Book launch after reporter's death

Mr O'Hagan was shot yards from his Lurgan home

A collection of stories written by a Northern Ireland journalist who was murdered by loyalist paramilitaries has been unveiled.

Stories from the Edge features 15 stories about people involved in all kinds of volunteering work in Northern Ireland.

It was penned by Sunday World reporter Martin O'Hagan, 51, before he was shot dead in Lurgan, County Armagh, in October.

The Red Hand Defenders, a cover name used in the past by the Loyalist Volunteer Force and the Ulster Defence Association, said it carried out the murder.

Martin O'Hagan: Launch of book

Mr O'Hagan had responded to a request from the Volunteer Development Agency, through the National Union of Journalists, to write a book as a legacy for the International Year of Volunteers 2001.

It tells the story of volunteering - from conservation work to animal protection, street collection to befriending, community action to gay rights.

The book was launched at the Linenhall Library in Belfast on Wednesday evening.

Wendy Osbourne, director of the Volunteer Development Agency, said its unveiling filled the organisation with mixed feelings.

His observations about his fellow man and life in general make the book a great read

Wendy Osbourne

"The book that we planned was to be a legacy of volunteering work in Northern Ireland, recognising just some of the people that make a real difference to the lives of many people daily," she said.

"The fact that it was written by Martin O'Hagan and completed before his tragic death, makes it a legacy to Martin's skills as a journalist.

"Martin had a wonderful style of writing, his humour is evident and his observations about his fellow man and life in general make the book a great read."

Mr O'Hagan and his wife, Marie, had been enjoying a night out at the Carnegie Inn in Lurgan before he was killed as the pair walked home.

The weapon used to kill the father-of-three was understood to have been linked to a previous LVF shooting.

RUC Chief Constable Sir Ronnie Flanagan said at the time that police inquiries were concentrating on the LVF.

Mr O'Hagan worked in the Belfast office of the Dublin-based Sunday World, where he built a reputation covering paramilitary and drugs-related stories.

He had been working on a number of stories involving LVF members before his death.