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Northern Ireland: in brief (6)

01 January 1991

Northern Ireland: in brief
artdoc August=1993

Documents denied: Sir Patrick Mayhew, the Northern Ireland
Secretary, has refused to hand over a number of secret inquiry
reports pertaining to security forces activities in Northern
Ireland. The documents had been requested by Federal judge
Barbara Caulfield who is presiding over the Californian
extradition trial of James Smyth, one of 38 Maze Prison escapers
of 1983. Caulfield recently granted Smyth bail, but this was
revoked by an appeal court at the end of July.

Arming women: the British Army and the RUC have both announced
changes in policy regarding the arming of women. From October the
British Army intends to deploy women to drive armoured personnel
carriers and they will be equipped with SA80 assault rifles and
pistols. Women are currently used in an unarmed capacity
particularly at checkpoints. `The British Army is now an equal
opportunities employer', stated a defence source, `it is not
right to say we'll give equal opportunities but you can't go to
Northern Ireland'. In a similar move, women RUC officers,
numbering about 1,300, will carry weapons from April 1994. The
announcement follows a long campaign for equality which has been
opposed by some women on the grounds that they will become more
of a target.

UDR 4 case: Three serving and two former RUC officers have been
charged with offences arising out of the UDR 4 case in which
three of the four had their life sentences for the murder of
Adrian Carroll quashed. Forensic tests had revealed that RUC
interview notes had been substantially re-written. The three
released men have each received Ã25,000 as an initial
compensation payment.

Statewatch vol 3 no 4 July-August 1993