JUSTICE FOR the Forgotten, the organisation representing victims of the Troubles in the Republic, says it will be formally wound up in the next two weeks unless funding can be found.
The Government has confirmed it is discontinuing its funding of the group’s Dublin office because it is focusing its budget in the area on a crime victims’ unit.
The group’s spokeswoman, Margaret Urwin, said it was being discriminated against by virtue of geography, arguing that numerous programmes exist in the North for similar groups.
“Similar organisations do what we do north of the Border and will continue to be funded through British, EU and US funding sources.”
It is understood the cost of running the office is close to €145,000 a year, a sum that takes in salaries, counselling and organising commemorative reunion events such as the annual anniversary of the Dublin-Monaghan bombings.
In a statement, the Department of Justice said its priority was to ensure victims who required ongoing medical treatment for injuries sustained in bombings and other incidents would continue.
The group, which was established in 1996 and given State funding in 2001, persuaded the Government to set up the Hamilton inquiry, which led to the publication of the Barron report.