Families to deliver submission to Policing Board re HET Today

Families outside Policing Board meeting today

Today the Policing Board will hold its first full and proper meeting since the HMIC inspection report into the HET.

Throughout the month of August Relatives for Justice (RFJ) held a series of meetings with families to assess their views and formulate a way forward in terms of addressing conflict related killings. Over 300 families bereaved by all participants to the conflict and who have engaged or are still engaged in the HET process took part in the meetings.
Today at 2pm RFJ and a number of bereaved relatives will deliver a letter and short submission of the views expressed by the families to members of the Policing Board.
Families will hold a short gathering, some carrying photographs of their loved ones.
All will call for the HET to go. 
Of the families who were part of the meetings none wanted the HET to remain or to be involved in examining the killings of their loved ones.
They have absolutely no confidence in the ability of the HET. It is beyond reform.
Families will ask the Policing Board to dissolve the HET and to put their energies into creating a proper independent investigative process aimed at getting to the truth and in providing accountability.
Families will also raise the matter of the Chief Constable having knowledge that the HET practice of examining killings carried out by the British Army were unlawful since at least 2010 when the PPS wrote to him advising of this yet he continued to support that practice until July 2013 until the HMIC made this public.
Families will also raise the fact that despite examining hundreds of killings in which collusion was a feature, including evidenced via other reports, that the HET have yet to make a finding of collusion. This is incredulous for families from all sides of the community affected by collusion.
Families and RFJ will be available for comment at the Policing Board offices from 2pm.

For further information please contact Mark Thompson on 07739876128
Mark Thompson
Director
Stiúrthóir
Gaolta ar son na Córa
Relatives For Justice
39 Glen Road
Belfast
BT11 8BB
Ireland
Tel: +44 (28) 90627171
Fax: +44(28) 90627131
Follow us on Twitter @RelsForJustice