Visit to IRA memorial

Memorials have angered relatives of IRA victims

Representatives of the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission have inspected an IRA memorial in County Fermanagh.

They also met representatives of victims of violence in the area on Wednesday to discuss whether there are human rights implications in the siting of the memorial, which is in Belleek.

The memorial was put up three months ago and caused outrage among the relatives of two Protestant workmen who were murdered by republicans in Belleek in 1998.

William Hazard and Frederick Love had been carrying out work at Belleek RUC Station when they were shot at at Slater's Crossroads near the village.

Hurts of the past

Prior to the visit the commissioners met in Enniskillen with representatives of local victims to discuss whether there are any human rights implications in the siting of the memorial.

The Commission's Committee for Victims has for some time been considering how the hurts of the past can most appropriately be addressed in Northern Ireland.

The committee is expected to report to the full commission as to what further work, if any, it might undertake on this topic.

Wednesday's meeting in Enniskillen was requested by a local councillor and the families of individual victims.

Among the commissioners attending were Reverend Harold Good, past President of the Methodist Church in Ireland, who is the chairperson of the Commission's Committee for Victims.