The parents of a British soldier murdered by the IRA yesterday marked the first anniversary of his death in the south Armagh village of Bessbrook by donating a park bench to local people dedicated to "all the victims of violence".
Mrs Rita Restorick, whose son Stephen was shot in an IRA sniper attack as he manned a checkpoint on the outskirts of the village, said the conflict was "not worth one more drop of blood", and she called on people to urge politicians not to take a hardline stance in the talks process.
Wearing a peace badge with the symbol of a white dove, Mrs Restorick said she wanted to share the anniversary with the people of Bessbrook. "I feel a closeness with the people here," she said.
Before the ceremony, she embraced Mrs Lorraine McElroy, the woman who was speaking to Lance Bombardier Restorick as he was shot. She was slightly injured in the attack and has now decided to move out of the village, saying her life has never been the same since.
"In any situation where you've been involved in a tragedy like that, you have memories," she said. "But Bessbrook has checkpoints at every possible entrance to it, so every time I leave our home I have to go through a checkpoint. I am brought back to the horrific thing that happened there. I feel I can't heal as long as I am here." About 150 people from both sides of the community attended the short ceremony in College Square in the centre of the village. Children from the local Catholic high school were also present. Prayers for peace were led by the local Church of Ireland rector, Archdeacon Raymond Hoey, and the parish priest of Bessbrook, Father John Bradley. A local SDLP councillor, Mr Stephen McGinn, boycotted the ceremony in protest at the security presence around Bessbrook. However, his party colleague, the chairman of the local council, Mr Charles Smyth, did attend. Sinn Fein councillors also stayed away, and there was no military presence.
Mr Danny Kennedy, an Ulster Unionist councillor, said he believed Mr McGinn had made an error of judgment. "It was not an appropriate day to protest about the security presence," he said. The simple park bench, located beside a playground in the square, bears an inscription: "In memory of the victims of violence in the Bessbrook area".
Mrs Restorick, who was accompanied by her husband, John, said they wanted a memorial to their son, but also to all the other people who had died.
"We particularly wanted the seat to reflect that. It is a memorial to all of them. I hope the community here will appreciate that fact, and will make full use of it, to sit and look at the lovely view and at the children playing."
The Restoricks have visited the North on numerous occasions since the death of their son and have become involved in peace campaigns.
Mrs Restorick said: "It's not worth any more lives. You have to sit down and talk, and respect each other's traditions, each other's views, and try and find some common ground.
"The people must show the politicians that that's what they want, and that they don't want politicians to take hardline standpoints."