The arrest of Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams for questioning about the murder in 1972 of Jean McConville is the latest example of the highly selective nature of the prosecution process in Northern Ireland.
It seems the only alleged crimes being heavily pursued are those on the nationalist side, with little or no attention to atrocities on the other side.
Thanks to the ill-conceived Boston College oral history project the spooks now have another ream of tapes full of allegations from long ago that cannot possibly be proven, mostly from people who are now dead.
Take a bow BC, Ed Moloney and Anthony McIntyre – you have done a wonderful job on behalf of British spookdom allowing them to whip up a whole new round of empty charges.
Meanwhile, nothing on the nationalist side. The Pat Finucane murder? No action.
The Loughinisland Massacre during the 1994 World Cup game between Ireland and Italy? No action.
The Dublin/Monaghan bombings of 1974 that left 33 dead? No handover of papers from the British government as promised. Oops.
The top human rights attorney was killed, as were six innocent men, including an 87-year-old watching a football match, as were 33 innocent civilians in Dublin and Monaghan yet there has been no resolution whatever.
Talk about one law for the Brits.
ESPN2 aired an excellent program on the Loughinisland case this week called “Ceasefire Massacre.”
The documentary showed that the killings reek of high level British security involvement. Even former UVF figure Billy Hutchinson conceded on the program there was something very fishy.
But good luck if you are seeking a follow-up. So many of the killings during the dirty war were carried out by gunmen acting on the orders of high level secret British forces who covered their tracks well.
I could go on, but it is clear there is really only one target and that is the senior figures in Sinn Fein like Adams, who present such a threat to the established order that they will do anything to bring them down.
The anti-Sinn Feiners are running very scared at the moment. Recent opinion polls in the Irish Republic show the Sinn Fein vote soaring in the upcoming European elections.
In the north, with an increasing nationalist population, there is a decent chance soon of a Sinn Fein led Northern government.
What if they also come to power in the south?
No wonder the spooks are out in full flight.
Adams has little to fear. The tragic circumstances of Jean McConville's death are lost in the mist of time with witnesses long passed on.
Which is why this is such a cynical move at this time. There is zero chance of conviction but the real game is stopping Sinn Fein. They will stoop as low as they can in that regard.
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