Ideal opportunity to address flawed legislation
08 March 2008
Commenting on reports that legislation to approve the new victims’ commission is to be rushed through Stormont Traditional Unionist MEP Jim Allister said:
“The post of Victims’ Commissioner was created under the terms of the Victims and Survivors (Northern Ireland) Order 2006. In order for the new Victims Commission to become official this order must be amended to turn the post of commissioner into a commission.
“The inability of the joint First Ministers to agree a single appointee has resulted in huge additional cost – all four commissioners will be paid the full £65,000 salary for a job originally designed for one person.
“It is also evident that – to put it mildly - the commission has no confidence within the victims’ sector with OFMDFM fighting 15 victims groups in the courts in order to defend their decision.
“However, moves to amend legislation so as to provide for the establishment of the Commission provide Unionists with the ideal opportunity to address a fundament flaw in the Victims and Survivors Order namely the definition of the term “victim”. The law defines a victim as anyone affected by “a conflict-related incident”. Thus the IRA terrorist killed by his own bomb is put on the same level as the innocent victim murdered at Enniskillen, Omagh, Teeban or Kingsmill.
“It has been alleged that Unionists now run Stormont. Here is the ideal opportunity for the DUP to display their control. Let’s see them amend the definition of victim. However, I expect that the DUP are unlikely to even propose such an amendment because it will expose the fact that Sinn Fein/IRA can block whatever proposals they want."
