Quest for justice for Majella O'Hare 'not a vexatious crusade' - brother

By Rebecca Black, PA

The family of a 12-year-old girl shot dead by the Army in Co Armagh 44 years ago have called for an independent investigation into her death.

Majella O'Hare, from Whitecross, had been walking to church on August 14 1976 when she was struck in the back.

At the time soldiers claimed the shooting had been in response to an IRA sniper attack.

A soldier was later charged by the then police force, the RUC, with manslaughter but was acquitted in court.

In 2011, the UK government issued an apology to the O'Hare family in a letter which acknowledged the soldier's courtroom explanation was "unlikely".

Now the family say they want the record set straight on what happened to Majella, and have written to the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) requesting an independent investigation.

Meanwhile, Majella's brother says a push for an independent investigation into Majella's death "is not a vexatious crusade".

Michael O'Hare was 26 when his younger sister was shot dead.

He described how she had been looking forward to going to the beach with friends that day, and had intended to go to confession before they were due to set off.

"As time goes on, it comes back to haunt you what actually happened and you start to think about it so we decided to do something to correct the history of the event which had been logged under the version given by the Army," he told the PA news agency.

"As you get older it becomes more difficult to contend with from the point of view of the trauma of it, and the missing of Majella who was a lovely individual, a young child of 12 years of old. We had that lovely person in our midst and she was taken from us.

"It was a beautiful hot August day, Majella had arranged to go to the seaside with some of her friends, and before they went they had gone to confession.

"Majella was in the middle of going to church and got caught in the middle of an Army checkpoint being set up, walking with a group of younger children, she had a four-year-old child by the hand as they walked out of the checkpoint and away, and then the shot rang out. Majella was hit in the back and she didn't have any chance of survival because it was machine gun fire. Two shells hit her in the back and another one hit the road.

"It wasn't a gun battle at all, there was no other involvement."

Mr O'Hare welcomed the apology from the UK government in 2011, which came before his mother Mary died last year.

The letter, by then defence secretary Liam Fox, also quotes the initial investigation by the RUC and later review by the HET that the soldiers' explanation that they had been under attack by the IRA was "unlikely".

"The very last line reads, 'on behalf of the army and of the government, I am profoundly sorry that this tragic incident should have happened'," he said.

Mr O'Hare emphasised his family want a fresh independent investigation to correct the public record.

"I am not on a vexatious crusade here, all I want from this is that the history of Majella's killing is written honestly," he said.

"I don't know what lies ahead but we are raising the issue again to see if we can get another investigation into it and we can make amends for the wrongs that were done.

"I couldn't possibly say that I want to persecute anyone because it is a long time ago and perhaps the person who committed the offence is persecuted already if they are human at all.

"It's not about a blame game, it is just keeping things in order and getting the acknowledgment. If that comes then who knows what the next phase will be, if there is to be another phase."

He remembered his sister as a beautiful young girl with a love of music, who "never got to fulfil her potential".

Meanwhile, the O'Hare family is being supported by Amnesty International.

Grainne Teggart, the group's Northern Ireland campaign manager, said the story of Majella should be a "matter of national shame for the UK".

"It is utterly appalling that the family have been left without justice for nearly 44 years," she said.

"Majella O'Hare was a young girl of 12 when she was cruelly robbed of her life. The loss had a devastating impact on her family and the grossly inadequate investigation at the time only added to the trauma.

"Decades later, her brother Michael has been left fighting for the independent investigation to which they are entitled."

Darragh Mackin, a solicitor for the O'Hare's family added: "To date, the family for Majella O'Hare have never received the truth, justice or an iota of accountability.

"We have presented the chief constable with the grounds and evidence to which calls for an immediate independent investigation."

The PSNI said they cannot give a date for when a review of the case will commence.

In a statement the PSNI said: "The tragic death of Majella O'Hare currently sits within the caseload of Legacy Investigation Branch (LIB) for future review in accordance with LIB's case sequencing model.

"Regrettably, due to the LIB caseload, which extends to more than 1,100 incidents touching on over 1,400 deaths, we are unable to give any undertaking as to when this review will commence.

"PSNI supports the establishment of alternative legacy architecture however responsibility for that rests within the political sphere.

"In the absence of such alternative arrangements, PSNI will continue to fulfil it's statutory obligations and remain committed to providing the best possible service we can to families who lost loved ones."