Sir, – In his piece (Opinion, August 4th) Michael Harding makes a reasonable and cogent defence of Seán Quinn and expresses many of the views held by the majority of the people in the Cavan/Fermanagh Border area, myself and all my family included.
However, in his account of the terrible atrocities visited on this region during the course of the Troubles, he makes a gross factual error. He cites five historical cases of murder, the victim(s) in each case being readily identifiable to your readers in the Fermanagh and west Cavan area. The last case he describes thus; “I passed the site of an old garage where an IRA leader was taken out by the SAS.”
That man was my uncle and I cannot understand how he can so casually make such a claim as if it were a fact. A recent inquiry by the Historical Inquiries Team did not make such a claim, nor was such a claim made at the time of his death.
Neither has it been established who exactly murdered him. I recognise that opinion writers may not be expressing the editorial view of The Irish Times. I do find it unacceptable that a dead man, whose voice along with the voices of thousands of others, calls from beyond the grave for justice should be treated in such a way by Ireland’s paper of record.
Perhaps the next time Michael Harding is talking to the General (Life Features, August 7th) he would heed his warning not to be so rash and reckless, especially when it comes to checking his facts. – Yours, etc,