Victims of violence in the North have been urged to take part in a major review of the criminal injuries compensation system.
The Northern Ireland Victims' Commissioner, Sir Kenneth Bloomfield, yesterday said he wanted people who felt they were unfairly treated in the past to inform him of their experiences.
Sir Kenneth recommended a review of the system in a report he published in April as Victims' Commissioner. He has since been charged with carrying out that review by the Northern Secretary, Dr Mo Mowlam. He will be assisted by a law professor and a health professional.
Adverts were place in Northern newspapers yesterday urging interested groups and individuals to make contributions to the review.
However, Sir Kenneth stressed that he could not reopen old cases. "If people come forward and establish with us that they were not fairly dealt with, we will certainly say so, but that doesn't necessarily mean that all the hundreds and thousands of cases can be revisited and topped up."
There have been a number of high-profile cases recently where people who had family members killed complained about the level of compensation they received.
Sir Kenneth said yesterday that he had pointed out in his April report, "We Will Remember Them", that many victims felt the interests of paramilitary prisoners were put before those of victims.
"I do feel very strongly that the interests of victims should not be overlooked. That would be intolerable," he said.
He said he did not want to prejudge his review by outlining the problems in the current system, but added: "I wouldn't have made the recommendation if I didn't believe there was something worth looking at here."
The review will be published in March.
In his report on victims, Sir Kenneth recommended the appointment of a "victims' ombudsman". Dr Mowlam instead widened the portfolio of the Security and Economy Minister, Mr Adam Ingram, to include victims. This move was condemned by the families of people killed by the security forces.
Sir Kenneth said yesterday: "I didn't envisage a minister doing it. That wasn't what I recommended, but that's not to say that I see anything wrong with it."