Twenty-five years after a Northern Ireland peace agreement, a controversial new law bans prosecution of crimes dating to the Troubles. Supporters deem it reconciliation. Victims see denial of justice.
BELFAST, Northern Ireland, and LONDON — It was a warm June night in 1991 when a phone call came that would change Martha Seaman's life forever."That was the beginning of a lifetime of misery," Seaman, now 80, says."To this day, I don't think I'll ever get over it."
They spread photos of Pvt. Harrison across the kitchen table. In one, 17-year-old Harrison poses in camouflage, a slightly too-big helmet askew on his head. In another, he laughs with a friend. "What I hope is that it will ultimately allow society in Northern Ireland to move on," says Jonathan Michael Caine, a U.K. lawmaker who sponsored the legislation in the House of Lords, the upper house of Parliament., gates and barbed wire. The British government, which governs the region, hopes this law can help locals put the conflict behind them. Supporters call it a key part of reconciliation."There are families who still want answers," Caine acknowledges.
"To my mind, it doesn't meet our international obligations and it doesn't meet our moral obligations," says O'Loan, who serves in the House of Lords and voted against the bill."Can you imagine if you were a little child and gunmen murdered your father or mother in front of you? If you're a young teenager going out for the night and somebody planted a bomb and killed all your friends?" O'Loan asks.
He now works as a trauma mediator, helping other survivors and victims seek the same degree of resolution as him.Paul Crawford holds a photograph of his mother and father at his home in Glenavy. His father John Crawford was shot dead in 1974 in front of the West Belfast furniture factory he ran.Paul Crawford holds a photograph of his mother and father at his home in Glenavy. His father John Crawford was shot dead in 1974 in front of the West Belfast furniture factory he ran.
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