Relatives of the victims of Bloody Sunday have again called on the British government to order a full, independent inquiry into the killings before this week's 26th anniversary.
With the British government expected to make a statement on the events soon, relatives of the 14 men killed by members of the Parachute Regiment on January 30th, 1972, laid a wreath at Westminster Abbey in London yesterday to commemorate the victims at the memorial to those who have died as a result of oppression, violence and war.
Mr Joe McKinney, whose brother William was killed on Bloody Sunday, laid the wreath on behalf of the relatives. Mr Jim Redmond, a member of the Bloody Sunday Justice Campaign group, said the families of those killed had not been able to rebuild their lives because of an absence of justice. While they did not seek revenge, they did seek the truth about the events.
Calling for an independent public inquiry, Mr Redmond insisted it could produce a positive outcome. "If the perpetrators of this terrible event take responsibility for their actions, and their consequences, Bloody Sunday can become a catalyst for peace in Ireland."
However, the Liberal Democrat leader, Mr Paddy Ashdown, said yesterday he did not believe the British should apologise for Bloody Sunday until there had been an inquiry into the events.
Speaking on BBC's Breakfast With Frost, Mr Ashdown, who was a soldier in Belfast at the time of the killings, said: "I think it was the opinion of all those soldiers that something had gone terribly wrong there." He said he thought an inquiry might be "an appropriate way forward" but ultimately it was for the government to decide.
On Saturday hundreds of campaigners took part in a march in north London to mark the anniversary. As the march began at Highbury Fields, Ms Dodie McGuinness of Sinn Fein said she hoped the event would prompt the British government to take a "historic" move and order a public inquiry.
Speaking of his hope for an independent inquiry, Mr McKinney said the relatives did not want compensation: "We just want a result and an inquiry. We want everyone to recognise that the victims were innocent."
The Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, has already stated his intention of publishing the Government's review of the evidence on Bloody Sunday. And amid intense speculation last week that Mr Blair was preparing to make a statement on the killings in the Commons, the Prime Minister told MPs that various government departments were continuing their assessment of the Irish Government's review, and hoped to make a statement "soon".