'Acknowledgement' and 'apology'
52. Just as the conflict in Northern Ireland has
diminished the quality of life in all sorts of ways for a majority
of people for over 30 years, and has in a real sense 'victimised'
everyone, so we heard that there are many who need to take responsibility
for the situation which resulted directly and indirectly in the
deaths of thousands and widespread physical and mental trauma,
including some of those acting in the name of the United Kingdom
government.[85]
53. It is true that many in Northern Ireland "refuse
to accept that they did anything wrong or that their action (or
inaction) was complicit in perpetuating the conflict",[86]
but we were struck forcibly by how often those who wrote or spoke
to us sought relief from the acknowledgement by others of a shared
responsibility for the tragedy in Northern Ireland of the past
decades.
54. The power of such acts was also expressed in
the words of one witness who sought to stress that the process
of 'truth recovery' "could usefully begin with an acknowledgement
on the part of all the key players of their part in the conflict.
She considered that "Such acknowledgement can 'loosen up'
the resistance to reconciliation" and instanced the Prime
Minister's recent apology as " a useful contribution to this
process."[87]
55. While the advantages of such actions may be manifest,
extreme difficulties emerge when the demand for 'acknowledgement'
appears to stray over into 'apology', and some of these difficulties
were expressed vividly and lucidly by the representative of a
Loyalist organisation, the Ex-prisoners interpretative centre
( EPIC):
"I would have preferred to have lived my life
and caused no harm to anyone, but given the circumstances that
I was brought up in and the political conflict that raged at that
time, I certainly was not sorry about what I was engaged in at
that time. Certainly, with hindsight there could have been better
ways to do things and that is how I would look to give some reparation
to the community, use my influence and my experience to impress
upon young people that violence is perhaps not the best way to
go about resolving conflict. If I can do that then I will have
performed some service, but to express remorse for something that
happened 20 or 30 years ago, at that time I believed in what I
was doing was right."[88]
56. While a measure of understanding of the circumstances
in which the heinous acts of the past were committed may be necessary,
such understanding alone is not sufficient to provide a means
of future 'reconciliation'. This is particularly so when the anger
of those who have been the unwitting victims of acts of extreme
violence remains raw years after an outrage, and they are uncertain
about how any process of 'reconciliation' or 'dealing with the
past' can start in their own lives.[89]
Arriving at a balance between acknowledgment of, and apology for,
past violence is a profoundly difficult issue for all those concerned.
57. What is not at issue is the strength of the desire
for apologies on the part of the victims of terrorism. We heard
that 'apology' can take many forms, and serve many purposes. For
example, Mrs Janet Hunter told us that "The best apology
they could give me is never again to pick up a gun, bullet or
harm another human being in this Province."[90]
We heard a similar point, "If the peace process were to go
forward I would be quite happy if the 17 B-men never said they
were sorry as long as nobody's children or grandchildren had to
go through what we went through."[91]
58. Mrs Gourley said "I think that there do
need to be apologies right from the top down and from all the
political parties."[92]
Mrs Maureen Mitchell said "They [terrorists] need to admit
it. I am not saying that they have to go down on their knees;
that is not going to make any difference to people, but they have
got to acknowledge that they did wrong."[93]
Mrs Deane told us movingly that "The point of having an apology
right across the board is to begin to respect each other and for
me to say that you are different but that does not mean that I
should wipe you off the face of the earth. That is a reason I
would ask for an apology, for the community. I do not need one
for myself because I have forgiven and that is me personally."[94]
These eloquent words spoken by witnesses who have been touched
most tragically by the brutality of the past speak for themselves.
59. When we raised the question of apologies with
the Secretary of State he said that "governments have to
say sorry and paramilitary organisations have to say sorry".
He also pointed to uncertainty about whether "such general
apologies have the impact that people think they might have upon
the reconciliation process", and suggested that a "more
bottom-up process where you actually deal with individual human
beings and their problems is the most effective way because people
differ so much."[95]
He considered that one task for the postponed government consultation
on ways of dealing with Northern Ireland's past was to assess
the importance of general apologies by the government and other
organisations.
60. The difficulties of assuming personal responsibility
for the problems that have scarred Northern Ireland are obvious.
Equally obvious, from what our witnesses have told us, is the
profound power of wholehearted 'acknowledgment' and 'apology'
in re-establishing the mutual respect between the people and communities
of Northern Ireland, and beginning to heal the personal agony
of individuals, that is the foundation for a truly shared future.
The extent of the brutalisation and agony suffered by Northern
Ireland over the past decades is so great that there is surely
room for all those who have been involved to bear a measure of
public witness to their culpability.
61. Not everyone is ready to accept apologies
from perpetrators of crimes arising from the conflict, and it
is probable that some people, for perfectly understandable reasons,
will never be able to do so. It is also important that apologies
are couched in ways which do not diminish the deaths, injuries
and sacrifices made by the people of Northern Ireland. Apologies
by themselves are not likely to transform mutual incomprehension
and mistrust. We are convinced, however, that acts of contrition
are a key element in the overall construction of a shared future.
As always, we look to the government to demonstrate active leadership
in seeking to build a positive future for Northern Ireland, and
in this spirit we expect it to continue to reflect carefully on
how 'acknowledgement' and 'apology' can play a part in this central
process.
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