Written before the Good Friday Agreement at a time when the 'armed struggle' was still part of daily life in Northern Ireland this article, though inevitably somewhat dated, this remains a cogent analysis of the recent history of Ireland.
Spy Cops Inquiry: an Undercover Officer Used Me to Rise to the Top of Our Movement novaramedia.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from novaramedia.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
A SPYCOP who stole the identity of a deceased child dismissed the fact that the ghoulish practice caused distress to families, a public inquiry heard today.
The former undercover officer, who used the cover name “Michael James,” claimed that it was “immoral” to suggest that the practice posed a moral problem.
At least 42 officers are known to have stolen elements of dead children’s identities for their fake profiles, a practice which became embedded in secretive police units that infiltrated protest groups.
Bereaved families have said that the abhorrent practice abused the memory of their loved ones, some of whom died when they were babies.
by Bethany Rielly
SPECIAL branch kept tabs on journalists seeking to publicise how campaigners exposed a police spy who infiltrated protest groups in the 1970s, a public inquiry heard today.
Undercover officer Richard Clark spied on the Troops Out Movement (TOM), a campaign calling for British soldiers to be withdrawn from Northern Ireland, and quickly rose through the ranks. For a period of several months he even headed the entire movement.
Clark, who used the cover name Rick Gibson, later moved on to infiltrate revolutionary group Big Flame, but campaigners grew suspicious of him and launched an extensive investigation into his background.
by Bethany Rielly
A FORMER undercover officer told an inquiry today that he punched a campaigner as a form of “justice” after the man accused him of being a police spy.
The officer, who used the cover name Michael Scott, carried out the “cold and calculated” attack while infiltrating protest groups in the 1970s, including anti-apartheid and Irish solidarity organisations.
The spycop broke his little finger after hitting campaigner Gerry Lawless, who had accused him in a public meeting of the Troops Out Movement of being an undercover officer.
Giving evidence to the Undercover Policing Inquiry, Mr Scott said he felt that the punch was the “only sensible way” to deal with the accusation and maintain his cover.