Robert McCartney's sisters have taken their campaign for justice to Europe with meetings in Brussels yesterday with MEPs and the president of the European Commission, Jose Manuel Barroso. The family said they needed to raise €250,000 to fund a civil action against the people they believe were responsible for their brother's murder 10 weeks ago.
"Time is of the essence. We need to get it off the ground very quickly," Paula McCartney said.
Mr Barroso expressed his admiration for the sisters' campaign but said the commission could not interfere with the judicial system of any EU member state.
"I want to reiterate the commission's vehement condemnation of your brother's killing," he said.
"It is not for the commission to interfere with the judicial inquiries and legal procedures of a member state, but the courage, dignity and quest for truth and for justice which the McCartney family embodies deserves to succeed."
Only three sisters - Catherine, Gemma and Paula - travelled to Brussels, citing financial constraints as the reason they were not joined by Claire and Donna and Mr McCartney's partner, Bridgeen Hagans. They met the main political groups in the European Parliament, including the Group of the United European Left, which includes Sinn Féin MEPs Mary Lou McDonald and Bairbre de Brún.
Catherine McCartney told Socialist MEPs that they were no closer to seeing their brother's murderers brought to justice than they were on the day he died.
"Weeks have now gone by and we are coming up against blank wall after blank wall," she said. "This is a question of justice and human rights. We believe that justice and peace can coexist. For justice to exist, however, it is necessary for peace to be sustainable. Sinn Féin has a clear responsibility in this matter."
The president of the European Parliament, Josep Borrell, said violence must be fought in all countries and promised the sisters the support of MEPs. "The doors of the European Parliament will always be open to those who need a public tribune to fight any kind of injustice," he said, "and I will discuss tomorrow with the group chairmen what we - as an institution representing all European citizens - can do to help to break the wall of silence surrounding Robert's murder."
Describing the sisters as "ordinary women doing extraordinary things", Fianna Fáil MEP Brian Crowley promised to work with other groups in the parliament to draft a resolution of support similar to that which was passed by the US Congress last month.
Fine Gael MEP Avril Doyle said the sisters had achieved more in the last two months to bring IRA criminality to the fore than "the establishment North and South of the Border" had managed to achieve in the last decade.