The most senior member of the Provisional republican movement to give evidence before the Bloody Sunday inquiry, said yesterday that members of the Provisional IRA should come forward and give evidence about their roles during the Bogside killings of 13 civilians in Derry 30 years ago.
Raymond McCartney (47), the former leader of the Provisional IRA in the Maze Prison during the 1981 hunger strike, told the inquiry's three judges that everybody with information about Bloody Sunday should give evidence.
When asked by Ms Cathryn McGahey, counsel to the inquiry, "Does that include any member of the Provisional IRA?" the witness replied: "If I say everybody, I mean everybody."
McCartney, who spent 57 days on hunger strike in the Maze Prison, was convicted of the murders of industrialist Jeffrey Agate and of Special Branch officer Liam Patrick McNulty, who were shot dead in a six-day period in Derry in January and February 1977. Following his 1979 trial, McCartney was jailed for life, with a recommendation that he should serve a minimum of 25 years.
He said Bloody Sunday was the "contributing factor" to his decision to join the Provisional IRA. He said he never discussed Bloody Sunday with any Provisional IRA members, including Martin McGuinness, who was the IRA's second-in-command in Derry 30 years ago.
McCartney, whose cousin Jim Wray was one of the 13 Bloody Sunday victims, said that several months after the killings, he approached a senior republican, whom he refused to name, about joining the IRA. He returned to the republican several weeks later and said: "Look, I feel that I have weighed up everything in my mind and I am making this decision for the right reasons, namely that I want to be part of a movement that is going to create change in this country."
Nine months later McCartney was jailed for the first time, following his conviction in February 1973 for possession of one round of ammunition.
Cross-examined by Mr Peter Clarke, counsel for most of the Bloody Sunday soldiers, who described McCartney as having "impeccable republican credentials", the witness said that prior to Bloody Sunday he had never considered joining the Provisional IRA.
Questioned by Treasury barrister Mr Gerard Elias, the witness replied "No" when asked if he had been "warned off" giving evidence by senior IRA figures. McCartney agreed that he knew the names of "those in the hierarchy of the IRA" later in 1972, but added he would not give their names to the inquiry.
At the conclusion of his evidence, McCartney was thanked by the inquiry's chairman, Lord Saville, for "joining in the plea of the families that all those who have information that may help us to discover the truth about Bloody Sunday should come forward, including members of paramilitary organisations, so we thank you for that."
However, the chairman said the inquiry could "make an order" for McCartney to disclose the names of IRA members.
"If we did do that, then of course the consequences of refusing to answer a question from the inquiry can be quite serious," Lord Saville said.
When McCartney replied: "I can state very clearly that under no circumstances will I do that," Lord Saville said: "I rather understood that was your position."
The inquiry was adjourned until next Monday.