Victim's Dad To Address SF Ard Fheis

The campaigning father of a UVF murder victim is to take up an invitation to speak at a major Sinn Fein event.

Raymond McCord - who comes originally from the loyalist Rathcoole estate in Newtownabbey - will make history by becoming the first Protestant victim of the Troubles to address Sinn Fein's Ard Fheis on February 29.

Speaking in advance of the high profile function, Mr McCord said he has "no problem at all" speaking at Sinn Fein's annual conference.

His son Raymond Jnr was gunned down by the UVF in 1997 and Mr McCord will appear in the opening section of the conference to speak on the issue of collusion between paramilitary groups and the security forces.

His long-running campaign over his son's murder resulted last year in a report from former Police Ombudsman Nuala O'Loan which revealed police shielded UVF killers because they were informers.

Mr McCord said: "I was made the offer in the last week. The talk will be about collusion and my son's murder.

"Collusion has affected both sides of the community and the British government have a lot of questions to answer on why so many people were allowed to die when there was so many high level informants. Who was running the Troubles?"

The north Belfast father said he would also be willing to speak at the annual conference of the UVF-linked PUP.

He added: "I have no problems speaking at a Sinn Fein conference. I will speak to any political party. Sinn Fein are giving me the opportunity and I will speak to anyone about this issue and the case of my son Raymond."

A Sinn Fein spokesman said: "The issue of collusion between British state forces and pro-unionist death squads, as well as the role played by agents and informers, is a crucial part of the decades of conflict that has yet to be told."

He alleged that collusion took many forms, but was primarily institutional and run by British security and intelligence agencies.

"This British government, like all its predecessors, has gone to extraordinary lengths to cover-up collusion, including changing the legal basis of any inquiries.

"Raymond McCord Jnr's murder, the campaign of his father, and the Ombudsman's report into the circumstances surrounding the murder has helped lift part of the lid on this significant issue," he concluded.

(BMcC)