THE 12 RELATIVES of those killed and injured in the Omagh bombing who won their case against four of five named republicans have finally got some satisfaction from the courts in their 11-year quest for justice. They succeeded in having a court name those it considered responsible for their loss and hold them liable for damages.
The victory has led to speculation that the case may be followed by others as victims of terrorist attacks seek to pursue those suspected of being responsible, and their backers, through the civil courts where there is a lower burden of proof and where an intention to cause a specific death does not have to be proved. Already the London law firm that represented the Omagh relatives has lodged a class action in the US against Colonel Gadafy and Libya on behalf of 143 British families affected by the IRA bombing campaign between 1983 and 1997.
However, the Omagh case arose from a specific set of circumstances which may not be replicated elsewhere. It followed a dismal saga of failure on the part of the state authorities on both sides of the Border to investigate the atrocity and bring those responsible to justice. This was documented first by then Northern Ireland police ombudsman Nuala O’Loan in a 2001 report which revealed a wholesale loss of documents and evidence.
This was followed by a report for the Department of Justice into allegations (deemed to be unfounded) that information that might have prevented the bombing had not been passed on by An Garda Síochána. That has never been published and the Omagh relatives this week renewed their call for a public cross-Border inquiry into the bombings and the investigation.
The journey by the Omagh relatives on the costly and difficult route of a civil action was made possible by a fundraising campaign, supplemented by a special grant from the British government. Parties who lose in a civil action are likely to be liable for costs though in this case the defendants were also legally-aided by the state. Such a course will not be embarked upon easily by others.
No-one will grudge the Omagh families their victory. But such a victory in the civil courts with a monetary award for damages is no substitute for a proper investigation of such an outrageous criminal act and a prosecution brought in the name of the people, supported by solid evidence. When a crime is committed, the victims are not just those immediately affected, but the whole of society whose norms have been violated. That is all the more so when the crime is on such an appalling scale.