Newspaper columnist Kevin Myers has told the Smithwick Tribunal he would not be prepared to reveal the identity of sources behind a March 2000 column which alleged at last 12 killings were carried out by the IRA with the aid of a mole in Dundalk Garda station.
Myers told the tribunal his sources for the column, part of An Irishman's Diary series in The Irish Times, were a former "republican terrorist" and a retired senior garda as well as information contained in the book Bandit Country, by journalist Toby Harnden.
In response to a question from Dermott McGuinness SC, for An Garda, Mr Myers said if he was asked to write down the identities on a piece of paper for tribunal chairman Judge Peter Swithwick, he would have to refuse.
The question and answer followed a series of robust replies to questions from Mr McGuinness in which Myers repeatedly said a statement he made to gardaí 11 years ago, may not be an entirely accurate reflection of the conversation.
Asked by Mr McGuinness why he had signed his statement on the top and bottom of each page and now appeared to criticise gardaí over its accuracy, Myers replied: “I am sorry, I will not tolerate that interpretation of what I have said”.
He explained there had been no stenographers present when the statement was taken and the gardaí had no shorthand skills. He also said some words in the answers may have been part of language which had not been introduced by him, but had arisen in conversation with the gardaí.
In particular, Myers made reference to his words in the statement which referred to an IRA “cell” in Dundalk. He said “cell” may not have been a word initially introduced by himself.
“You are an experienced barrister,” he told Mr McGuinness, adding the lawyer would know statements were often a brief resume of what had been said.
Myers also said his failure to mention the former IRA activist as a source for the article, when making the statement, had been an attempt to protect his source.
But Mr McGuinness asked him why he had not offered similar protection to his second source, whom he had mentioned as a retired garda. “So you are catching me here,” Myers replied.
“I was at fault in not insisting on a more precise summary of what I said,” he told Judge Smithwick.
On another occasion, Myers complained about the line of questioning employed by Mr McGuinness saying, “you are asking me about things I did not say”.
In relation to detailed knowledge of some of the killings referred to in his newspaper column, Myers said: “Are you going to go through a series of questions to show how little Kevin Myers knows? If my being here is merely an opportunity to belittle me – that is not the respect I deserve”.
Myers said he did not keep notes and it was a difficult task to differentiate between what he knows now, and what he knew 11 years ago when he made the statement to gardaí.
He confirmed after the newspaper column appeared he had travelled to Newry to speak to the RUC but would not have been prepared to name the garda whom he believed was an IRA mole in Dundalk Garda station.
He said he had believed when he wrote the article that just one garda was involved but later discovered the activities he described involved at least two and possibly more than that.
In relation to revealing the identity of his sources, Myers said his information was not based solely on Mr Harnden’s book but he could not name others as journalists “do not disclose the identity of sources who could die as a result” of their identities becoming known.
