ricky86]

parecchi dei quali sono usciti dalla Università Cattolica o da quella facoltà di sociologia di Trento voluta dal mondo cattolico. E senza dimenticare quelli dell'autonomia aventi come leader morale, si fa per dire, una delle più belle promesse del vivaio di Monsignor Bordignon.

Non so, forse si riferiva a Freda e compagnia bella..

[Fritz]

parecchi dei quali sono usciti dalla Università Cattolica o da quella facoltà di sociologia di Trento voluta dal mondo cattolico. E senza dimenticare quelli dell'autonomia aventi come leader morale, si fa per dire, una delle più belle promesse del vivaio di Monsignor Bordignon.

In ogni caso il punto centrale dello scandalo sta nella totale impunità garantita a questo terrorista per via del suo stato sacerdotale. Punità protetta e ricercata dal capo della chiesa irlandese dell'epoca.

Questo, codino fa finta di non capirlo. Cosi come quando replicano agli scandali di pedofilia "eh ma ci sono anche un sacco di pedofili che non son preti".

[Elisabetta]

In ogni caso il punto centrale dello scandalo sta nella totale impunità garantita a questo terrorista per via del suo stato sacerdotale. Punità protetta e ricercata dal capo della chiesa irlandese dell'epoca.

Questo, codino fa finta di non capirlo. Cosi come quando replicano agli scandali di pedofilia "eh ma ci sono anche un sacco di pedofili che non son preti".

Si, è questa la cosa peggiore. E' successo sempre, anche con la pedofilia, il prete veniva semplicemente spostato, così che poteva ripetere gli abusi nella nuova sede! I preti, nonostante quello che dice la dottrina, e cioè che sarebbero i rappresentanti del signore, sono solo uomini: se la chiesa prendesse una posizione e consegnasse allo stato quelli che sbagliano, così che fossero puniti, come succede nella società civile, non sarebbe colpevolizzata di niente. Così è complice e, come tale, colpevole.