The sounds rang out, ‘Bum!’ ‘Bum!’ ‘Bum!’ yet I was oblivious as to what they were. I was filling the kettle at the sink as the first explosion echoed, meandering around the living room when the second resonated, and tending to the back garden when the third disrupted the quiet sky. I was in a daze of unawareness, assuming the ruckus was from a television show or a jet tearing through the sound barrier.
Our bewilderment was disrupted when the news broke that three massive explosions occurred at Dublin’s core, trailed by another in the town of Monaghan. The grim revelation followed that 34 innocent lives were lost and plenty more suffered critical injuries on that horrific day, fifty years ago.
It might seem contemptible to focus attention on one calamity distinct from the countless others that dotted the prolonged disintegration of Northern Ireland since the 1960s. However, the Dublin and Monaghan bombings warrant attention on two specific grounds.
Firstly, it was the most severe incident during the ‘troubles’, as we delicately put it. While it’s a bitter comparison to make, if an event kills one person, it is twice as bad when two are killed.
Secondly, it’s comparatively probable that the United Kingdom, or more specifically, the British government, had considerable involvement in the carnage inflicted on the ordinary inhabitants of Dublin on their native streets. The accusation, if accurate, is tantamount to an act of war. This assertion cannot be conclusively substantiated. Still, current Denton inquiry investigator, Iain Livingstone, affirms there was an alliance between UVF and ominous, state-backed entities. The precise scope and degree of this collusion will likely remain an enigma, either obscured by strategically destroyed records or lost to time before public scrutiny is permissible.
Both the paramilitary loyalists and the terror factions of the Orange party couldn’t perpetrate a significant brutal act without some form of dubious involvement from the ‘security’ forces from the other side of the shore.
The ongoing television drama series ‘Blue Lights’, broadcast on BBBC in the north, revolves around the PSNI reported incidents and involves a scenario where an attorney is delving into the past activities of a group of loyalists. These loyalists, once adversaries, are now set to be revealed. As she begins to uncover the stark reality, she is subtly warned to refrain from doing so. Her police guardian cautions her about keeping herself in ignorance of certain matters.
There are indeed certain aspects we’d rather remain oblivious of. That’s the case for us.
This perspective was not congruent with the 1974 coalition government, deemed the most corrupt administration ever, and it continues to be the standpoint of the British government, not excluding ours, despite the rhetoric that seems to suggest otherwise. The desire for truth to be exposed or unmasked remains unappeased. The question persists- how far up the ladder did the scheming go? The questioning continues- why so? What’s holding up matters? What’s your take on it?