06/04/2011

Unity As Murdered PSNI Man Buried

This is to be a series of political 'firsts' taking place today in Northern Ireland.

The Irish Premier, Enda Kenny, is attending the funeral of murdered PSNI Constable Ronan Kerr.

The Taoiseach is coming North to attend an NI policeman's funeral for the first time as the Stormont First Minister Peter Robinson also said he will attend the funeral of murdered PSNI officer Ronan Kerr on Wednesday.

The DUP Leader will be in a Roman Catholic chapel today having said he wished to attend "and convey my respect for a brave young policeman".

The Gaelic Athletic Association and the PSNI are also both expected to form a guard of honour as murdered policeman, Ronan Kerr, is buried today

The PSNI man's funeral will be attended by the Ulster Unionist Party Leader, Tom Elliott, the Sinn Fein Deputy First Minister, Martin McGuinness, the Irish opposition leader Micheal Martin and several NI church leaders.

Ulster Unionist Leader Tom Elliott has already condemned the appearance of offensive graffiti regarding the murder of Constable Ronan Kerr.

It was scrawled on a pub wall in the Bogside area of Londonderry.

As he prepared to attend the Church of St Patrick in Drumduff, near Beragh, Mr Elliott said of the now-removed mocking words: "This graffiti is absolutely sickening and a reminder that in spite of the outpouring of sympathy and sorrow in the wake of the callous and brutal murder of Constable Kerr, there are still those in society who reside firmly in the gutter."

NI Secretary Owen Paterson will represent the British Government at the service.

The PSNI Chief Constable Matt Baggott and his counterpart from the Irish police Martin Callinan will also pay their respects, while at the same time, the Irish Congress of Trade Unions has organised a lunchtime rally in Belfast on Wednesday to allow people to express their abhorrence at the killing.

He said yesterday in a statement to the Dáil that he wanted to "convey utter abhorrence for the brutal and senseless killing of Constable Ronan Kerr".

"In totally condemning the callous killing of a young man who had decided to dedicate his life to protecting the people of Northern Ireland, I am joined by all of the political voices on these islands," he said,

Constable Kerr is the second officer to have been killed since the Royal Ulster Constabulary became the PSNI in 2001.

Constable Stephen Carroll was shot dead in a gun attack in Craigavon in March 2009.

(BMcC/KMcA)

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